Book Launch - Falling

I'll be doing another blog while on the road for my book tour for my latest short story collection, Falling, between Oct 8th and Nov 26th...this is just a shout out as the book tour actually launches next week on my father's 89th birthday....below is the info for that reading, and a list of those that follow is at the bottom of this blog entry....please pass along dates to anyone you might know in those faraway cities!

San Francisco

Oct 8, Tues, 7 pm – Book Launch: Falling by Trebor Healey

Dog Eared Books  

489 Castro St.

w/Arthur Tress

415-658-7920

Trebor will read from his new story collection and introduce famed photographer Arthur Tress, who did the book cover and took several beautiful portraits of Trebor's late father, which will be on display...Incidentally, Oct 8th is his SF-born and raised father's birthday...Q&A to follow, and books in the store now....to order a copy, click here

In the meantime, as you all know, there's been a lot of activity at the refugee house in Mexico City, and due to that, not only did we raise over $1,000 which will keep Victor in Mexico City, but we're helping a bunch of other kids who arrived this week...hopefully there will be more drawings and pics to share...but here's Celenia's two kids in the meantime (they got asylum in February thanks to our donations and are now living in Saltillo outside Monterrey in the state of Nuevo Leon, Mexico where they attend school)

Jim Mitulski invited me to come speak at his church about all this...he's a minister who I've known for years - he was the pastor at MCC in San Francisco where ACT UP meetings used to take place, right across the street from Coming Home Hospice where I also volunteered. Jim has always been an activist, setting up interesting panels, talks and actions, and inviting me to read when he was at the Pacific School of Theology in Berkeley. He spent time in Central America in the '80s when US foreign policy was creating much of what has lead to this crisis.

So off  to Island United Church in Foster City I went...it was a wonderful opportunity, and I was joined by Lilli Rey of Bay Area Border Relief  who organizes shipments of much-needed supplies to the border...many of my dad's fleeces and sweaters are on their way now... the US/Mexico border is very cold during winter and these people are from the tropics....check out the site and donate warm clothes, toiletries, tents!

Lilli Rey and Island United Church Board President Alexis

Outside the church, they have a display of some of the now 15 children that have died at the border (6 in ICE custody).....

In my talk, I basically just told stories about kids like those above - recounting their struggles and journeys, the reasons for fleeing their home countries and the crazy funny kid stuff they got up to at the refugee house. How they break your heart, but like the song says....if it keeps on breaking and breaking and breaking and breaking, then one day it will open and open and open and open and open.... I talked about some of the nuns, like Evalina who taught me to cook food for 6,000 in the caravan.....and encouraged folks to do whatever they can during this national and international trauma and honor these people who are no different from any of us.

A hummingbird (or was it a flying metaphor?) flew into the church while I was speaking, and it allowed me to share a story I'd learned in Mexico about hummingbirds that migrate back and forth across the US border - capital and animals are free to cross, just not people. The poor bird was banging against the window, trying to scale his own wall...eventually, he found his way out and flew away and everybody clapped.

I'm next to fly off, and may all beings get to where they need to go

Tour Dates:

New York City

Oct. 12, Sat., 12pm - 6pm - Rainbow Book Fair
(panels and readings)
LGBT Center, 208 W. 13th St.

Oct 13, Sun., 5pm – 6pm - Bloom Readings
The Lounge at Hudson View Gardens
Pinehurst Ave. and W. 183rd St.
w/CharlieVasquez
Stories about and support for immigrants
Wine and hors d’oeuvres

Oct 18, Fri., 7pm – 8:30pm - Violet Ghosts
Bureau of Queer Services
LGBT Center, 208 W. 13th St.
w/Craig Gidney
(646) 457-0859

Oct 20, Sun., 7–9 pm - Enclave Reading Series
Club Cumming
505 E. 6th St.
wj/Ricky Tucker, Court Stroud, Emanuel Xavier, Craig Gidney

Montreal

Oct 23, Wed., 7 pm - Violet Hour Reading Series
Stock Bar
1171 St. Catherine St. East,
w/Felice Picano & Montreal writers Johanne Pelletier, Su J Sokol and David Tacium
(514) 842-1336

Oct 24, Thurs, 7 pm - Reading/Q&A
Librairie Argo Bookshop
1915 St. Catherine St. East
w/Felice Picano, & Montreal writers Nicola Sibthorpe & Madelaine Caritas Longman
(514) 931-3442

Ottawa

Oct 25, 26, weekend
gay men's book club brunch
TBA

Toronto

Oct 30, Wed., 6-8 pm - Reading/Q&A
Glad Day Bookshop
499 Church St.
w/Felice Picano
(416) 901-6600

Minneapolis

Nov. 4, Mon., 7 pm - Reading/Q&A
Magers & Quinn Booksellers
3038 Hennepin Ave.
w/Raymond Luczak
(612) 822-4611

Nov. 6, Wed., 7 pm - Reading/Q&A
Quatrefoil Library
1220 E. Lake St.
(612) 729-2543

Seattle

Nov. 9, Sat., 7 pm - Reading/Q&A
Elliott Bay Book Company
1521 10th Ave.
w/Alvin Orloff
(206) 624-6600

Portland

Nov. 16, Sat., 11 am, Radical Faerie Coffee
Triumph Coffeeshop
201 SE 12th Ave.
(971) 229-1631

Nov. 17, Sun., 6 pm, - Stage Reading
Crush Bar
1400 SE Morrison St.
w/Daniel Elder
(503) 235-8150

Los Angeles

Nov. 22, Fri., 7:30 pm - Reading/Q&A
Skylight Books
1814 N. Vermont Ave.
w/ Alvin Orloff & Tara Jepsen
(323) 660-1175

Palm Springs

Nov. 27, Wed., 6–8 pm – End of Tour Book Party
Palm Springs Cultural Center
2300 E Baristo Rd.
(760) 325-2582

Oakland

Dec. 5, Thurs., 7 pm - Reading/Q&A
E.M. Wolfman Bookstore
410 13th St, Oakland
w/Alvin Orloff & Brontez Purnell
(510) 679-4650