MOUNT VERNON — LeAnne Howe, an American Indian author, playwright and lecturer at Grinnell College, will read from her latest novel, “Shell Shaker,” at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 5, in Shaw Lounge of The Commons at Cornell College. Admission is free. She will sign books following the reading.
“Shell Shaker” is the story of a Choctaw family struggling to solve the murder of a corrupt casino chief and end foreign intervention in the tribe.
Howe is enrolled in the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma, where she was born and educated. Besides teaching in Grinnell’s American studies department, Howe has written short stories, essays, plays and film scripts. Her work has appeared in literary periodicals such as “Story,” “Callaloo,” “Cimarron Review” and “Fiction International” and anthologies such as “Reinventing the Enemy’s Language” and “Native American Literature.” Among her works for theater are “The Shaman of OK,” “Indian Radio Days” and “Big Pow Wow.”
Howe’s appearance is sponsored by Cornell’s Office of Intercultural Life.