Happening now at Westside Unitarian Universalist Congregation (7141 California SW), West Seattle author Elise Hooper is introducing a hometown crowd to her fourth book, “Angels of the Pacific.” It’s a novel, but it will also educate you about World War II history, “set in the Philippines and inspired by the extraordinary true stories of World War II’s American Army and Navy nurses famously known as the Angels of Bataan and the unsung contributions of Filipinas of the resistance.”

At the event, Hooper is talking about the book, and you can also buy your copy from event hosts Paper Boat Booksellers. (If you don’t get to tonight’s celebration, you can still get signed copies at Paper Boat’s Morgan Junction store as well as at Pegasus Book Exchange in The Junction.) This is the fourth work of historical fiction authored by Hooper – you can find out about her other books on her website.

West Seattle author Elise Hooper‘s new novel “Angels of the Pacific” has just been published, and you can help her celebrate at a launch party this Friday night. Paper Boat Booksellers – where you can buy the book – is hosting the event at Westside Unitarian Universalist Congregation (7141 California SW), starting at 7 pm. From the announcement:

This novel is set in the Philippines and inspired by the extraordinary true stories of World War II’s American Army and Navy nurses famously known as the Angels of Bataan and the unsung contributions of Filipinas of the resistance. It’s a story that transports readers to a remarkable era of hope, bravery, perseverance, and ultimately — victory.

Elise will give a brief talk about behind-the-scenes research and the writing process, take questions from the audience, and sign books. This is a free, kid-friendly public event.

Book sales will be provided on site that evening by Paper Boat Booksellers.

Signed copies also are available at Paper Boat (6040 California SW) and Pegasus Book Exchange (4553 California SW). “Angels of the Pacific” is Hooper’s fourth book; you can read about her and her work here.

Love hats? Or, got someone on your gift list who does? West Seattle author Mark Elliott has just published “The Brim and the Crown: A Field Guide to Custom Hatters and Hat Shops in the US and Abroad.” Here’s what he tells us about it:

Amazon just published the 144-page softcover ($18.95) this past week.

* The book divides the US into six regions (36 states), each with profiles, websites, and online ordering info for the best custom hat makers for classic fedoras or cowboy hats.
* An entire chapter identifying custom hat makers in 19 countries.
* A separate chapter where to order a custom hat of your favorite film noir or Western film hero.
* Another chapter describing the women-owned hat businesses in the US.
* How and where to get 1930s newsboy caps, Ecuadorian Panamas, top hats, Indiana Jones fedoras, Godfather homburgs, Amish flat hats, and coonskin and Civil War caps, etc.

This book is for someone who loves hats. Someone who doesn’t leave home without one come rain or shine; who follows the seasons for felt and straw; who can tell you their hat size in inches and centimeters; and who knows how to crease a hat and wear it with confidence.

Mark adds, “I spent most of this year researching, interviewing, and writing. It’s the first time all this info has been collated and published.”

Award-winning West Seattle author Cat Rambo is about to publish another book. Tuesday is the official launch date for “You Sexy Thing.” Rambo summarizes it as “the story of a band of former mercenaries who’ve opened a restaurant on a space station and are doing well, so well a critic may be about to bestow a coveted Nikkelin Orb on the restaurant. But then a mysterious package arrives, things start exploding, and they have to steal a ship to escape. But that ship’s intelligent, and it’s not so sure it wants to be stolen.” The author also notes, “It’s not my first published novel, but it’s my first one with a major publisher, Tor Macmillan.” Rambo has five online appearances in six days next week to publicize and talk about the book. starting Monday night, and including a Tuesday night “virtual reading” – they’re all listed and linked here. Rambo’s accomplishments include receiving the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America‘s prestigious Nebula Award last year and serving two terms as that organization’s president.

One of West Seattle’s literary luminaries has won two major awards.

E.J. Koh is the winner of the 2021 Washington State Book Award for her memoir, “The Magical Language of Others.” The book is described on the publisher’s website as “a powerful and aching love story in letters, from mother to daughter,” letters written after Koh’s parents returned to South Korea for work after more than a decade in the U.S., leaving the then-15-year-old author and her brother in California. “The Magical Language of Others” has also won the Pacific Northwest Book Award and was longlisted for the PEN Open Book Award.

Koh has also published a poetry collection, “A Lesser Love.’ And she is curating the Jack Straw Cultural Center Writers’ Program this year.

You’ve probably heard a lot this year about 30th anniversaries of Seattle grunge milestones. In some cases, that evokes the question, “Where are they now?” You’ll find some answers in a new book – published today – by West Seattle photographer/author Mike Hipple, “Lived Through That: 90s Musicians Today.” Hipple, who lives in Arbor Heights, explains, “It’s a portrait-heavy exploration of some of my favorite musical artists from the ’90s and what they’re up to these days. I wanted to see where these people are today, what their stories are, how their lives have changed since their 90s heyday and introduce readers to some bands they maybe haven’t heard of. I traveled all over the United States and Britain tracking down the artists, photographing them, and hearing their stories and I’m excited to share them. There are quite a few Seattle folks in there as well.” Including one from right here in our back yard – Chris Ballew (aka Caspar Babypants):

Hipple’s book is available through Paper Boat Booksellers, where you can meet him and get your copy signed this Saturday (October 23) at 1 pm. This is his second book; three years ago he published “‘80s Redux,” focusing on music from that decade.

Visit C&P Coffee Company (5612 California SW; WSB sponsor) and you can help The Whale Trail‘s founder Donna Sandstrom celebrate publication of her book “Orca Rescue! The True Story of an Orphaned Orca Named Springer.” The youth-geared book recounts a memorable chapter in Pacific Northwest history, when a Northern Resident Orca got lost in Puget Sound and was successfully rescued and returned to home waters, where she thrives today. You can buy the book and get it signed while you’re there; the event’s on until 5 pm, in the C&P backyard.

(Photo courtesy Judy Bentley)

This is perfect weather for hiking – and with the help of a West Seattle author’s newly revised book, you can not only enjoy trails’ beauty, but also explore their history. Writer/historian Judy Bentley‘s “Hiking Washington’s History” is now out in a second edition. She tells WSB:

The second edition of Hiking Washington’s History, with co-author and prolific guide book writer Craig Romano, has been published this month by the University of Washington Press, which also published the first edition in 2010.

The second edition includes 12 new historic hikes, including a trail in the West Duwamish Greenbelt. The second edition has many photographs and maps, a timeline of trails, sidebars, and detailed hike narratives. I will be giving a talk with the Southwest Seattle Historical Society in September.

Bentley is a longtime West Seattle resident, South Seattle College (WSB sponsor) instructor, and past president of SWSHS. She says you can get her book at Paper Boat Booksellers in Morgan Junction (6040 California SW).

Thanks to Clay Eals for that video from “typewriter poet” Sean Petrie‘s event at the Log House Museum this afternoon (which was on our “West Seattle Saturday” preview list). You have two more chances to catch him in West Seattle tomorrow – 10:30 am-1:30 pm, he’ll be at the West Seattle Farmers’ Market in The Junction, creating typewritten poems, and then at Paper Boat Booksellers (6040 California SW) at 2 pm, typing and promoting his award-winning book “Listen to the Trees: A Poetic Snapshot of West Seattle, Then and Now.”

Back in April we told you about a book release from a Morgan Junction author who publishes romance novels under the pseudonym Cara Maxwell. If you’re thinking about riding out the heat wave sitting under a tree reading, her next one is out – “A Love Match for the Marquess,” continuing her “Hesitant Husbands” series. Maxwell says, “If you enjoy romances in the style of Julia Quinn, Lisa Kleypas, or Christi Caldwell, then you will enjoy this series.” This is her third book, and she says she’s moving into full-time writing now after a decade in education. Find out more about her and her books at caramaxwellromance.com. Her new novel is available there as an e-book or in paperback.

Award-winning West Seattle author Lyanda Lynn Haupt has specialized in a subject close to our heart – the intertwining of wildlife and human life, even in the city. We first spoke with her back in 2009, after her third book, “Crow Planet,” was published. Four years later, “The Urban Bestiary” was published; “Mozart’s Starling” followed in 2017; and now, after another four-year interval, tomorrow is the official publication date for “Rooted: Life at the Crossroads of Science, Nature, and Spirit.” On her website, Haupt describes it as “a book about interconnection, healing, and creating a life of reciprocity with all beings,” and notes that she finished it after the onset of the pandemic. No reading or signing events planned on the peninsula so far (here’s one online), but she tells WSB there’s an incentive for you to buy her book through one of West Seattle’s independent bookstores: “I am happy to personalize books for people through Pegasus and Paper Boat.” Three of Haupt’s previous books have won major awards, including two Washington State Book Awards.

Weekend reading alert: West Seattle writer Cara Maxwell (her nom de plume) has just released her romance novel “Love Once Lost,” free for download until Sunday night. She’s a Morgan Junction resident who describes herself as elementary teacher by day, author by night, and mom of a toddler too. Here’s the plot summary for “Love Once Lost”;

The younger son of a viscount and an established London rogue, Christopher Bowden sets out for Paris with only two objectives. Number one: find Meera Hutton. Number two: get away from her as quickly as possible. Christopher vows he will not let the clever, enchanting Meera pull him in and break his heart again. But when he discovers the plot that has ensnared Meera, his loyalty and duty leave him no choice but to come to her aid.

Surprised to find herself reunited with the man she once loved, headstrong Meera cannot resist the embers of desire burning between them. Having spent the last decade relishing her hard-won independence, Meera is fascinated and confused by the strong connection she has to Christopher. As her life begins to fall apart, she finds herself turning to him again and wondering what her future…or their future…might hold.

You can download it here – free until 11:59 pm Sunday. It’s second in a series; you can buy the first, “Meant To Be Mine,” here.