Sunset Creative Class Park Dispatches from the
By Amy Shamroe A few months ago some articles I wrote for NM3 lead to a meeting. The meeting became the Creative Class. The Creative Class is thriving. I am still pleased at every Creative Class meeting to see so many regular members return and how many new people come to check it out. Our members come from diverse backgrounds- doctor to cook, unemployed to self-employed. It really does reflect the diversity of Traverse City. What else stands out is how the group is a community, supporting each other. Each month we have someone involved with the group give a presentation about what they do. Graphic designer, rather Graphic Storyteller, Gene Ullery-Smith, shared with us how getting to know his clients has helped him create a new way to approach graphic design. Tod Taylor showed a different, effective, and practical way to save for retirement. Jeff Stratton educated us on green energy and how accessible it can be for everyone. That is just to name a few. Each talk seems to lead to a productive discussion about the topic followed by some networking.
There is a personal touch to the meetings that makes the Creative Class unique and dynamic. We don’t sit around in cliques drinking or force everyone to make referrals to stay in the group. Make no mistake though, this all leads to business results as well. The next Creative Class meeting is November 9th, 6:30pm, at Cuppa Joe Cafe Building 50. Diana Barrie will discuss her role at the City Opera House and what it’s like working in the arts. Check out our Facebook page (even if you don’t have Facebook) for more information on the meeting and upcoming events. www.facebook.com/creativeclasstc
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NM3 MAGAZINE ■ NOVEMBER 2010
by Paul Auster Reviewed by Amy Shamroe Sometimes all the scrambling at deadlines and creative surges slammed against quick turnaround in the publishing game has its rewards. One of those rewards is getting your hands on the rare and elusive galley copy of a book by an author you really love. Let me tell you, I really love Paul Auster. My love affair with his storytelling and words began with The Brooklyn Follies quickly followed by The New York Trilogy. If you have never read either of these, they should go on your “to read” list. Fortunately, Sunset Park is a bit of change from the themes of his early works, so it is a good place to jump in. Sunset Park begins literally in the middle of the wreckage that is the real estate market in post-financial crisis Florida. Miles is estranged from his family in New York and making money where he can cleaning out abandoned homes. A difficult romantic situation (that I will not ruin, because it unfolds so well) necessitates his hasty retreat from the Sunshine State. In fiction, as in life, no one can escape their past and Miles finds himself back in his old Sunset Park neighborhood where he lived before heading to Florida. Once back in Brooklyn, Miles meets up with Bing Nathan, Alice Bergstrom, Ellen Brice and Jake Baum- all young squatters sharing a condemned building. It’s at this point the full complexity of Auster’s writing shines through. The twisting narratives of these characters are layered with allusions to great American literature, film and culture. In the end, Auster tells a story that rings true for many today making their way through what are supposed to be the best years of their lives during some of the worst times their country has seen. With Sunset Park, Auster presents a work that ranks with the likes of Fitzgerald in depth of characters and an eye for the times he lives in. Sunset Park will be released November 9th. You can contact Brilliant Books today and they will send you a copy (shipping is free) when it is released.