Spiral Bookcase to Feature New Philly Book

The Spiral Bookcase in Manayunk will host a new book event on Thursday, Aug. 29, to celebrate the inaugural publication by The Head & The Hand Press, which is based in Philadelphia. 

“We host a salon series,” said Spiral Bookcase owner Ann Tetreault.  “They’re not just reading events.”

Tetreault added, “We like to have people perform or speak, and we see it as a way for people to cross paths and share their creativity.”

Thursday night’s reading will feature authors who have contributed to The Head & The Hand Press’ first ever publication, “Rust Belt Rising Almanac.”

The almanac features short stories, creative nonfiction, poetry and art centered on the parts of the country hit hardest by the disappearance of manufacturing jobs over the last 30 years.

“By having the theme of the Rust Belt, with the structure of the almanac, we were able to not just give context to the pieces, but to also really make them live and breathe in relation to the other pieces around them,” said press founder urban farmer and writer Nicolas Esposito. “And as people re-imagine these cities, we want them to think of redevelopment in the same way.”

Contributors to the almanac like Liz Kerr, M. Angelo Mena and Marissa Johnson-Valenzuela.

Both works by Kerr and Mena feature characters who live in Philadelphia.

Kerr will be reading from her short story  “Radium Girls,” which juxtaposes disenfranchised factory workers of Kensington’s industrial heyday with the contemporary murders of prostitutes in a declining neighborhood.

Mena will be reading from a story describing the lives of two boys who attend a tough Philly school, and how one finds an outlet in the mural program.

The almanac also features traditional mainstays like planting guides, astrological anomalies and maps, while drawing inspiration from cities like Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Cleveland and Detroit.

“We’re very thankful to have the support of the community,” Tetreault said.  “We wouldn’t be here without them.”

The book event will be held at the Spiral Bookcase located at 112 Cotton St., Philadelphia.  It starts on Thursday, Aug. 29, at 7 p.m.