Mark Spitzer, assistant professor of writing at the University of Central Arkansas, will read from the latest installment of his memoir, “After the Orange Glow,” at the Faulkner County Library at 7 p.m. Thursday.
The book was recently published by Monkey Puzzle Press in Boulder, Colo., and is the fifth book Spitzer has published in one year.
In his memoir, Spitzer recounts the spontaneous, passionate, raucous and sometimes ludicrous lifestyle of expatriate poets and writers living and working in a legendary Paris bookstore. He delivers a behind-the-scenes look at his life and those of the Beat poets who shaped the literary style of a generation.
Spitzer teaches creative writing in the Department of Writing at UCA and is the editor-in-chief of the Toad Suck Review literary journal.
He’s also a friend of the alligator gar that makes its home in Arkansas bayous, and his book, “Season of the Gar: Adventures in Pursuit of America’s Most Misunderstood Fish” is a testament to his affection for the almost-endangered fish.
“After the Orange Glow” is the first in a series of four memoirs that are being published out of sequence. The third in the series, “Writer in Residence” (University of New Orleans Press) was published last year, and Spitzer read from it as well at the Faulkner County Library.
“He is funny and hilarious,” said Jeanetta Darley, events programmer at the library. “Mark is always a great reader.”
After the reading, there will be a question and answer session followed by a book signing. Copies of “After the Orange Glow” will be available for purchase.