Quail Ridge Books & Music

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Ron Chepesiuk & "Sergeant Smack" Together
It's not often both the author and the subject of a book are here, but it happens on Sunday, November 14, at 4:30 p.m. Ron Chepesiuk brings us SERGEANT SMACK: THE LEGENDARY LIVES AND TIMES OF IKE ATKINSON, KINGPIN, AND HIS BAND OF BROTHERS. Along with the author is "Sergeant Smack" himself - North Carolina's Ike Atkinson, who operated the largest drug smuggling enterprise in the 1970s.

Tamam Kahn With UNTOLD: Wives' Tales
Tamam Kahn presents UNTOLD: A History of the Wives of Prophet Muhammad on Monday, November 15, at 7:30 p.m. She brings to life the stories of these largely unknown and empowered historical women. Kahn joins prose, poetry, and spoken word. You'll be surprised at what you'll find out.

Poetry Of A.R. Ammons
Our Sunday afternoon programs are often dedicated to poetry. Come in on Sunday, November 14, at 2 p.m., for a celebration of poet A.R. Ammons' life and work with family and friends. The North Carolina-raised poet, with extensive ties to the state, died in 2001.

Due to a serious matter, personal and private in nature, Vince will not be able to travel to North Carolina on November 21 for his scheduled appearance in Raleigh. There is no make up date scheduled at this time. We are very sorry for this disappointment.

Autographed Sedaris Books Here
Hometown favorites (and best-selling authors) David and Amy Sedaris have new books, and we have autographed copies: David's is SQUIRREL SEEKS CHIPMUNK , wild animal fables for adults, with David's unique twist. Amy takes the crafting world by storm with the hysterical SIMPLE TIMES: CRAFTS FOR POOR PEOPLE. She made an unforgettable candle on her visit here.

Karl Marlantes With Smash MATTERHORN
If you made it to our Book Club Bash programs, you heard Nancy rave about MATTERHORN, one of her favorite books of the year. Karl Marlantes visits with MATTERHORN: A NOVEL OF THE VIETNAM WAR on Wednesday, November 17, at 7:30 p.m. This powerful, unforgettable novel by a Vietnam veteran places you on the battlefield. The novel has garnered amazing reviews.

Pat Conroy Returns
Pat Conroy returns to Quail Ridge on Tuesday, November 30, at 7:30 p.m. with MY READING LIFE. The best-selling author of SOUTH OF BROAD, THE PRINCE OF TIDES, THE GREAT SANTINI, and many more shares the books that have shaped him and the profound effect reading has had on his life. It'll be a fabulous evening for fans of the novelist and lovers of books.

The Horse Boy: A Memoir of Healing by Rupert Isaacson (Back Bay Books $15.99)
This is a beautifully written recounting of a couple's indefatigable love for their autistic four-year-old son, the intuitive bond between the boy and a horse and the faith in non-conventional healing that took the young family to the farthest reaches of Mongolia for the help that Western medicine could not provide.

The Victorian Internet: The Remarkable Story of the Telegraph and the Nineteenth Century's On-line Pioneers by Tom Standage (Walker $15.95)
With the invention of the telegraph, the speed of communication increased from the speed of a fast horse or ship, to the speed of light. That new speed, along with the people who operated the telegraph, brought about a new kind of culture that I previously only associated with our modern Internet. I enjoyed this exciting technological history and its back-to-the-future aspect. -- Kent

At Home: A Short History of Private Life by Bill Bryson (Doubleday $28.95) Bill Bryson is so smart, so interesting and so delightful that whatever he chooses to write about will fascinate, and this is no exception. AT HOME starts in the hall of the Victorian era parsonage in which he and his family live, ends in the bedroom, and weaves together an enormous amount (over 400 pages) of history, both trivial and world-changing, in-between. -- Sarah

True Grit by Charles Portis (Penguin $14.95) After 40 years, the adventure of young and stubborn Mattie Ross's pursuit of her father's killer will still grip you. Here's the original feminist, both in the book's setting (the old West) and when it was written (1968). For ages 14 and up. (Of course, the Coen brothers' movie coming out soon is probably NOT for 14 and up.)

by Mark Twain (U/California $16.95)
The story of this missing Mark Twain play, which first published in 2003 after lying buried as a failure for over 100 years, is as outlandish as the play itself. IS HE DEAD? is a rollicking farce with all the faked deaths, cross-dressing, and mistaken identities you might expect from Twain as well as a portending satire of people's whimsical preference for the works of dead artists over living artists. Who could better appreciate the irony of such a play's newly found success, a century after the author's death, than Mr. Clemens himself? -- Vicki