BROADCASTS.com

b"This week: we travel from the front lines of forest fires to the trailer parks of outer space. It's all in a day's work for the Labor Day weekend.

Graphic Novelist Craig Thompson
We start with the singular Craig Thompson. His incredible, 600-page autobiography \\u201cBlankets,\\u201d about growing up in a fundamentalist Christian family in Wisconsin, was a game-changer, sweeping the awards and redefining the literary depths a graphic novel memoir could reach. Then Thompson completely changed gears with \\u201cHabibi,\\u201d an epic set in a modern Arabian Nights fantasia. Now Thompson has released \\u201cSpace Dumplins.\\u201d It\\u2019s the zany adventure of a girl who has to save her family from giant planet-eating whales whose excrement has replaced oil as the universe\\u2019s fuel. Did we mention there are sartorial, talking chickens?

How Do Bands Decide?
As you check out the fall concert calendar \\u2014 you probably noticed we have some big acts coming to town, like Madonna\\u2019s first visit in years \\u2014 have you ever wondered how bands decide where to book stops on their tours? Our pal Mitchell Hartmann looked into it for Marketplace.

Musician Craig Finn
Best known as the frontman of the Hold Steady, Craig Finn is famous for his storytelling, both in his songs and between them. He\\u2019s on tour this summer to promote his new solo album, \\u201cFaith In The Future.\\u201d During a live session for OPB Music, Finn performed the song \\u201cNewmyer\\u2019s Roof\\u201d and told the story behind the music.

Alien She
This weekend the Museum of Contemporary Craft and the Pacific Northwest College of Arts opens the exhibition called \\u201cAlien She\\u201d designed to unlock the history and impact of the Riot Girl Movement. The curators tell us about it.

Painter Rachel Davis
Rachel Davis\\u2019s newest exhibition, \\u201cA Trace History,\\u201d explores the interplay of ancient and modern China. In her whimsical watercolors, skyscrapers spring up as tall as mountains, and trucks go barrelling over land while terra cotta warriors wait buried below the surface. It\\u2019s a juxtaposition close to Davis\\u2019s heart. Both of her adopted daughters were born in Central China. Davis told us about how she\\u2019s riveted by the speed with which China has hurtled ahead during her daughters\\u2019 childhood here.

The Astoria Music Festival Gets A New Board
The festival\\u2019s onstage presence can be peaceful and sublime. But offstage, there\\u2019s been some drama. The Festival\\u2019s entire board announced in late July they were resigning, en masse. This week, a new board has signed on. We talk check in with \\u201cDaily Astorian\\u201d reporter Erick Bengel for an update.

A Jazz Life
Our sister station KMHD runs a series called \\u201cA Jazz Life,\\u201d where jazz artists and fans talk about moments when a musical experience changed their lives. They\\u2019re starting up a new season with this story from Jennifer Mayerle, a Portland-based marketing content strategist, who happened to sit behind an idol at a small New York jazz club.

Wallowa Fiddle Tunes Camp
One day in July we were driving through the small town of Wallowa in the far Northeast corner of Oregon on our way to Joseph to record a show from the Fishtrap writers\\u2019 retreat. As we drove past the school, we couldn\\u2019t help but notice the front lawn was filled with tents. What was the reason for a full-scale summer camp out at school? Meet Fiddle Tunes Camp.

Fire Fighting Meets Photography
Alan Thornton\\u2019s photography career has taken him from the deserts of the Southwest U.S. to distant lands like Turkey and Cambodia, but there was one shot that he could never get close enough to snap: a forest fire. So this spring, Thornton took a wildland firefighting course. Since then, he has found a new job working as a photographer and a firefighter. You can hear to the full conversation on Think Out Loud."