BOOK BRIEFS

TALE OF THERAPY DOG TO BE TOLD AT SAHARA WEST LIBRARY

Children are invited to meet Sue Grundfest, author of "Coco the Love Dog," illustrated by Daniel J. Mahoney, from 3 to 4 p.m. Wednesday at the Sahara West Library, 9600 W. Sahara Ave.

MYSTERY WRITERS GROUP TO DISCUSS JEFFREY ARCHER NOVEL

The local chapter of the Sisters in Crime mystery writers group will meet at 3 p.m. on Sunday at the Enterprise Library, 25 E. Shelbourne Ave., for a roundtable discussion of Jeffrey Archer's novel "A Prisoner of Birth." To RSVP, visit the group's new Web site at sistersincrimesnv.com.

AUTHOR OF 'THE CANCER FIGHTING KITCHEN' TO SIGN BOOKS, LEAD LECTURE ON FEB. 14

Rebecca Katz will sign copies of her new book "The Cancer Fighting Kitchen" at 1 p.m. on Sunday at the Clark County Library, 1401 E. Flamingo Road.

The book features more than 150 recipes and focuses on the role food plays in supporting health during cancer treatments, and contains tips for shopping, preparation and food storage.

In addition to the book signing, Katz will lead a lecture on nutrition and offer tips for caregivers who cook for those with cancer.

The event is free and open to the public.

BLACK MOUNTAIN INSTITUTE TO SPONSOR DISCUSSION ON AMERICAN CONSERVATISM

Richard Brookhiser, senior editor at National Review; Sam Tanenhaus, editor of the New York Times Book Review; and David Frum, a former speech writer for President George W. Bush and founder of NewMajority.com, are set to discuss "The Future of American Conservatism" at 7 p.m. on Wednesday in the UNLV Student Union Theatre.

FRANK CULLOTTA TO SHARE MOB MEMORIES AT CHARITY EVENT

Frank Cullotta will talk about his experiences as a key player in Tony Spilotro's infamous Hole in the Wall Gang at 7:30 p.m. Feb. 18 in the Stratosphere Theater of the Stars.

In 2007, Cullotta co-authored his biography, "Cullotta -- The Life of a Chicago Criminal, Las Vegas Mobster and Government Witness." His experiences also were tapped when he served as a technical advisor on the film "Casino."

During Cullotta's Feb. 18 presentation, audience members will have the opportunity to interact with him and with former Metropolitan Police Department detectives and FBI agents who investigated him.

This one-time charity event will benefit Opportunity Village. Tickets are $35 and are available through the Stratosphere by calling 380-7711 or Opportunity Village, 839-4757.

All audience members must be age 21 or older.

After the presentation, Cullotta will host a Godfather Dinner for 10 guests at Stratosphere's Fellini's Ristorante. Tickets for the dinner are $60.

LOCAL NOMINATED FOR DEBUT AUTHOR OF THE YEAR AWARD

Local author Rekaya Gibson was nominated for African Americans on the Move Book Club's Debut Author of the Year. Readers can vote for her by sending one vote per person to aambcvoting@gmail.com.

The winner will be announced on June 12 at the 2010 African Americans on the Move Book Club's literary awards show in Chicago.

AUTHOR TO SPONSOR STUFFED TOY DRIVE

"In-Laws From Hell" author Andrionna Willams is teaming with Skills 4 Kids and Light After the Storm to put on a stuffed animal drive to collect toys for children for Valentine's Day.

Toys may be dropped off through Feb. 20 at Skills 4 Kids, 7860 W. Sahara Ave., No. 170; Albertsons, 11720 W.Charleston Blvd.; Olive Garden, 1545 E. Flamingo Road; ReJAVAnate Coffee House, 3300 E. Flamingo Road; and Silver Miner's Casino, 1631 N. Rancho Drive. For information, call 232-9533 or 386-6407.

MIDBAR KODESH TEMPLE TO HOST DISCUSSION OF 'THE COLOR OF WATER'

"The Color Of Water: A Black Man's Tribute to His White Mother," by James McBride, is the next book slated for the Midbar Kodesh Temple monthly book club to be held at 7:30 p.m. on Feb. 17 at the 1940 Paseo Verde Parkway synagogue.

There is no charge for participation in the club, and discussions are open to the community.

WRITERS TO GET AN INSIDE LOOK AT BOOK RETAIL INDUSTRY

Debra Belcoff, former manager of The Reading Room and the Meadows Mall Borders Express, will give writers an inside look at the book retail industry during the 7 p.m. Feb. 18 Las Vegas Writers Group meetup at the Tap House, 5589 W. Charleston Blvd.

At the same time and place on March 18, the group will welcome journalist Geoff Schumacher, who will share his ideas about the future of newspapers.

For more information or to RSVP, visit www.meetup.com/Las-Vegas-Writers.

MASTER MAGICIAN FEATURED IN NEW BOOK

Lance Burton is one of 40 notable people featured in author Nikki Stone's new book "When Turtles Fly: The Secrets of Successful People Who Know How to Stick Their Necks Out." Stone, an Olympic Gold Medal winner in skiing, plans to donate 25 percent of the proceeds from the book to the American Cancer Society.

ORIGINAL COPIES OF BOOKS SLATED FOR FILMS CAN BE FOUND AT RARE BOOK SHOP

Collectable copies of books that inspired some of this year's blockbuster films are available at Bauman Rare Books inside The Shoppes at The Palazzo.

Sample volumes include: a first edition of Charles Darwin's "On the Origin of Species," one of only 1,250 copies, $172,000; a first American edition of Lewis Carroll's "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland," $16,000; a first edition of Walter Scott's "Ivanhoe," $4,000; a signed first edition of "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows," $13,500; a first edition of C. S. Lewis' "The Voyage of the Dawn Treader," $6,200; a first edition of Jonathan Swift's "Travels into Several Remote Nations of the World," with an engraved frontispiece portrait of Gulliver, $20,000; and a signed first edition of Allen Ginsberg's "Kaddish and Other Poems," published shortly after a censorship controversy surrounding his poem "Howl," $2,800.

REGISTRATION IS UNDER WAY FOR LAS VEGAS WRITERS CONFERENCE

The Las Vegas Writers Conference is set for April 15-17 at Sam's Town.

Scheduled faculty members include agents Brandi Bowles, Ginger Clark and Diana Fox; editor Jami Carpenter; authors Megan Edwards, Morgan St. James, Maralys Willis, Dennis Griffin and Judi Moreo; journalist Geoff Schumacher; publishers Crystalwizard, Margaret Dalrymple and Lynn Pisar; and screenwriter Dan Decker. Advance registration is required and the conference is limited to 150 participants.

To register, visit www.LasVegas WritersConference.com or call 564-6388.

'GRANNY MCFANNY' AUTHOR PLANS VISIT TO GALLERIA MALL LIBRARY

Celebrate Nevada Reading Week at the Galleria Library inside the Galleria at Sunset, 1300 W. Sunset Road, No. 1121, with a visit from Lewis Kimberly, author of "Granny McFanny." Stories and crafts will begin at 2 p.m. on Feb. 27. A book signing will follow.

WEST LAS VEGAS LIBRARY TO HOST EVENT

Linda Caro Porter, author of "Torn Between 2 Brothas," and Roosevelt Toston, author of "Beating the Odds in Las Vegas ... and in Life" are set to participate in At the Author's Table, a free event at 1 p.m. Feb. 20 at the West Las Vegas Library, 951 W. Lake Mead Blvd.

BOOKSTORE OFFERS WRITERS GROUP ON TUESDAYS

Borders bookstore hosts a free writers group at 6:30 p.m. Tuesdays at the 2190 N. Rainbow Blvd. location.

SUNRISE COFFEE CO. HOSTS OPEN MIC NIGHT

Sunrise Coffee Co. welcomes poets and poetry fans to participate in its open mic night starting at 7 p.m. every Wednesday in the 3130 E. Sunset Road coffee shop.

POETRY SERVED UP ONCE WEEKLY AT REJAVANATE

The ReJAVAnate coffee house hosts live poetry performances from 7 to 9 p.m. Tuesdays.

Some of the selections are intense and not intended for all ages. The shop is located at 3300 E. Flamingo Road, No. 23. Call 253-7721 for more information.

AUTHOR'S BOOK TO BE INCLUDED IN NATIONAL AUDIO LIBRARY

Local author Sid Goodman has been recording books for the national organization Recording for the Blind and Dyslexic for more than six years.

Recently, Goodman learned his new children's book, "Grandpa's Unfatootzer," was accepted for inclusion into the Recording for the Blind and Dyslexic library for use by reading and sight challenged children in grades kindergarten through third.

For more information about the book, contact Goodman at shgauthor@embarqmail.com.

SENIOR POET WINS SECOND LAUREATE AWARD

Retired nurse Jane Logan, 79, from Sparks, has won the 2009 Nevada Senior Poet Laureate Award for her sonnet "The Trumpet's Mission" in the 17th annual national Senior Poets Laureate competition. Logan won the 2007 National Senior Poet Laureate award for her sonnet "Mona Lisa's Last Day of Posing."

The annual literary event, sponsored by Amy Kitchener's Angels Without Wings Foundation of Monterey, Calif., is open to all American poets born before 1959. All state laureate poems enter a finals round from which the best-overall poem is chosen as national winner.

Patricia Frolander, 66, from Sundance, Wyo., won the 2009 National Senior Poet Laureate Award. Details about the contest, and all winners' poems, appear in the online anthology Golden Words, which can be found at www.amykitchenerfdn.org.

HENDERSON LIBRARIES SELL BOOKS IN-HOUSE AND ONLINE

Readers can support Henderson Libraries through in-library and online book sales. A store has been created through Amazon.com and can be reached by visiting www.mypubliclibrary.com and selecting "book sales."

In-library book sales are held at the Paseo Verde Library, 280 S. Green Valley Parkway, the Gibson Library, 280 S. Water St. and the Green Valley Library, 2797 N. Green Valley Parkway.

SUN CITY WRITER'S WINNING STORY APPEARS IN MAGAZINE

Sun City Summerlin writer Gil Stern won first-place in a monthly writing competition sponsored by Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine. His one-page mystery, "A Bag of Tricks" appears in the Nov. 9 edition of the publication. The 75-year-old retired advertising and public relations professional also wrote gags and skits for comedians and children's television.

PAT MULROY HONORED IN NEW CHILDREN'S BOOK

The Public Education Foundation released a new children's book based on the life of Pat Mulroy, general manager of the Las Vegas Valley Water District and the Southern Nevada Water Authority. "A Hero Named Pat," written by Marilyn Dondero Loop and designed and illustrated by Mike Miller and William Verrill, made its debut at The Public Education Foundation's 13th annual Education Heroes Award Dinner.

The foundation began publishing the heroes books in 2006 with "A Hero Named Thalia" in honor of Thalia Dondero. In subsequent years, "A Hero Named Bruce," was published in honor of Bruce Woodbury, and "A Hero Named Jan," put the spotlight on Jan Jones.

The foundation places a copy in each Clark County public library and in the libraries of all elementary and middle schools in the Clark County School District.

Copies are available for purchase online for $25, including shipping and handling, at www.thepef.org.

BOULDER CITY SENIOR CENTER WELCOMES WRITERS ROUNDTABLE

The Writers Roundtable is held on the second Tuesday of each month at 9:30 a.m. at the Boulder City Senior Center, 813 Arizona St. The group encourages and supports writers at all levels, published and unpublished. All ages are welcome.

For more information, call Doris at 294-1930.