Whiskey, ghosts and family secrets: ‘White Horse’ takes readers on a killer ride

Real Change
Humanity, alone: ‘Arlington’ arrives right on time to deliver excellent performances, hidden truths

By W. Barnett Marcus | January 25, 2023

PLAY REVIEW: ‘Arlington’ Written by Enda Walsh | Directed by Maggie L. Rogers | Jan. 13–30 at 12th Avenue Arts | Washington Ensemble Theater

The Washington Ensemble Theatre (WET), assembled in 2004 with aspirations to challenge norms of Seattle theater, opens 2023 with a haunting and jarring script by Enda Walsh. What you need to know about Walsh’s play, “Arlington,” is that you are not merely an observer of it.

Think of a number. Any number. Now imagine you’re at the DMV, and you’ve been waiting 20 minutes for that number. A number comes up, not yours. You wait another 20. Another number. Another 20. Another — never yours. ...
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Real Change
How the system works against you: ‘Punishment Without Trial’ clarifies the confusion with plea bargains

By Chris LaCroix | January 18, 2023

BOOK REVIEW: ‘Punishment Without Trial: Why Plea Bargaining Is a Bad Deal’ By Carissa Byrne Hessick | Abrams Press, Oct. 2021 | Hardcover, $21 | Nonfiction, criminal justice | Available at the Seattle Public Library

This is a small, sobering book about some deep, heavy issues. In essence, “Punishment Without Trial: Why Plea Bargaining Is a Bad Deal” is Carissa Byrne Hessick’s way of explaining how one branch of government routinely performs unconstitutional acts against American citizens. ...
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Real Change
In the midst of it: Examining child poverty, ‘Invisible Child’ highlights the fragile nature of stability

By Dave Gamrath | January 4, 2023

BOOK REVIEW: ‘Invisible Child: Poverty, Survival and Hope in an American City’ By Andrea Elliott | 2021 | Paperback, $20 | Nonfiction, sociology | Available at the Seattle Public Library

The United States has the second-highest child poverty rate of any wealthy country, after Romania. In recent years, many American cities have seen dramatic growth in homelessness, including Seattle. Much has been written about why poverty and homelessness have remained so pervasive in America. In her Pulitzer-Prize–winning book “Invisible Child: Poverty, Survival and Hope in an American City,” New York Times journalist Andrea Elliott provides readers a compelling understanding of just how bad things are and how challenging it is to break the cycle of poverty. ...
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Real Change
Cheap seats this January

By W. Barnett Marcus | January 4, 2023

In my experience, January is this funky-fresh, liminal space for regional theater. Dickens Season wraps up, springtime musicals are just starting to wake up with the sun and every year I find myself catching my breath for the month. Maybe one January I’ll perform, but this year I am perfectly content just watching. ...
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Real Change
The problem with social media is social media: Book underlines the growing need to disengage from ‘The Chaos Machine’

By Dave Gamrath | December 28, 2022

Over the past two decades, social media platforms such as Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, Instagram, Reddit, 4chan and others have grown to become dominant and influential forces in global culture. In “The Chaos Machine: The Inside Story of How Social Media Rewired Our Minds and Our World,” author Max Fisher lays out how this happened and chronicles the damage to society these platforms continue to wreak. ...
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Real Change
‘Not / Our Town’ provides a welcoming route away from old, stale classics

By W. Barnett Marcus | December 21, 2022

PLAY REVIEW: ‘Not / Our Town’ Written and directed by Brandon Healy | Nov. 4–Dec. 3, 2022, at 12th Avenue Arts | Pony World Theatre

“What is the name of someone I love?” My fingers hovered over my keyboard as I paused. ...
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Real Change
Author Joe Burns wants you to take a more radical, militant ‘Class Struggle’ approach to labor organizing

By Guy Oron | December 14, 2022

Over the past year, the labor movement has been on a bit of an upswing. Workers are winning historic victories at big corporations such as Starbucks and Amazon. The cost-of-living crisis brought a renewed interest in strikes and workers organizing for better wages and conditions. ...
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Real Change
Atomic worries: The most polluted place on earth, in our backyard

By Dave Gamrath | December 7, 2022

BOOK REVIEW: ‘Atomic Days: The Untold Story of the Most Toxic Place in America’ By Joshua Frank | 2022 | Paperback, $20 | Nonfiction, technology | Available at the Seattle Public Library

The United States’ atomic weapon production began during World War II, and most are aware of the devastation in Japan when America dropped nuclear bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. In his book “Atomic Days: The Untold Story of the Most Toxic Place in America,” author Joshua Frank describes the nuclear devastation in Hanford, Washington, where the plutonium used in the United States’ nuclear arsenal was produced. Hiroshima and Nagasaki may have recovered, but Hanford remains the most polluted place on the planet. ...
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Real Change
December theater: Oh, what fun!

By Johannes Saca | December 7, 2022

We have many reasons to be jolly this season, thanks to a merry lineup of plays hitting stages throughout Seattle this month! ...
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Real Change
Whiskey, ghosts and family secrets: ‘White Horse’ takes readers on a killer ride

By Johannes Saca | November 30, 2022

BOOK REVIEW: ‘White Horse’ By Erika T. Wurth | 2022 | Hardcover, $28 | Fiction, horror | Available at the Seattle Public Library

In Erika T. Wurth’s new novel, “White Horse,” a woman walks into a bar ... and then things get really weird.

The woman is our protagonist: Kari James. The bar is an establishment she frequents: the White Horse. The weird is a fascinating lot: ghosts, a monster, an unsolved crime, shocking family secrets and a bracelet. ...
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