The high-stakes realm of organized crime sets the foundation for author Peter Laufer’s reading Thursday, March 17, at 7:30 p.m. in the Austin Reading Room of the Jereld R. Nicholson Library at Linfield College.
The reading will feature Laufer in a discussion of his two books “The Dangerous World of Butterflies” and “Forbidden Creatures.” After receiving an invitation to a butterfly preserve in Nicaragua, Laufer stumbled into a theater of intrigue and nefarious character, all of which were in pursuit of one of nature’s most delicate creatures. Laufer’s narrative delves into unpredictable turns of crime, ecological devastation and more in Nicaragua. In the book’s follow up, “Forbidden Creatures,” Laufer exposes the network of hunters, traders, breeders and customers who constitute this villainous business.
Laufer is the James Wallace Chair in Journalism at the University of Oregon School of Journalism and Communication. He also worked as a globe-trotting correspondent for NBC News, during which time he reported, wrote, and produced several documentaries and special event broadcasts. Laufer finished his undergraduate degree in English at the University of California in Berkeley. He earned his master’s in communications, journalism and public affairs from the American University School of Communication in Washington, D.C., and his Ph.D. in cultural studies from Leeds Metropolitan University Faculty of Arts and Society in England. His post-graduate work includes media studies at the Freie Universität in Berlin; German language study at the Carl Duisberg Centren in Cologne; French culture and politics study at the Ecole Nationale d’Administration in Paris, and Spanish language study at the Academia Sonora lengua y cultura española in Macharviaya, Spain.
The lecture is free and open to the public. It is sponsored by Linfield Nicholson Library and the Mass Communication Department. For more information, contact Susan Barnes Whyte, college librarian, at 503-883-2517, swhyte@linfield.edu.
