Tilt - 2026

Lake Oswego, OR: The Lake Oswego Public Library has selected Tilt: A Novel by Emma Pattee for its 2026 award-winning citywide reading program, at the recommendation of the Lake Oswego Reads Steering Committee.

The Library’s Director, Melissa Kelly, is excited for the community to experience this novel. “Tilt is a fantastic selection for our 20th anniversary of Lake Oswego Reads!  This thrilling, thought-provoking book takes readers on a momentous journey across Portland, Oregon, and into the mind of the complicated and sometimes irreverent main character, Annie.  Tilt is a story that folks will have a hard time putting down, and will surely want to discuss with others.” 

Andrew Edwards, Director of Lakewood Center for the Arts, says, “It can be difficult to visualize the impacts of a major Cascadia earthquake striking the Pacific Northwest. What will it be like for families? For businesses? The novel Tilt by Emma Pattee helps us understand the aftermath of this inevitable disaster. The story follows Annie, a pregnant woman in her final weeks, as she navigates the aftermath of a massive quake. As she searches for safety, she faces fault lines not only in the earth but also in her relationships with friends, family, and her marriage. We see the surreal, overwhelming, humorous, and beautiful ways humans behave in a crisis. Pattee draws heavily on real seismological research about the Cascadia Subduction Zone, reflecting her background in environmental journalism and her deep knowledge of Portland, Oregon, where she lives.”

Committee member and City of Lake Oswego employee Nell Diamond found Tilt personally compelling. “While I have never been through a significant earthquake, I am from New Orleans, and do remember going through hurricanes Betsy and Camille as a child and witnessing the destruction that followed. Then, in 2005 my mother’s family home was all but destroyed in Hurricane Katrina; there was eleven feet of flood water in it for six weeks.  

Here in Lake Oswego, during the January 2024 ice storm, our Public Works department answered hundreds of calls from people who needed to have their water shut off, and or were looking to be evacuated from their home since they had no heat, electricity, or running water. Many of these people were elderly or were otherwise unable to leave on their own. Our City staff worked around the clock to address these needs of the community – and while the ice storm could not be avoided, we all could have been more prepared for the fallout. Programming around Tilt will support City Council goals to ensure a safe, secure, and prepared community.”

Library Advisory Board member Lilisa Hall echoes that sentiment. Events and programming around Tilt “will highlight one of the vital roles the LO Library plays in Lake Oswego—actively supporting lifelong learning—by being a critical resource and elevating the importance of being prepared for disasters in our community.”

“Like everyone else on the Steering committee, I was captured by this book and couldn’t put it down,“ relates Steering Committee member Cherie Dupuis.

Retired Library Director Bill Baars echoes these comments and adds, “This book has the potential to save lives.”

The 2025-26 Steering Committee for Lake Oswego Reads is composed of librarians, community leaders, high school English teachers, retired professors, and high school students.  Each year we welcome book suggestions for this volunteer committee to read and consider. For a listing of proposed books, go to Books Considered for 2026.

Join Us

Thanks to a grant from the Friends of the Lake Oswego Public Library, 875 free books will be distributed to Lake Oswego Public Library card holders. As in recent years, the book giveaway will be held as a drive-through in the library parking lot, beginning at 1:00pm on Sunday, March 1st. The street address is 706 Fourth Street in Lake Oswego.

The Lake Oswego Reads Events Committee is developing April’s schedule of free programs that include speakers, craft classes, emergency preparedness activities, art, book discussions and more. Additionally, thanks to the Friends of Lake Oswego Public Library, Emma Pattee will visit Lake Oswego and speak in person on ­­­­Sunday, April 26th at 7:00 pm. Tickets will be available at the Library throughout the month of April. See the Lake Oswego Library website for details on this event and all the April events as they are added to this exciting month of reading.

Background

The Lake Oswego Public Library has been recognized by national organizations such as the U.S. Conference of Mayors for this immersive program that encourages all members of the community to read the same book, discuss its message, and celebrate an atmosphere of learning among all age groups. This will be the program’s 20th year and all events will be free thanks to financial support from the Friends of the Lake Oswego Public Library, Lake Oswego Rotary Club, Lake Oswego Review, and the City of Lake Oswego.

About the Author

Emma Pattee is a climate journalist and a fiction writer. Her writing has appeared in The Atlantic, The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Guardian, and more. She lives in Portland, Oregon.

About Lake Oswego Reads

How do the books get chosen? Who picks them? How many books get read before a selection is made? Who picks the artists to interpret the book? Visit our website at www.lakeoswegoreads.org for answers to all of your LO Reads FAQs!

For questions, please contact Nancy Niland at 503-675-2538 or nniland@lakeoswego.city