2010 Pulitzer Prize winner to appear on campus, KUGS radio this week

Paul Harding, winner of the the 2010 Pulitzer Prize for fiction for his book "Tinkers," will appear in an interview on KUGS, the Western Washington University radio station, in advance of his appearances in Wilson Library and at Village Books this week. The interview, with KUGS operations and production director Gina Cole, is part of the station's "Turn the Page" series.

An interview with Harding will be aired on KUGS at 1 p.m. Monday, Oct. 18, and at 8 a.m. and 1 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 19. Harding will appear in Wilson Library 4 Central at 4 p.m. Oct. 19 and at Village Books at 7 p.m. Oct. 19.

Cole's interview with Harding can be heard on the radio at 89.3 FM or on the station's website at http://www.kugs.org/. The station also is available as Comcast channel 980 in the Bellingham area. On campus, students can get the station on television channel 16.

Publicity information about Harding's novel, "Tinkers":

In "Tinkers," Harding's debut novel, an elderly man lies dying in the house he built himself, surrounded by family and the antique clocks he restores. As time becomes fluid, his memories intertwine with those of his father, an epileptic, itinerant peddler and his grandfather, a Methodist preacher beset by madness. At once heartbreaking and life affirming, Tinkers is an elegiac meditation on love, loss, illness, faith, and the fierce beauty of nature.

The story behind the book's publication is just as extraordinary as the elegant prose within it. Inspired by his family's history, Harding began writing "Tinkers" after his rock band broke up, but he couldn't find a publisher until an editor at the tiny Bellevue Literary Press discovered his manuscript. Independent booksellers became the novel's earliest champions. It received glowing praise from critics, readers fell in love and eventually the Pulitzer Prize committee took notice.

A true Cinderella story, Tinkers now graces bestseller lists across the country, proving once again that great literature has a thriving and passionate audience.