Reading Portland is a literary exploration of the city's past and present. In over eighty selections, Portland is revealed through histories, memoirs, autobiographies, short stories, novels, and news reports. This single volume gives voice to women and men; the colonizers and the colonized; white, Hispanic, African American, Asian American, and Indian storytellers; and lower, middle, and upper classes. In his introduction, John Trombold considers the history of writing about a place that has nourished a provocative and errant literary tradition for over 150 years. In the preface, Peter Donahue considers the influence of region--particularly Portland's urbanity and its hybrid population--on literature. Included here are the voices of Carl Abbott, Kathryn Hall Bogle, Beverly Cleary, Robin Cody, Lawson Fusao Inada, Rudyard Kipling, Ursula K. Le Guin, Joaquin Miller, Sandy Polishuk, Gary Snyder, Kim Stafford, Elizabeth Woody, and many more.
"Reading a new Leslie Meier mystery is like catching up with a dear old friend." --Kate Carlisle, New York Times bestselling author With a harsh Maine winter finally over, Lucy Stone is excited to cover the annual Easter egg hunt for the Tinker's Cove Pennysaver. Hosted by elderly socialite Vivian Van Vorst at her oceanfront estate, it's a swanky event where the eggs are as likely to contain savings bonds as jelly beans. But when Lucy arrives at Pine Point, the gates are locked, and a man dressed as the Easter Bunny emerges only to drop dead moments later. . . Lucy discovers that the victim is Vivian's grandson, and all is not well at Pine Point. Vivian has been skipping lunch dates, and her charitable donations have abruptly stopped. Is she going senile? Or are her heirs a little too anxious to take over her estate? As Lucy gathers a basketful of suspects, she'll have to chase the truth down a rabbit hole before a killer with a deadly case of spring fever claims another victim. . . "A fun and engaging read." --The Barnstable Patriot "Delightful. . .Cozy fans will enjoy Lucy's hunt for the truth." --Publishers Weekly "Once again, Meier delivers a top-notch mystery!" --RT Book Reviews
Portlandas Woodlawn neighborhood has transformed from a small autonomous city at the end of the streetcar line to a large, firmly middle-class district of mostly midsized postaWorld War II homes and a few notable Victorian gingerbread-trimmed housesaformer farmhouses that once sat on muddy streets. Woodlawnas quirky angled streets remind residents of a time when the streetcar depot was a major feature of the city. Today an excellent bus service has replaced the streetcars, but most neighbors still enjoy the sounds of the trains at the bottom of the bluff bringing grain to the shipyards and the sweet fragrances wafting down from the cookie factory. The movie theater and firehouse are still standing, but both now serve different purposes. This is a neighborhood where new families are made welcome by the current ones, and where a new generation of volunteers is planning a vital and compassionate neighborhood.
Discover Portland’s best family-friendly outings, activities, attractions, and day trips in this complete, portable guide to family fun. The Family Adventures guides are must-haves for local parents and visitors, as well as babysitters and other family members who want to explore Portland, Seattle, and the surrounding areas with kids. These go-to guides offer comprehensive ideas and listings appropriate for a wide array of ages, from babies and toddlers to young teens. Activities range from exploring children’s museums and other hands-on creative destinations to hiking, swimming, and ziplining, as well as visiting libraries, zoos, playgrounds, and much more, including where to find the best ice cream! Bursting with relevant, reliable information and tips, as well as itineraries for one day or more, these guides will take the place of hours of tedious online research. Instead you’ll find everything you need to know in one book that you can also pop into a bag or stroller and bring along with you. Whether you unexpectedly have a couple of free hours or want to plan a weekend away, grab a Family Adventures guide and make some amazing memories with your kids!
For as long as I can remember, I always wanted to be a pilot, and when I first saw F-80 fighter jets making practice gunnery passes on a firefighting training tower in Anchorage, Alaska, I knew I had to become a fighter pilot. This experience happened when I was 12 years of age and during the period of the Korean War. Seventeen years later I was invited to join the Oregon Air National and informed that I was going to become a fighter pilot in the 123rd Fighter Interceptor Squadron, in Portland, Oregon. The squadron is known as the “Redhawks,” My journey in this chapter of my life began in Miles City, Montana, the place of my birth. Miles City bills itself as “The Cow Capital of the West”, holds an annual bucking horse sale in May of each year, and was the only American city in the contiguous United States to be bombed during World War II. That feat was accomplished by our own U.S. Army Air Corps. On both sides of my family, my grandparents were ranchers and farmers, and the hired workers on the ranch were trustees from the Miles City jail, reform school teenagers, and German POWs. I spent summers in the country and rode a full-size horse at the age of five. I didn’t ride a bicycle, however, until the age of eight when my family moved west to Portland, Oregon. Circumstances in my life, extending into early adulthood, generated a host of highly unusual real-life stories, ranging from the humorous to the tragic, several of which were woven into the fabric of then-current events that made their mark in history. The interesting people I came into contact with during these events contributed significantly to the richness of the experiences. A divorce and remarriages by both of my parents sent my already active early life into a tumultuous spin. In eight grades of schooling, I attended six different elementary schools in three different states plus the Territory of Alaska. Although we were settled for my years in high school and college, those disruptive moves created a restlessness within me that made it a challenge at times to remain focused on my studies. My selection as the University’s Air Force ROTC Drill Team Commander and the program’s Flight Indoctrination Program in which I received my Private Pilot License, imbued me with the direction and confidence I needed to successfully complete Air Force pilot training which I did in South Georgia. My first assignment after pilot training was as a T-33 jet pilot training instructor in Texas. The T-33 was the trainer version of the Korean War vintage F-80. In meeting my “need for speed”, I later converted as an instructor into the supersonic T-38 trainer. After four years of instructing basic flight training, I was reassigned to Korea as a Forward Air Controller and became the Air Division’s T-33 flight program manager. When I completed this overseas tour, at the height of the Air War in Vietnam, I resigned from the Air Force and joined the Oregon Air National Guard. This started a new chapter in my life.
Cassie Black is back, and she’s now heading up MagicLand’s newest detective agency. Well, sort of. Cassie Black may have just defeated an evil wizard, but that hasn’t stopped her from getting kicked out of the Academy’s detective training program. The upside is that it’s forced Cassie to start her own agency. The downside? A complete lack of clients. Cassie thinks her career is on the upswing when Rosaria’s new mayor hires her to find a missing jewel. It’s a huge case that could turn the agency around. Trouble is, the jewel hasn’t been seen for well over 500 years, and Cassie suspects there’s more to the mayor’s sudden demands the jewel be found ASAP. What’s more… something besides tea is brewing over at Magic HQ, but thanks to a little snag in the Magic bureaucracy, Cassie isn’t allowed to lend her skills to the problem. In fact, if she doesn’t sort out that bit of bureaucracy in the next few days, her sleuthing career will be over before it ever begins. It all has Cassie looking wistfully back on the days when all she had to do was save the world. If you like contemporary fantasy filled with wry humor, paranormal mystery, and diabolical office chairs, you’ll love the twists and turns of this start to an all-new trilogy featuring Cassie Black. Lengthy, Over-Explaining Book Note: This is book four of the “hilarious” and highly recommended” Cassie Black Trilogy. Yes, “book four”, because trilogies refuse to be tamed! Or, if you prefer, you can call it Book One of The Cassie Black Trilogy 2.0. Either way, The Unusual Mayor Marheart kicks off a new unputdownable, laugh-snort filled fight against even more evil than Trilogy 1.0! Readers tell me this book can be enjoyed if you haven't read the first three books. But if you want a deeper understanding of the characters, Cassie's ability to attract trouble, and what all those pastries are really all about, reading books 1 - 3 can't hurt (unless you drop them on your toe...). What readers have to say about the series so far... "Wow and wow again! I absolutely loved this book! You get such a feel for the characters and the story is so fast paced you don't want to put it down." "More, please!" "I was unable to put this down when I started reading it. The author combines humour with a fast paced murder mystery all packed into a funeral home." "…suffused with dark humor and witty dialogue..." "Cassie Black, won me over in the first book of this series, and she doesn’t disappoint in this one!!!"
