Title Wave has returned to Coos County’s libraries. The libraries have scheduled reading and author events to celebrate Oregon’s 150th year of statehood with award-winning Oregon books by Oregon authors.

The libraries are encouraging people to read the books prior to events featuring authors and guest lecturers.

This year’s books include “The Hood River Issei,” “Stubborn Twig: Three Generations in the Life of a Japanese-American Family” for adult readers. It was written by Lauren Kessler. “Bat 6” by Virginia Euwer Wolff is for young adult readers, and there’s the children’s book “Apples to Oregon: Being the (Slightly) True Narrative of How a Brave Pioneer Father Brought Apples, Peaches, Pears, Plums, Grapes, and Cherries (and Children) Across the Plains” by Deborah Hopkinson.

Authors

Kessler’s book is the classic story of Masuo Yasui, who traveled from Japan across the other Oregon trail — the Pacific Ocean — in 1903, a press release said. He came with big dreams, and little money, and found work with railroads, a cannery, and as a houseboy before settling in Hood River, opening a store, and becoming one of the area’s most successful orchardists.

The family thrived in Hood River, until the explosive events in Pearl Harbor collapsed their lives on Dec. 7, 1941. The Yasuis were among the 120,000 people of Japanese ancestry on the West Coast who were forced from their homes and taken to inland internment camps.

Wolff, the critically acclaimed young adult author of “Bat 6,” portrays the challenges of being a Japanese American during World War II, through the story of the young girls, preparing for Bat 6, the annual softball game. Bat 6 tells the story of Aki, at first base for the Ridgers team, whose family “had to go away,” after Pearl Harbor, and Shazam, center field for Barlow, whose father was killed in the attack on Pearl Harbor.

Hopkinson’s “Apples to Oregon” is described as a delightful picture book for young readers.

Guest lecturer Mitzi Loftus, who was born in Hood River, spent three years in a wartime relocation center, and settled in Coos Bay in the 1970s. She will speak about her family’s acquaintance with the Yasui family, focusing on the close friendship of her father, Sagoro Asai, to Matt Yasui and her personal connection to two of the daughters.

Lecturer Joan Yasui Emerson will talk about her remembrances of growing up in Hood River as a Sansei (the third generation of Japanese Americans) and a grandchild of the Yasui family. She’ll share personal stories and display family photographs.

Author Linda Tamura, who wrote the “The Hood River Issei,” will tell the story of young Americans who served in the U.S. Army while their families were incarcerated in wartime camps. At the same time, their communities discouraged them from returning home, because they were Japanese Americans.

Poet laureate

Oregon’s Poet Laureate Lawson Fusao Inada, an emeritus professor of writing at Southern Oregon University in Ashland is the author of five books and a winner of the Governor’s Arts Award (1997), the Oregon Book Award (for Drawing the Line, 1997) and the Pushcart Prize (1996) for poetry.

The public libraries of Coos County and Southwestern Oregon Community College’s library all have copies of “Stubborn Twig,” and copies of the books “Bat 6” and “Apples to Oregon” for young adult and younger readers. The libraries also have the audio book version of “Stubborn Twig” and “Bat 6” available for checkout. The featured books can be purchased at a discount at Books by the Bay in North Bend.

On the Net

Coos County libraries

http://www.cooslibraries.org

Oregon Reads 2009

www.oregonreads2009.org