May 5, 2014 6-7:30
Just Kids by Patti Smith

Just Kids is an autobiography of Patti Smith, whose look at New York in the 1960s and 1970s paints a very clear picture of the world in which Sam Shepard wrote and produced his first plays. Smith and Shepard had an affair, chronicled in the book, during which time they cowrote and premiered the play Cowboy Mouth.

About our guest leader:
David Sumner is professor of English and environmental studies at Linfield College. He specializes in American nature writing, rhetoric, Western American literature, and the connection between literature, landscape, and ethics. He teaches various courses in American Literature, philosophy and literature, and American nature writing. He also directs Linfield’s writing program and oversees the Linfield writing center. Professor Sumner has published in the fields of literature and the environment, rhetoric, and writing pedagogy including a series of interviews with contemporary nature writers such as Terry Tempest Williams, Barry Lopez, and David Quammen. His most recent article, “Eco-terrorism or Eco-tage: An Argument for the Proper Frame” appears in the fall 2013 issue of ISLE: Interdisciplinary Studies in Literature and Environment.