The Deschutes Public Library and Second Sunday are pleased to announce a reading by Bend writer Kim Cooper Findling on Sunday, December 11, in the Brooks Room of the Bend Public Library at 2:00 pm. An open mic will follow the reading. This presentation is free and open to the public.

Kim Cooper Findling is the author of Chance of Sun: An Oregon Memoir. In her debut as an author, Findling’s memoir unfolds the story of an Oregon girl coming of age in the 1970s and 80s, navigating her way through pick-up trucks, dive bars, higher education and backwoods trails before finding a place she belongs.

In 23 essays set over 20 years, Findling traces her own coming-of-age story against the beauty and complexity of the Oregon landscape. “In so many ways my story is every small-town kid’s story, especially those who grew up in Oregon in the 70s and 80s. Our beautiful rural towns were a weird combination of innocent and harsh, and almost all of us spent our youth waiting to get out. Yet we were totally unprepared for the racous, fast-paced city. For me, all that action was completely irresistible, and ultimately destructive,” says Findling. “It was so much fun to write about Oregon’s dichotomies—lovely innocence and a wild darkside. I realized they are my own.”

Kim Cooper Findling grew up on the Oregon Coast, spent several years in the Willamette Valley and has lived in Central Oregon for sixteen years. Her work has appeared in many publications over the last decade, including Travel Oregon, Horizon Air, Oregon Quarterly, Hip Mama, Sky West, The Best Places to Kiss NW and High Desert Journal. She is the author of Day Trips From Portland: Getaway Ideas for the Local Traveler, published by Globe Pequot Press, May 2011.

For more information about this or other library programs, please visit the library website at www.deschuteslibrary.org. People with disabilities needing accommodations (alternative formats, seating or auxiliary aides) should contact Lisa at 541/312-1034.