The Mid-Willamette Valley’s premier literary event, The Magic Barrel: A Reading to Fight Hunger, is held each fall in Corvallis, Oregon, to raise funds for  hunger relief. This unique event which began in 1993 is named after Bernard Malamud’s story by that title, The Magic Barrel, and features writers from around Oregon sharing their fiction, poetry, and works of nonfiction in brief readings.

The evening begins and ends with live music, food, beer, and wine, with all proceeds benefiting Stone Soup. The audience enjoys readings by novelists, poets, short story writers, and nonfiction writers. Courtesy of Corvallis’ local bookstore Grass Roots Books and Music, the authors’ books are made available to buy at the event, with all proceeds donated to Stone Soup.

The event is supported by a major contribution from the OSU Center for the Humanities at Oregon State University, where Malamud once taught, and is organized by a group of Corvallis writers and readers.

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