Olaf's first book group!

At least, I think the Thousand Oaks Goebel Senior Center Literature Group is the first book group to discuss Dr. Olaf. I asked if it would be okay to post a photograph to commemorate the discussion, and the group was kind enough to pose for two. Thank you Thousand Oaks readers! Click on either picture to view a larger version.

Olaf recommended by the staff of Powells.com!

As a big fan of Powell's bookstore (I always swing by when I'm in Portland), I was thrilled to discover that the staff have some nice things to say about Doctor Olaf van Schuler's Brain:

If Tracy Chevalier and Mary Roach got together to write a novel, Doctor Olaf Van Schuler's Brain might be the result. This book is a wonderful collection of connected short stories and a history of medicine rendered through the lives of one extended family.

To see the online listing for Dr. Olaf click here, or--if you're anywhere near Portland--swing by to get some books and see Olaf on the shelves (I hear there are only two copies left in stock).

Olaf is a best-seller in Marin!

This week's list of the fiction selling best in Marin (compiled by the Marin Independent Journal ) includes Doctor Olaf (#10, after Roberto Bolano's 2666 and Lauren Groff's Delicate Edible Birds). Thank you, Marin! And thank you, Book Passage and Book Depot!

To see the entire list, see Best-sellers for week of Feb. 15.

I'll be at the Central Coast Writers' Conference

I was invited to teach at this year's Central Coast Writers' Conference taking place Oct 2-3 in San Louis Obispo! I'm very excited and look forward to meeting YOU if you can make it. I'll be teaching two workshops (one on publishing short stories and one on dialog--I'll link to the descriptions once they're posted on the conference site. For now, you can read about last year's program here.

Olaf on The Bookish Dilettante

Doctor Olaf got a nice mention on the Bookish Dilettante's blog ("On Books and Publishing and Whatnot") the other day:

If I had been organized enough to have read this in it's entirety in by the end of the year, this would have been my favorite book of 2008. . . Doctor Olaf van Schuler's Brain is an incredibly good book. . . It's unputdownable. Point being: Go. Read this now!

To read the full note, see Some Books I Am Currently Digging.