Jeff Talarigo, author of the acclaimed novel, The Pearl Diver, has given us another haunting story, The Ginseng Hunter. An unnamed narrator follows his family's tradition of finding and harvesting one ginseng root a day in the mountains of China near the border of North Korea. On a monthly trip to the nearest city to visit a bordello, he meets a young woman who is a refugee from this oppressive regime. Interwoven with his developing relationship with her is the story of a North Korean mother who is separated from her daughter and who travels miles, always in fear of being discovered, in the hopes of finding her. The author evokes the harsh climate and rugged beauty of this country as well as the suffering and compassion of people just struggling to survive.

In honor of Mother's Day, following are two books and one film that tell the stories of three remarkable mothers:

From Harvey River: A Memoir of My Mother and Her Island by Lorna Goodison describes this local poet's mother, Doris who grew up in a privileged family in Jamaica but then married a chauffeur, moved to urban Kingston and raised nine children.

A Remarkable Mother by former President Jimmy Carter is his loving tribute to Lillian Carter, a nurse serving troops in World War I and in her later years a Peace Corps volunteer in India.

My Flesh and Blood is a documentary about Susan Tom, a single mother, who adopted eleven special needs children.

Adam Mansbach's third novel, The End of the Jews shows the writer's growth in his ability to expand his universe, i.e., from hip-hop culture which still plays a part in this story, into other expressions of the American experience. His last novel, Angry Black White Boy brilliantly conveyed both the excitement and anger of that sub-culture.

Tristan Brodsky, one of the featured characters, is the son of Jewish immigrants and a writer who is influenced by jazz and African-American culture. His grandson, Tris, is a suburban teenager who loves hip-hop and is also a writer although not as successful. The third main character is Nina, a young and beautiful Czech photographer who has been hired by a black jazz combo to travel the U.S. with them as they perform. Mansbach adeptly moves back and forth in time to tell their stories and to articulate, often with great touches of humor, the odd dislocation of people caught at different moments in the soupy mix caused by the diaspora.

womans day

"Woman's Day" Magazine and the American Library Association are co-sponsoring a new health initiative. The magazine is asking readers 18 or older to submit stories of 700 words or less on how libraries have helped them improve their own or a family member's health. Up to four of the stories will be featured in the March, 2009 issue. Deadline for submissions is May 11, 2008. For submission guidelines, go to their guidelines page.

That very question is posed in Searching for Bobby Fischer when a chess teacher talks with the father of a 7-year-old boy, Josh, who shows an amazing gift for playing chess. The teacher goes on to say that, "Bobby Fischer got underneath it like no one before and found at its center, art." And what's Josh's answer? When talking on the phone with a buddy, Josh explains, "Chess. It's a game, like Monopoly."

If you've never seen this flick, check it out. And, if you enjoy playing chess, come this Sunday, April 6 (1-4 p.m.), to Pittsfield Branch for Chesstastic. It's a chance to play a whole variety of opponents from the youngest age to senior citizens.

Today, March 26 marks the birth of one of our foremost mythologists, Joseph Campbell who was born in New York City in 1904. Entranced by Native American culture from an early age, he began to make associations with myths from other cultures and in 1949 published a seminal study of mythology called The Hero with a Thousand Faces which looked at the common theme of a spiritual quest. But it was only when Campbell was featured in a series of penetrating interviews with Bill Moyers in the 1980's called Joseph Campbell and the The Power of Myth that his name became known to the more general population. In the first of the series, they take on the subject of heroes who range from Buddha and Jesus to metaphors present in Jungian psychology and the movie, Star Wars. Filmmaker, George Lucas was heavily influenced by Campbell in his making of the film and the interviews were conducted at his Skywalker Ranch.

We can't wait for the India Family Cultural Celebration this Sunday, February 3 at 2:00 pm at the Downtown Library! Join us for storytelling with Rohit and Amanda Setty, Tabla and Sitar music by Meeta Banerjee, John Churchville and Dan Piccolo, delicious gulab jamoon and a colorful rangoli craft that the whole family will enjoy!

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Washtenaw County Employment Training & Community Services will be distributing Federal Surplus Food while supplies last. Items such as green beans, canned beef, tuna and carrots will be distributed on Thursday February 21st from 9:00 a.m. until commodities run out. Services are available to income eligible individuals at the Washtenaw County Human Services building: 555 Towner Street, Room 107 in Ypsilanti.

Today, January 29th is the birthday of author and environmentalist, Edward Abbey. Abbey was born in Indiana, Pa. in 1927. He's best known for his novel, The Monkey Wrench Gang about four men who liberate parts of Utah and New Mexico wilderness through sabotage. Abbey moved to the Southwest as a young man and worked in Arches National Park as a fire lookout and a ranger. His book, Desert Solitaire is about that experience. In it, he says, "This is the most beautiful place on earth. There are many such places. Every man, every woman, carries in heart and mind the image of an ideal place, the right place, the one true home,..." Abbey went on to write many essays that foretold our current environmental dilemmas.

Today, January 25, is the birthday of writer, Virginia Woolf who was born in London in 1882. She never went to school but read books chosen by her scholar father. At 22, she began to write literary criticism for the Times Literary Supplement. In 1917, Woolf and her husband, Leonard Woolf established the Hogarth Press which allowed Woolf to publish her experimental fiction in which she tried to capture the inner lives of her characters. Her first success was Mrs. Dalloway about the thoughts of a middle-aged woman on the day she gives a party. The whole story takes place in one day in which she muses on the city sounds around her and about her past and present. Other books followed including To the Lighthouse and The Waves. But she was also one of the greatest essayists of her day. One of her longest, A Room of One's Own is an admonition to women to explore their creativity: "So long as you write what you wish to write, that is all that matters..."