Staff photo by Angie Bean

BOOKS
UNLIMITED

The,MOdetaiewish Girl's Guide to

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BOOK TELLING

A whirlwind tour of the Jewish
Community Center of Metropolitan
Detroit's 55th Annual Jewish Book Fair.

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ULTRAMETABOLIM

Diana Lieberman
Special to the Jewish News

hen novelist Laura Zigman attended the national Jewish Book Council
meeting in May to find venues around the country for her latest book, she
noticed a group of "really intelligent" women who seemed to be having an
unusually good time.
"I said, `Where are they from?"' she remembers. "`I want to go there.'"
The delegates, it turned out, were Amy Hammer and Gail Fisher, chairs of the Jewish
Community Center of Metropolitan Detroit's 55th Annual Jewish Book Fair, along with
new book fair director, Heidi Budaj, who's also director of the JCC's Jewish Life and
Learning Department.
They were seeking the widest variety of works — books that would appeal to every
segment of the reading public.

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"One of our first questions is, `Who is the target audience for this author?"' Hammer
explains. "We feel responsible to bring in audiences who will buy their book. But we defi-
nitely try to find people who are also outgoing, engaging speakers."
With its light tone and a target audience of verbal, intelligent women, Zigman's new
novel, Piece of Work, was a perfect fit for Luncheon with the Author's, which takes place
at 12:15 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 9, at the Jewish Community Center in West Bloomfield. Co-
sponsored by the West Bloomfield Township Public Library and the National Council of
Jewish Women-Greater Detroit Section, the event also features Elizabeth Rosner, author
of Blue Nude, and Beth Gutcheon, author of Leeway Cottage.
There's a charge of $25 per person for lunch, with reservations required. Butif you
want to come to the JCC's Handleman Hall and listen to the three authors without enjoy-
ing a catered lunch, there's no charge.

Books Unlimited on page 58

October 26. * 2006

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