EVENT: Gleefully grim ghost tales!

Join storyteller Lynne Cullen amid the shelves of old books at the Green Hand Bookshop as she shares her darkest folktales in the shadow of the Crookston Bigfoot.

WHAT: Stories from the Dark
WHEN: Saturday, October 30th, 2010 @ 7:00pm
WHERE: The Green Hand Bookshop, 661 Congress Street, Portland ME
COST: Free (although donations will be gladly accepted by the artist).

The only hint that Lynne will give about the tales she will tell, is this; "If people ask, you might want to tell them that the stories aren't for small children, encompassing as they do: gore, mother murder, father murder, walling people up, fire breathing black goats, dead babies, and the like. I know that kids 12 and up have probably seen it all, so they're probably OK. I'm just sayin'."

Sacred and Profane festival 2010!

This year Sacred and Profane is on Saturday, October 23rd, leaving Portland on the 2:15pm Peaks Island ferry boat! The Green Hand is pleased to be one of the ticket purchase points this year. Tickets are now available!

Every year Peaks Island hosts this festival around the time of a full moon during harvest season. Artists are gathered months ahead to prepare for a transformation of the abandoned Battery Steele, which sits at the center of the island.

On arrival at the island, visitors approach the event in a procession, encountering costumed performers and other unknowns along the way. No electricity is available, so participants wander through the different rooms of the complex by provided candlelight. Site specific works are many and varied, and the experience is apt to product a mystified, euphoric mood in participants as they wander through, never knowing what they'll encounter next. It's its own kind of spooky. :)

At the tail end of the festival, delicious hot food is provided to visitors before they depart back to the mainland.

Visitors are responsible for buying their ferry tickets at the Casco Bay Lines terminal. Festival tickets are sold separately and are $10 each. The number of tickets is limited due to capacity, so advance purchase is encouraged. Tickets are available at Strange Maine (the shop, at 578 Congress Street, Portland, ME 207-771-9997, http://www.kraag.org/strange/) and at the Green Hand Bookshop (661 Congress Street, Portland 207-450-6695 http://greenhandbooks.blogspot.com/).

Dear Mr. Poe

Today is the 161st anniversary of Poe's death. If you have a chance, pick up Peter Ackroyd's brief biography of him which focuses on his last days, called Poe: A Life Cut Short. A quick, heavily intriguing read.

Here's to you, Mr. Poe, and your writing, which to this day is still right up there among the American literary pantheon. Good job in spite of all the rest.

Illustration (c)2006 Michelle Souliere.

EVENT: A house visit from spooky Dr. Gasp!

As I cast about looking for the perfect spooky Halloween treats to have at my shop, wondering what fun events could be added to the calendar for all you fine folks out there, little did I realize that one of my favorite annual Halloween events would fall right into my lap!

WHAT: Halloween Music with Dan Blakeslee, a.k.a. Doctor Gasp
WHEN: October 13, 2010 @ 8:00pm
WHERE: The Green Hand Bookshop, 661 Congress St, Portland ME
COST: $5 suggested donation gladly accepted.
FMI: (207)450-6695 or email me at michelle.souliere[at]gmail.com
You can RSVP if you'd like at the event page on Facebook


Doctor Gasp is paying a house visit at the Green Hand Bookshop! Doors open at 7:00, and Dan Blakeslee will tune up and be ready to shake his chains at you by 8:00! Who knows what disguise the doctor will be wearing this year? Family friendly spooktakular rompings!!!

This event is free, although donations will be appreciated. The Green Hand Bookshop is located at 661 Congress Street, near Longfellow Square in Portland, next to Joe's Smoke Shop.

Can't wait for the lucky 13th? Just click below to see the fantastic little video for one of my favorite Halloween songs by Dan, "Vampire Fish"!!!