Jaded Ibis had toys.

This reading was a lot better than it smelled.Oh, look! It’s the girl from the puzzle!

Justin Sirois explains to Debra Diblasi how RED DEAD REDEMPTION made him “teary.”

“Hey! I’ve got a Publishing Genius of an idea!”

“Wait. You don’t mean we should?”

“That’s right. Let’s stand up on this rock and invite writers to come read at this zoo!”

Mike Young: “I’ve got this thing about food. I could yell it.”Luckily Blake had this thing about goats and James is really into goats.

And here’s Michael Kimball who happened to be doing a reading at the zoo that afternoon.

Amy is more aware of the camera than Sasha.

Now Sasha trumps Lincoln in camera awareness.

Hawking Gigantics.

Great trip for Greg. He got a new job.

Tim prepares to read with me, despite the lurking presence of a mime named “Davis.”

The Hoyas won. By two. Should have been by more.

Here’s the word from Narrow House publisher Justin Sirois:

If you already have a first edition, then you should still buy it, because it now comes with this amazing cover drawn by Conner Willumsen. Clearly a worthwhile objet for shelf, desk, or table.

If you don’t have a first edition and have never read MLKNG SCKLS, then you should buy it, because you probably ought to read it. For my thoughts on that, click here.

If you still have any doubts, you should buy it, because Justin is giving way the original artwork for the new cover to one randomly selected pre-orderer. Here’s the info.

There is one compelling reason not to buy it. I’ve got a house with a lot of white walls and I would really love to win the artwork and the more people who pre-order, the less of a chance I have to win it. I was seriously tempted not to post this for that reason, but I like Justin and believe in what he’s doing – so go and buy MLKNG SCKLS (fancy cover edition).

Had the pleasure of reading this vowellessly titled book a couple times on the train this week. And had the pleasure of meeting Justin Sirois last weekend when we read together at the Baltimore Book Festival. I was really inspired by two things. ONE, the fact that he gave out handmade books to the whole audience who was good enough to brave the rain to watch us read (of course, I left mine in my hotel room), and, TWO, the voice that he is making available to American readers in his book MLKNG SCKLS and the longer, as yet unpublished, novel Falcons on the Floor. Justin also credits his work to Haneen Alshujairy, who he explained is a woman that he knows and regularly corresponds with who fled from Iraq to Egypt. Justin’s simple but properly indulgent words create stories that offer Alshujairy’s experiences to an audience (English-speaking Americans) who are usually prevented from seeing this side of Iraq (his book profiles two young men fleeing Fallujah). There is a lack of exoticism and a dull, familiar desperation that is rarely achieved by those portraying war and foreign lands.

A few moments in this book really stick with me. One is a haunting scene in which Salim, the book’s first person narrator, sets his laptop’s webcam to film to him taking a piss in the river at night, and he imagines an internet audience watching this moment, without explanation, on YouTube (or some other site). It’s an incredibly vulnerable moment for character and reader. Later, Justin writes an exceptional scene in which Salim “uncooks” a curry to show his girlfriend how much he loves her. Justin is good enough not to define this anomalous moment as a memory or a delusion or a dream – it is real to Salim and the reader. And as he goes through the painstaking process of “uncooking” we watch them flinch and cringe at the sound of a door knock, a far more threatening sound in their environment than the not-so-far-off screams of pain they’ve grown accustomed to.

MLKNG SCKLS sections are ancillary scenes to a larger novel, Falcons on the Floor, which Justin has written, and we can only hope will be made available to us soon.

Here’s how it went (click pictures for details):

Went down Friday, and hit this place I used to call home. We talked to some of the current MFA students, who were very cool.

Then this guy seared us some amazing scallops for dinner.

These two friends dating back to my JHU days made it down from New England.

Our other dear friend from our writing group made the trip too.

Finally, met this guy who I’ve known over email for a long while.

He “paints” these images on his iPhone. With his fingers! (My phone died at the end of the weekend, and, inspired, I replaced it with an iPhone. I don’t think downloading a simple app will help me create things of such beauty.)

Met this excellent poet who uncovered the secret of free beer and food, and who also creates beautiful art.

Read with an old friend at the Baltimore Book Festival.

It rained the whole time, but our friends stuck out the whole reading (all eight readers).

The reading was hosted by these two generous human beings (and writers).

This is their series.

Also read with this guy, whose book (and presumably forthcoming book) can only be described as ‘important.’ This stuff has the power to change thinking (more on this later).

This guy published the other guy’s book, and a bunch of other amazing literature.

He invited us to see his band play. Awesome. He was good enough to take off his shirt (and join us for karaoke). This kid is tireless. Keep track of the things he touches.

Most of us finished the weekend at a Mexican buffet in the north of the city. Not as good as we remembered, but good enough. Hope all my readings are this much fun.