Riverwalk Books

In "Potluck, " Ana Maria Spagna explores the enduring human connection to place, journeying from Tijuana to a California beach to Utah's canyon country--and, always, back to the sparsely populated valley in the North Cascades she calls home.

"Potluck" homes in on the everyday gatherings that, over time, define a community: a makeshift wedding, an art gallery opening, a farewell potluck, a work party, a campfire, a political caucus, a funeral. "What connects us?" Spagna asks, and she reveals, again and again, the gift of community--easy and uneasy, deep and enduring and essential.