Book Talk Book Talk (January 07, 2004)

OF LOCAL NOTE . . . Two local writers have just had paperback editions of their novels published. Firoozeh Dumas' "Funny In Farsi," a memoir of growing up Iranian in America has received favorable reviews, including here. And mystery writer Rod Norville saw his "Moonshine Express" also come out in paperback.

GOOGLING ALONG . . . A Stanford faculty member and two others have written "How to Do Everything with Google," a guide to the popular Internet search engine. Nancy Blackman of Stanford co-authored the book with Fritz Schneider and Eric Fredrickson.

ABOUT THE SCHOOLS . . . David Tyack, a professor emeritus of education and history at Stanford, has written "Seeking Common Ground: Public Schools in a Diverse Society." The book examines how schools are struggling to find equitable curricula and methods while teaching increasingly diverse students with different cultural orientations.

AUTHOR, AUTHOR . . . Author events this month at Kepler's Books in Menlo Park include security analyst Bruce Schneier ("Beyond Fear: Thinking Sensibly about Security in Our Time") at 7:30 p.m. Jan. 13. Other events, also at 7:30, include Bay Area writers Julie Orringer ("How to Breathe Underwater"), Vendela Vida ("And Now You Can Go") and Ayelet Waldman ("Daughter's Keeper") Jan. 15. Farmer/writer David Mas Masumoto ("Four Seasons in Five Senses") appears Jan. 20. Journalist Mark Arax ("The King of California: J.G. Boswell and the Making of a Secret American Empire") appears Jan. 22. And television's Dr. Dean Edell ("Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Healthiness") appears Jan. 29.

MORE AUTHOR, AUTHOR . . . Noted writer Anne Lamott will speak at Elizabeth Seton School in Palo Alto at 4 p.m, Jan. 11, talking about how faith plays a role in her work and life. The talk is sponsored by the the Thomas Merton Center of Palo Alto, and a $25 admission will be charged.
Items for Book Talk may be sent to Don Kazak, Title Pages editor, Palo Alto Weekly, P.O. Box 1610, Palo Alto CA 94302 by the last Wednesday of the month, or e-mailed to dkazak@paweekly.com
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