Please join Isle of Books, MSU library, Friends of MSU library, and the Bozeman Public Library, THIS THURSDAY, September 26th, 6:30 PM at Isle of Books for our second annual banned book week event:

CAN I READ THIS?
A public reading of banned and challenged books

Once again, we are delighted to feature some of Montana’s finest writers (and one of Montana’s finest Mayor-Elects) for a public reading and discussion of banned and challenged books.

This years wild bunch of word-slingers include: 

Russell Rowland is a critically acclaimed author of In Open Spaces, The Watershed Years, High and Inside, Fifty-Six Counties, Cold Country, and the upcoming autobiography Be A Man: Raised in the Shadow of Cowboys. He is also the creator and producer of the podcast State of Montana, where he has interviewed influential figures such as Dorothy Bradley, Marc Racicot, Ryan Busse, Chris LaTray, and other influential Montanans.

A fourth-generation Montanan, Rowland was born in Bozeman in 1957 and holds an MA in Creative Writing from Boston University. He teaches writing workshops and mentors emerging writers and currently lives in Billings, Montana.

Scott McMillion is the editor of Montana Quarterly and grew up in Livingston, Montana. After graduating from the University of Montana, he spent several years traveling the world before returning home in 1988.

A highly awarded journalist, McMillion is also the author of the acclaimed book Mark of the Grizzly, which became an instant classic upon its release in 1999. His work has been featured on The News Hour with Jim Lehrer, and he’s been a frequent guest on radio and television programs. His writing appears in publications across the country

Elise Atchison has spent most of her life living in an off-the-grid home near the Absaroka-Beartooth Wilderness in Montana. She holds a B.A. in English/Writing from Montana State University. Much of her work focuses on the changing Western landscape and its impact on the land and the people who live there. Her writing explores the many ways we relate to the natural world, how we relate to each other, and how these connections are fundamentally intertwined.

Atchison is the author of Crazy Mountain and the recipient of several awards, including the High Plains Book Award, the Montana Arts Council Artist Grant, the Eludia Book Award, and the Barbara Deming Memorial Fund Artist Grant. Her short stories and essays have been featured in numerous journals, anthologies, and on radio.

Craig Lancaster was born in 1970 in Lakewood, Washington, and grew up in Texas. After high school, he pursued a career in journalism, working as an editor in states like Texas, Alaska, California, and Montana. For nearly 25 years, he enjoyed a diverse career, including a season covering the Oakland Raiders. In 2013, he left journalism to focus on writing full-time.

In addition to his literary work, Lancaster serves as a content specialist for a research firm, helps others with their writing through Lancarello Enterprises, and works as senior editor and contributor for Montana Quarterly.

After a brief stay in Maine, he now resides in Montana with his wife, novelist Elisa Lorello, and their pets.
 

Maggie Anderson has spent much of her professional life as a hired pen, creating communications for businesses, educational institutions, and medical facilities. Her diverse writing projects have included scripts for Magnetic Resonance Imaging, vocational education programs, and even a medication for horses. Over the years, she produced written materials, videos, websites, TV and radio commercials, and content for community education on public school funding.

Although she wrote for others for decades, she began focusing on her own writing in recent years. Her debut book, Between Rock and a Hard Place, was published in 2023. Anderson lives in Paradise Valley with two dogs, two horses, and a mischievous cat. She finds peace in the wild mountain areas and advocates for their preservation.

Joey Morrison is a social worker, housing organizer, and lifelong Montanan who recently defeated incumbent Cyndy Andrus to become the next mayor of Bozeman. He will serve two years as deputy mayor before stepping into the top role in January 2026. Born in Miles City, Montana, Morrison graduated from Montana State University, where he balanced his studies with working nights at the HRDC Warming Center.

With multiple degrees and a national scholarship, Morrison understands the challenges of living in Bozeman. Committed to social and environmental justice, he played a key role in forming and leading Bozeman Tenants United, the city’s first tenants union. As mayor, he aims to listen to residents’ experiences and collaborate to build a better Bozeman together.

James Grady who is kind enough to write and submit a short piece for the occasion – which I will be reading, is the NYT best-selling author of the espionage classic “Six Days of the Condor” and its sequels, adapted into the hit film with Robert Redford and Faye Dunaway. More recently, he is the author of “The Smoke In Our Eyes,” a literary thriller and cinematic, clock-ticking saga set in small-town Montana circa 1959, the “year the music died.” It’s sequel, “American Sky,” will publish in summer 2025.