<DIV><p>Here are two exquisite stories set at different times in the author's life. In Ignatz Award nominated "Hawaii 1997," few words are spoken, but Sam Alden's imagery evokes the magic of a nighttime encounter at a Hawaiian resort. In "We Don't Talk About It and We're Not Going to Play It," an older Alden explores the complicated gender dynamics surrounding a kidnapping attempt in New Orleans. Alden is one of the brightest young talents working today.</p><p><B>Sam Alden</B> was born in 1988 in Portland, Oregon. In 2013 he was an official guest at the BilBOLbul festival in Bologna, Italy, and his ongoing comic <I>Haunter</I> will be excerpted in the forthcoming <I>Best American Comics</I> 2013 from Houghton-Mifflin. He now lives and works as an illustrator and cartoonist in his hometown of Portland. Sam lives alone with no pets and is the recipient of the Ignatz Award for Promising New Talent.</p><BR></DIV>