Conchas Y Café Zine Workshop at Baldwin Hills Branch Library, LAPL
Please join us every Monday at 1 pm as we make a zine in our Conchas Y Café Workshop for adults, with DSTL Arts. Our zine will be added to our #LAPLZineLibrary at Baldwin Hills Library!
Where: Baldwin Hills Branch Library, LAPL
Date: Monday the 27th
Time: 1 pm
Address: 2906 S. La Brea Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90016
Website: http://www.lapl.org/whats-on/events/guerrilla-tacos-qa-wes-avila-and-richard-parks-iii
Reza Aslan and God: A Human History at Vroman’s Bookstore (Off-site)
Come to hear author and scholar Reza Aslan, acclaimed author of Zealot and host of Believer, present and explore humanity’s quest to make sense of the divine in his new book, God: A Human History. This book is the history of our innate desire to humanize God, which is part of every religious tradition. In attempting to get at the root of this humanizing impulse we may develop a more universal spirituality.
Note: This is a ticketed event, so you must RSVP at website link, and $34 fee includes signed copy of book plus admission for two at event at All Saints Church. See website for details.
Where: All Saints Church
Date: Monday the 27th
Time: 7 pm – 8:30 pm
Address: 132 North Euclid Ave., Pasadena, CA 91101
Website: http://www.vromansbookstore.com/event/evening-reza-aslan
Rabbi John Rosove at Chevalier’s Bookstore
Join us to hear Los Angeles-based author Rabbi John Rosove discuss and sign his new book and explain Why Judaism Matters: Letters of a Liberal Rabbi to His Children and the Millenial Generation. This book is presented in the form of letters from a rabbi to his sons, and is a common sense road map for a new generation of men and women who find Jewish orthodoxy, tradition, and beliefs impenetrable in 21st Century society.
Where: Chevalier’s Bookstore
Date: Monday the 27th
Time: 7 pm
Address: 126 N. Larchmont Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90004
Website: http://www.chevaliersbooks.com/john-rosove
Toni Stern at Book Soup
Join us to hear author Toni Stern discuss and sign her book of new poems, As Close as I Can. This book is her second volume of poetry, and again her poems are filled with an inherent musicality, following her highly productive collaboration in song writing with Carole King over many years.
Where: Book Soup
Date: Monday the 20th
Time: 7 pm
Address: 8818 Sunset Blvd., West Hollywood, CA 90069
Website: http://www.booksoup.com/event/toni-stern-discusses-and-signs-close-i-can
Maryl Jo Fox at Vroman’s Bookstore
Join us to hear Maryl Jo Fox discuss and sign her novel, Clara at the Edge. At seventy-three, eccentric widow Clara Breckenridge is on a last-ditch journey to reconcile with her estranged son, confront guilty secrets about her daughter’s death, and try to find love again before her death. But Clara is her own worst enemy, and her story is both funny and moving.
Where: Vroman’s Bookstore
Date: Tuesday the 28th
Time: 7 pm
Address: 695 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, CA 91101
Website: http://www.vromansbookstore.com/event/maryl-jo-fox-discusses-and-signs-clara-edge
Clifford V. Johnson, with M.G. Lord, at Chevalier’s Books
Join us to hear Clifford V. Johnson, in conversation with M.G. Lord, discuss and sign his book, The Dialogues: Conversations About the Universe. This event is co-hosted with the Los Angeles Review of Books (LARB).
Where: Chevalier’s Bookstore
Date: Tuesday the 28th
Time: 7 pm
Address: 126 N. Larchmont Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90004
Website: http://www.chevaliersbooks.com
Little Climates Book Launch at Stories LA
Please join us to celebrate the launch of Little Climates: Poems (Bull City Press), by L.A. Johnson, with special guests Corinna McClanahan Schroeder (Inked) and Callie Siskel (Arctic Revival). Johnson is currently pursuing her PhD in literature and creative writing at USC, and her poems have recently appeared in or are forthcoming in The American Poetry Review, Antioch Review, The Iowa Review, Narrative Magazine, The Southern Review and elsewhere.
Where: Stories Books and Cafe
Date: Tuesday the 28th
Time: 8 pm
Address: 1716 W. Sunset Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90026
Website: http://www.storiesla.com/blogs/events
PEN Center USA Book Event at The Edison
Please join us for our November Book Club to celebrate and discuss Little Fires Everywhere, by Celeste Ng, her stunning second novel, about how identities are made, families are formed, and friendships are tested. Hosted by Angela Morales, author of The Girls in My Town, a collection of essays, this event is free and open to all.
Where: The Edison
Date: Wednesday the 29th
Time: 6 pm – 8 pm
Address: 108 west 2nd St., #101, Los Angeles, CA 90012
Film History Author at Glendale Library
Please join us to celebrate the history of Disney animation artists, as presented in the book, Ink & Paint: The Women of Walt Disney’s Animation, by Mindy Johnson. This book pulls back the curtain on the nearly vanished creative world of classic animation, and includes first-hand accounts, never-before-seen photography and artwork.
Where: Adult Recreation Center, next to Glendale Central Library
Date: Wednesday the 29th
Time: 7 pm – 8:30 pm
Address: 222 East Harvard St., Glendale, CA 91205
Website: http://www.glendaleca.gov/Home/Components/Calendar/Event/29179/125
Gayle Brandeis at Vroman’s Bookstore
Please join us to hear award-winning author, novelist and poet Gayle Brandeis discuss and sign The Art of Misdiagnosis: Surviving My Mother’s Suicide. The author’s mother disappeared just after Gayle gave birth to her youngest child. Several days later her body was found: she had hanged herself in the utility closet of a Pasadena parking garage. In this searing, inventive memoir, she describes the dissonance between being a new mother, a grieving daughter, and trying to piece together what happened, who her mother was, and all she hadn’t understood about her. This is a compelling search into the mystery of one’s own family and a life-affirming story of the relief discovered through breaking through familial and personal silences.
Where: Vroman’s Bookstore
Date: Wednesday the 29th
Time: 7 pm
Address: 695 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, CA 91101
James Forman, Jr. at ALOUD Reading Series at Central Library, LAPL
Join us to hear James Forman, Jr., a professor of law at Yale Law School and former D.C. public defender, in conversation with Robin D.G. Kelly, the Gary D. Nash Professor of American History at UCLA, discuss Forman’s new book, Locking Up Our Own: Crime and Punishment in Black America. Chronicling riveting stories of many perspectives, Forman illustrates with great compassion how racism plagues our current system of criminal justice, and shines a light on its future.
See website for RSVP and stand-by seating guidelines for this free event.
Where: Mark Taper Auditorium, Central Library, LAPL
Date: Wednesday the 29th
Time: 7:30 pm
Address: 630 West 5th St., Los Angeles, CA 90071
Website: http://lfla.org/event/locking-crime-punishment-black-america/
Obama PHOTOS with Pete Souza at the Getty (ticketed)
Former White House photographer Pete Souza presents Obama: An Intimate Portrait, his new book with more than 300 of the over two million photographs he took of President Obama. Accompanied by behind-the-scenes captions and stories, the photos document the most consequential hours of the presidency, alongside unguarded moments with the President’s family, world leaders and cultural figures. Following a presentation, Souza will speak with Madeleine Brand, host of KCRW’s Press Play.
Note: This event is presented with Writers Bloc, and books are sold by Eso Won Books. Advance tickets required. Admission is $20; $61 covers ticket and one book, which are available for pick-up one hour prior to program. Check site for availability.
Where: Getty Center, Harold M. Williams Auditorium
Date: Wednesday the 29th
Time: 7:30 pm
Address: 1200 Getty Center Dr., Los Angeles, CA 90049
Website: http://getty.edu/museum/programs/lectures/souza_lecture.html
Michael Kogge and STAR WARS at the Last Bookstore
Please join us for a night of trivia and a book signing to celebrate the month of Star Wars Reads with Michael Kogge, author of DK’s Star Wars: Absolutely Everything Your Need to know, Updated and Expanded.
Where: The Last Bookstore
Date: Wednesday the 29th
Time: 7:30 pm
Address: 453 S. Spring St., Los Angeles, CA 90013
Website: http://lastbookstorela.com/#events
Raquel Gutierrez at the Hammer Museum
Please join us for a unique gallery talk with writer, poet and performer Raquel Gutierrez (Running in Place, Breaking Up With Los Angeles), as she discusses and walks through specific works from the exhibit Radical Women that inspire and provoke her.
Where: Hammer Museum
Date: Thursday the 30th
Time: 6 pm
Address: 10899 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90024
Website: http://hammer.ucla.edu/programs-events/2017/11/radical-women-walk-through-raquel-gutierrez/
Oliver Jeffers at Diesel Bookstore
Please join us to welcome Oliver Jeffers to discuss and sign his new picture book, Here We Are: Notes for Living on Planet Earth. The author created this guide to life on earth for his son, yet with a universality that embraces all children and their parents. His signature wit and humor combine with a value system of kindness and tolerance to create a must-have book for parents.
Where: Diesel Bookstore, Brentwood, lower outdoor courtyard
Date: Thursday the 30th
Time: 6 pm – 7 pm
Address: 225 26th St., Santa Monica, CA 90402
Website: http://www.dieselbookstore.com/event/oliver-jeffers-discusses-and-signs-here-we-are
Rocket Scientist Olympia LePoint at CSUN
Join us for a Your Brain Masterclass with award-winning rocket scientist, TED speaker, author, and CSUN alumna Olympia LePoint, as she presents her new book, Answers Unleashed: The Science of Unleashing Your Brain’s Power, and identifies how anyone can rewire the brain for genius feats. Hailed as the “Modern Day Hidden Figure” by People Magazine, LePoint helped launch 28 NASA Space Shuttle missions and map space vehicles to distant planets.
See website for more details on this FREE event.
Where: CSUN Plaza del Sol Performance Hall
Date: Thursday the 30th
Time: 6:30 pm
Address: 5535 E. Spring St., Northridge, CA 90808
Website: http://www.csun.edu/alumni/events/your-brain-masterclass-rocket-scientist-olympia-lepoint
Qurrat Ann Kadwani at Claremont McKenna College
Join us for They Call Me Q, a one-woman show performed by award-winning actress and writer Qurrat Ann Kadwani, the story of a girl from Bombay growing up in the Boogie Down Bronx who gracefully seeks balance between cultural pressure and wanting acceptance into the American culture. She speaks to the universal search for identity experienced by immigrants of all nationalities.
Where: The Athenaeum at Claremont Colleges
Date: Thursday the 30th
Time: 6:45 pm
Address: 385 East 8th St., Claremont, CA 91711
Website: http://www.cmc.edu/athenaeum/events/2017-11-30
Phoef Sutton, with Gary Phillips, at Vroman’s Bookstore
Join us to hear author Phoef Sutton, in conversation with author Gary Phillips, discuss and sign Colorado Boulevard: A Crush Mystery. This is the story of Zerbe, the honorary brother and roommate of LA’s toughest bodyguard/bouncer, Crush, who is kidnapped, and then Crush must spring into action to save him. This third installment of the Crush series is full of action, humor and mystery.
Where: Vroman’s Bookstore
Date: Thursday the 30th
Time: 7 pm
Address: 695 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, CA 91101
James Owens at Book Soup
Author James Owens will discuss and sign The World Is Just a Book Away, a unique anthology of 60 contributors who share their personal love of books and reading, and provides readers with insights into the personal stories of those included here, such as: His Holiness the Dalai Lama, Liam Neeson, Jane Goodall, and Buzz Aldrin,
For this event, Queen Mimi will be joining James.
Where: Book Soup
Date: Thursday the 30th
Time: 7 pm
Address: 8818 Sunset Blvd., West Hollywood, CA 90069
Website: http://www.booksoup.com/event/james-owens-discusses-and-signs-world-just-book-away
Open Door Poetry Reading at Battery Books
Please join us for our next Open Door Poetry Reading, featuring:
Brendan Constantine has taught and published widely in various journals, and his most recent collection from Red Hen Press is Dementia, My Darling. He currently teaches poetry at Windward School and regularly offers classes to hospitals, foster homes, veterans and the elderly.
Ben Loory is the author of two collections from Penguin: Tales of Falling and Flying, and Stories for Nighttime and Some for the Day. His fables and tales have appeared in The New Yorker, Tin House and others and have appeared on This American Life and Selected Shorts.
Meredith Alling is a writer based in Los Angeles, and her debut collection of short stories, Sing the Song, is available from Future Tense Books.
Where: Battery Books
Date: Thursday the 30th
Time: 8 pm – 11 pm
Address: 26 South Los Robles Ave., Pasadena, CA 91101
Website: http://www.facebook.com/opendoorpoetry/
Stuffed Animal Party at Vroman’s Hastings Ranch–Children’s Event
Put on your pajamas and bring over your favorite stuffed animal for a holiday story time and craft event for children. Afterwards, the animals are having a bookstore slumber party.
Where: Vroman’s Bookstore, Hastings Ranch
Date: Friday the 1st
Time: 6 pm
Address: 3729 E. Foothill Blvd., Pasadena, CA 91107
Website: http://www.vromansbookstore.com/event/stuffed-animal-slumber-party-holiday-edition-hastings-ranch
Technicians of the Sacred Reading at Poetic Research Bureau
Please join us to celebrate the 50th anniversary, and a new updated edition of the Technicians of the Sacred: A Range of Poetries from Africa, America, Asia, Europe, and Oceania, and a reading with Jerome Rothenberg, hosted by David Shook, with Will Alexander, Douglas Messerli, and Harmony Holiday.
Co-presented with ALOUD, The Library foundation of America.
Where: Poetic Research Bureau
Date: Friday the 1st
Time: 7:30 pm
Address: 951 Chung King Rd., Los Angeles, CA 90012
Website: http://www.poeticresearch.com/
Isabel Allende at Skirball Cultural Center
Join us at “Book Soup at the Skirball,” to hear international bestselling author Isabel Allende, in conversation with LA Times book editor Carolyn Kellogg, discuss and sign In the Midst of Winter, a timely tale that recounts the unexpected and moving love story of a sixty-year-old human rights scholar and a young, undocumented immigrant from Guatemala.
Note: RSVP and book purchase required in advance at website link. Admission is $28 + tax for admission and one pre-signed book.
Where: Skirball Cultural Center
Date: Friday the 1st
Time: 7 pm
Address: 2701 Sepulveda Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90049
Website: http://www.booksoup.com/event/book-soup-skirball-presents-isabel-allende-discussing-her-new-book-midst-winter or http://www.skirball.org/programs/words-and-ideas/isabel-allende-midst-winter
Poets with Peggy Dobreer at Rapp Saloon
Welcome back guest host Peggy Dobreer to host Rapp Saloon plus an Open Mic tonight, presenting:
Brendan Constantine (Dementia, My Darling), and four generations of female poets:
Kali (Venela Flagg), Elena Secota, Beth Marquez, and La Poeta Violeta (10-year old poet, with Get Lit players), with music by Amillia K. Spicer.
Where: Rapp Saloon, LA Santa Monica Hostel
Date: Friday the 1st
Time: 8 pm
Address: 1436 2nd St., Santa Monica, CA 90401
Website: https://www.facebook.com/events/136629200416323/
Ocean Park Book Group at Ocean Park Library
The monthly meeting of the Ocean Park Book Group meets the first Saturday of the month, and this meeting we will discuss the novel Commonwealth, by Ann Patchett. Open to all. No registration required.
Where: Ocean Park Branch Library, SMPL
Date: Saturday the 2nd
Time: 11 am – 12:30 pm
Address: 2601 Main St., Santa Monica, CA 90405
Website: http://calendar.smgov.net/library/eventsignup.asp?ID=22655
Author Ira Israel at Montana Avenue Library
Author Ira Israel will discuss his new book, How to Survive Your Childhood Now That You’re an Adult. In this provocative book he offers a powerful, comprehensive, step-by-step path to recognizing the ways of being that we create as children and transcending them with compassion and acceptance.
Where: Montana Branch Library, SMPL
Date: Saturday the 2nd
Time: 11 am – 12 pm
Address: 1704 Montana Ave., Santa Monica, CA 90403
Website: http://calendar.smgov.net/library/eventsignup.asp?ID=25473
Autumn Doerr at Gatsby’s Bookstore
Please join us to welcome mystery author Autumn Doerr, for her book launch party for her first book, Baker’s Dozen: A Lexi Fagan Mystery. Lexi is newly arrived in San Francisco and lands a job working at McCracken’s bakery. When her lover, firefighter Jerry Stevens, turns up dead in a devastating hotel fire, she has no time to mourn when she finds out his death was no accident and she gets caught up in the investigation.
Where: Gatsby’s Bookstore
Date: Saturday the 2nd
Time: 3 pm – 4:30 pm
Address: 5535 E. Spring St., Long Beach, CA 90808
Website: http://gatsbybooks.com/book-signings/
NaNoWriMo Closing Event at Edendale Library, LAPL
Let’s celebrate the completion of the NaNoWriMo month-long workshop to write at least 50,000 words in the past 30 days. We will have light refreshments.
Where: Edendale Branch Library, LAPL
Date: Saturday the 2nd
Time: 3:30 pm – 5:30 pm
Address: 2011 Sunset Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90026
Website: http://www.lapl.org/whats-on/events/nanowrimo-closing-event
Quincy R. Lehr at Beyond Baroque
Please join us to welcome Quincy R. Lehr, whose work has appeared in print and online venues in the U.S., UK, Ireland, Australia, and the Czech Republic. His book length poem Heimat is now available from Muse Press. He is also associate editor of The Raintown Review.
Where: Beyond Baroque
Date: Saturday the 2nd
Time: 4 pm
Address: 681 N. Venice Blvd., Venice, CA 90291
Website: http://beyondbaroque.org/calendar.html
Beyond Recollection Poetry Series at Gatsby’s Bookstore
Please join us for our Beyond Recollection Poetry Series, featuring five stirring poets, including our co-hosts:
Cynthia Alessandra Briano is Director of the Rapp Saloon Reading Series, First Fridays in Santa Monica, and is founder of Love on Demand Global, which creates custom poetry for charity. She has taught creative writing, and is also a college counselor and editorial consultant.
Brendan Constantine is widely published and his most recent collection is Dementia, My Darling (2016 Red Hen Press). He currently teaches poetry at Windward School and offers classes in a variety of venues.
Also featuring:
Natalie J. Graham is a Cave Canem fellow and associate professor of African American Studies at CSU Fullerton, and Begin with a Failed Body, her first full-length collection of poems, won the 2016 Cave Canem Poetry Prize.
Lauren Henley won the 2017 Perugia Press Prize for her second full-length collection, Starshine Road. She teaches English at Crafton Hills College in Yucaipa, California.
Jonathan Maule is the winner of the 2014 Academy of American Poets Contest at Cal Poly SLO, an MFA candidate at the Rainier Writing Workshop in Tacoma Washington, and co-editor of Apercus. His first book of poetry, Dog Star, was published by BIG YES Press, and he teaches English at Crafton Hills College.
Reception with wine, cheese and light fare will follow the reading. Thanks to Sean Richard Moor for hosting at Gatsby’s Books.
Where: Gatsby’s Bookstore
Date: Saturday the 2nd
Time: 6 pm – 9 pm
Address: 5535 E. Spring St., Long Beach, CA 90808
Website: http://www.facebook.com/events/2241125102785675/
Scott Casperson & JiHyun Kim at Gatsby’s Bookstore–Children’s Events
Please join us to welcome children’s picture book author Scott Casperson, and illustrator JiHyun Kim, for their book launch party for the book, How the Candy Cane Got It’s Stripes. This holiday tale is about self-discovery and its purpose is to remind everyone that the only holiday gift that matters is friendship.
Where: Gatsby’s Bookstore
Date: Sunday the 3rd
Time: 1 pm
Address: 5535 E. Spring St., Long Beach, CA 90808
Website: http://gatsbybooks.com/story-time-with-mrs-lund/
Politics & Prose Workshop at Pipe & Thimble Bookstore
Please join us for a writing workshop on Politics & Prose: Poetic Structures, hosted by Luis Antonio Pichardo, founder and executive director of DSTL Arts, a nonprofit arts mentorship organization that works within underserved communities. Writing exercises to develop form and line breaks, for both aspiring and long-term wordsmiths, plus we are offering poetry for kids in the garden.
NOTE: $20 tickets available at Eventbrite link at website.
Where: Pipe & Thimble Bookstore
Date: Sunday the 3rd
Time: 1 pm – 3 pm
Address: 24830 Narbonne Ave., Lomita, CA 90717
Website: http://www.facebook.com/events/108469053182374/
Leigh Bardugo Meet n’ Greet at Chevalier’s Bookstore
Please join us for a special event to meet author of fantasy novels and the creator of the Grishaverse, Leigh Bardugo, who will sign copies of her recently released book of short stories, The Language of Thorns: Midnight Tales and Dangerous Magic.
Where: Chevalier’s Bookstore
Date: Sunday the 3rd
Time: 4 pm
Address: 126 N. Larchmont Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90004
Website: http://www.chevaliersbooks.com/leigh-bardugo
First Sunday Open Reading at Beyond Baroque
Our popular monthly open reading features certain poets each month, plus an open mic, and is hosted by Steve Goldman. Sign-ups begin at 4:40 pm, in the Scott Wannberg Bookstore and Poetry Lounge.
Where: Beyond Baroque
Date: Sunday the 3rd
Time: 5 pm
Address: 681 N. Venice Blvd., Venice, CA 90291
Los Angeles Literature 