Alice Hoffman, with Lisa See, at Vroman’s Bookstore
Alice Hoffman, in conversation with author Lisa See, will discuss and sign her new novel Faithful, the story of a young woman survivor finding her way in the modern world. From the bestselling author of The Marriage of Opposites and The Dovekeepers, comes this soul-searching story of Shelby Richmond, an ordinary girl until an extraordinary tragedy changes her fate when her best friend’s future is destroyed in an accident, and Shelby walks away with the burden of guilt.
Join us to hear two favorite bestselling authors in conversation!
Where: Vroman’s Bookstore
Date: Monday the 7th
Time: 7 pm
Address: 65 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, CA 91101
Women on the Verge at the Last Bookstore
In celebration of the paperback launch of The Suicide of Claire Bishop, and in support of Downtown Women’s Center, four working women writers—Carmiel Banasky, Dawn Dorland, Catie Disabato, and Agatha French—will read from works in different genres and discuss the inherently political nature of being a (woman) writer the night before this crazy election.
Carmiel Banasky is the author of The Suicide of Claire Bishop, and her work has appeared in Glimmer Train, The Guardian, LARB, The Rumpus, and on NPR, among other places. She is from Portland, Oregon and now teaches in Los Angeles.
Dawn Dorland is an LA-based writer and educator, whose debut novel-in-progress Econoline placed third in the 2016 Writers @ Work Emerging Writers Contest. She teaches fiction and nonfiction writing for various institutions, including the Downtown Women’s Center.
Agatha French is a writer, reviewer, and editor in Los Angeles, and a frequent contributor to the Los Angeles Times. She serves as culture editor for Ring the Alarm, teaches dance, and her short fiction appears in numerous literary journals.
Catie Disabato’s debut novel, The Ghost Network, was released in 2015. She’s written criticism and commentary for Full Stop, This Recording, The Millions, and The Rumpus, and her fiction was featured on Joyland.
Where: The Last Bookstore
Date: Monday the 7th
Time: 7 pm – 8:30 pm
Address: 453 S. Spring St., Ground Floor, Los Angeles, CA 90013
Website: http://lastbookstorela.com/#events
Molly on the Range at Pages Bookstore
Join us to hear Molly Yeh read and discuss her first book, Molly on the Range: Recipes and Stories from an Unlikely Life on a Farm. After sharing her adventures on her popular blog my name if yeh, Molly expands on her life as modern Pioneer Woman with a collection inspired by her Chinese and Jewish heritage, suburban 90’s upbringing, her worldwide travels, and her new Midwestern farm life.
RSVPs appreciated.
Where: Pages Bookstore
Date: Monday the 7th
Time: 7 pm
Address: 904 Manhattan Ave., Manhattan Beach, CA 90266
Website: http://www.pagesabookstore.com/event/molly-yeh-author-event
Johanna Drucker at Santa Monica College
Please join author and internationally recognized book artist Johanna Drucker–Breslauer Professor of Bibliographical Studies in the Department of Information Studies—who will talk about the ways books continue to matter in current culture, and make a strong argument against the forms of “bibliocide” that are destroying library collections and damaging popular perceptions.
Where: Santa Monica College, HSS 165
Date: Tuesday the 8th
Time: 11:15 am
Address: 1900 Pico Blvd., Santa Monica, CA 90405
Website: http://smc.edu/ACG/Marketing/Events/Pages/Literary%20Talks%20and%20Readings.aspx
Poetry Open Mic at Westwood Branch Library
Please join us for our monthly Open Mic and share your masterpiece, or just listen and enjoy. Hosted by: Wyatt Underwood.
Where: Westwood Branch Library, LAPL
Date: Tuesday the 8th
Time: 6 pm
Address: 1246 Glendon Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90024
Website: http://www.lapl.org/whats-on/events/poetry-open-mic-2
Author David Shannon Children’s Book World
Join us for an author talk and book signing, as David Shannon shares his sequel to Duck on a Bike with the hilarious Duck on a Tractor. Flushed with the success of his trailblazing bike around the farm, Duck is ready to drive the tractor, and all the animals share their funny comments as they watch Duck do the unthinkable. Then one by one, they join him for a ride.
Where: School Event, public invited—please call for details.
Date: Wednesday the 9th
Time: TBA-call for details: 310-599-BOOK
Address: 10580 ½ Pico Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90064
Website: http://www.childrensbookworld.com/Calendar/calendar.htm
Book Scoops from Publishers Reps at Chevalier’s
Please join us to hear Publishers Representatives from Random House, Penguin, and Norton present their upcoming hot titles for the season. Chevalier’s will sweeten the occasion with festive treats and a 10% discount on all purchases during our Holiday Book Party, plus free gift wrapping.
Where: Chevalier’s Bookstore
Date: Wednesday the 9th
Time: 6:15 pm
Address: 126 Larchmont Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90004
Website: http://chevaliersbooks.com
The Other Sister at Vroman’s Bookstore
One sister has everything. Her twin hates her for it. Would life be better without Ali? Probably.
Join us as author Dianne Dixon discusses and signs The Other Sister, which ultimately shows how those who know us best can destroy us….or save us.
Where: Vroman’s Bookstore
Date: Wednesday the 9th
Time: 7 pm
Address: 695 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, CA 91101
Website: http://www.vromansbookstore.com/event/dianne-dixon-discusses-and-signs-other-sister
Hymn, V. Kali’s Book Event at The World Stage
Join us as The World Stage Press proudly presents the anticipated book release event for V. Kali’s new book Hymn.
Doors open at 7:30 pm. Book reading begins promptly at 8:30 pm.
Entry fee is $5. Hymn is available for $20 per book.
Where: The World Stage
Date: Wednesday the 9th
Time: 7:30 pm – 10 pm
Address: 4321 Degnan Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90008
Website: www.facebook.com/events/1204251036284619/
Body Languages at the Last Bookstore
Please join us to hear Los Angeles playwright and USC professor Oliver Mayer present his new (and first) collection of love/erotic poetry. In Body Languages: Selected Poems, playwright Mayer enters the world of love poetry to commemorate ten years of marriage to his wife (actress Marlene Forte). Included with the poems are graphic art pieces by noted English multi-media artist Jim Anderson.
Where: The Last Bookstore
Date: Wednesday the 9th
Time: 7:30 pm – 9 pm
Address: 453 S. Spring St, Ground Floor Los Angeles, CA 90013
Website: http://lastbookstorela.com/#events
Illeana Douglas and Special Guests at Skylight Books
I Blame Dennis Hopper, by Illeana Douglas, is the story of one woman’s experience in show business, but it is also a genuine reminder of why we all love the movies: for the glitz, the glamor, the sweat, passion, humor, and escape they offer us all.
Douglas’ special guests include: Jennifer Tilly, Matt Oswalt, Annette O’Toole, Ben Mankiewicz, Steven Weber, and Kate Micucci.
Where: Skylight Books
Date: Wednesday the 9th
Time: 7:30 pm
Address: 1818 N. Vermont Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90027
Teen Poetry & Book Club at Sylmar Branch Library
Hear some great poems and book readings, and share your own, at our monthly Teen Poetry & Book Club. All ages are welcome to share their readings with the Sylmar High School Poetry & Book Club, along with English Department Chair Tom Adams. Come Feel the Noise!!
Where: Sylmar Branch Library, LAPL
Date: Thursday the 10th
Time: 3:30 pm – 5 pm
Address: 14561 Polk St., Sylmar, CA 91342
Website: http://www.lapl.org/whats-on/events/teen-poetry-readings-sylmar-high-school-poetry-club
Rebecca Solnit at Central Library, LAPL
What makes a place? The stories of a city are inexhaustible and contradictory as cities themselves are in constant conflict between memory and erasure. Writer, historian, and activist Rebecca Solnit’s latest work is a trilogy of atlases (New York, New Orleans, San Francisco) which portray the myriad ways we coexist and move through a city depending on our race, gender, age and so much more.
In conversation with L.A. Times architecture critic Christopher Hawthorne, Solnit expands our ideas of how cities are imagined and how they might look in the future.
Where: Mark Taper Auditorium, Central Library, LAPL
Date: Thursday the 10th
Time: 7 pm (Arrive earlier to confirm reservation, or for stand by.)
Address: 630 West 5th St., Los Angeles, CA 90071
Website: http://lfla.org/event/stories-from-the-city/
Timothy Hallinan, with Naomi Hirahara & Steph Cha at Chevalier’s Bookstore
Please join us to hear Timothy Hallinan as he debuts his latest addition to his acclaimed Junior Bender series, Fields Where They Lay, in which he takes us on a comic tour-de-force of holiday crime in a suburban Los Angeles mall. Hallinan will be in conversation with Edgar-winner Naomi Hirahara, out this year with Sayonara Slam, and crime novelist Steph Cha, noir editor for LARB and author of the Juniper Song mystery series.
Where: Chevalier’s Bookstore
Date: Thursday the 10th
Time: 7 pm
Address: 126 Larchmont Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90004
Website: http://chevaliersbooks.com
CSULB MFA Reading Series at Gatsby’s Books
Please join us to hear fresh fiction and poetry from the CSULB Creative Writing MFA Reading Series, featuring: Dani Dymond, Rebecca Komathy, Idalith Bustos, Sethunya Gall, Michael Rogers, Nick Johnson, Sarah Davis, Marissa Sumire.
Where: Gatsby’s Books
Date: Thursday the 10th
Time: 7 pm
Address: 5535 E. Spring St., Long Beach, CA 90808
Website: http://gatsbybooks.com/book-signings/
Wild and Precious Life at Vroman’s Bookstore
Written by Deborah Ziegler, the mother of Brittany Maynard, a young woman with a terminal brain tumor, this touching memoir captures and celebrates her daughter’s spirit and tells the untold story of Brittany’s last year of life, a journey that has inspired millions who are concerned with end of life issues.
Where: Vroman’s Bookstore
Date: Thursday the 10th
Time: 7 pm
Address: 695 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, CA 91101
Website: http://www.vromansbookstore.com/event/deb-ziegler-discusses-and-signs-wild-and-precious-life
Haunted at Skylight Books
Join us to hear Leo Braudy discuss and sign his new book, Haunted: On Ghosts, Witches, Vampires, Zombies, and Other Monsters of the Natural and Supernatural Worlds. Continuing his interest in the history of emotion, Braudy explores in this book how fear has been shaped into images of monsters and monstrosity, and how four hundred years of monsters reflect the culture that created them.
Where: Skylight Books
Date: Thursday the 10th
Time: 7:30 pm
Address: 1818 N. Vermont Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90027
Website: http://www.skylightbooks.com/event/leo-braudy-discusses-his-book-haunted
This Was Not the Plan at Book Soup
Join us to hear author Cristina Alger discuss and sign This Was Not the Plan, a funny, bittersweet, and ultimately uplifting look at fatherhood, love, loss, and family life. From the acclaimed author of The Darlings, author Alger will be in conversation with Julia Claiborne Johnson.
Where: Book Soup
Date: Thursday the 10th
Time: 7 pm
Address: 8818 Sunset Blvd., West Hollywood, CA 90069
Website: http://www.booksoup.com/event/cristina-alger-discusses-and-signs-was-not-plan
Beauty and the Breast at Vroman’s Bookstore
Join us to hear author Merill Joan Gerber discuss and sign Beuty and the Breast: A Tale of Breast Cancer, Love and Friendship. When award-winning author Gerber was diagnosed with cancer, she set out on a journey familiar to many women. Many have faced the cancer wars, but Merrill’s memoir delivers a special contribution of humor, passion, and a poetic gift to the reader.
Where: Vroman’s Bookstore
Date: Thursday the 10th
Time: 7 pm – 8:30 pm
Address: 695 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, CA 91101
Open Mic at Tia Chucha’s
Please join us for Tia Chucha’s Open Mic: Night of Music & Spoken Word, a welcoming, creative sanctuary where people are encouraged to share their thoughts, feelings and talents through various styles of expression. It’s FREE, and participants sign up upon arrival. Donations are accepted. Hosted by: Jeffrey Martin.
Where: Tia Chucha’s Centro Cultural & Bookstore
Date: Friday the 11th
Time: 8 pm
Address: 13197 Gladstone Ave., Sylmar, CA 91342
Website: http://www.tiachucha.org/programming
The Revlon Slough at Beyond Baroque
Join us to hear Ray DiZazzo with his new book of poems, The Revlon Slough. Regular admission.
Where: Beyond Baroque
Dates: Friday, the 11th
Time: 8 pm
Address: 681 N. Venice Blvd., Venice, CA 90291
Website: http://beyondbaroque.org/calendar.html
Northeast Los Angeles Writers Group at Silver Lake Branch Library
As the Northeast Los Angeles Writers Group meets this month, we will focus on the topic, Tips for Deepening Point of View. Please RSVP if you are interested in attending and check the website for further details for preparing for each meeting.
Where: Silver Lake Branch Library, LAPL
Date: Saturday the 12th
Time: 9:30 am – 12 pm
Address: 2411 Glendale Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90039
Website: http://www.lapl.org/whats-on/events/writers-group
Rangers House Writers at Eagle Rock Branch Library
Join us for the Rangers House Writers, a free creative writing workshop for all ages: adults, kids, seniors, and teens.
Where: Eagle Rock Branch Library, LAPL
Date: Saturday the 12th
Time: 10 am – 12 pm
Address: 5027 Casper Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90041
Website: http://www.lapl.org/whats-on/events/rangers-house-writers
Celebrate Thomas McGrath’s 100th Birthday at Beyond Baroque
Join us to celebrate author Thomas McGrath’s 100th Birthday with a marathon reading of the magnificent American epic Letter to an Imaginary Friend, a long, outstanding, book-length autobiographical poem that integrates personal experience with political concerns. Hosted by Harry Northrop, the work is celebrated by 40 distinguished readers.
Where: Beyond Baroque
Dates: Saturday, the 12th
Time: 10 am – 10 pm
Address: 681 N. Venice Blvd., Venice, CA 90291
Website: http://beyondbaroque.org/calendar.html
Claire Keane at Children’s Book World
Come to a fun-filled storytime book launch with Claire Keane, who worked a Disney Feature Animation for 10 years designing Tangled, Frozen, Enchanted, and other films. Her delightful art stands out in her bestselling Once Upon a Cloud, and her charming new book, Little Big Girl. For ages 3-6.
Where: Childrens’ Book World
Date: Saturday the 12th
Time: 10:30 am
Address: 10580 ½ West Pico Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90064
Website: http://www.childrensbookworld.com/Calendar/calendar.htm
Eleanor Glewwe at Children’s Book World
Join Eleanor Glewwe in celebration of the publication of Wildings, a captivating fantasy about the bond between twins, and the power of children to stand up for what’s right. For ages 10 & up.
Where: Children’s Book World
Date: Saturday the 12th
Time: 2:30 pm
Address: 10580 1/2 West Pico Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90064
Website: http://www.childrensbookworld.com/Calendar/calendar.htm
David Francis at Skylight Books
Join us as author David Francis reads from his new novel Wedding Bush Road. When he learns of his mother’s ailing health, Daniel Rawson must leave Los Angeles and travel half a world away to the family’s horse farm on Wedding Bush Road, outside of Melbourne. Estranged from his parents, Daniel is hesitant to re-visit their history, but events transpire which will change them all. With a keen eye for the Australian landscape, this is a stunning novel about the choices we make, the regrets that linger, and the inevitable pull of home.
Where: Skylight Books
Dates: Saturday, the 12th
Time: 5 pm
Address: 1818 N. Vermont Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90027
Website: http://www.skylightbooks.com/event/david-francis-reads-his-new-novel-wedding-bush-road
The Melrose Bellow at Tongue & Groove
The Melrose Bellow is a for fun and for free literary fest of 15 presenters, who will offer a dynamic and entertaining evening of what makes this great city a literary force.
Featuring: Jack Grapes, Derrick Brown, David Huntsberger (animation) and music by Erin and Melissa.
Check site for further details.
Hosted by: Conrad Romo
Where: Sal’s Restaurant (a four-block stretch of Melrose, from Poinsettia Place to Gardner)
Date: Saturday the 12th
Time: 8 pm
Address: 7356 Melrose Ave., West Hollywood, CA 90048
Website: http://conradromo.com
Diane Cullinane at Vroman’s Bookstore
Author Diane Cullinane will discuss and sign Behavioral Challenges in Children with Autism and Other Special Needs: The Developmental Approach. Attune, help, and recover: a structured developmental approach to behavioral challenges in children with disabilities. This book offers a comprehensive view of these behavioral challenges, and parents and professionals are guided to understand and improve a child’s behavior with specific methods and practices, a refreshing alternative to rewards-and consequences-based models of behavior management.
Where: Vroman’s Bookstore
Date: Sunday the 13th
Time: 11 am
Address: 695 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, CA 91101
Absence of Being at Book Soup
Los Angeles based photographer Susan Burnstine’s Absence of Being is a haunting, personal, yet extremely universal exploration of the subconscious world, which began with her praised first monograph, Within Shadows. The results of her work are instantly recognizable black-and-white images, which have been described as 21st century impressionism.
Where: Book Soup
Date: Sunday the 13th
Time: 3 pm
Address: 8818 Sunset Blvd., West Hollywood, CA 90069
Website: http://www.booksoup.com/event/susan-burnstine-discusses-and-signs-susan-burnstine-absence-being
Boneshaker Reading at Beyond Baroque
Join us to celebrate the publication of great weather for MEDIA’s exhilarating anthology, The Careless Embrace of the Boneshaker. Great weather for MEDIA is an independent press, based in New York, focusing on unpredictable writers across the world.
Submissions for the next collection are open until January 2017.
Jane Omerod hosts.
Regular Admission.
Where: Beyond Baroque
Date: Sunday the 13th
Time: 4 pm
Address: 681 N. Venice Blvd., Venice, CA 90291
Website: http://beyondbaroque.org/calendar.html
UCR MFAs Reading at Skylight Books
Please join us as students from the University of California, Riverside MFA in Creative Writing Program read from their work. Readers include: Samatha Reid Avina, Kate Burns, Chloe Cole, Joshua Rigsby, Jason Schachat, and Miranda Tsang.
Where: Skylight Books
Date: Sunday the 13th
Time: 5 pm
Address: 1818 N. Vermont Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90027
Website: www.skylightbooks.com/event/uc-riverside-mfa-students-read-their-work-5
Poetry at Flintridge Bookstore
Please join us as Rattle Magazine presents readings published in the current edition:
Michelle Bitting has taught poetry in the UCLA Writer’s Program, at Twin Towers prison, and as a devoted California Poet in the schools for eight years. Her work has been published in numerous journals, and received the Pablo Neruda Poetry Prize in 2016.
Clint Margrave’s work has appeared in numerous journals and anthologies. His newest collection is Salute the Wreckage (NYQ Books 2016).
Where: Flintridge Bookstore
Date: Sunday the 13th
Time: 5 pm
Address: 1010 Foothill Blvd., La Canada, CA 91011
Website: http://www.flintridgebooks.com/
Wanda Coleman’s 70th Birthday at Beyond Baroque
Join us as a stellar group of poets and writers celebrate the life and work of Wanda Coleman! Hosted by: Austin Strauss.
Born on November 13, 1946, Wanda Coleman grew up in the Watts neighborhood of Los Angeles. Her poetry collection Bathwater Wine received the 1999 Lenore Marshall Poetry Prize. Her books of poetry include Mercurochrome: New Poems, which was a finalist for the National Book Award in poetry; Native in a Strange Land: Trials & Tremors; Hand Dance; African Sleeping Sickness; A War of Eyes & Other Stories; Heavy Daughter Blues: Poems & Stories 1968-1986; and Imagoes. She also wrote Mambo Hips & Make Believe: A Novel, Jazz and Twelve O’Clock Tales: New Stories and The Love Project with Austin Straus. Hosted by Austin Straus. Regular admission.
Where: Beyond Baroque
Date: Sunday the 13th
Time: 8 pm
Address: 681 N. Venice Blvd., Venice, CA 90291
Los Angeles Literature 