Mietek Boduszynski & US Democracy Promotion in the Arab World at LMU
Author Mietek Bosduszynski will discuss and sign his book, US Democracy Promotion in the Arab World. Should the US offer more support to the Middle East and Northern Africa to democratize? Join us in a discussion with an expert on the Balkans and the modern Middle East and North Africa, especially Iraq, Libya and Egypt.
The author teaches U.S. Foreign Policy at Pomona College, and was a diplomat with the U.S. Department of State at postings in Albania, Kosovo, Japan, Egypt, Libya and Iraq.
Where: LMU, McIntosh Center, University Hall, 3999
Date: Monday the 27th
Time: 5 pm
Address: 1 LMU Drive, Los Angeles, CA 90045
Website: https://cal.lmu.edu/event/mietek_boduszynski_us_democracy_promotion_in_the_arab_world
Greg Hurwitz & Into the Fire Release Party at Diesel Bookstore
Join us to hear the author of 21 thrillers and two books for teens, Greg Hurwitz, discuss his book, Into the Fire: An Orphan X Novel, at his publication party.
Evan Smoke lives by his own code. Trained as a government assassin they named Orphan X, he broke with the program and reinvented himself as The Nowhere Man, a figure in the shadows who helps the truly desperate. Now he faces a dangerously uncertain future…
Where: Diesel Bookstore, lower outdoor courtyard
Date: Monday the 27th
Time: 6:30 pm
Address: 225 26th St., Santa Monica, CA 90402
Author Talk: Veronica Kirin & Stories of Elders at Westwood Branch Library, LAPL
Author Veronica Kirin will present and discuss her book, Stories of Elders. The presentation will include a short documentary.
The author drove 12,000 miles across America to interview the greatest generation about how technology has changed everything over their lifetimes. Stories of Elders is the result of that journey.
Where: Westwood Branch Library, LAPL
Date: Monday the 27th
Time: 6:30 pm – 7:30 pm
Address: 1246 Glendon Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90024
Website: https://www.facebook.com/events/739729253178199
How to Raise a Young Reader & Parenting Discussion at Pasadena Main Library
Authors Pamela Paul & Maria Russo will discuss their indispensable guide to welcoming children to a lifelong love of reading, How to Raise a Young Reader. They debunk common myths, assuage parental fears, and deliver invaluable lessons in a positive and easy-to-act-on way.
Divided into four sections, from baby to teen, each illustrated by a different artist, it offers family rituals around reading, ways to engage a reluctant reader, expert and literary recommendations, and more.
Where: Pasadena Main Library
Date: Monday the 27th
Time: 7 pm
Address: 285 E. Walnut St., Pasadena, CA 91101
Website: https://www.cityofpasadena.net/library/calendar/
Ed Asner & Son of a Junkman at Barnes and Noble, The Grove at Farmers Market
Join us at Barnes and Noble, The Grove to hear iconic, Emmy Award winning actor Ed Asner present and sign his book Son of a Junkman: My Life from the West Bottoms of Kansas City to the Bright Lights of Hollywood, a charming and hilarious memoir.
NOTE: This is a wrist band event so check website for details.
Where: Barnes and Noble, The Grove at Farmers Market
Date: Monday the 27th
Time: 7 pm
Address: 189 The Grove Drive, Suite K 30, Los Angeles, CA 90036
Website: https://www.facebook.com/events/528361937889844/
Michael Seth Starr & Shatner at Book Soup
Author Michael Seth Starr will discuss and sign his book, Shatner, an unvarnished look at the unique career of an inimitable performer, William Shatner, star of Star Trek and other show business fame. His remarkably bumpy career took off with the budget conscious TV show when Shatner was thirty-five years old, and demonstrates his resilience against overwhelming odds, tragedies and triumphs.
Where: Book Soup
Date: Monday the 27th
Time: 7 pm
Address: 8818 Sunset Blvd., West Hollywood, CA 90069
Website: http://www.booksoup.com/event/michael-seth-starr-discusses-and-signs-shatner
Monday Night Open Mic with Shy But Flyy at Roxnnne’s
Join us for the Monday Night Open Mic hosted by Shy But Flyy. This Open Mic welcomes people who share their unique perspective artistically, through comedy, dram, music, poetry, comedy and more: Fun!
This free event sets the stage for and precedes the Rox Jam that begins at 9:30 pm You are welcome to stay for this event as well. More information is available at website link.
Where: Roxanne’s
Date: Monday the 27th
Time: 7 pm – 9:30 pm
Address: 1115 E. Wardlow Rd., Long Beach, CA 90807
Website: https://www.facebook.com/events/792736037725636/
Monday Night Fiction Workshop at Beyond Baroque
Join us for the Monday Night Fiction Workshop led by Jessica Dolby. This seminar will focus on generating creativity and on exploring various topics related tow writing fiction, including narrative technique, language, and plot.
Where: Beyond Baroque
Date: Monday the 27th
Time: 7:30 pm
Address: 681 N. Venice Blvd., Venice, CA 90291
Website: https://beyondbaroque.com/calendar
Ocean Vuong & On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous at LA Times Book Club Event at Montalban Theatre
The Los Angeles Times Book Club presents author and poet Ocean Vuong who will discuss and sign his new novel, On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous.
This novel is told as a letter from a young Vietnamese American man to his mother, and” is a book of sustained beauty and lyricism” states Steph Cha in a Times review.
NOTE: This is a ticketed event so check website for details.
Where: Montalban Theatre
Date: Monday the 27th
Time: 7:30 pm – 9 pm
Address: 1615 Vine St., Los Angeles, CA 90028
Website: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/los-angeles-times-book-club-presetns-ocean-vuong-tickets-867642532
Poetry with Yesika Salgado & Michael Lee at The Last Bookstore
Please join nationally recognized poets Yesika Salgado and Michael Lee as they share their newest work.
Michael Lee will read and discuss his new book, The Only Worlds We Know.
Yesika Salgado will read and discuss Hermosa, the path to becoming one’s own home.
NOTE: All bookstore events are ticketed so check website for details.
Where: The Last Bookstore
Date: Monday the 27th
Time: 7:30 pm
Address: 453 S. Spring St., Los Angeles, CA 90013
Website: https://lastbookstore/#events
Queer SLAM Poetry & Open Mic at AKBAR
This poetry open Mic is dedicated to storytelling and poetry, and is hosted by Silverlake icon Tony Soto. have a cocktail and spill your guts.
For the first show of 2020, the headliners will be Peter Kim and Jared Goldstein.
Where: AKBAR
Date: Monday the 27th
Time: 8 pm – 9:30 pm
Address: 4356 W. Sunset Blvd., Los Angeles, Ca 90029
Website: https://www.facebook.com/events/2927316613974584
Green Poets Workshop with Greg Bell at Beyond Baroque
Bring a poem and 12 (+) copies and come, strike a spark. While we like to ‘learn the rules,’ we also like to break them. Workshop led by Greg Bell.
Where: Beyond Baroque
Date: Tuesday the 28th
Time: 10:30 am
Address: 681 N. Venice Blvd., Venice, Ca 90291
Website: https://beyondbaroque.org/workshops.html
George Packer & Our Man Richard Holbrooke at UCLA Center for International Relations
Author and staff writer at The Atlantic George Packer will discuss and sign his book, Our Man Richard Holbrooke and the End of the American Century. .
Richard Holbrooke was brilliant, utterly self-absorbed, and possessed of almost inhuman energy and appetites. Admired and detested, he was the force behind the Dayton accord that ended the Balkan wars, the greatest diplomatic achievement in the post-Cold War era. From his days as a young advisor in Vietnam to his last efforts to end the war in Afghanistan, he embodied the American impulse to take the lead on the global stage, and his story is the story of America during its era of supremacy: its strength, drive, and sense of possibility, as well as its penchant for overreach and heedless self-confidence. This nonfiction narrative is both intimate and epic.
NOTE: RSVP for this event at website link.
Where: UCLA, Bunche Hall, Room 6275
Date: Tuesday the 28th
Time: 12 pm
Address: 11353 Bunche Hall, Room 6275, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA 90095
Website: https://www.international.ucla.edu/burkle/event/13919
Nina Sadowsky & The Empty Bed at Barnes and Noble, The Grove at Farmers Market
Join us at Barnes and Noble, The Grove to hear author and NYU Los Angeles program director Nina Sadlwsky present and signs her latest novel, The Empty Bed.
Catherine excels at helping desperate people disappear. But now she must use her unique skill set to find a missing woman in the electrifying novel. Intertwining story lines converge in unexpected ways. Not everyone is who they are supposed to be—and not everyone who is lost wants to be found.
NOTE: This is a wrist band event so check website for details.
Where: Barnes and Noble, The Grove at Farmers Market
Date: Monday the 27th
Time: 7 pm
Address: 189 The Grove Drive, Suite K 30, Los Angeles, CA 90036
Website: https://www.facebook.com/events/2596018737145867
Writers Blok & Kelly Grace Thomas at Writers Blok
Kelly Grace Thomas is the winner of the 2017 Neil Postman Award for Metaphor form Rattle, a 2018 finalist for the Rita Dove Poetry Award, a multiple Pushcart nominee and best of the Next nominee. Her first full-length collection is titled Boat Burned, and she will speak about her career and her route to publication.
NOTE: This is a ticketed event so check website for details.
Where: Writers Blok
Date: Tuesday the 28th
Time: Open writing from 7pm-8:30pm; Q&A from 8:30pm 9pm
Address: 2677 S. La Cienega Blvd., Los Angeles, Ca 90035
Website: https://www.facebook.com/events/1082223808797788
Howard Storm & Steve Stoliar & The Imperfect Storm at Book Soup
Authors Howard storm & Steve Stoliar will present and sign the memoir, The Imperfect Storm: From Henry Street to Hollywood.
This is the improbable and vastly entertaining story of Howard Storm (nee Howard Sobel), who grew up on the mean streets of New York’s Lower East Side and went on to become a successful standup comic, actor, improve teacher, and TV director.
Where: Book Soup
Date: Tuesday the 28th
Time: 7 pm
Address: 8818 Sunset Blvd., West Hollywood, CA 90069
Joe Ide & Hi Five (An IQ Novel) at Chevalier’s Bookstore
Author Joe Ide will present and sign his latest IQ novel, Hi Five, in which the PI must juggle a case that involves juggling many more personalities the he expected.
Christiana is the daughter of the biggest arms dealer on the West Coast, and is also the sole witness and number one suspect in the murder of her boyfriend, found dead in her Newport Beach boutique. IQ is coerced into taking the case to prove her innocence, as her father Angus will harm IQ’s new girlfriend if he doesn’t.
Where: Chevalier’s Bookstore
Date: Tuesday the 28th
Time: 7 pm
Address: 126 N. Larchmont Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90004
Website: https://www.chevaliers.com/event/joe-ide
Jeanine Cummins & American Dirt at Vroman’s Bookstore
Author Jeanine Cummins will present and sign her new and much debated and anticipated book, American Dirt: a Novel.
Lydia Quixano Perez lives in the Mexican city of Acapulco, runs a bookstore, and has a son and a journalist husband. When customer Javier, who is also leader of the new drug cartel, discovers her husband has written a tell-all profile of him, none of their lives will ever be the same. Lydia and her son are forced to flee and ride a bestia train to the U.S., which is the only place Javier’s reach does not extend, joining countless others who are running to el norte.
Where: Vroman’s Bookstore
Date: Tuesday the 28th
Time: 7 pm – 9 pm
Address: 695 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, CA 91101
Website: https://www.vromansbookstore.com/event/jeanine-cummins-discusses-and-signs-american-dirt
Hollywood Chinese: The Chinese in American Feature Films at the Crowell Public Library
Author and historian Arthur Dong will present and sign his book, Hollywood Chinese: The Chinese in American Feature Films.
This lavish book gives a spectacular view of the Chinese American impact on the movies. The author will discuss celebrity interviews, recent hits and artists, and how Asian cultures are portrayed, including racist biases.
NOTE: This is a free but ticketed event so check website for details.
Where: Crowell Public Library
Date: Tuesday the 28th
Time: 7 pm – 9 pm
Address: 1890 Huntington Dr., San Marino, CA 91108
Website: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/the-chinese-in-american-feature-films-tickets-86884611211
PEN America Emerging Voices Writers at L.A. Contemporary Exhibitions (LACE)
Join PEN America in welcoming their 2020 Emerging Voices Fellows: Damien Belliveau, Megan Dorame, Shannon Gatewood, M. Kiguwa, and Claire Lin.
This welcome party is part of PEN’s literary membership of providing new writers with the skills they need to launch a professional writing career.
NOTE: This is a free but ticketed event.
Where: LACE
Date: Tuesday the 28th
Time: 7 pm – 9 pm
Address: 6522 Hollywood Blvd., Hollywood, CA 90028
Website: https://welcometolace.org/event/pen-america-emerging-voices-welcome-party/
Book Talk: Jack Miles & Religion As We Know It at The Wilshire Boulevard Temple
Jack Miles, Pulitzer Prize winning author and editor of the Norton Anthology of World Religions, will discuss his latest book in conversation with Rabbi Ed Ffeinstein, Religion As We Know It: An Origin Story.
This book addresses two central questions: What is religion as we know it? And how have we come to separate religion form secular life in contemporary culture? In search of answers he turns to history.
NOTE: This event ais ticketed so check website for details.
Where: The Wilshire Boulevard Temple, Irmas Campus (westside)
Date: Tuesday the 28th
Time: 7:30 pm
Address: 3663 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90010
Website: http://wbtla.org/event/-occur-id/8013266
Gothic Book Club & The Graveyard Book at The Last Bookstore
The Gothic Book Club, led by host John Palisano, will read and discuss the graphic novel edition of Neil Gaiman’s book about an orphan and ghosts in a graveyard, The Graveyard Book.
NOTE: All bookstore events are ticketed so check website for details.
Where: The Last Bookstore
Date: Tuesday the 28th
Time: 7:30 pm
Address: 453 S. Spring St., Los Angeles, CA 90013
Website: http://lastbookstorela.com/#events
Homo-centric is Lit Event at Stories Books and Café
Homo-centric begins its 11th year this month at Stories Books & Café, sharing space with the LGBTQ+ community to share their words, without censorship or judgment.
Where: Stories Books and Café
Date: Tuesday the 28th
Time: 7:30 pm
Address: 1716 W. Sunset Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90026
Website: http://www.facebook.com/events/1038834528921163
Second Draft Writing Workshop at Art Share LA
Join us for the Second Draft Writing Workshop, which is FREE. Bring your writing, your acting, and your pacing to this new cold reading series every Tuesday at Art Share LA.
Mingle is at 7:30 pm
Casting is at 8 pm
Readings are at 8:30 pm
Where: Art Share LA
Date: Tuesday the 28th
Time: 8:30 pm – 10 pm
Address: 801 E. 4th Pl., Los Angeles, CA 90013
Website: https://www.facebook.com/events/432347013823672
Da Poetry Lounge Open Mic at Greenway Court Theatre
About: All you have to do is put your name on the sign-up list. The first half sign-ups occur before the doors open, and sign-ups for the second half do not guarantee entry, so stay in line! Keep in line that each half has its own sign-up list so check details at website or at event. Sorry, you can only perform at one half per night, and 12-15 people are typically called up for each half’s open mic, depending on whether there is a feature that night. There is a time limit of three minutes at the mic to do your poem, as we try to accommodate as many people as possible. So please, arrive early!
Where: The Greenway Court Theater
Date: Tuesday the 28th
Time: 9 pm – 12 pm
Address: 544 N. Fairfax Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90036
Website: http://dapoetrylounge.com/visiting-dpl/slam/
Viva Poets! Workshop with Estella Ramirez at Beyond Baroque
This is a supportive poetry critique circle. We favor meaningful discussion over directives. Bring 10 copies of you prom to workshop. This event is led by rotating facilitators.
Where: Beyond Baroque
Date: Wednesday the 29th
Time: 11 am
Address: 681 N. Venice Blvd., Venice, Ca 90291
Website: https://beyondbaroque.org/workshops.html
High Country News 50th Anniversary Conversation at the Autry Museum
High Country News, an independent journalism organization covering the American West, celebrates its 50th Anniversary by exploring the topic “Is the West as a category still relevant?” with authors and editors:
HCN representatives Brian Calvert, Editor-in-Chief, Graham Lee Brewer (Cherokee), Indigenous affairs Contributing Editor, and McKenna Stayner, Contributing Editor, and Gustavo Arellano, Features Writer for the Los Angeles Times.
This is a discussion of changing perceptions of the West and how HCN’s coverage has evolved over the years, and is offered in conjunction with the HCN exhibition. A cash bar and refreshments will be available.
NOTE: RSVPs are recommended for this event so check website for details.
Where: The Autry Griffith Park
Date: Wednesday the 29th
Time: 7 pm
Address: 4700 Western Heritage Way, Los Angeles, CA 90027
Website: https://theautry.org/events/lectures-and-workshops/high-country-news-50th-anniversary-conversation
Eric Nuzum & Make Noise at Chevalier’s Bookstore
Author Eric Nuzum, in conversation with Andrea Silenzi, will present and sign his book Make Noise: A Creator’s Guide to Podcasting and Great Audio Storytelling.
This is a distillation of a career’s worth of wisdom, advice, and practical information to help podcasters stand out in this growing media universe.
Where: Chevalier’s Bookstore
Date: Wednesday the 29th
Time: 7 pm
Address: 126 N. Larchmont Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90004
Website: https://www.chevaliersbooks.com/eric-nuzum
The Word on Wednesday Open Mic at UCLA Kerckhoff Hall, Art Gallery
The Cultural Affairs Commission presents The Word on Wednesday Open Mic for anyone in the area! Come with your poetry/prose/voice/instruments or any other art form you feel inspired to share.
Where: UCKA Kerckhoff Hall, Art Gallery
Date: Wednesday the 29th
Time: 7 pm – 9 pm
Address: 308 Westwood Plaza, Los Angeles, CA 90095
Website: https://www.facebook.com/events/2529980643990755/
Robert Kerbeck & Malibu Burning at The Last Bookstore
Author Robert Kerbeck, will read and discuss his book, Malibu Burning: The Real Story Behind L.A.’s Most Devastating Wildfire!
The author fought one of the worst fires in California history, the Woolsey Fire of 2018. Along with his wife and teenage son, they saved their Malibu home as a result of training and gear they acquired on their own.
NOTE: All bookstore events are ticketed so check website for details.
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
Andre Perry & Some of Us Are Very Hungry Now at Skylight Bookstore
Join author Andre Perry, in conversation with author Roxane Gay (Hunger), to hear him discuss and sign his debut essay collection, Some of Us Are Very Hungry Now.
These essays take the forms of personal reflection, multiple choice questions, screenplays, and imagined talk show conversations, while traveling the daily minefields of life. The impression of the author’s personal journey is arresting and beguiling, while annoncing a formidable American voice.
Where: Skylight Bookstore
Date: Wednesday the 29th
Time: 7:30 pm
Address: 1818 N. Vermont Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90027
Anansi Writers Workshop & Mo Piquette Haynes & Open Mic at The World Stage
The Anansi Writers Workshop was founded in 1990 by Kamau Daáood, Akilah Oliver, Nafis Nabawi and Anthony Lyons. In 1993, Michael Datcher initiated the development of a three-part format for the workshop. Their tradition of a community workshop began in the late 1960s at the Watts Writers’ Workshop, where World Stage co-founder Kamau Daáood started his writing career. The Anansi Writers Workshop is coordinated by V. Kali and Conney Williams.
Mo Piquette Haynes is an arts advocate, poet, and actress who believes that the art of storytelling can shape entire worlds, on and off stage. Her first book of poetry, Born to Waltz, was published by World Stage Press in 2015, In 2018 The Actors Gang became her new home, where she is an associate for The Prison Project.
Where: World Stage Press
Date: Wednesday the 29th
Time: 7:30 pm– 10 pm
Address: 4321 Degnan Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90008
Website: http://www.theworldstage/ or https://www.facebook.com/events/618604622248598
Raundi Kai Moore-Kondo at The Ugly Mug
Raundi Kai Moore-Kondo will present her work at The Ugly Mug, presented by Two Idiots Peddling Poetry. She is a wife, mother, writing coach, rock star, fiction writer, publisher, and singer/songwriter. She is also author of Let the Ends Spill Over Your Lips, Death of a Snowman, and Founder of For the Love of Words Creative Writing Collective. She is bassist for the bands Hurt & the Heartbeat and Daisy Unchained.
NOTE: $3 cover charge, cash only.
Where: The Ugly Mug
Date: Wednesday the 29th
Time: 8 pm – 10 pm
Address: 261 N. Glassell St., Orange, CA 92866
Website: https://www.facebook.com/events/804889950022083
Early History of Africa Symposium at UCLA Center for Medieval & Renaissance Studies
Thus symposium is an opportunity to think about different methodologies and ways of writing history when faced with the challenges of sources. Can we still use the traditional narrative within a connected history of brokers, frontiers, and cultural transfers, or should we be thinking about different ways of telling history, e.g. by developing network narratives or fragmented narratives?
A large and diverse panel of authors and educators will discuss these issues.
NOTE: This is a free but ticketed event so check website link for details.
Where: UCAL Center for Medieval & Renaissance Studies, Royce Hall
Date: Thursday the 30th
Time: 1:30 pm – 5:30 pm
Address: 302 Royce Hall, 10745 Dickson Plaza,Los Angeles, CA 90095
Website: https://www.facebook.com/events/1734575470008571
Donna Rifkind & The Sun and Her Stars Release Party at Diesel Bookstore
Join us to hear the author Donna Rifkind, discuss her book, The Sun and Her Stars, at her publication party.
Where: Diesel Bookstore, lower outdoor courtyard
Date: Thursday the 30th
Time: 6:30 pm
Address: 225 26th St., Santa Monica, CA 90402
Fred Schmalz & Susy Bielak & Action in the Orchards at LibroMobile
Join us to hear the authors Fred Schmalz & Susy Bielock, as he presents his debut book, Action in the Orchards, and she leads the audience through the process of what it means to be an artist: action.
Action in the Orchards explores ekphrastic poetry and its possibilities through various experiences and encounters, and how they interact with language and are communicated.
Where: LibroMobile
Date: Thursday the 30th
Time: 6:30 pm
Address: 220 E. Fourth St., Ste. 107, Santa Ana, CA 92701
Website: https://www.facebook.com/events/499615574093678
Stephen Tapert & Best Actress: The History of Oscar-Winning Women at Book Soup
Author Stephen Tapert will present and sign his book, Best Actress: The History of Oscar Winning Women. In this lavishly illustrated coffee table book the author offers an examination of the first 75 women to have won Best Actress Oscars over the span of 90 years.
Where: Book Soup
Date: Thursday the 30th
Time: 7 pm
Address: 8818 Sunset Blvd., West Hollywood, CA 90069
Authors Yun Wang & Alice Pero (& work of Su Dong-Po) & Open Reading at the Pasadena Main Library
Author Yun Wang will read a set of timeless poems of Su Dong-Po from Dreaming of Fallen Blossoms, in the original Chinese and her English translation, with music by flutist and poet Alice Pero. Then Wang and Pero will read from their own poetry collections, The Book of Totality and Thawed Stars, respectively. .
This event will include an open reading (sign-up required by 6:55 pm).
Where: Pasadena Main Library
Date: Thursday the 30th
Time: 7 pm
Address: 285 E. Walnut St., Pasadena, CA 91101
Website: https://ci.pasadena.ca.us/library
Surprise the Line Writing Workshop & Nancy Lynee Woo at Whittier First Friends Church
Author Nancy Lynee Woo will lead a new Surprise the Line Writing Workshop on Poetic Forms. This is week 4 of an 8-week generative workshop is open to all experience levels, and tickets are available at Eventbrite.com.
Each week, participants will explore a different type of poetic form, or structure, to aid in paying attention to word choices, auditory rhythms, pacing on the page, and the strength of our images.
NOTE: See website for details, costs and schedule for this ticketed event.
Where: Whittier First Friends Church
Date: Thursday the 30th
Time: 7 pm – 9:30 pm
Address: 13205 Philadelphia St., Whittier, CA 90601
Website: https://www.facebook.com/events/2612470208975158/
Poets Jazz House Open Mic at Irie Vibes Art Space
About: A Spoken Word and Music Lounge where spilling your heart is art and searching your soul is mandatory to get in the door. They are a beatnik Tea House where there’s snapping instead of clapping. The atmosphere is lax but it Sssizzles. They invite you to come touch, be touched, hear the answer and heed the call. They’re just a cozy little house where everyone feels at home.
Where: Irie Vibes Art Space
When: Thursday the 30th
Time: 7pm – 10pm
Address: 6563 N. Normandie Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90044
Website: Poets Jazz House
Andrea Bernstein & Madeleine Brand at ALOUD Event at Institute of Central Library, LAPL
Join the ALOUD reading series to welcome author Andrea Bernstein, in conversation with KCRW’s Madeleine Brand, as they discuss her new book, American Oligarchs: The Kushners, the Trumps, and the Marriage of Money and Power.
This conversation is an eye-opening look at how these dynasties encouraged and profited from a system of political dark money that has pushed America to the precipice of oligarchy and is unraveling our democracy as we know it..
NOTE: This is a ticketed event so check website for details.
Where: Mark Taper Auditorium, Central Library, LAPL
Date: Thursday the 30th
Time: 7:30 pm
Address: 630 S. Flower St., Los Angeles, CA 90071
https://www.lapl.org/whats-on/events/aloud-andrea-bernstein-conversation-madeleine-brand
Michael Lee & Morgan Parker at Skylight Bookstore
Join authors Michael Lee and author Morgan Parker to hear them discuss and sign their newest poetry collections, the Only Worlds We Know and Magical Negro, respectively.
Lee’s The Only Worlds We Know is a nuanced and tactile look at both sobriety and what comes after. Patient meditations on loss and the land where the people we love live and are also buried.
Parker’s Magical Negro is an archive of black everydayness, a catalog of contemporary folk heroes, and ethnography of ancestral grief, and an inventory of figureheads, idioms, and customs.
Where: Skylight Bookstore
Date: Thursday the 30th
Time: 7:30 pm
Address: 1818 N. Vermont Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90027
Washington Post Reporters Phil Rucker & Carol Leonnig at New Roads School
Washington Post White House Bureau Chief Phil Rucker & National Investigative Reporter Carol Leonnig have rakced up Pulitzers and more. In their new book, A Very Stable Genius: Donald J.Trump’s Testing of America, they assert the White House is not just a hive of chaos and unintended disorder—but that the disorder, in fact, shows patterns and meaning.
NOTE: This is a ticketed event so check website for details. It might be sold out soon.
Where: New Roads School
Date: Thursday the 30th
Time: 7:30 pm – 9:300 pm
Address: 3131 Olympic Blvd., Santa Monica, CA 90404
Website: https://www./facebook.com/events/416324409270639
Dorothy Coleman Pincus & One Dark Knight Book Reveal at Beyond Baroque
In One Dark Knight Book Reveal Dorothy Coleman Pincus uses her storytelling expression through the arts to take you on a journey of healing and transformation as she shares “One Dark Knight Book Reveal.”
Where: Beyond Baroque
Date: Thursday the 30th
Time: 8 pm – 10 pm
Address: 681 N. Venice Blvd., Venice, CA 90291
Website: http://beyondbaroque.org/calendar.html
Open Door Poetry Reading Event at Battery Books Pasadena
Poets Khadija Anderson, Romaine Washington & Steve Abee will feature at the Open Door Poetry Reading at Battery Bookstore.
Poet, Muslim, Mother and Anarchist (not necessarily in that order) Khadija Anderson has published extensively online and in print journals and anthologies, and her poem “Islam For Americans” was a Pushcart nominee. History of Butoh was published in 2012 by Writ Large Press, and a chapbook, Cul-de-sac: an american childhood, is forthcoming through Ethel, a woman’s micro-press. Khadija runs a monthly social justice themed poetry series, Poets & Allies for Resistance in Alta-Pasadena,
Romaine Washington, M.Ed. is the author of the collection, Sirens in Her Belly (2016) and her poem “Inseparable” was nominated for Best of the Net by Spit Fire Review. She is a fellow of the Inlandia Institute, UC Riverside, and the Watering Hole, South Carolina. She is an educator from San Bernardino.
Steve Abee is a poet, teacher, father, husband, and published The Bus and Great Balls of Flowers among other things. He also runs this reading series as host and organizer.
Where: Battery Books
Date: Thursday the 30th
Time: 8 pm – 10 pm
Address: 26 S. Los Robles Ave., Pasadena CA 91101
Website: http://www.facebook.com/events/532808593986764/?active_tab=about
Sarah Ruhl & Letters from Max: A Poet, a Teacher, a Friendship at Book Soup
Author Sarah Ruhl will discuss and sign her book, Letters from Max: A Poet, a Teacher, A Friendship.
In 2012 Sarah Ruhl was a distinguished author and playwright, twice a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize. Max Ritvo, a student in her class was exhuberant, opinionated, and a highly gifted poet. He was also in remission from pediatric cancer. Over the next four years they exchanged letters in which they shared and debated in a spirit of generosity and love as his health failed.
Where: Book Soup
Date: Friday the 31st
Time: 7 pm
Address: 8818 Sunset Blvd., West Hollywood, CA 90069
Website: http://www.booksoup.com/event/sarah-ruhl–discusses-and-signs-letters-max-poet-teacher-friendship
Rough Riders Book Launch & Reading at Page Against the Machine Bookstore
Join us for the book launch and readings from Moments in Space & Time anthology by the members of the Rough Writers Toastmasters of Long Beach, an offshoot of the organization which is open to the public.
A single piece f evocative artwork serves as the initial inspiration for all of the 13 short stories in the collection, and from that source came a mix of eclectic themes and stories as diverse as the members themselves. Some of the authors will be on hand to read their creations. This event is free and open to the public and light refreshments will be served.
Where: Page Against the Machine
Date: Friday the 31st
Time: 7 pm – 9 pm
Address: 2714 E. 4th St., Long Beach, CA 90814
Website: http://www.facebook.com/events/525303488083911
Dan Zigmond & Buddha’s Office at Vroman’s Bookstore
Author Dan Zigmond will present and sign his book, Buddha’s Office: the Ancient Art of Waking Up While Working Well.
Without setting foot in an office, Buddha knew that helping people work right was essential to helping them find their path to awakening. Now, more than ever, we need this guidance. It is time to wake up and start working in a more enlightened way, one that alleviates stressors, and is right for your health, sanity and the world.
Where: Vroman’s Bookstore
Date: Friday the 31st
Time: 7 pm
Address: 695 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, CA 91101
The Definitive Soapbox Open Mic & Readings (TDSB) at Fox Coffee House
TDSB starts 2020 off with great features at its first Open Mic of the year: Hosted by Antonio PazOne Appling.
Natasha Hooper is an international poet, spoken word artist, activist and host currently living in San Diego. She earned the title #2 poet in the world at the 2018 Individual World Poetry Slam, after winning the 2017 Slam with her team.
Jahman Ariel Hill is a creative and educator currently living in Alabama. He is co-founder and VP of the Alabama Student Association for Poetry, author of Made From My Mother’s Ceilings, and the one-man show, Black Enough. He is a graduate teaching assistant at the University of Alabama, and currently ranked 3rd best slam poet in the world.
Sign-ups for Open Mic start at 6:30 pm.
Where: Fox Coffee House
Date: Friday the 31st
Time: 7 pm – 9:30 pm
Address: 437 W. Willow St., Long Beach, CA 90806
Website: http://www.facebook.com/events/820593198414302
Dani Shapiro & The Inheritance at Ahrya Fine Arts
Author Dani Shapiro, in conversation with singer/songwriter Lis Phair, will discuss and sign her book, The Inheritance.
When the author’s DNA test, taken on a whim, proves her father is not her birth father, it is a personal earthquake that jolts her into solving her own detective story about defining herself as well as looking at the bigger issues about defining our individuality, our roots, and the ethical questions in DNA testing.
NOTE: This is a ticketed event so check website for details.
Where: Ahrya Fine Arts Theatre
Date: Friday the 31st
Time: 7:30 pm
Address: 8556 Wilshire Blvd., Beverly Hills, CA 90211
Website: http://www.facebook.com/events/612938069472570
Kate Ingold, Fred Schmalz & Chad Sweeney at Poetic Research Bureau
Poets and writers Kate Ingold, Fred Schmalz and Chad Sweeney will read and discuss their work.
Kate Ingold is a visual artist and poet working in a variety of media, and examines issues of disturbance, reparation, and collapse, and the nostalgia and regret that can accompany loss. Her chapbook, Dream of Water, received the Harryette Mullen Chapbook Fellowship in 2008, and she has exhibited nationally.
Fred Schmalz is an artist and poet whose first full-length collection, Action in the Orchards, (Nightboat Books, 2019) responds to encounters with dance, music, and visual art. he makes art with Susy Bielok in the collective Balas & Wax.
Chad Sweeney has published six books of poetry, including Million Little Doors (Nightboat Books, winner of the Nightboat Books Prize), as well as two books of translation. He is an associate professor of English/Creative Writing at CSU San Bernardino and lives in Redlands with his family.
Where: Poetic Research Bureau
Date: Friday the 31st
Time: 7:30 pm
Address: 951 Chung King Rd., Los Angeles, CA 90012
Website: http://www.facebook.com/events/473713946627216
Chana Porter & The Seep at Skylight Bookstore
Author Chana Porter, in discussion with Agnes Borinsky, will discuss and sign her debut novel, The Seep.
This book is a searing social commentary and speculative fiction, and is perfect for fans of Jeff VanderMeer and Carmen Maria Machado. It’s the story of a fifty-year-old trans woman whose life is irreversibly altered by a world invasion by an alien entity called The Seep, through which everything is connected, and if something can be imagined, it is possible.
Where: Skylight Bookstore
Date: Friday the 31st
Time: 7:30 pm
Address: 1818 N. Vermont Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90027
Website: http://www.skylightbooks.com/event/chana-porter–reads-her-debut-novel-seep-agnes-borinsky
Daniel McGinn Reading & Open Mic at Tebot Bach, Huntington Beach
Join Tebot Bach to welcome Daniel McGinn to Golden West College to read and discuss his recent collection of poems, The Moon, My Lover, My Mother & The Dog, which will be available at the reading. Five of his chapbooks were included in the Laguna Poets Series, he was once one of Tebot Bach’s “Five Penny Poets,” and has written about local poets as a regular contributor to NEXT magazine and The OC Weekly.
NOTE: Parking is free, and Open Mic sign ups begin at 7:30 pm.
Where: Golden West College, Humanities 101
Date: Friday the 31st
Time: 8 pm – 10 pm
Address: 15744 Goldenwest St., Huntington Beach, CA 92647
Website: http://www.facebook.com/events/466026210754158
How I Write a Poem: Film Screening & Reading at Beyond Baroque
Premiere documentary screening of How I Write a Poem, which features poets interviewed by Mariano Zaro for his Poetry LA series, and includes live readings by several poets in the film: Tony Barnstone, Marsha de la O, Ramon Garcia, Jack Grapes, Claudia Rodriguez, David St. John, Lynne Thompson, and Gail Wronsky.
Where: Beyond Baroque
Date: Friday the 31st
Time: 8 pm – 10 pm
Address: 681 N. Venice Blvd., Venice, CA 90291
Website: http://beyondbaroque.org/calendar.html
Andrew & Polly Mini-Concert at Children’s Book World – Kids Event
Musicians and composers Andrew & Polly, create music and sound design, write and compose music and podcasts for all ages, and will perform a mini-concert today.
Where: Children’s Book World
Date: Saturday the 1st
Time: 10:30 am – 11 am
Address: 10580 ½ W. Pico Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90064
Website: http://www.childrensbookworld.com/event/andrew-polly-mini-concert-0
Shari Swanson & Honey, the Dog Who Saved Abe Lincoln at Vroman’s Bookstore – Kids Event
Author Shari Swanson will present and sign her children’s book, Honey, the Dog Who Saved Abe Lincoln. This is a deeply researched and charmingly told true story about one extra-special childhood rescue— and a dog named Honey. When a young Abe Lincoln found a stray dog with a broken leg, he had no idea that pup would become his best friend and save his life—one fateful day.
Where: Vroman’s Bookstore
Date: Saturday the 1st
Time: 10:30 am
Address: 695 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, CA 91101
Saturday Morning Prose & Poetry at Beyond Baroque
Join us for Saturday Morning Prose & Poetry, with Annette Robinson, to participate in a writing workshop for publication. Bring 5 copies of a poem to share.
Where: Beyond Baroque
Date: Saturday the 1st
Time: 11 am
Address: 681 N. Venice Blvd., Venice, CA 90291
Website: http://beyondbaroque.org/calendar
Delta Authors Event, On Tour in the Farwest Region, at LMU
Enter with us into an interactive discussion with authors of all genres who give life to the voice of Black women in their books. Moderated by actress T’Keyah Crystal Keymah and producer Korin Williams, this event is sponsored by Delta Sigma Sorority, Inc., hosted by the Century City Chapter, and features:
Natalie Bonner (Marie Sunshine)
Brenda Jackson (Finding Home Again)
Sheryl Mallory-Johnson (The Hand She Played)
Tradara McLaurine (Why Mommy Works)
Victoria Christopher Murray (Greed: A Seven Deadly Sins Novel)
Saharra K. Sandu (Fire in Ice)
Yvonne Thomas (Matters of the Heart)
NOTE: This is a free but ticketed event so check website link for schedule and details.
Where: Loyola Marymount University
Date: Saturday the 1st
Time: 1 pm – 4 pm
Address: 1 LMU Dr., Los Angeles, CA 90045
Website: http://www.facebook.com/events/2461985193910943
Mike Johnson & Confessions of a Dark Lord at Barnes and Noble, The Grove at Farmers Market – Kids Event
Join us at Barnes and Noble, The Grove to celebrate author Mike Johnson’s book Confessions of a Dark Lord, with special guests: Pseudonymous Bosch, Melissa de la Cruz, Stuart Gibb, Sarah Mlynowski & Shane Pangburn.
This is the author’s first novel for middle grade children, and is the story of Wick, the son of the Dark Lord, heir to the throne and next in line to be the leader of the Grim World. Called the Dork Lord by bullies at school, he’s stuck in Remedial Spell Casting, and is allergic to fire and brimstone. Full of hijinks, humor, and lively illustrations, the reader follows Wick through the pages of his journal as he comes up with a plan to defeat his foes…and survive Middle Ages School.
NOTE: This is a wrist band event so check website for details.
Where: Barnes and Noble, The Grove at Farmers Market
Date: Saturday the 1st
Time: 2 pm – 4 pm
Address: 189 The Grove Drive, Suite K 30, Los Angeles, CA 90036
Website: https://www.facebook.com/events/2568738386783767/
Thomas Perry & Jo Perry Signings at Mystery Ink Bookstore
Authors Thomas Perry will present and sign his book A Small Town and Jo Perry will present and sign her new novella Everything Happens.
Where: Mystery Ink Bookstore
Date: Saturday the 1st
Time: 2 pm – 3:30 pm
Address: 8907 Warner Ave., Suite 135, Huntington Beach, CA 92647
Website: http://www.facebook.com/events/551605938935617
Poetry Out Loud Finals! at Garcia Center for the Arts
Kay Jo Creatives, Mae Jemison, and others host the finals of San Bernardino’s Poetry Out Loud Program!
This national arts program encourages the study of great poetry by offering a dynamic recitation competition to high school students across the country. Students master public speaking skills, build self-confidence, and learn about history and contemporary life.
Where: Kay-Jo Creatives, Garcia Center
Date: Saturday the 1st
Time: 2 pm – 4 pm
Address: 536 W. 11th St., San Bernardino, CA
Website: http://www.facebook.com/events/793809267789008
Mike Johnson & Confessions of a Dark Lord at Barnes and Noble, The Grove
Meet Mike Johnson and his special guests Pseudonymous Bosch, Melissa de la Cruz, Stuart Gibb, Sarah Mlynowski, & Shane PAngburn when they celebrate the release of Confessions of a Dark Lord.
NOTE: This is a ticketed event so check website for details.
Where: Barnes and Nobel, The Grove
Date: Saturday the 1st
Time: 2 pm
Address: 189 The Grove Drive, Suite K 30, Los Angeles, CA 90036
Website: http://www.facebook.com/events/2568738386783767
Hazel Clayton Harrison & Crossing the River Ohio at Alkebu-Ian Culture Center
In a special reading for the public and discussion for the Delta Sigma Theta Inc. Sorority Book Club, Altadena Poet Laureate/Author Hazel Clayton Harrison will read excerpts from her 2014 memoir, Crossing the River Ohio.
A Q&A will follow the reading.
Where: Alkebu Ian Culture Center
Date: Saturday the 1st
Time: 2:30 pm – 5 pm
Address: 1435 N. Raymond Ave., Pasadena, CA 91103
Website: http://www.facebook.com/events/ or https://www.pw.org/calendar?metroarea[hidden_longitude]=118.25067055601606&metroarea[hidden_latitude]=34.05216127966009&metroarea[city_autocomplete]=Los+Angeles%2C+CA
Autumn Krause & Nikki Barthelmess at Book Soup
Authors Autumn Krause & Nikki Barthelmess will present and sign their new books, A Dress for the Wicked & The Quiet You Carry, respectively.
This guide to the astounding lives of animals will give new tools to humans to avoid using or abusing them as we once did. This is a fascinating study of why our fellow living beings deserve our respect, and how to put this understanding into action.
Where: Book Soup
Date: Saturday the 1st
Time: 3 pm
Address: 8818 Sunset Blvd., West Hollywood, CA 90069
Silvina Ocampo & The Promise and Forgotten Journey Dual Launch at Hauser & Wirth
Artbook and City Lights welcome author Silvina Ocampo to launch and discuss two books, The Promise and Forgotten Journey, in a dual launch and signing event. Translators Suzanne Jill Levine, Katie Lateef-Jan and Jessica Powell will be in conversation with Magdalena Edwards, with Q&A and signing to follow.
Where: Hauser & Wirth
Date: Saturday the 1st
Time: 3 pm – 5 pm
Address: 917 E. 3rd St., Los Angeles, CA 90012
Website: https://www.facebook.com/events/1633976200073380
Saturday Afternoon Poetry at Santa Catalina Branch Library, Pasadena
Please join us for Saturday Afternoon Poetry for a Forward Moving Writing Workshop led by Don Kingfisher Campbell.
(Submit poems and art for Spectrum 22 LEAP THROUGH by 11:59 pm on February 8th via email to donkingfishercampbell@gmail.com).
Events curated by Don Kingfisher Campbell.
Where: Santa Catalina Branch Library, Pasadena (Back Room)
Date: Saturday the 1st
Time: 3 pm – 5 pm
Address: 999 E. Washington Blvd., Pasadena, CA 91104
Website: http://saturdayafternoonpoetry.blogspot.com/
Poetry Reading Event & Book Celebrations at Poetic Research Bureau
Three poets will join us to read, discuss and sign their work:
James Sherry is the author of 13 books of poetry and prose, most recently The Oligarch (2017) and the poetry book Entangled Bank (2016). He’ll read from his new manuscript, Selfie: Ecology & Individuals, forthcoming form Palgrave this year.
Bruna Mori is a writer and educator preoccupied with spatial discourses. She is celebrating the release of her new book, Poetry for Corporations (Insert Blanc Press). She teaches at UCSD and Woodbury School of Architecture, and writes for arts institutions and nonprofits.
Ross Goodwin is a writer and uses sensors to generate poetry, screenplays and literary travel fiction and is the author of 1 THE ROAD. This is the first experimental road-trip novel written by an AI.
Where: Poetic Research Bureau
Date: Saturday the 1st
Time: 7:30 pm (doors); Reading at 8 pm
Address: 951 Chung King Rd., Los Angeles, CA 90012
Website: http://www.poeticresearchbureau.com or https://www.facebook.com/events/456338351919217
Exegesis Eisegesis Encaustic – Reading Event at Skylight Bookstore
Artists Katie Herzog & Andrew Choate will read materials, including new poetic work by Choate, regarding their new book, Exegesis Eisegesis Encaustic, along with bonus readings and observations by essay contributors and artists Carol Cheh and Deb Klowden Mann. .
This is a collaborative series, depicting signs in and around Los Angeles, and copies of original work and prints from the series will be on hand during the event.
Where: Skylight Bookstore
Date: Saturday the 1st
Time: 7:30 pm
Address: 1818 N. Vermont Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90027
Website: https://www.facebook.com/event/460135101543969
Poetry in Motion Event at Beyond Baroque
Since 1988, Eve Brandstein has presented an eclectic array of writers from the literary and Hollywood communities in the Poetry in Motion literary performance series. This event is titled Hersotyr-3, and it features: Anne Beatts, O’Lan Jones, Vicki Juditz, Suzanne Lummis, Monica Piper, Carol Potter, Lisa Thayer, and Carrie White.
NOTE: This is a ticketed event so check website for details.
Where: Beyond Baroque
Date: Saturday the 1st
Time: 8 pm
Address: 681 N. Venice Blvd, Venice, CA 90291
Website: http://beyondbaroque.org.calendar
Storytime at Hastings Ranch at Vroman’s Bookstore – Kids Event
Storytime at Hastings Ranch is a regularly held children’s event at Vroman’s Bookstore’s branch in the Hastings Ranch location.
Where: Vroman’s Bookstore, Hastings Ranch
Date: Sunday the 2nd
Time: 10:30 am
Address: 3729 E. Foothill Blvd., Pasadena, CA 91107
Website: https://www.vromansbookstore.com/event/storytime-hastings-ranch-257
Ceremony: Kalpuili Xochiyaoyotl Ceremonia de Tititl at Tia Chucha’s Centro Cultural & Bookstore
At this public event, attendees will experience and observe Kalpuili Xochiyaoyotl’s Danza Mexica Ceremony, also known as Aztec Dancing, a cultural tradition widely practiced through California ad nationwide with origins dating back to ancient Mesoamericna ceremonies.
Where: Tia Chucha’s
Date: Sunday the 2nd
Time: 11 am – 3 pm
Address: 13197 Gladstone Ave., Unit A, Sylmar, CA 91342
Website: https://facebook.com/events/2696439660463483/
Tribute to Holly Prado & Weather + Readings at Skylight Bookstore
This tribute to poet emeritus Holly Prado, and her final poetry book Weather, includes readings by Harry E. Northrup, Phoebe Macadams, and James Cushing.
Please join us to celebrate the work of this important local poet. Weather is a single, book-length poem in the tradition of Whitman’s personal epic, presenting the account of a voyage, lasting from fall of 2015 to fall of 2018, through the inner seasons of a mythically conscious woman’s Los Angeles.
Where: Skylight Bookstore
Date: Sunday the 2nd
Time: 3 pm
Address: 1818 N. Vermont Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90027
An Evening with Alex Ross at Woodland Hills Home Location
Meet esteemed critic for the New Yorker Alex Ross for this magical fundraising event and a wide ranging discussion about music, musicians, composers, history, all while supporting the Hear Now Foundation.
NOTE: This is a ticketed event so check website for details.
Where: Location in Woodland Hills provided with ticket.
Date: Sunday the 1st
Time: 3 pm – 6 pm
Address: TBA, Woodland Hills, CA
Website: http://www.facebook.com/events/194827921702313
Duende Nights Reading & Open Mic at Beyond Baroque
The Duende Nights Open Reading is led by Antonieta Villamil. It is a poetry performance experience for the multicultural, underground poets and artists of today.
Where: Beyond Baroque
Date: Sunday the 2nd
Time: 5 pm
Address: 681 N. Venice Blvd, Venice, CA 90291
Website: http://beyondbaroque.org.calendar
First Sunday Open Reading at Beyond Baroque
Join us for our popular monthly Open Reading hosted by Steve Goldman.
Sign-ups begin at 4:45 pm, and there is a five minute limit per person. Event is held in the Scott Wannberg Bookstore Poetry Lounge.
Where: Beyond Baroque
Date: Sunday the 2nd
Time: 5 pm
Address: 681 N. Venice Blvd., Venice, CA 90291
Los Angeles Literature 