Teen Reading by Design Summer Program at Exposition Park-Dr. Mary Bethune Regional Library–Teen Event
Join us for a book discussion of Eleanor and Park, by Rainbow Rowell, at the first meeting of our book club and summer reading challenge titled Teen Read, Rant & Rave. Copies of the book are available to borrow at the Information Desk.
Recommended for teens in grades 9-12.
Where: Exposition Park – Dr. Mary McLeod Bethune Regional Library, LAPL
Date: Monday the 26th
Time: 2 pm – 3 pm
Address: 3900 S. Western Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90062
Website: http://www.lapl.org/whats-on/events/reading-design-summer-reading-challenge-teen-read-r
Graphic Novel & Manga Club at Mark Twain Branch Library
Join our teen book club for a discussion of Graphic Novels & Manga! When the club met last month we decided to start reading Deadman Wonderland volumes 1&2 for our discussion.
Where: Mark Twain Branch Library, LAPL
Date: Monday the 26th
Time: 4 pm
Address: 9621 S. Figueroa St., Los Angeles, CA 90003
Website: http://www.lapl.org/whats-on/events/graphic-novel-manga-club-2
Mental Mondays at House of Brews
Join us for our second annual Crystal Mic Award, presented to Luis J. Rodriguez, co-founder of Tia Chucha’s Centro Cultural and the official Poet Laureate of Los Angeles from 2014-2016. Luis is a memoirist/novelist/short story/children’s book writer as well as a community and urban peace activist, mentor, healer, youth and arts activist, and so much more!
Event hosted by Victor Sotomayor.
Where: House of Brews
Date: Monday the 26th
Time: 6:30 pm – 9:30 pm
Address: 231 North Maclay Ave., San Fernando, CA 91340
Whistleblower at the CIA at Vroman’s Bookstore
Join us to hear Mel Goodman discuss and sign his new book, Whistleblower at the CIA: An Insider’s Account of the Politics of Intelligence, which is the story of the author’s 1990 resignation from the CIA after 24 years of service in US/Soviet relations, when he could no longer tolerate the corruption he witnessed at the highest levels of the Agency. This is an invaluable and historic look into the need to reform one of the most secretive and influential agencies of US government.
Where: Vroman’s Bookstore
Date: Monday the 26th
Time: 7 pm
Address: 695 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, CA 91101
Handmade Bookmaking at Harbor City Branch Library–Children’s Event
Join our Summer Reading Challenge for Children, when master paper artist Peggy Hasegawa will show you how to create and design your very own book!
Where: Harbor City-Harbor Gateway Branch Library
Date: Tuesday the 27th
Time: 4 pm
Address: 24000 S. Western Ave., Harbor City, CA 90710
Website: http://www.lapl.org/whats-on/events/handmade-book-making
David Sedaris at Vroman’s Bookstore
Join us to hear David Sedaris discuss and sign Theft by Finding: Diaries (1977-2002), an intriguing and observent book originating within confines of his personal diary, which he has kept for over 40 years. This first of two volumes is the story of how a drug-abusing dropout with a weakness for IHOP and a chronic inability to hold down a real job became one of the funniest people on the planet. When you’re as perceptive and curious as Sedaris, there’s no such thing as a boring day.
Note: This is a ticketed event, and the cost of $28 + tax includes one signed copy of his book. Further details, and link to Eventbrite available at website.
Where: Vroman’s Bookstore
Date: Tuesday the 27th
Time: 6 pm
Address: 695 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, CA 91101
Website: http://www.vromansbookstore.com/event/dave-boling-discusses-and-signs-lost-history-stars
Josh Barkan at Book Soup
Please join us as Josh Barkan presents and signs, Mexico: Stories, an astonishing and beautiful collection in which all the characters are simply trying to steer clear of violence, yet crime still has a way of intruding on their lives. Again and again, the walls between ordinary life and cartel violence are shown to be paper thin, and the consequences are life-changing. These stories are about transformation and danger, terror and triumph.
Where: Book Soup
Date: Tuesday the 27th
Time: 7 pm
Address: 8818 Sunset Blvd., West Hollywood, CA 90069
Website: http://www.booksoup.com/event/josh-barkan-discusses-and-signs-mexico-stories
Nathan Hill & The Nix at the Manhattan Beach Library
Don’t miss a conversation with Nathan Hill, author of The Nix, a debut novel that received the LA Times Book Prize First Fiction Award in April 2017. This is the author’s tour for the paperback edition of the book, which is set in 2011 but concerns the resilience of love and home when a family, including mother and son, was torn apart by the events of the 1968 riots in Chicago.
Where: Manhattan Beach Library (RSVP to Pages Bookstore)
Date: Tuesday the 27th
Time: 7 pm
Address: 1320 Highland Ave, Manhattan Beach, CA 90266
Website: http://www.pagesabookstore.com/event/nathan-hill-author-event-manhattan-beach-library
Lisa Windgate at the South Pasadena Library
Don’t miss a conversation with Lisa Windgate, author of Before We Were Yours, a book based on one of America’s most notorious real-life scandals: the Memphis based adoption organization, a heart-wrenching but ultimately uplifting tale.
Where: South Pasadena Library (with Flintridge Bookstore)
Date: Tuesday the 27th
Time: 7 pm – 8:30 pm
Address: 1100 Oxley St., South Pasadena, CA 91030
Website: http://wwwflintridgebooks.com/new-events/ .
Redondo Poets at Coffee Cartel
Please join us for poetry in Redondo Beach, every Tuesday evening, with features and an Open Mic. This week’s solo feature is:
Linda Singer is a local poet and actress who performs regularly with Stop Senior Scams, and has been published in a variety of journals.
Where: Coffee Cartel
Date: Tuesday the 27th
Time: 7:30 pm – 10 pm
Address: 1820 S. Catalina Ave., Redondo Beach, CA 90277
Website: https://www.facebook.com/pg/RedondoPoets/about/?ref=page_internal
PEN USA & the Edison Book Club at the Edison
PEN Center USA and the Edison Book Club invite you to our June Book Club to discuss The Hate U Give, by Angie Thomas, which is a literary ramrod as we continue to fight police brutality and racism in America. This event is free, but it is a happy hour and book discussion with cocktails available.
Where: The Edison (with the Last Bookstore)
Date: Wednesday the 28th
Time: 6 pm – 8:30 pm
Address: 108 W. 2nd St., # 101, Los Angeles, CA 90012
Website: http://lastbookstorela.com/#events or https://www.pw.org/calendar?metroarea%5Bhidden_longitude%5D=-118.25067055601606&metroarea%5Bhidden_latitude%5D=34.05216127966009&metroarea%5Bcity_autocomplete%5D=Los%20Angeles%2C%20CA&page=1
Don Winslow at Vroman’s Bookstore
Join us to meet Don Winslow, who will discuss and sign, The Force, a masterpiece of urban living full of shocking and surprising twists, leavened by flashes of dark humor, a complex and riveting discussion of modern American society and the controversial issues confronting and dividing us today. This novel is from the acclaimed, award-winning, bestselling author of The Cartel, and is an epic as powerful and unforgettable as Mystic River and The Wire.
Where: Vroman’s Bookstore
Date: Wednesday the 28th
Time: 7 pm
Address: 695 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, CA 91101
Website: http://www.vromansbookstore.com/event/don-winslow-discusses-and-signs-force
Julia Fierro and Friends at Skylight Bookstore
Join us as Julia Fierro discusses her new novel, The Gypsy Moth Summer, with J. Ryan Stradal, Meg Howery, and Gabriel Packard. This book is the story of a fictional community of Avalon Island, loosely based on Long Island, in 1992, and the defining summer that will set the course for tragedy in hierarchical society. Fierro is also the author of Cutting Teeth, and her writing has been widely published. She founded The Sackett Street Writers Workshop.
Ryan Stradal edits the fiction section of The Nervous Breakdown. He works in television, and is also the author of Kitchens of the Great Midwest.
Meg Howrey is the author of the novels The Wanderers, The Cranes Dance, and Blind Sight.
Gabriel Packard’s debut novel is The Painted Ocean.
Where: Skylight Bookstore
Date: Wednesday the 28th
Time: 7:30 pm
Address: 1818 N. Vermont Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90027
Jonathan Shaw at the Last Bookstore
Join us to hear notorious tattoo master/Gonzo author Jonathan Shaw, in a special Spoken Word performance with musical soundtrack by Jim Jarmusch and Carter Logan’s SQURL. Shaw will sign each book with an original drawing after reading excerpts from his memoir, Scab Vendor – Confessions of a Tattoo Artist.
Where: The Last Bookstore
Date: Wednesday the 28th
Time: 7:30 pm
Address: 453 S. Spring St., Los Angeles, CA 90013
Website: http://lastbookstorela.com/#events
Christopher Farnsworth & Robinne Lee at Diesel Bookstore
Please join us to welcome Christopher Farnsworth (Flashmob) and Robinne Lee (The Idea of You), to discuss their books.
Flashmob is Farnsworth’s latest thriller, and re-introduces fixer for America’s one percent, John Smith, who is no ordinary gun for hire. Farnsworth is a journalist, screenwriter and author.
The Idea of You is Lee’s debut novel about a series of clandestine trysts which evolves into a passionate and genuine relationship that spans continents. Lee is an actor, writer and producer.
Where: Diesel Bookstore
Date: Thursday the 29th
Time: 6:30 pm
Address: 225 26th St., Santa Monica, CA 90402
Kaitlin Solimine & Warren Read at Book Soup
Join us to welcome authors Kaitlin Solimine (Empire of Glass) and Warren Read (Ash Falls), discuss and sign their books.
Empire of Glass is an investigation into the workings of history and the veracity of oral history that pushes the boundaries of language and form.
Ash Falls is a picturesque and haunting novel, a multi-character exploration of collapsed relationships and the psychological strain of living in a place that is both idyllic and crippling.
Where: Book Soup
Date: Thursday the 29th
Time: 7 pm
Address: 8818 Sunset Blvd., West Hollywood, CA 90069
Website: http://www.booksoup.com/event/kaitlin-solimine-warren-read-discuss-and-sign-empire-glass-ash-falls
Catherine Lacey, Amelia Gray & Rosecrans Baldwin at the Last Bookstore
Please join us to hear authors Catherine Lacey (The Answers: A Novel), Amelia Gray (Isadora), and Rosecrans Baldwin (The Last Kid Left), discuss and sign their new books.
Baldwin’s book is the story of a twenty-first century Puritan witch-hunt. Grays’ book scaffolds Isadora Duncan’s life and the stuff of her spirit in her breakout novel. Lacey’s book offers us a simulacrum of a perfect romantic relationship, by one of Granta’s best young American novelists.
Please RSVP at website for this free event.
Where: The Last Bookstore
Date: Thursday the 29th
Time: 7:30 pm
Address: 453 S. Spring St., Los Angeles, CA 90013
Website: http://lastbookstorela.com/#events
Jessie Chaffee, with Jade Chang, at Skylight Bookstore
Jessie Chaffee will discuss and sign her new book Florence in Ecstasy, with Jade Chang (The Wangs vs. The World). This is the story of a young woman who arrives in Florence from Boston, knowing no one and knowing little Italian, who is isolated in a more profound way, estranged from her own identity after a bout with starvation that has left her in ruins. This is a vivid, visceral debut.
Where: Skylight Bookstore
Date: Thursday the 29th
Time: 7:30 pm
Address: 1818 N. Vermont Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90027
PEN Center USA & Paris Review at Hollywood Forever Masonic Lodge
Lorin Stein will host this Author Evening Series, featuring readings and discussion by Paris Review contributors Sarah Manguso and Ottessa Moshfegh, and the Paris Review’s southern editor, John Jeremiah Sullivan. Afterward there will be a book signing and complimentary reception with drinks.
Where: Hollywood Forever Masonic Lodge
Date: Thursday the 29th
Time: 8 pm (doors open at 7 pm)
Address: 6000 Santa Monica Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90038
Constitution Café Happy Hour at the Hammer Museum
Please join us for the last of a series of topical conversations about the U.S. Constitution and its role in our democracy, a project by artist Linda Pollack.
This week’s topic: Is Hate Speech protected under the Constitution? with Damon Huss, Senior Editor and Curriculum Specialist of the Constitutional Rights Foundation.
Where: Hammer Museum
Date: Friday the 30th
Time: 6 pm
Address: 10899 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90024
Website: http://hammer.ucla.edu/programs-events/2017/05/constitution-happy-hour/
UNSTOPPABLE: Urban Possibilities Poetry Performance at Inner City Lights
Please join Urban Possibilities and Chrysalis for our summer performance celebrating the inspiring stories of inner city job seekers completing our empowerment, writing and performance program.
Reserve your ticket today at Eventbrite link at website. Seating is limited so RSVP is required for the FREE event.
Where: Inner City Arts
Date: Friday the 30th
Time: 6 pm – 10 pm
Address: 720 Kohler St., Los Angeles, CA 90021
Spencer Quinn at Vroman’s Bookstore
Author Spencer Quinn, of the Chet and Bernie mystery series, will discuss and sign The Right Side, the story of a deeply damaged female soldier home form the war in Afghanistan who becomes obsessed with finding a missing girl, gains an unlikely stray dog, and encounters new perils beyond the combat zone. Enthralling, suspenseful, and psychologically nuanced, this book introduces an unforgettable protagonist seeking redemption and purpose.
Where: Vroman’s Bookstore
Date: Friday the 30th
Time: 7 pm
Address: 695 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, CA 91101
Website: http://www.vromansbookstore.com/event/spencer-quinn-discusses-and-signs-right-side-
The Last Book Review at the Last Bookstore
Please join us to hear the Last Book Review with host Ever Mainard, who invites authors, comedians, musicians and more to tell funny, true stories and one witty book review.
Let us know you’re coming!
Where: The Last Bookstore
Date: Friday the 30th
Time: 8 pm
Address: 453 S. Spring St., Los Angeles, CA 90013
Website: http://lastbookstorela.com/#events
The Paris Review and John Jeremiah Sullivan at Beyond Baroque
Join the authors of the premiere literary magazine for an evening of discussion, music and cocktails in an iconic place, Beyond Baroque. The editor of the journal, John Jeremiah Sullivan, tells the story of his search for the “first blues song”.
Moderated by editor Lorin Stein.
Tickets available at events page, if not a subscriber.a
Where: Beyond Baroque
Date: Friday the 30th
Time: 8 pm
Address: 681 N. Venice Blvd., Venice, CA 90291
Website: http://beyondbaroque.org/calendar.html
Lisa DeSimini at Vroman’s Bookstore
Join us as author Lisa DeSimini presents and signs The Fleatastics, the story of Serafleana and her family’s traveling acrobatic troupe the Fleatastics. Although she dreams of having her own act, her family wants her to be part of their parasite pyramid, and nobody gives her a chance to show how far she can soar. The art for this tale of a determined flea includes a multitude of subplots and dialog, making this a book that children will want to read again and again.
Where: Vroman’s Bookstore
Date: Saturday the 1st
Time: 10:30 am
Address: 695 E Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, CA 91101
Website: http://www.vromansbookstore.com/event/lisa-desimini-presents-and-signs-fleatastics
Ocean Park Branch Book Group at the Santa Monica Library
Join us as the Ocean Park Branch Book Group meets the first Saturday of the month to discuss My Brilliant Friend, by Elena Ferrante.
Open to all. No registration required.
Where: Ocean Park Branch, SMPL
Date: Saturday the 1st
Time: 11 am – 1:30 pm
Address: 2601 Main St., Santa Monica, CA 90402
Website: http://calendar.smgov.net/library/eventsignup.asp?ID=22650
Adult Book Club at the Los Feliz Branch Library
Join us as the Adult Book Club meets the first Saturday of the month to discuss Night, by Elie Wiesel. Copies of the book and study guide are available beginning June 3rd at the Circulation Desk.
Open to all. No registration required.
Where: Los Feliz Branch Library, LAPL
Date: Saturday the 1st
Time: 11 am – 1:30 pm
Address: 2601 Main St., Los Angeles, CA 90027
Website: http://www.lapl.org/whats-on/events/library-adult-book-club-2
Dirty Laundry Lit Reading Series OC at Makara
Join us for Dirty Laundry Lit: Orange County’s inaugural event, which is also a literary reading and book drive fundraiser benefiting Makara Center for the Arts. Santa Ana’s newest free library and arts center will celebrate on July 1st as that will be their grand opening. So celebrate with us. Bring a book for the library! Make a small donation of $10, and all proceeds will to go to Makara Center for the Arts.
Makara was founded in January 2016 by Marytza K. Rubio, a writer born and raised in Santa Ana. Featured readers include Orange County’s own:
Darlene Kriesel, JSP Jacobs, Marytza Rubio, and special guests Eva Recinos, Amanda Fletcher, and Chelsea Sutton.
Darlene Kriesel is an educator, wife, mother and writer. She holds an MFA in Creative Writing from UC Riverside, and is currently working on two projects: a novel, House Secrets, and a memoir.
JSP Jacobs is a graduate of Boise State’s Creative Writing Program, Tin House Workshop, and former host of The Writer’s Block on Radio Boise. Her fiction, flash fiction, poetry, and narrative non-fiction have appeared widely, and she lives and works in Huntington Beach, California and Boise, Idaho with her artist husband, six kids, and co-dependent dog.
Marytza Rubio is a writer from Santa Ana, a 2008 PEN Center Emerging Voices Fellow, 2010 Bead Loaf-Rona Jaffe Foundation Scholar in Fiction, and a 2012 VONA Alum. She has been widely published, recently completed her MFA in Creative Writing, and is the founder of Makara Center for the Arts.
Eva Recinos is a social media manager and freelance writer in L.A. who primarily writes about art. Last year she released an e-book called More than Words.
Amanda Fletcher is a 2012 PEN Center Emerging Voices Fellow who is now head of the fellowship. She is now writing her memoir tentatively titled, HALO.
Chelsea Sutton is a fiction writer, playwright, and a 2016 PEN Emerging Voices Fellow. She has received numerous awards for her writing, and is currently working on a short story collection titled Curious Monsters and developing new work at Humanitas PlayLA Workshop, Skylight Theater’s Playlab, and Rogue Artists Ensemble.
Curated and hosted by Natashia Deon.
Where: Makara Center for the Arts
Date: Saturday the 1st
Time: 1:30 pm – 3:30 pm
Address: 811 N. Main St., Santa Ana, CA 92701
How to Pitch Workshop at Women’s Center for Creative Work
In an effort to change publishing demographics LA Weekly editors and writers want to give new writers a leg up by helping to refine their pitches and demonstrating proper pitching techniques. Workshop attendees should come up with two pitch ideas suitable for an Arts and Culture section, and bring a laptop (or pen and paper) to write. At the end of the workshop you’ll have two polished pitches and face time with LA Weekly’s assigning editor. Writers of color are highly encouraged to attend.
Where: Women’s Center for Creative Work
Date: Saturday the 1st
Time: 2 pm – 4 pm
Address: 2425 Glover Pl., Los Angeles, CA 90031
Emerging Poets Workshop at Santa Catalina Library
Please join us at Saturday Afternoon Poetry for an Emerging Urban Poets Writing Workshop led by poet Art Currim.
Event curated and hosted by Don Kingfisher Campbell.
Where: Saturday Afternoon Poetry at Santa Catalina Library
Date: Saturday the 1st
Time: 3 pm – 5 pm
Address: 999 E Washington Blvd., Pasadena, CA 91104
Website: http://saturdayafternoonpoetry.blogspot.com/
Expressions Poetry Reading at Studio City Branch Library
Please join us at the Expressions Poetry Reading Series where you can sign up for 4-6 minutes reading at an open mic, and there is at least one featured poet every week.
Where: Studio City Branch Library, LAPL
Date: Saturday the 1st
Time: 3 pm – 5 pm
Address: 12511 Moorpark St., Studio City, CA 91604
Website: http://www.lapl.org/whats-on/events/expressions-la-poetry-reading-series
Stumptown at Book Soup
Join us to hear Thea Constantine discuss and sign her book, Stumptown. Thea’s novel began as a serial for the on-line magazine The Black Boot, (under the name Portlandia) and quickly became an obsession for its readers. Also at this reading will be special guests Suzanne Lummis and Patrick O’Neil lending their voices and presenting their own new work. Our extra special guest, actor Michael Constantine, will MC this event. Author signing to follow!
Where: Book Soup
Date: Saturday the 1st
Time: 4 pm
Address: 8818 Sunset Blvd., West Hollywood, CA 90069
Website: http://www.booksoup.com/event/thea-constantine-discusses-and-signs-stumptown
Adult Literacy Book Club at Robertson Branch Library
Come to the Adult Literacy Book Club to read and discuss interesting and fun, beginning level books in a small group with adult learners. Open to all readers, this program meets in the Adult Literacy Center on the 2nd Floor.
Where: Robertson Branch Library, LAPL
Date: Sunday the 2nd
Time: 1:30 pm
Address: 1719 S. Robertson Blvd., Venice, CA 90035
Website: http://www.lapl.org/whats-on/events/adult-literacy-program-book-club
First Sunday Open Reading at Beyond Baroque
Come to the First Sunday Open Reading event, hosted by Jessica Wilson Cardenas. Come early for sign-ups
Where: Beyond Baroque
Date: Sunday the 2nd
Time: 2 pm
Address: 681 N. Venice Blvd., Venice, CA 90291
Website: http://beyondbaroque.org/calendar.html
STAR Volunteer Reader at Central Library
Come share stories and more with STAR Volunteer Bianca at the main library, LAPL.
Where: Central Library, Children’s Literature, LAPL
Date: Sunday the 2nd
Time: 3 pm
Address: 630 W. 5th St., Los Angeles, CA 90071
Website: http://www.lapl.org/whats-on/events/star-volunteer-reader-7
Sunday Jump: Sit at Our Table Open Mic at New Venue: Pilipino Workers Center
Join us at our new venue for a potluck and our first Sunday of the month Sit at Our Table Open Mic, offered in a safe creative place dedicated to provide a platform for marginalized voices. Open-mic participants have 4 minutes MAX. See website for further details.
Open Mic sign-ups at 4:45 pm. It’s summer so get ready to party.
Resident host: Eddy M. Gana Jr.
Where: Note new location: Pilipino Workers Center
Date: Sunday the 2nd
Time: 5 pm – 7 pm (sign-ups at 4:45 pm)
Address: 153 Glendale Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90026
Los Angeles Literature 