Kegerreis will be in the Traverse City area today for the Art and Wine Festival and Hathaway will be closer to her home at Burgdorf’s Winery in Haslett Michigan for their 5th Anniversary celebration. 

The two authors decided to write the history book after researching Michigan vineyards for the award-winning book “From the Vine: Exploring Michigan Wineries”, which is a comprehensive guide to the state’s wineries. “From the Vine” was named a Michigan Notable Book in 2008.

The “History of Michigan Wines”  is described as the first and only documentation of Michigan’s dynamic wine industry. The schedule for Saturday August 21 is:

Traverse City Art & Wine Festival
The Village at Grand Traverse Commons, Traverse City
3:00 to 10:00 p.m.
Sharon will be signing books from 3:00 to 5:30 p.m.
traversecitywinefestival.com

Burgdorf’s Winery 5th Anniversary Celebration
Burgdorf’s Winery, Haslett
12:00 to 5:00 p.m.
Lorri will be signing books from 12:00 to 3:00 p.m.
burgdorfwinery.com

To keep track of their wine travels visit the author’s website.

Also, Stanton, whose most recent book “Horse Soldiers”, found his National Writers Series profiled in today’s Detroit Free Press. His next event with the rock king of the chef world Mario Batali is August 14 in Traverse City. Batali’s new book is “Molto Gusto”. And if you have some time read the choices for the top 30 Northern Michigan reads this summer. It appears in the Traverse Magazine. Doug has two books on that list. One of my highlights this year was moderating a panel on Writers on War which included Doug Stanton. Doug was a rock and  his insights were a major contribution to the success of the events in Lansing and Marquette. I recently interviewed Doug for a radio show in Lansing and his story about the impact Jim Harrison had on his life was very emotional. Thanks for everything you do for the Michigan literary world which gets bigger every day.

The only bacon cliche she missed was the one about eating everything but the squeal.  Just thinking about Camp Bacon makes me thing of my grandma’s french fries, which of course she fried in bacon grease.

Read a previous Mittenlit t post “Camp Bacon” and order the book here.

Jeffrey Pickell of Kaleidoscope Books in Ann Arbor Michigan will be just one of the scores of dealers returning to the 51st Michigan Antiquarian Book and Paper Show Which is set for Sunday April 11 from 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Lansing Center in Lansing Michigan. Ray Walsh, owner of Curious Book Shop in East Lansing Michigan and sponsor of the event says that more than 80 vendors are expected at the semi-annual event. The Show which is the largest of its kind in the Midwest features an amazing array of books and paper ephemera including first editions, postcards, cookbooks, sheet music, ad art and books in every genre imaginable. Walsh has said it is likely you will see books at this event that you have never seen before and since it is one of the first book events of the season dealers have great stock. Admission to the show is free and children under 13 are free. for more details on the event click here and watch mittenlit for updates on dealers and the show.

There are some top tier writers on the list of the guests already lined-up including Maureen Dowd, Peter Matthiessen, James Bradley, Mario Batali, Woody Harrelson, Bryan Gruley and Tom Brokaw. The first writer event is set for February 11 and features Amy Alkon, a syndicated humorist and advice columnist who has written the book “I See Rude People”. Alkon grew up in Farmington Hills Michigan and visited the area when she was growing up. In the Lansing area she is a weekly feature in the Lansing City Pulse. Read an editorial in the Traverse City News about the event by clicking here. More information on the event is available by clicking here.

Collier is one of those rare writers who is full time making a living as a freelance writer. She has contributed to a wide variety of publications including Ladies Home Journal, Country Living and Oprah Magazine. She has a food essay in the book “Best Food Writing 2007″ which includes contributions by food experts Anthony Bourdain and Barbara Kingsolver. An annual meeting will follow the event.

Tom Nardone is sick or at least his pumpkins are. Nardone who has three books out on sick pumpkins is from Troy Michigan and in his day job runs some online sites that sell romantic items. Hmmm! Nardone is the master of pumpkin carving and there’s still time to rush to the store for a crash course his books offer on pumpkin carving. I saw his book featured on the counter at Schuler Books & Music in Eastwood Towne Center.

In his books you will find the proper power tools to use and other tricks to create “pukin pumpkin” and a variety of other ghastly and ghostly pumpkins. Visit Nardone’s website by clicking here.

Jane and Michael Stern have blogged on their recent visit to Ann Arbor Michigan’s Kerrytown BookFest which you can read by clicking here. The Stearns, along with Ari Weinzweig of Zingerman’s and author of a new cookbook on bacon, entertained several hundred admirers talking about their quests for the perfect roadfood. I’m not sure if chocolate-bacon sauce over buttermilk biscuits is roadfood but check it out by clicking here.

And if you needed something to wash it down with -heaven forbid you would use the wines author Jim Harrison writes about in an article in Wine Spectator. Harrison is a fan of Zingerman’s and for sure they have the type of provolone he talks about in the article: “you know when it goes right up your nose”. One thing about authors, their descriptions of food trips and in the case of Michael Erlewine’s description of his first acid trip this weekend at the Kerrytown BookFest, are always done with some flair. Read about some of the fine wines that Harrison has had by clicking here. Don’t ask about the price.

Thrilling, riveting, suspenseful, page-flipping, sleep-depriving: all of these descriptions have been used about previous Jeffery Deaver novels.  Unless Webster’s dictionary has coined a brand new term for heart-pounding,change-of-direction thrillers then Deaver’s recent novel Roadside Crosses will have to be described as just that. 

 Jeffery Deaver, the mega-hit-selling author of numerous best sellers such as The Bone Collector, The Vanished Man, and The Stone Monkey, featuring quadriplegic criminologist Lincoln Rhyme, has returned once again with another winner spinning a multilayered web of deceit with his newest novel showcasing heroine, Kathryn Dance.  Deaver has delivered as the master of suspense with a technological thriller that preys on all our modern fears of cyber space and the mysterious world of serious online role-playing gamers.

Dance, an up and coming investigator with the California Bureau of Investigation possesses an uncanny ability to detect falsehoods simply by gauging others’ verbal and non-verbal cues. Dance, appearing in her third novel, uses her sixth sense to track down a vicious killer who uses a modern tactic of cyber-bullying and stalking through social networking and cyber space to fuel a streak of savage attacks that leave the victims either brutally murdered or clinging to their lives.   As the novel progresses, the reader will discover that nothing is as it appears in our real world as well as online.

Kathryn Dance is fresh off a case (The Sleeping Doll) in which a brutal string of incidents left gaping open wounds among not only the public, but her family and colleagues as well.  Now in Roadside Crosses, she must tackle a psychopath in a classic Deaver plot ripped (now cut and pasted) straight from 2009 headlines. 

An opinioned and arrogant blogger, James Chilton, has been attempting to make a splash on the general California population with his headline grabbing and extremely controversial blog.  In an attempt to garner as large as audience as possible, Chilton hosts a site (for the dedicated readers and Deaver fans you can check out the interactive site at www.thechiltonreport.com) that engages a wide variety of divisive topics ranging from homosexuality to environmental issues and even teen tragedies.  Chilton’s increasingly popular blog spot provides an outlet for teens tragedy especially for the troubled and angered students looking for answers.  Travis Brigham, a disturbed and isolated teenager, becomes the target for the angry mob of online protestors because of his involvement in the fatal car accident that took the lives of two young teenagers.  Subsequently a string of brutal attacks and murders occur and the victims all have one thing in common; prior posts on The Chilton Report. 

Although Dance is still dealing with the repercussions of her previous case, she is thrust into the investigation after the violence escalates and puts the community into a frenzy both in the real world as well as in the cyber world.  She soon finds herself pursuing Travis Brigham, the troubled teen, who finds his sanctuary in online role-playing games where the violence is all too real.

In an intoxicating novel, Deaver utilizes twists and turns to keep the reader flipping pages into the early morning hours.  Never is anything as it seems. Visit Deaver’s website by clicking here. 

Jeffery Deaver will make a rare Michigan appearance at the Ann Arbor Kerrytown BookFest, 4 P.M., Sunday September 13. Click here for a complete BookFest Schedule.

Eli and Max Sussman will bring their message that enough’s enough when it comes to microwave popcorn, take-out pizzas and little cardboard boxes filled with gelatinous goodies to the seventh annual Kerrytown BookFest in Ann Arbor Michigan September 13. They are part of a literary ”foodie day” which stresses locally grown food that includes the talented road dogs of Jane and Michael Stern who are sponsored by Michigan Radio.

The two brothers, (Eli went to MSU and Max to U-M) have collaborated on a cookbook, “Freshman in the Kitchen: From Clueless Cook to Creative Chef”, published through Ann Arbor’s Huron River Press. The two brothers got their first lessons in cooking their parent’s home in Huntington Woods. They will do a demo at the BookFest in the Hollander’s upstairs Kitchen shop at 2:00 P.M. For more details on the BookFest go to www.kerrytownbookfest.org

Jane and Michael Stern, authors, NPR food personalities and America’s number one arbiters of road food cuisine, are headlining the 7^thAnnual Kerrytown BookFest (KBF)September 13, 11a.m.-5 p.m. at the Farmers Market in Ann Arbor Michigan.

The BookFest’s theme is Culinary Michigan and features numerous programs focusing on the culinary aspects of literature. In addition, there is a cake-making contest with a literary theme for professionals and amateurs.

Joining the Sterns, who contribute weekly to NPR’s the Splendid Table, will be Ari Weinzweig, co-founder and owner of the Zingerman’s Community of Businesses and author of the recently published book “Zingerman’s Guide to Better Bacon”. As Honorary Chair of the 2009 Kerrytown BookFest, Weinzweig will present the KBF’s Community Book Award to Jan Longone, culinary historian at the U-M Clement’s Library. All four will participate in a panel sponsored by Michigan Radio on local food in the world and the local influence of global foodways.

Robin Agnew, KBF president and co-owner of Aunt Agatha’s mystery bookshop, said this year’s BookFest has an amazing array of culinary-related programming, in addition to the traditional author, children and literary events.

“We are extremely pleased to be able to bring Jane and Michael Stern to the event along with the nation’s number one thriller writer Jeffrey Deaver. We have a packed day of events for everyone.”

Other culinary-related events include programs on Michigan foods, a panel of culinary mystery authors, cooking demonstrations and a panel of food bloggers who will discuss the hottest trends in culinary writing.

Hollander’s in Kerrytown will host a series of workshops and presentations, including how to construct a decorative collage from food magazines (you can’t do that with a blog) and how to create a one-of-a-kind recipe file.  In addition, Eli and Max Sussman will conduct a cooking demonstration in Hollander’s Kitchen and Home Store based on their best-selling cookbook “Freshman in the Kitchen”.

The Edible Book Contest will feature cakes by local chefs, celebrities and friends of the BookFest. Entries must have something to do with books-book titles, characters, authors, or book art and must be at least partially edible. (Think: “Catcher in the Rye”). The contest will be judged by the Sterns. In addition, other cakes donated to the BookFest will be used as prizes for a fund-raising cake walk with one-half the proceeds going to the local Food Gatherers food bank. 

Food and art will also meet in a book jacket design contest with local high school students competing to redesign the cover of “The First American Cookbook,” published in 1796.

There will be a children’s tent featuring book making, paper making and paper crafts including edible papyrus paper, storytelling and a cup cake decorating program for children. New York Times Best Selling children’s author Ruth McNally Barshaw will be joined by first-time children’s author John Perry of Ann Arbor who has his own unique twist on a culinary theme with his children’s book “The Book That Eats People”.

In addition to the Sterns-Weinzweig panel, three other panel discussions will focus on the culinary arts:

Michivore: Cherries, Fish & Jiffy Mix:

 Moderator Steve Klein of the Huron River Press leads a discussion with food authors Cynthia Furlong Reynolds, T.R. Durham, Patty LaNoue Stearns and Tom Bloomer, who coined the term “Michivore.”

Mysteries to Cook By:

Moderator Angelee Kovach leads a discussion with mystery authors Julie Hyzy, JoAnna Carl, and Miranda Bliss. All of the writers include cooking, catering, or in one case, the White House kitchen in their books.

Eating Online: Local Food Bloggers:

Moderator Bonnie Bucqueroux of www.sustainablefarmer.comleads a discussion with area food bloggers: the Gastronomical Three, Kim Bayer of farmersmarketer.com, and the creator of the kitchenchick.com. They’ll talk about how food blogging is influencing not only how, when, where and what we eat, but also where we shop and what we grow.

The BookFest is also creating a special exhibit “Culinary Michigan: Cookbooks” from September 5-October 13 in the Downtown Ann Arbor District Library. It features culinary memorabilia, historic and unusual cookbooks and ephemera from public and private collections including those of Community Book Award Winner Jan Langone and Michigan State University’s special collections.

In addition to the culinary-related authors and events, blockbuster thriller writer Jeffery Deaver will speak at the Kerrytown BookFest and sign books. Other programs will focus on the 1960s counterculture, music and the ‘60s, true crime, the future of print journalism, and husband and wife writers. Also Michigan Notable Book Award Winner Mary Ellen Geist will discuss her book “A Measure of the Heart,” which includes a Power Point presentation about her father, who has Alzheimer’s and who is the subject of her book.

The Kerrtown BookFest is sponsored by the Michigan Humanities Council; Michigan Radio; Bank of Ann Arbor, Jiffy Mix, Hollander’s, Motte & Bailey Bookstore, the Ann Arbor Observer, Aunt Agatha’s, mittenlit.com and WEMU. Jeffery Deaver’s appearance is sponsored by Aunt Agatha’s and Amelia Musser. The Stern’s panel is sponsored by Michigan Radio.

A complete schedule of events and authors is available at www.kerrytownbookfest.org

Both brothers are in their early 20s and wrote the cookbook for a younger audience. Max is a chef in Ann Arbor and Eli works in L.A. for a music ad-agency but moonlights as a chef in the catering industry.

This is an easy step-by-step cooking guide for the newbie. It starts with shopping and gradually proceeds to more complex cooking assignments.

Between them, the brothers had cooked in everything from Chilean fishing camps to the Detroit Zoo food court and from award winning restaurants to a summer camp.

The Sussmans will be at Schuler Books & Music in the Eastwood Towne Center 7:30 p.m., Thursday, November 20.

Eli Sussman said some of the most rewarding comments they’ve received while touring to promoter the book were from people still in college or recently graduated who have used the cookbook to make a meal from scratch for the very first time. 

“Everyone who’s been using it has been telling us that since they have been using the cookbook, it’s gotten easier for them to cook which for us is a huge compliment about the practicality of our cookbook”. 

At our signings and food demos people have been saying that they find the cookbook very accessible because the recipes are fast, simple and don’t utilize too many ingredients and that most importantly, they can follow the instructions and the food turns out delicious. 

For more http://www.freshmaninthekitchen.com