Photo by Robin Loznak with my small Nikon.

Sutherlin, Oregon, has such a great gem of a bookstore in the Books Gallery on Central Avenue. I spent a pleasant afternoon there signing books and sharing a reading from A Place of Her Own. The signing table is right in the front window with cushy chairs so people can sit in comfort and visit a moment. For the reading I moved back into an inner space with large tables and the ever-present puzzle table.

Cheryl, the proprietor, said her son suggested the puzzle table nine years ago, and they’ve had a puzzle going ever since. People stop by, work on it a while. Then others come and do a few more pieces. Folks bring in their favorite puzzles and sometimes trade. It’s a great feature.

They also offer yummy goodies to eat with excellent coffee, tea, and soft drinks.

The place isn’t far off I-5 and is definitely worth a stop. Cheryl still has a few of my books there, and I think she’ll probably keep some in stock. Check out the Books Gallery Facebook page. If you scroll down a bit you’ll see me with Robin Loznak, my son-in-law whose photos are in the book.

Again I had a few surprises, people I hadn’t seen in a long time or recognized only by name. What a great tradition, book signing!

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The Books Gallery in Sutherlin is my next stop for a book signing and reading. I’ll be there tomorrow, Saturday, June 14 from 2 to 4 pm. It’s a great little bookstore on Central Avenue, a short hop past the railroad tracks–on the right-hand side if you’re headed east from the freeway toward downtown.

The proprietor, Cheryl, is great, and her mom, Irene, too. Their bookstore is the kind of place where a person could spend most of a day happily. Besides the stacks of books and friendly people, you can sometimes find folks just sitting around a table putting together jigsaw puzzles. With yummy snacks and coffee, it’s just a lovely place to hang out.

In that special atmosphere I look forward to a great time tomorrow.

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A Place of Her Own had another fine launch today at While Away Books in Roseburg. This friendly bookstore offers a pleasant corner among their mazes of stacks for a gathering like ours–close to the large front window overlooking one of Roseburg’s tree-covered hills. My daughter Carisa Cegavske and I shared a laugh at the signing table.

She took care of selling books again, while my other daughter, Christiane Cegavske, took care of refreshments. And the staff of While Away made sure everything went smoothly.

Many folks drifted in, even a few strangers. Others came and stayed. Friends and cousins. Again I saw people I hadn’t seen in years. It was delightful to see everyone.

Even my 92-year-old aunt Elizabeth came. Although she admitted it isn’t easy for her to get out anymore, she insisted she was not going to miss this special event. Here, she appears to be checking out the message I wrote her when I signed her copy of my book. I was so glad to see her there.

Though people drifted in and out, chatting awhile before leaving with their signed books, a good group stayed to hear the reading.

All in all, a lovely afternoon.

The photos on this post were taken by Robin Loznak with my little Nikon camera.

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The city launch for A Place of Her Own is next up. This signing party and reading is set for Saturday afternoon, June 7, from 1 until 3 at While Away Books, 932 W Harvard Avenue. We’ll have refreshments, boxes of books, and I’ll have a pen or two ready for signing. Since I’m providing books, you’re welcome to bring copies you bought elsewhere and I’ll be glad to sign them. We’ll have some time to chat and get a few books signed. Then I’ll read at 1:30 or 2:00. This will be an all-new reading, after which we can have a little Q&A and more signing and conversation. Looking forward to a lovely afternoon.

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A wonderful crowd came to my first book launch party at ECEC in Elkton, Oregon. It was great fun reading to this group from Martha’s story, A Place of Her Own, and I especially enjoyed the lively Q&A afterward. Many of my friends know I worked a long time to reach this point. This has been a recurring dream that finally came true.

Photo by Robin Loznak

Back at the signing table (below), I’ve just signed a book for my newfound cousin, Linda Noel, who helped me so much in my research for this book. I was so glad to hear that she liked what I did with the story of this great-great-grandmother we share. She expressed to the group how much she appreciated seeing Martha and our other ancestors come to life in the pages, people she’d heard about all her life.

Photo by Robin Loznak

So many friends came to cheer me and wish me well in this venture. Several surprised me when they came in the door, some I hadn’t seen in years. The warmth and goodwill made it such positive experience. Great conversation. Many books to sign.

Photo by Robin Loznak

I had a fantastic time. I want to thank everyone who helped make the event so successful, the ECEC staff, my family. Special kudos to my grandson, Alex, who did a lovely job playing background music on the keyboard.

This morning before the event I had just come into my house after gathering flowers for the refreshment table, when I looked out the window and saw the white hawk. It swept past the house and soared up the hill, low to the ground.

Photo by Robin Loznak

Those who’ve read the book will know what this bird’s presence means to me. And what it meant to see it on this special day. I knew then that the launch would go well, and it did.

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