Scott MacFarlane, whom I interviewed last June about his book, “The Hippie Narrative” (one of my “Best Books” of 2007), emailed me about a course he’s offering through Western Washington University’s Academy of Lifelong Learning.

His book is subtitled “A Literary Perspective on the Counterculture,” and if you missed my interview with him, you should know that MacFarlane is one of the first scholars to look at the works of the late 1960s and early 1970s in depth, in relation to each other and with the perspective of that tumultuous time of radical change.

For more about the course, click here

As someone who came of age during that time, I am particularly interested in the works of such writers as Richard Brautigan, Ken Kesey, Hunter S. Thompson and others.

Surfing a bit, I came across a couple of Web sites that are insightful and informative.

To learn more, click here

and here

So carry on, check them out, and dig it, readers.

Want to know how award-winning authors and illustrators of books for children and young adults find their inspiration? Western Washington University once again plays host to the fifth annual Bond Children’s Literature Conference on March 1.

Named for reading educators Guy L. and Fredericka Bond, WWU’s English department sponsors presentations, book sales and autograph sessions with authors Chris Crutcher ("Deadline,” “Whale Talk,” “The Sledding Hill"); Christopher Paul Curtis ("The Watsons Go to Birmingham: 1963,” “Bud, Not Buddy"); Eric Rohmann ("My Friend Rabbit,” “Time Flies"); and John Rocco ("Wolf! Wolf!") from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. March 1 at the Performing Arts Center Concert Hall.

A reception for the authors, co-sponsored by the College of Humanities and Social Sciences, is from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. Feb. 29 at Wilson Library; reservations are required by Feb. 22, by emailing Connie.Mallison@wwu.edu.

The cost to attend the conference is $90 general, $45 students and retired teachers, if received by Feb. 16; registration received after Feb. 16 is $15 more. Pregistration is required for the event.

For more information, call Nancy Johnson at 650-3227, or click here for details on the event.

Whatcom County poet Jim Bertolino tells me that he and his partner, graphic artist Anita K. Boyle, decided on New Year’s Eve that their “single-word mantra” for 2008 is “Hurrah!” – This because the Espy Foundation in Oysterville recently awarded Jim an artist residency for the month of March.

Anita, coincidentally, received the same award in 2003. To anyone who’s been in that sleepy rural area on Willapa Bay, it’s easy to understand how that inviting atmosphere can inspire a writer or visual artist to produce prodigious and plentiful works. For more on the Espy Foundation and to see the wide variety of folks who’ve worked there, click here.

In addition, Jim says that the Cortland Review in New York City published online an extensive interview with him, conducted by poet Matthew Campbell Roberts, as part of their Winter Feature. To read that inteview, click here.

A number of well-known poets are coming to Bellingham in the next month or so, including Emily Warn and Thomas Hubbard in the first Whatcom Poetry Series: The Poet as Art, sponsored by (who else?) Jim and Anita, on Jan. 26 at the Lucia Douglas Gallery in Fairhaven.

Following that, poetry-lovers have the opportunity to hear Washington State Poet Laureate Sam Green, Calyx Press poets Margarita Donnelly and Sarah Lantz, WWU’s Carlos Martinez, Alaska’s Haley Bell, Fairhaven grad Carol V. Davis and Bellingham’s Richard Widerkehr.

Hurrah, indeed!

Sumas author Jo Dereske, creator of the librarian-sleuth Helma Zukas, offers a workshop on the creative and business aspects of mystery writing at 6 p.m. Jan. 23 at Village Books in Fairhaven. Here’s what Jo says about the workshop, which costs $40: “My agent told me that she decides within two minutes whether to read a submission any further. So authors have to know how to best present their hard work. Mysteries are one of the most popular genres, and they take cold-hearted scheming to construct. In these times, a writer has to put an unprecedented amount of energy into the less glamorous aspect of their work.”
To find out more, go to her Web site, or call Village Books, 671-2626.

Interested in what’s happening with local and regional authors in the news? Want to share some of your favorite books or authors that you think others might enjoy? Join the conversation!