Hate That Cat

Sharon Creech, MA English ’79
Joanna Cotler Books, 2008

Hate That Cat is a continuation of one of Creech’s previous novels, Love That Dog. Jack, a character from Hate That Cat, is beginning a new school year with Miss Stretchberry, his teacher from the previous year. Miss Stretchberry introduces new poems that enable her students to speak freely. Jack spends the school year letting his mind wander about mean cats, sound, silence, worry, and joy.

Creech resides in upstate New York with her husband. She is the author of the Newbery Medal winner Walk Two Moons and the Newbery Honor Book The Wanderer. Creech’s other novels include The Castle Corona, Replay, Heartbeat, Ruby Holler, and Absolutely Normal Chaos. She also is the author of three picture books: A Fine, Fine School; Fishing in the Air; and Who’s That Baby?

Designing Your Perfect House: Lessons from an Architect

Bill Hirsch, BA Psychology ’71
Dalsimer Press, 2008

Designing Your Perfect House: Lessons from an Architect guides the reader in the right direction while contemplating the ideal home. The book offers numerous answers to questions about the design process. Hirsch also describes the role of the architect and how he or she will support one’s realistic wishes while building a new home.

Hirsch lives and works in North Carolina. He obtained a master of architecture degree from the University of Virginia. He has studied and practiced architecture for more than 30 years, concentrating on residential design for the past 12 years. Hirsch is a member of the American Institute of Architects.

Ready for the Defense

Mike Langan, MFA Creative Writing ’95 and JD ’98
Treble Heart Books, 2008

Langan’s second legal mystery novel, Ready for the Defense, is an intense thriller in which a lawyer, Hank Fisher, must determine who killed his boss and endangered his client, Senator Victoria Serling, after a sudden and deliberate incident. As the investigation continues, Fisher discovers untold information about his client, which could put all the pieces together in this case.

Langan’s debut novel, Dark Horse, also a legal mystery, was published earlier in 2008 by Five Star, an imprint of Gale Publishing. He lives in Syracuse, New York, with his wife and two daughters, where he is a career law clerk to a federal judge.

Two Minutes of Light

Nancy K. Pearson, MFA Poetry ’05
Perugia Press, 2008

A collection of poems, Two Minutes of Light reveals the struggles many people overcome as they confront the complicated obstacles throughout life. Pearson uses vivid imagination and language to create this beautiful, astonishing, and inspirational collection, which won the 2008 Perugia Press Prize.

Originally from Chattanooga, Pearson is a devoted runner and cyclist. She recently finished two seven-month poetry fellowships at the Fine Arts Work Center in Provincetown, Massachusetts. Several of her other poems have appeared in such journals as The Adirondack Review and Margie.

Overcoming Evil God’s Way

Stephen Russell, BA European Studies ’88
Faith Builders Resource Group, 2008

Various individuals have their own views on violence and despair, and they have their own beliefs on what punishment is considered equal for a violent act of crime. Overcoming Evil God’s Way offers a biblical message that trusts Christians will replace hatred and trepidation with forgiveness and understanding.

Russell is an instructor at Faith Builders Educational Programs, a small, two-year biblical training institute that deals with the Anabaptist heritage. He has a master’s degree in church history and theology from Wheaton Graduate School in Illinois.