Los Angeles Literature Events: 10/05/26 – 10/11/26

Evening Book Club: Vera, or Faith at Manhattan Beach Library, LACL – In-Person Event

Patrons can enjoy a facilitated discussion of fiction and nonfiction titles. A limited number of titles are available for attendees at the library. For adults.

October’s Selection: Vera, or Faith by Gary Shteyngart.

The Bradford-Shmulkin family is falling apart. A very modern blend of Russian, Jewish, Korean, and New England WASP, they love one another deeply but the pressures of life in an unstable America are fraying their bonds. Vera wants only three things in life: to make a friend at school; Daddy and Anne to stay together; and to meet her birth mother, who will at last tell Vera the secret of who she really is and how to ensure love’s survival in this great, mad, imploding world.

Where: Manhattan Beach Library, LACL

Date: Monday the 5^th

Time: 5 pm – 6 pm

Address: 11320 Highland Ave., Manhattan Beach, CA 90266

Website: https://visit.lacountylibrary.org/event/16764120

Talking Hearts Writing Circle, with LA Poet Society at Bodevi Wine & Espresso Bar – In-Person Event

A safe writing space. No prior writing experience needed.

Writing prompts, pens, journals, community.

Guest facilitator: Cheyenne.

Where: Bodevi Wine & Espresso Bar

Date: Monday the 5^th

Time: 5:30 pm – 7 pm

Address: 909 San Fernando Rd., San Fernando, CA 91340

Website: Instagram Page

Special Author Event: Rosa Quon Easton, with C.L. Max Nikias, & Red Seal at pages: a bookstore – In-Person Event

Celebrate with Rosa Kwon Easton the release of her second book Red Seal, following her debut release, White Mulberry.

Rosa will be joined in conversation by C. L. Max Nikias, author and former president of the University of Southern California.

In Red Seal, a Korean mother and son navigate wars, displacement, and identity across decades and borders in a moving multigenerational saga by the author of White Mulberry.

In 1943 Japan, the Pacific War rages on. Miyoung, a Korean-born single mother and nurse, defies an order to serve in the Imperial Japanese Army and instead flees with her six-year-old son, Ko-chan, who is leaving everything familiar behind, including the grandparents he loves. Miyoung hopes Ko-chan will finally claim his heritage and that she can reclaim her own as well.

Miyoung promises her anxious son an adventure. Their life-changing trek to Miyoung’s homeland takes them first to Japan-occupied Manchuria, where Miyoung’s brother offers shelter and Ko-chan, coming of age, begins to question where his future lies. When Japan’s defeat in World War II forces them to escape again, it triggers a decades-long odyssey of survival, sacrifice, and—for the generations to follow—a search for identity across three nations.

A powerful tribute to the endurance of family bonds, Red Seal explores the struggle to define oneself when torn between multiple worlds and by cultural upheaval, and the resilience it takes to find a place to call home.

Rosa Kwon Easton is a writer, attorney, elected trustee of the Palos Verdes Library District, and mother of two adult children. She is an Anaphora Writing Residency Fellow and has been published in CRAFT Literary, Writer’s Digest, StoryCenter.org and others. She has also been published in numerous newspapers and anthologies, performed a story on stage at the Expressing Motherhood show in L.A., and spoken in front of various organizations, including Kia USA and Peninsula Friends of the Library. She believes in the power of story to educate, broaden cultural understanding, and inspire others to discover their own stories.

C. L. Max Nikias served as the eleventh president of the University of Southern California, a position he held from August 3, 2010, to August 7, 2018. He is currently the president emeritus and life trustee of the USC and the holder of the Malcolm R. Currie chair in technology and the humanities.

He joined USC in 1991, and in addition to his work as a professor, he served as director of a media center, dean of engineering, provost, and president of the university. He is a member of the National Academy of Engineering, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the National Academy of Inventors. He is the recipient of the UNICEF Spirit of Compassion Award and the Academic Leadership Award of the Carnegie Corporation of New York.

Light refreshments will be served.

Where: pages: a bookstore

Date: Monday the 5^th

Time: 6 pm – 7 pm

Address: 904 Manhattan Ave., Manhattan Beach, CA 90266

Website: https://pagesabookstore.com/event/2026-10-05/special-author-event-rosa-kwon-easton

Business Book Talk: Rey Ramsey & The Tyranny of False Choices at Village Well Books & Coffee – In-Person Event

Join us for a conversation with author Rey Ramsey, in conversation with Alan Greenlee, in celebration of his new book The Tyranny of False Choices.

Break free from the false choices that limit your potential and learn to think independently in a world designed to control your decisions.

Every day, powerful forces work to narrow your thinking and constrain your options. Institutional gatekeepers, social pressures, misleading narratives, and internal doubts create false either-or scenarios that trap you in cycles of mediocrity and compromise your authentic purpose.

Rey Ramsey, a veteran C-suite executive with thirty-plus years of leadership experience across multiple sectors, reveals how to recognize and overcome these thought tyrannies. Through compelling personal stories and proven frameworks, he shows how to harness essential virtues like humility, courage, and perseverance to expand your possibilities and make decisions aligned with your deepest values.

Rey Ramsey is a transformational leader with over thirty years of C-suite experience across corporations, nonprofits, philanthropy, and government. Currently CEO of Nathan Cummings Foundation, he previously served as president of Enterprise Community Partners and director of Oregon Housing and Community Services. As founder of One Economy Corporation, he pioneered digital inclusion initiatives connecting hundreds of thousands globally to economic opportunities. His leadership expertise spans organizational transformation, strategic innovation, and social impact initiatives. Ramsey’s boundary-crossing approach has driven meaningful change in affordable housing, technology access, and community development. He serves on various boards, speaks internationally on leadership and decision-making, and is recognized for his ability to navigate complex institutional challenges while maintaining focus on human dignity and potential.

Alan Greenlee is the Executive Director of the Southern California Association of Non-Profit Housing (SCANPH). He has served in this capacity since October, 2012. Over Alan’s 35-year professional career, he has demonstrated a commitment to helping low-income families join the economic mainstream by supporting beneficial public policy at the local, regional, state, and federal levels. Alan has designed, implemented, and managed programs operating from coast to coast, impacting hundreds of thousands of low-income and underserved families. As an entrepreneur, Alan developed market making products and services for the solar industry. Drawing from the full range of his experience, allows Alan to innovate in the fight against poverty tempered by the practicalities of the real world.

Ramsey will be joined by Alan Greenlee to discuss this practical guide for business leaders.

Reserve your seat at website link!

Where: Village Well Books & Coffee

Date: Monday the 5^th

Time: 6:30 pm – 8 pm

Address: 9900 Culver Blvd. #1B, Culver City, CA 90232

Website: Event Page

Los Feliz Writers: Shut Up and Write in Los Feliz at Sidewalk Grill – In-Person Event

Looking for some dedicated writing time? Come by our weekly neighborhood meetups:

Mondays @ 6:45 pm – 8 pm at Sidewalk Grill (NEW)

Wednesdays @ 6;45 pm – 8 pm at Bar Alcove & Bakery

All writers and all experience levels are welcome!

We’re starting a Shut Up and Write event on Mondays too, thanks to @jack_andcat.

Hosted by @literarypixie!

RSVP at link in bio.

Where: Sidewalk Grill

Date: Monday the 5^th

Time: 6:45 pm – 8 pm

Address: 1727 N. Vermont Ave. #102, Los Angeles, CA 90027

Website: Facebook Page

Rupo Open Mic at Back to the Grind in Riverside – In-Person Event

RUPO Open Mic is every Monday Night at Back to the Grind in Riverside.

Every Monday from 7 pm to 9 pm. Sign-ups are at 6:30 pm and in person only, $4 cash admission. See you then!

Where: Back to the Grind, Riverside

Date: Monday the 5^th

Time: 7 pm

Address: 3575 University Ave. Riverside, CA 92501

Website: Facebook Page

Matthew J. Prigge & Dog’s Day: The True Story of Bank Robbery, Gay Liberation, and Toxic Love That Inspired a Hollywood Classic at Book Soup – In-Person Event

Matthew J. Prigge will present and discuss Dog’s Day: The True Story of Bank Robbery, Gay Liberation, and Toxic Love That Inspired a Hollywood Classic.

Dog’s Day is the wilder-than-fiction true story behind the sensational bank heist immortalized in the 1975 film Dog Day Afternoon

On the hottest day of 1972, John Wojtowicz and a teenage accomplice strode into a Brooklyn bank, guns drawn, and demanded the contents of the vault. The cops showed up before the two could escape. Over the next 14-hours, an unexpected drama played out in real time. Wojtowicz took the lead, making demands of the cops and unashamedly declaring that he was a gay man and wished to see his trans lover. Part of the reason for the heist, he hinted, was to get the cash to pay for her gender-affirming surgery. Wojtowicz captured the attention of the city and the nation. And did not let it go until he was arrested and his accomplice was shot dead by the FBI.

Al Pacino famously portrayed a fictionalized Wojtowicz in the film Dog Day Afternoon, but Hollywood could only tell part of the story. Dog’s Day is the never-before-told story of the robbery and the tragically intertwined lives that made it happen. From the gritty origins of the gay liberation movement to the Mafia exploiters who controlled New York City’s queer gathering spaces to the bizarre post-prison celebrity of a man who could never admit he’d done anything wrong, Dog’s Day is a story that feels as relevant today as it was fifty years ago: a messy love story in a politically fraught time in which simply being oneself could be seen as an act of rebellion. Nerves fray and desperation looms, guns are drawn and the straight world—for a few hours at least—cannot look away.

Matthew J. Prigge is an author and librarian from Milwaukee. He has written six books, including a work on film censorship that was made into a feature-length documentary, Outlaws, Rebels, & Vixens. He is a faculty librarian at Marquette University in Milwaukee and lives with his wife, two pet rats, and a rescued cat.

Where: Book Soup

Date: Monday the 5^th

Time: 7 pm

Address: 8818 W. Sunset Blvd., West Hollywood, CA 90069

Website: https://booksoup.com/event/2026-10-05/matthew-prigge

Samantha Josephs, with Jamie Clayton, & Carrying at Skylight – In-Person Event

Samantha Josephs, in conversation with Jaimie Clayton, will discuss Carrying.

In this horror debut, that’s equal parts funny and harrowing, a stealth trans woman desperate to maintain her picture-perfect life discovers that she’s seemingly—impossibly—pregnant.

Everything Martha’s wanted, she’s made for herself.

Meet Martha: perfect wife, perfect stepmother, perfect woman. She’s got an adoring husband who wants more kids with her, a loving stepdaughter who looks up to her, and a body to die for. She’s an absolute pro: Salon-quality blowouts at home? Done. Perfectly plated meals on the table every day? Effortless. Meticulously faked miscarriages so her husband won’t suspect the truth? Just hand over the Oscar now.

Martha is trans, so stealth even her family has no idea. She carved the woman she is out of the marble of a boy, and she’ll do whatever it takes to protect what she’s built. When a mysterious chronic illness and its debilitating symptoms threaten to upend her existence, she starts experimental treatments and gives in to her surprising, unsettling cravings. She’s even more shocked to discover that she’s undeniably, impossibly pregnant.

With her body changing rapidly outside of her control and her choices dwindling, Martha struggles to maintain the life she’s fought so hard to live while preparing for the motherhood she never thought she’d have.

Samantha Josephs is a trans woman writer and semi-retired drag queen from New York City, now living in Los Angeles. A graduate of the University of Southern California’s Writing for Screen and Television program, she’s written for podcasts, video games, apps, and erotica. Carrying is her debut novel.

Jamie Clayton starred as ‘Pinhead’ in David Bruckner’s reimagining of HELLRAISER, for Hulu. Prior to that, she played ‘Tess Van De Berg’ on all 3 seasons of Showtime’s THE L WORD: GENERATION Q, and starred as ‘Nomi Marks’ in the hit Netflix Original Series, SENSE8 which ran for 2 seasons and concluded with a feature-length series finale.

RSVP

Where: Skylight

Date: Monday the 5^th

Time: 7 pm

Address: 1818 N. Vermont Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90027

Website: https://skylightbooks.com/event/2026-10-05/samantha-josephs-w-jamie-clayton-carrying

Ticketed: Leigh Bardugo, Christopher Rice, & Eric Shaw Quinn Discuss: Anne Rivce’s Interview with the Vampire: 50^th Anniversary Edition at Vroman’s Off-site at Pasadena Presbyterian Church – In-Person Event

Leigh Bardugo, Christopher Rice, and Eric Shaw Quinn will discuss Anne Rivce’s Interview with the Vampire: 50th Anniversary Edition.

This dazzling special edition features a jacket with foil and embossing, sprayed edges, designed endpapers, a new foreword from Leigh Bardugo, an afterword by Christopher Rice, and never-before-seen bonus pages from the original manuscript.

Here are the confessions of a vampire: a hypnotic, shocking, and chillingly sensual story of Louis de Pointe du Lac’s first two hundred years as one of the living dead. We begin on the night when Louis, disaffected and reluctant heir to a Louisiana plantation, is turned into a vampire by Lestat. Radiant, petulant, and powerful, Lestat becomes Louis’ companion and urges him to embrace the hungers and feelings of vampirism: the detachment, the hardened will, the “superior” sensual pleasures. As Louis struggles to retain the last residue of human feeling within him, he discovers he must commit the ultimate act: to break away from his creator and discover the new world to which he belongs—whatever the cost.

This is a story of danger and flight, of loyalty and treachery, of gaining humanity and losing it, and of the extraordinary power of the senses.

Where: Pasadena Presbyterian Church

Date: Monday the 5^th

Time: 7 pm

Address: 585 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, CA 91101

Website: https://vromansbookstore.com/event/2026-10-05/ticketed-interview-with-a-vampire

Monday Night Fiction Workshop with Raquel Baker at Beyond Baroque Literary Arts Center – Online Zoom Event

This free Monday Night Community Writing Workshop led by Raquel Baker is a workshop in which participants are asked to bring copies of 2-3 pages of fiction to read, and to use for critique and discussion. Registration is required.

Raquel Baker earned a PhD in English Literary Studies from the University of Iowa and an MFA in Creative Writing from Mills College. She is currently an Assistant Professor of Postcolonial and Transnational Literatures at California State University Channel Islands, teaching courses on creative writing and contemporary African literatures. Raquel has published poetry in Africology and The Arrow; fiction in Enculturation, The Daily Palette, The Womanist, and Crux; and non-fiction in Little Village; and has done readings with the Ventura County Poetry project. Raquel is passionate about discussing everything related to the craft and social significance of literature!

Where: Beyond Baroque Literary Arts Center

Date: Monday the 5^th

Time: 7:30 pm – 9:30 pm

Address: Zoom Online Event (see site)

Website: Beyond Baroque Event Page

Lit Angels: Morning Writing with Francesca Lia Block at Village Well Books & Coffee – In-Person Event

Do you want to find creative inspiration and overcome writer’s block in a supportive and peaceful community setting? Are you interested in writing professionally or for personal growth and healing but unsure where to begin?

Come join acclaimed author and writing instructor Francesca Lia Block for a brief intro and 40 minutes of free writing on any topic without judgement. Afterwards, you will be able to share a bit about your process and ask Francesca questions about your writing.

Francesca Lia Block is the author of more than thirty books of fiction, non-fiction, short stories, and poetry, and has written screenplay adaptations of her work. She received the Spectrum Award, the Phoenix Award, the ALA Rainbow Award and the 2005 Margaret A. Edwards Lifetime Achievement Award, as well as other citations from the American Library Association, and from the NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW, and PUBLISHER’S WEEKLY. Currently she teaches creative writing at UCLA Extension, Antioch University, Pocket MFA, and numerous workshops across the country. Francesca also edits LIT ANGELS, a literary journal available on Substack. Her latest novel is House of Hearts now out in paperback. https://www.francescaliablock.com/

Where: Village Well Books & Coffee

Date: Tuesday the 6^th

Time: 10 am – 11 am

Address: 9900 Culver Blvd. #1B, Culver City, CA 90232

Website: Event Page

The Darkest Hour Book Club: The Intrique at Agoura Hills Library, LACL – Online Even

We will discuss The Intrigue by Silvia Moreno-Garcia. Copies available at the library. For adults.

From the New York Times bestselling author of Mexican Gothic and Velvet Was the Night comes a sizzling noir about desire, danger, and greed, in which seduction is the ultimate con.

Where: Agoura Hills Library, LACL

Date: Tuesday the 6^th

Time: 2 pm – 3 pm

Address: 29901 Ladyface Ct., Agoura Hills, CA 91301

Website: https://visit.lacountylibrary.org/event/17189475

Banned Book Week at Vermont Square Branch Library, LAPL – In-Person Event

Learn about what books they want you to read and what books they don’t want you to read.

Where: Vermont Square Library, LAPL

Date: Tuesday the 6^th

Time: 4 pm – 5 pm

Address: 1201 W. 48^th St., Los Angeles, CA 90037

Website: https://www.lapl.org/events/banned-book-week

Southernmost Sonnets: A Poetry Reading with Leo Boix at UCLA – In-Person Event

Please join UCLA for a poetry reading with visiting poet, Leo Boix. The event is sponsored by the Departments of English, CCAS, CSRC, and Comparative Literature, as well as the UCI Latinx Humanities Research Cluster.

Leo Boix is a bilingual Latinx poet, born in Argentina and based in London, whose work spans continents, languages, and identities. His second collection, Southernmost: Sonnets (Chatto & Windus, 2025), was shortlisted for the Forward Prizes for Poetry and praised by The Guardian, The Telegraph, and The Morning Star for its lyrical power and fearless engagement with queer, diasporic experience. Boix’s debut English collection, Ballad of a Happy Immigrant (Chatto & Windus, 2021), was a Poetry Book Society Wild Card Choice and named one of The Guardian’s top five poetry books of the year. Boix is the editor and lead translator of the groundbreaking Hemisferio Cuir: An Anthology of Young Queer Poetry (Fourteen Publishing), and has introduced English-speaking audiences to major Latin American voices including Diana Bellessi, Jorge Eduardo Eielson, and José Watanabe. His poems appear in POETRY, The Poetry Review, Poetry London, PN Review, World Literature Today, and in many anthologies such as 100 Queer Poems (Vintage) and The Forward Book of Poetry. A fellow of The Complete Works program, he co-directs Un Nuevo Sol, nurturing Latinx writers in the UK. His work has been commissioned by Tate Modern, Kew Gardens, Projekt Europa and the National Poetry Library, earning prizes including the Bart Wolffe Poetry Prize, the Keats-Shelley Prize, and a PEN Award.

For any questions or concerns, please email Rebecca Foote (rfoote@english.ucla.edu)

Where: UCLA Kaplan Hall 193

Date: Tuesday the 6^th

Time: 4 pm, reception after

Address: 415 Portola Plaza, Los Angeles, CA 90095

Website: https://english.ucla.edu/events/southernmost-sonnets-a-poetry-reading-with-leo-boix/

Central 100 – 1926 Book Club, Presented by FOWL at Wilshire Branch Library, LAPL – In-Person Event

Please join us for a Centennial Book Club discussion of The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie, as part of Los Angeles Public Library’s Central 100 celebration and hosted by the Friends of the Wilshire Library. The book was first published 100 years ago in 1926 and follows Detective Hercule Poirot as he solves the murder of the wealthy Roger Ackroyd.

Free copies are available at the information desk in limited supply.

Where: Wilshire Branch Library, LAPL

Date: Tuesday the 6^th

Time: 6 pm – 7 pm

Address: 149 N. Saint Andrews Pl., Los Angeles, CA 90004

Website: https://www.lapl.org/events/central-100-1926-book-club-presented-fowl

The Classics Book Club: The Haunting of Hill House at Alondra Library, LACL – In-Person Event

Please join us for our monthly The Classics Book Club. We will be discussing The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson. Copies of this title are available at the Circulation Desk. For ages 18 and up.

Where: Alondra Library, LACL

Date: Tuesday the 6^th

Time: 6 pm – 7:30 pm

Address: 11949 Alondra Blvd., Norwalk, CA 90650

Website: https://visit.lacountylibrary.org/event/17522458

Graphic Novel Launch: Sara Amini & Mixed Signals at Once Upon a Time, Montrose – In-Person Event

Welcome back author Sara Amini as she launches Mixed Signals, the sequel to her bestselling graphic novel, Mixed Feelings. Sara will share her inspiration for the story, answer questions from the audience, and then be available to sign books. Best for ages 8+.

If you can’t make it to the event, you can order signed books in advance at website.

In this funny, feel-good follow-up to Mixed Feelings, Sara struggles to find her place because she’s constantly caught between TWO spaces: childhood and adulthood, drama club and volleyball, friends, and a crush. Perfect for fans of The Tryout, The New Girl: First Crush, and Pizza Face.

Sara Amini is an Iranian-Colombian actress who has starred in various television series, been the face of nearly two dozen commercial campaigns, and voiced characters in both video games and animation. Originally from Houston, Texas, Sara now lives in Los Angeles, California, with her husband and son. Mixed Feelings is her graphic novel debut. Mixed Signals is her sequel. Learn more about what Sara’s up to at saraamini.com.

Shadia Amin is a Colombian cartoonist and illustrator based in Savannah, Georgia. She graduated from Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD) with a bachelor’s degree in sequential art, minoring in illustration. She later earned her master’s degree in sequential art, also from SCAD. Her art aims to capture the fun of superheroes, fantasy, and life itself, and her works include Shiny Misfits, Spider-Ham, Aggretsuko, and Olive & Popeye. She has also contributed to anthologies like Alloy: Electrum and Votes for Women: The Battle for the 19th Amendment. Shadia is also a teacher, and when she is not working, she can be found cooking, playing video games, or spending time with her husband, dogs, and cat. Find her online at shadiaminart.com.

NOTE: Free to attend.

Where: Once Upon a Time

Date: Tuesday, the 6^th

Time: 6:30 am

Address: 2207 Honolulu Ave., Montrose, CA 91020

Website: Once Upon a Time Event Page

American History Book Launch: David Treuer & The Savage Mind: An American Legacy at Village Well Books & Coffee – In-Person Event

Join us for the launch of David Treuer’s latest book The Savage Mind: An American Legacy.

David Treuer (The Heartbeat of Wounded Knee) will discuss his timely latest, The Savage Mind: An American Legacy, a history of American violence and a path towards a peaceful future, in conversation with UCLA Professor of Anthropology and American Indian Studies Jessica Cattelino.

A searing exploration of American violence, interweaving memoir, history, and reportage to reveal the wound at the heart of our nation—and to offer hope that the country, and we, might be healed.

In the wake of George Floyd’s murder and the January 6 insurrection, as America seemed to be falling apart, David Treuer decided to hold himself and his family together the only way he knew how: he sat down to write a letter. What resulted is The Savage Mind, the most personal and powerful work of his storied literary career.

How do we understand America, ourselves, and the impulses that seem intent on destroying both? Ranging from Treuer’s upbringing on the Leech Lake reservation in Minnesota to the experiences of his parents, a Jewish Holocaust refugee and the first American Indigenous woman judge, The Savage Mind reveals the terrifying essence of our nation: frontier violence, which has defined our country, our culture, and our very selves. The frontier, Treuer shows, was a site of epic, phantasmagoric bloodshed, initiated by white settlers but perpetuated by all of us. And after the geographic frontier closed in the late 19th century, it did not vanish—quite the opposite.

Today, Treuer explains, America’s frontier—and all its violent pathologies—has migrated overseas and into our hearts and minds. The atrocities in Gaza and the school shootings in the American heartland are bound together by this invisible filament—one that Treuer makes visible in The Savage Mind, and which he offers hope for weaving, once and for all, into a better cloth.

David Treuer is Ojibwe from Leech Lake Reservation in northern Minnesota. His most recent book, The Heartbeat of Wounded Knee: Native America from 1890 to the Present, was a New York Times bestseller, a National Book Award finalist, a Minnesota Book Prize winner, a California Book Prize winner, a Los Angeles Times Book Prize finalist, and was a finalist for the Carnegie Medal. His work has appeared in The New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, The Washington Post, Atlantic Monthly, and Harper’s. He divides his time between his home on the Leech Lake Reservation and Los Angeles, where he is a professor of English at the University of Southern California.

Jessica Cattelino is Professor of Anthropology, American Indian Studies, and Gender Studies at UCLA, where she is Director of the Center for the Study of Women | Barbra Streisand Center. She is author of High Stakes: Seminole Sovereignty and Gaming and is completing the book Water Ties.

Pre-order your book below, and RSVP for the event by clicking link a t website!

Reserve your seat at website link!

Where: Village Well Books & Coffee

Date: Tuesday the 6^th

Time: 6:30 pm – 8 pm

Address: 9900 Culver Blvd. #1B, Culver City, CA 90232

Website: Event Page

Latin American Literature Book Club at Village Well Books & Coffee – In-Person Event

Welcome to our newest book club: Latin American Literature Book Club! (Bilingual in Spanish and English).

Bienvenidos a nuestro club de lectura más reciente: ¡Club de lectura de Literatura Latinoamericana! (Dictado en Español e Inglés).

This is a bilingual book club meant for those who want to expand their knowledge in Latin American literature, no matter your fluency in Spanish or English. For our next meeting, we’ll be discussing Little Eyes by Samanta Schweblin on October 6th at 6:30 pm. Hope to see you all there!

Este es un club de lectura bilingüe pensadeo para todas las personas que quieran expandir sus conocimientos en literatura latinoamericana, sin importar su nivel de fluencia en español o inglés. Hablamos de Kentukis por Samanta Schweblin 6 de octubre a las 6:30 pm. ¡Esperamos verte ahi!

A visionary novel about our interconnected present, about the collision of horror and humanity, from a master of the spine-tingling tale.

They’ve infiltrated homes in Hong Kong, shops in Vancouver, the streets of in Sierra Leone, town squares in Oaxaca, schools in Tel Aviv, bedrooms in Indiana. They’re everywhere. They’re here. They’re us. They’re not pets, or ghosts, or robots. They’re real people, but how can a person living in Berlin walk freely through the living room of someone in Sydney? How can someone in Bangkok have breakfast with your children in Buenos Aires, without your knowing? Especially when these people are completely anonymous, unknown, unfindable.

The characters in Samanta Schweblin’s brilliant new novel, Little Eyes, reveal the beauty of connection between far-flung souls—but yet they also expose the ugly side of our increasingly linked world. Trusting strangers can lead to unexpected love, playful encounters, and marvelous adventure, but what happens when it can also pave the way for unimaginable terror? This is a story that is already happening; it’s familiar and unsettling because it’s our present and we’re living it, we just don’t know it yet. In this prophecy of a story, Schweblin creates a dark and complex world that’s somehow so sensible, so recognizable, that once it’s entered, no one can ever leave.

Reserve your seat at website link!

Where: Village Well Books & Coffee

Date: Tuesday the 6^th

Time: 6:30 pm – 8 pm

Address: 9900 Culver Blvd. #1B, Culver City, CA 90232

Website: Event Page

RETRO Mix Tape Poetry Reading with Kevin Ridgeway, Danile W. Wright, & Thomas R. Thomas at Page Against the Machine – In-Person Event

Join us on 𝗧𝘂𝗲𝘀𝗱𝗮𝘆 𝗢𝗰𝘁𝗼𝗯𝗲𝗿 𝟲𝘁𝗵 at 𝟳:𝟬𝟬𝗽𝗺 for a wonderfully retro 90s-themed poetry reading presented by 𝗞𝗲𝘃𝗶𝗻 𝗥𝗶𝗱𝗴𝗲𝘄𝗮𝘆, 𝗗𝗮𝗻𝗶𝗲𝗹 𝗪. 𝗪𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁, and 𝗧𝗵𝗼𝗺𝗮𝘀 𝗥. 𝗧𝗵𝗼𝗺𝗮𝘀.

𝗞𝗲𝘃𝗶𝗻 𝗥𝗶𝗱𝗴𝗲𝘄𝗮𝘆 is Pushcart and Best of the Net nominee who lives and writes in Long Beach, CA. His most recent books include 𝘋𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘩 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘊𝘰𝘱𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘵𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘎𝘪𝘳𝘭 (Luchador Press, 2025) and 𝘈 𝘎𝘳𝘰𝘸𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘗𝘢𝘪𝘯 𝘐 𝘚𝘵𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘊𝘢𝘯’𝘵 𝘒𝘪𝘭𝘭 (Analog Submission Press, 2026). His work has appeared in 𝘏𝘪𝘳𝘢𝘮 𝘗𝘰𝘦𝘵𝘳𝘺 𝘙𝘦𝘷𝘪𝘦𝘸, 𝘕𝘦𝘸 𝘠𝘰𝘳𝘬 𝘘𝘶𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘭𝘺, 𝘗𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘰𝘯 𝘓𝘪𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘳𝘺 𝘙𝘦𝘷𝘪𝘦𝘸, 𝘎𝘢𝘳𝘨𝘰𝘺𝘭𝘦, 𝘚𝘭𝘪𝘱𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘮, 𝘊𝘩𝘪𝘳𝘰𝘯 𝘙𝘦𝘷𝘪𝘦𝘸, 𝘕𝘦𝘳𝘷𝘦 𝘊𝘰𝘸𝘣𝘰𝘺, 𝘚𝘢𝘯 𝘗𝘦𝘥𝘳𝘰 𝘙𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘙𝘦𝘷𝘪𝘦𝘸 and 𝘛𝘳𝘢𝘪𝘭𝘦𝘳 𝘗𝘢𝘳𝘬 𝘘𝘶𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘭𝘺, among others.

𝗗𝗮𝗻𝗶𝗲𝗹 𝗪. 𝗪𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 is a poet, editor, and fiction writer currently based in St. Louis, MO. He is the author of numerous titles, including the poetry chapbook 𝘎𝘰𝘥𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘢 𝘍𝘰𝘳𝘮𝘦𝘳 𝘞𝘰𝘳𝘭𝘥 (Crying Heart Press, 2025), the full-length poetry collection 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘜𝘯𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘥 𝘔𝘶𝘴𝘪𝘤 (Kung Fu Treachery, 2025), and the novella 𝘊𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘊𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘳 (Back of the Class, 2024). His poems have appeared in 𝘈𝘯𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘊𝘩𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘨𝘰 𝘔𝘢𝘨𝘢𝘻𝘪𝘯𝘦, 𝘊𝘩𝘪𝘳𝘰𝘯 𝘙𝘦𝘷𝘪𝘦𝘸, 𝘏𝘰𝘣𝘰 𝘊𝘢𝘮𝘱 𝘙𝘦𝘷𝘪𝘦𝘸, and 𝘉𝘰𝘰𝘬 𝘰𝘧 𝘔𝘢𝘵𝘤𝘩𝘦𝘴.

𝗧𝗵𝗼𝗺𝗮𝘀 𝗥. 𝗧𝗵𝗼𝗺𝗮𝘀 resides in Long Beach and currently runs Arroyo Seco Press. His work has been published in 𝘊𝘢𝘳𝘯𝘪𝘷𝘢𝘭, 𝘊𝘩𝘪𝘳𝘰𝘯 𝘙𝘦𝘷𝘪𝘦𝘸, and 𝘚𝘪𝘭𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘉𝘪𝘳𝘤𝘩 𝘗𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘴. His books include the 𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘗𝘰𝘦𝘮 𝘒𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘴 𝘍𝘢𝘴𝘤𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘴, 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘪𝘯𝘷𝘪𝘴𝘪𝘣𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘺, 𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘦𝘦 𝘰𝘯 𝘢 𝘸𝘪𝘳𝘦, 𝘔𝘪𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘚𝘩𝘢𝘶𝘯, and 𝘐𝘧 𝘞𝘪𝘴𝘩𝘦𝘴 𝘏𝘢𝘥 𝘞𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘴.

The event is free and open to the public, no tickets or reservations required.

Where: Page Against the Machine

Date: Tuesday the 6^th

Time: 7 pm

Address: 2714 E. 4^th St., Long Beach, CA 90418

Website: Facebook Page

Other Worlds Book Club at pages: a bookstore – In-Person Event

Meets monthly, generally on the first Tuesday of each month at 7:00 pm.

A new pages book club exploring the nooks and crannies of speculative fiction: fantasy, science fiction, alternative history, horror, and their intersections.

Facilitated by Leo Lukin.

Where: pages: a bookstore

Date: Tuesday the 6^th

Time: 7 pm – 8 pm

Address: 904 Manhattan Ave., Manhattan Beach, CA 90266

Website: https://pagesabookstore.com/event/2026-10-06/other-worlds-book-club

Laleh Khadivi, with Eden Lepucki, & Female Life on Planet Earth at Skylight – In-Person Event

Laleh Khadivi, in conversation with Eden Lepucki, will present and discuss Female Life on Planet Earth.

The weird thing is, I’m more interested in my mother now she’s dead.

From an award-winning author comes a stunning, darkly funny novel about a daughter discovering her mother’s secret past.

When Heti’s mother, Ana, dies, she leaves behind a spotless legacy: affectionate parent, modern career woman, and life of the party. Heti moves in a daze until her grief is upended by the arrival of an unmarked package containing photographs of Ana as a young woman—robed, standing in front of a burning building, and pointing a gun at a group of sobbing women.

Female Life on Planet Earth follows Heti as she raises teenage daughters, keeps up with client accounts, sits in LA traffic, and prepares to host the traditional anniversary memorial—all while quietly reeling with the violent secrets of the woman she thought she knew. Though the dead can’t answer her questions, the living never seem to shut up. Heti is buoyed as she listens to the women who populate her world: hilarious aunts and cousins, aggressive soccer moms, business associates, dear friends, and total strangers. Inside these surprising, uproarious stories of female life, Heti discovers the selves women hide away, selves defiantly in search of pleasure, autonomy, delight, and connection. Heti begins to understand the complex and contradictory possibilities that exist inside every woman—including her mother, including herself. As the one-year mark of Ana’s death arrives, Heti calls together the women who knew her and asks them: Who was my mother, truly? And who are we?

Told with humor and emotional precision, Female Life on Planet Earth is a celebration of lineage, inheritance, and the boundlessness of women over time and space.

Laleh Khadivi was born in Iran. She teaches fiction at the University of San Francisco MFA and lives in Oakland, California.

Edan Lepucki is the New York Times bestselling author of the novels California and Woman No. 17, as well as the editor of Mothers Before: Stories and Portraits of Our Mothers as We Never Saw Them. Her nonfiction has been published in The New York Times Magazine, the Los Angeles Times, Esquire Magazine, and The Cut, among other publications. She lives in Los Angeles with her family.

RSVP

Where: Skylight

Date: Tuesday the 6^th

Time: 7 pm

Address: 1818 N. Vermont Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90027

Website: https://skylightbooks.com/event/2026-10-06/laleh-khadivi-w-edan-lepucki-female-life-planet-earth

The Sunless Sea Poetry and Spoken Word Show at Qusqo Bistro – In-Person Event

The Sunless Sea Poetry and Spoken Word Show is hosted by De Foreest Wright every first Tuesday of the month at Qusqo Bistro.

RSVP for further information.

Where: Qusqo Bistro

Date: Tuesday the 6^th

Time: 7 pm – 9 pm

Address: 11633 Santa Monica Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90025

Website: Instagram Page

Muse on Fire Open Mic: Philosophy at Wicked Wolf – In-Person Event

Muse on Fire Open Mic features Philosophy for a meet and greet and show.

Bring your talents, gifts, and artists to the Open Mic.

Where: Wicked Wolf

Date: Tuesday the 6^th

Time: 7 pm

Address: 2332 Pacific Ave., Long Beach, CA 90806

Website: Instagram Page

Virtual Cobalt Series & Open Mic: Rick Lupert & Guest Carlos Ornelas, plus Open Reading – Online Zoom Event

Cobalt Poets Reading & Open Mic and host Rick Lupert will welcome guest Carlos Ornelas, plus an Open Reading online.

Carlos Ornelas is a Mexican American poet and author from Los Angeles. He has published two poetry books and has several poems published in various publications. He believes in educating with poetry as a means of self-growth, identity and inclusion of others.

Where: Cobalt Poets – Online Zoom Event

Date: Tuesday, the 6^th

Time: 7:30 pm – 9:30 pm

Address: Online event (see site)

Website: Event Page

Tuesday Night Café & Open Mic at Union Center for the Arts – In-Person Event

Tuesday Night Café is offered on the 1^st and 3^rd Tuesdays in the spring and summer months in Little Tokyo.

Only two more shows left in the season! Make your plans!!

FEATURING:

The Fighting Cocks

@farmerjohneric @cuevacyril @roman_c23 @drummergrrl

narinda heng (@narinda) is a queer Khmer American artist and educator, who co-created Lonely Together in 2019, exploring climbing through the lens of [qt]BIPOC.

Makarya Santilla Diaz (@not_makarya) is a filmmaker and cinematographer, and a “teller of times” rather than a traditional content creator.

Fuji Fluke (@fujiifluke) is a Japanese hip-hop singer and guitar player who mixes rap with acoustic music. He is a singer and songwriter (SSW). He belongs to SK Summit.

@waxstyles

VENDORS

@mx.springrolls.

Always free, open to the public, no tickets or assigned seating. Come through, make plans with a friend, like, comment, share, etc., etc.

🎤 Want to perform for our Open Mic? Make sure to sign up for our lottery by 7 pm, there will only be 3 spaces available, two performances per performer per season please! We may ask to review your content. Please read the rules at https://www.tuesdaynightproject.org/how-to-perform.

🤿 As a reminder, masking is required in our space, and we will have masks available on site. If you can’t join us in-person, we will continue to stream our shows on YouTube in our link in bio.

NOTE: See site for further details, tickets, and information.

Where: Union Center for the Arts

Date: Tuesday, the 6^th

Time: 7:30 pm – 9 pm (Doors at 7 pm)

Address: 120 Judge John Aiso St., Los Angeles, CA 90012

Website: Instagram Page

DiPiazza’s Open Mic at Di Piazza’s Pizza – In-Person Event

Open Mic Every Tuesday! Signups 8:30 pm, late-night happy hour, live music, pizza & cocktails.

Host: Tamara Madison

Features: TBA

Often follows Trivia Night at 6 pm for a full evening of fun.

No cover mentioned—come early to grab a spot!

Step up to the mic and shine!

Where: Di Piazza’s

Date: Tuesday, the 6^th

Time: 8:30 pm

Address: 5205 Pacific Coast Hwy., Long Beach, CA

Website: Instagram Page

Da Poetry Lounge Open Mic at Barbara Morrison Performing Arts Center – In-Person Event

The nation’s largest weekly spoken word Open Mic event is 28 years strong. DPL is a community space for every poet to be heard. They provide a platform to celebrate poetry while using it as the foundation for creativity, innovation, and expression across an array of media outlets.

Hosted by Ashey August.

With DJ Faucet.

$10 suggested donation. Pay what you can. Do NOT line up prior to 7:30 pm Free parking adjacent to the theater.

Masks are encouraged. See website link for details.

Where: The Barbara Morrison Performing Arts Center

Date: Tuesday, the 6^th

Time: 9 pm – 11 pm (Doors at 8:15 pm)

Address: 4305 Degnan Blvd. #101, Los Angeles, CA 90008

Website: Instagram Page

Lit Angels: Morning Writing with Francesca Lia Block at Village Well Books & Coffee – In-Person Event

Where: Village Well Books & Coffee

Date: Wednesday the 7^th

Time: 9 am – 10 am

Address: 9900 Culver Blvd. #1B, Culver City, CA 90232

Website: Event Page

Book Party Book Club: Let Us Descend at San Dimas Senior Center, LACL – In-Person Event

Held the first Wednesday of each month at the San Dimas Senior Center, 201 E Bonita Ave. This month’s selection is Let Us Descend by Jesmyn Ward. Copies are available for check out at the La Verne Library circulation desk. For Adults

This month’s selection is Let Us Descend by Jesmyn Ward. Annis, sold south by the white enslaver who fathered her, is the reader’s guide through this hellscape. As she struggles through the miles-long march, Annis turns inward, seeking comfort from memories of her mother and stories of her African warrior grandmother. Throughout, she opens herself to a world beyond this world, one teeming with spirits: of earth and water, of myth and history; spirits who nurture and give, and those who manipulate and take. While Ward leads listeners through the descent, this, her fourth novel, is ultimately a story of rebirth and reclamation. From one of the most singularly brilliant and beloved writers of her generation, this miracle of a novel inscribes Black American grief and joy into the very land, the rich but unforgiving forests, swamps, and rivers of the American South.

Where: San Dimas Senior Center, LACL

Date: Wednesday the 7^th

Time: 10:30 am – 2:30 pm

Address: 21052 Devonshire St., Chatsworth, CA 91311

Website: https://visit.lacountylibrary.org/event/17184847

Chatsworth Library Book Club: On Gold Mountain at Chatsworth Branch Library, LAPL – In-Person Event

Join us as we discuss On Gold Mountain: The One-Hundred-Year Odyssey of My Chinese-American Family by Lisa See. In the tradition of Alex Haley’s Roots, See provides a multi-generational saga of power, ambition, romance, and race as she recounts the true story of her family’s immigrant experience in America.

Where: Chatsworth Branch Library, LAPL

Date: Wednesday the 7^th

Time: 1:30 pm – 2:30 pm

Address: 21052 Devonshire St., Chatsworth, CA 91311

Website: https://www.lapl.org/events/chatsworth-library-book-club-0

History Book Club: Banished Citizens at Cellar Door Bookstore – Online Zoom Event

Participants will discuss Banished Citizens: A History of the Mexican American Women Who Endured Repatriation by Maria A. Ramirez.

Where: Cellar Door Bookstore

Date: Wednesday the 7^th

Time: 5 pm – 6 pm

Address: Online Zoom Event

Website: https://cellardoorbookstore.com/event/2026-10-07/history-book-club-banished-citizens

Be the Change: Social Justice Writing Workshop with James Coats – Online Zoom Event

Be the Change, a Social Justice Writing Workshop, is held every 1^st Wednesday of the month and led by poet and author James Coats.

Workshop is free: name your own price.

NOTE: See site for RSVP and details.

Where: Online Event

Date: Wednesday the 7^th

Time: 6 pm – 7:30 pm

Address: Online Zoom Event Zoom ID: 826 5843 0669 Password: justice

Website: Instagram Page

Creative Writing Workshop with Tony DuShane at Los Feliz Branch Library, LAPL – In-Person Event

Join us for a free writer’s workshop presented by UCLA instructor Tony DuShane, screenwriter of the film Confessions of a Teenage Jesus Jerk, based on his novel of the same name. This workshop is open to adults only.

Where: Los Feliz Branch Library, LAPL

Date: Wednesday the 7^th

Time: 6 pm – 7:30 pm

Address: 1875 Hillhurst Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90027

Website: https://www.lapl.org/events/creative-writing-workshop-tony-dushane-19

Banned Books Week: Adult Book Club: 1984 at Littlerock Library, LACL – In-Person Event

Celebrate the freedom to read this Banned Books Week with Littlerock Library’s Adult Book Club! We will be discussing one of the most frequently challenged and influential novels of the 20th century: 1984 by George Orwell. For adults.

1984 is a powerful dystopian novel set in a society ruled by constant surveillance, censorship, and government control. Through the story of Winston Smith, Orwell explores themes of truth, free thought, privacy, propaganda, and the dangers of unchecked power.

Available at Littlerock Library or digitally with Libby or Hoopla on the LA County Library app or at lacountylibrary.org..

Where: Littlerock Library, LACL

Date: Wednesday the 7^th

Time: 6 pm – 7 pm

Address: 35119 80th St. E., Littlerock, CA 93543

Website: https://visit.lacountylibrary.org/event/17189507

Ocean Park Book Group: The Big Sleep at Ocean Park Branch Library, SMPL – In-Person Event

This new community-led, monthly book discussion group meets in person at 6 p.m. on the first Wednesday of the month. The group discusses popular fiction titles.

Titles include:

October 7, 2026: The Big Sleep by Raymond Chandler.

Where: Ocean Park Branch Library, SMPL

Date: Wednesday the 7^th

Time: 6 pm – 7 pm

Address: 2601 Main St., Santa Monica, CA 90405

Website: SMPL Event Page

Monthly PBT Meet-up & Wildcard Wednesday Open Mic at Au Lac, DTLA – In-Person Event

Sean Hill hosts this PBT Meet-Up Social and Open Mic at Au Lac Restaurant in DTLA.

Come connect, share, and show off your talent!

Meeting at 6 pm & Open Mic at 7 pm

Where: Au Lac Restaurant

Date: Wednesday the 7^th

Time: 6 pm – 9 pm

Address: 710 W. 1^st St., DTLA, Los Angeles, CA 90012

Website: Instagram Page

Special Author Event: Woodrow “Pack” Landfair & Road Journals: 48 States. One Ride at pages: a bookstore – In-Person Event

Celebrate Woodrow “Pack” Landfair and his book, Road Journals: 48 States. One Ride.

Before smartphones and GPS put the world in your pocket, Woodrow “Pack” Landfair pawned his College World Series championship ring, bought a motorcycle, and set out alone across America.

After a career-ending back injury abruptly redirected his future in college baseball and Navy ROTC, Landfair sold his College World Series championship ring, along with nearly everything he owned, bought a used motorcycle, and set out on the open road with no fixed route, no clear budget, and no certainty about what would come next.

Road Journals recounts that journey with immediacy and candor. Written in real time, the book offers a vivid portrait of life in motion as Landfair worked odd jobs in restaurants and homeless shelters, slept wherever he could find a place to rest, and helped rebuild post-Katrina New Orleans. Through its portraits of people, places, hardship, humor, and unexpected grace, the memoir becomes more than a record of travel; it becomes a meditation on freedom, uncertainty, reinvention, and the search for meaning across America.

What begins as an escape from a life upended gradually becomes a deeper search for identity, human connection, meaning, and belonging—shaped at every turn by the kindness of strangers. Honest, reflective, and adventurous, Road Journals invites readers to encounter the country one mile at a time.

Born in Richmond, Virginia, Woodrow “Pack” Landfair is an American road storyteller, adventurer, author, and former NCAA baseball champion whose life took an unexpected turn from the field to the open road. After winning a national title with the University of Texas Longhorns, he pawned his championship ring to travel across all 48 continental states on a motorcycle, working countless jobs and living out of a backpack while documenting the hidden heart of America.

Pack is also an accidental entrepreneur who wound up in the small historical surf town of El Porto, California, owning the longstanding El Porto Surf Shop and the attached neighborhood liquor store. He is currently 19 countries into a quest to surf every coastal nation on earth.

Where: page: a bookstore

Date: Wednesday the 7^th

Time: 6 pm – 7 pm

Address: 904 Manhattan Ave., Manhattan Beach, CA 90266

Website: https://pagesabookstore.com/event/2026-10-07/special-author-event-woodrow-pack-landfair

Glendora Open Mic: Alex Una Nora with K. Andrew Turner at The Reading Nook – In-Person Event

Come by @thereadingnookstore on Wednesday for an open mic night! This month come hear spooky poetry from @alex_albatross.

Alex is a poet, writer, musician, and queer witch living in Tovaangar.

Where: The Reading Nook

Date: Wednesday the 7^th

Time: 6 pm – 7:30 pm

Address: 160 N. Glendora Ave., Ste. G, Glendora, CA 91741

Website: Instagram Page

Barry Michaels Ticketed Event: Ahead of All Parting at Diesel Off-site at Historic Women’s Club – In-Person Event

Join us to hear Barry Michaels, in conversation with Jason Segal, to discuss Ahead of All Parting: On Learning to Live with an Open Heart.

For decades, Barry Michels has been one of the most sought-after psychotherapists in Hollywood—a practitioner whose no-nonsense, transformative approach earned him the devotion of some of the most creative minds in the industry. Bret Easton Ellis, Adam McKay, and Mark Levin are all patients who spoke openly in a 2011 New Yorker profile about how his methods changed their lives and their work. The book he co-wrote with his mentor and colleague Phil Stutz, The Tools, became a New York Times bestseller that has sold nearly 500,000+ copies, recently finding a new generation of readers through Jonah Hill’s acclaimed Netflix documentary STUTZ.

Two years ago, Barry was, by any measure, a man at the height of his powers. And then a doctor delivered a diagnosis that changed everything: Lewy Body Dementia—the same degenerative disease that had taken his father’s life—would take his own. Ahead of All Parting: On Learning to Live with an Open Heart is a remarkable and unexpected book. Where one might anticipate a story of grief and loss, Barry has written something far more surprising: an expansive meditation on what becomes possible when we stop running from our deepest fears and allow ourselves to be truly seen. Barry began telling those closest to him about his diagnosis—patients, friends, family. In making himself vulnerable, he forged connection and discovered something he had spent a lifetime avoiding. His creativity, long channeled almost entirely into his practice, was suddenly unleashed. He began writing poetry. Beauty—in nature, in music, in the faces of people he loved—moved him to tears with a frequency and depth that astonished him. His relationships grew richer and more honest. And most unexpectedly of all, this lifelong atheist developed a deep and meaningful relationship with the divine. Like Paul Kalanithi’s When Breath Becomes Air, and Randy Pausch’s The Last Lecture, Ahead of All Parting belongs to a rare category of books written with the clarifying urgency of a life fully reckoned with. It is a book about the relationship between mortality and creativity, between vulnerability and connection, between darkness and what Barry calls the Life Force—the vitality that persists and even deepens when we finally stop fighting our own humanity. Barry is still practicing, still hiking, and very much present in the world, and that comes through on every page of this remarkable and deeply moving memoir. Michels shows us that being alive is more fragile and more astonishing than we usually allow ourselves to feel. When you finish this book, you’ll want to call those you love the most, take in the splendor of the world, and take all the stuff of life—the wins, the losses, a diagnosis, a midlife reckoning, a milestone birthday—as the gifts they are.

Jason Segel is an actor, writer, director, producer and author. He stars in the acclaimed comedy series, “Shrinking,” which he co-writes and executive produces. As an actor and writer on the show, he has been nominated for two Golden Globe Awards, two Emmy Awards, a SAG Award and Writers Guild Award. The series, which airs on Apple TV+, just wrapped production on its fourth season. Additionally, he’s wrapped production on “Anxious People” opposite Angelina Jolie and Aimee Lou Wood, and on James Ponsoldt’s psychological thriller, “Sponsor,” which Segel co-write with Ponsoldt, and stars opposite John C. Reilly and Amy Madigan. Most recently, Segel starred opposite Samara Weaving, Timothy Olyphant and Juliette Lewis in the IFC thriller, “Over Your Dead Body.”

Segel was previously nominated for an Independent Spirit Award for his leading role in the feature, “The End of the Tour.” He wrote and starred in “Forgetting Sarah Marshall”, “The Five-Year Engagement,” and “The Muppets” (winning a Critics’ Choice Award for Best Song), and starred in “I Love You, Man”, “Knocked Up,” “This is 40,” and “Bad Teacher.” On television, he recently starred in HBO’s “Winning Time: The Rise of the Lakers Dynasty”- which was nominated for a Critics Choice Award for Best Drama, and he is well known for the Emmy-nominated series’ “Freaks and Geeks” and “How I Met Your Mother.” Additionally, Segel created, wrote, directed, produced, and starred in the anthology series, “Dispatches from Elsewhere.”

Where: Diesel Off-site at Historic Women’s Club

Date: Wednesday the 7^th

Time: 6:30 pm – 8 pm

Address: 1210 4^th St., Santa Monica, CA 90401

Website: https://dieselbookstore.com/product/barry-michels-event-ticket

Sportswriters Panel: The Year’s Best Sportswriting 2026 at Village Well Books & Coffee – In-Person Event

Join us for a panel featuring participants from The Year’s Best Sports Writing 2026!

With work spanning basketball to football and beyond, from a broad range of newspapers and online publications, three remarkable writers—Mirin Fader, Jourdan Rodrigue, and Baxter Holmes—discuss their work and the stories behind the sports we love.

A classic year after year, The Year’s Best Sports Writing is a must-read collection featuring the best in sports journalism.

2026 guest editor Mirin Fader has curated an essential anthology showcasing incredible feats and diverse perspectives across the world of sports.

Selected from a wide range of newspapers, magazines, and digital publications during the previous year, these stories capture enduring moments while celebrating the craft of writing at its most sublime.

This extraordinary collection reveals the fascinating stories behind the sports we love, the competitors who push their boundaries, and the cultures they are ultimately embedded in.

Mirin Fader is a senior writer for The Athletic, writing long-form features, primarily on the NBA. Mirin is also the New York Times best-selling author of Giannis: The Improbable Rise of an NBA Champion and Dream: The Life and Legacy of Hakeem Olajuwon. She has told compelling human-interest features on some of our most complex, most dominant heroes from the NBA, NFL, WNBA, and NCAA, most recently at The Ringer. Her work has been featured in the Best American Sports Writing books. She lives in Los Angeles and is working on her third book, a biography of Larry Bird.

Jourdan Rodrigue is a senior NFL writer for The Athletic and the co-host of national NFL podcast NFL Daily with Gregg Rosenthal. Previously, she covered the Los Angeles Rams for The Athletic, the Carolina Panthers for The Athletic and The Charlotte Observer, and Penn State football for the Centre Daily Times. She is a recipient of the PFWA’s Terez A. Paylor Emerging Writer award (2021) and the creator of “The Playcallers” and “Finding Rams” series.

Baxter Holmes is a senior writer for ESPN who focuses on in-depth features, investigative projects and longform storytelling. Since joining ESPN in 2014, Holmes has reported extensively on the NBA, beginning as the Los Angeles Lakers beat reporter. Before ESPN, Holmes worked at the Boston Globe as the Celtics beat reporter and began his career as a sportswriter at the Los Angeles Times. Holmes is originally from Tuskahoma, Oklahoma.

Pre-order a book to reserve a seat, and RSVP for the event by clicking text at website!

Where: Village Well Books & Coffee

Date: Wednesday the 7^th

Time: 6:30 pm – 8 pm

Address: 9900 Culver Blvd. #1B, Culver City, CA 90232

Website: Event Page

Poetry Club: Philomath at Village Well Books & Coffee – In-Person Event

Join us for the newest book club at Village Well: The Poetry Club!

Each month, members will read the chosen poetry book and bring their favorite selections to share and discuss. Participation is free; just come with an open mind! Whether poetry is daunting or your passion, we’d love to have you!

Our selection for October is Philomath by Devon Walker-Figueroa.

Selected by Sally Keith as a winner of the 2020 National Poetry Series, this debut collection is a ruminative catalogue of overgrowth and the places that haunt us.

With Devon Walker-Figueroa as our Virgil, we begin in the collection’s eponymous town of Philomath, Oregon. We drift through the general store, into the Nazarene Church, past people plucking at the brambles of a place that won’t let them go. We move beyond the town into fields and farmland—and further still, along highways, into a cursed Californian town, a museum in Florence. We wander with a kind of animal logic, like a beast with “a mind to get loose / from a valley fallowing / towards foul,” through the tense, overlapping space between movement and stillness.

An explorer at the edge of the sublime, Walker-Figueroa writes in quiet awe of nature, of memory, and of a beauty that is “merely existence carrying on and carrying on.” In her wanderings, she guides readers toward a kind of witness that doesn’t flinch from the bleak or bizarre: A vineyard engulfed in flames is reclaimed by the fields. A sow smothers its young, then bears more. A neighbor chews locusts in his yard.

For in Philomath, it is the poet’s (sometimes reluctant) obligation “to keep an eye / on what is left” of the people and places that have impacted us. And there is always something left, whether it is the smell of burnt grapes, a twelfth-century bronze, or even a lock of hair.

Pre-order a book to reserve a seat, and RSVP for the event by clicking text at website!

Where: Village Well Books & Coffee

Date: Wednesday the 7^th

Time: 6:30 pm – 8 pm

Address: 9900 Culver Blvd. #1B, Culver City, CA 90232

Website: Event Page

Los Feliz Writers: Shut Up and Write (2 sessions) in Los Feliz at Bar Alcove – In-Person Event

Looking for some dedicated writing time? Come by our weekly neighborhood meetups:

Mondays @ 6:45 pm – 8 pm at Sidewalk Grill (NEW)

Wednesdays @ 6:45 pm – 8 pm at Bar Alcove & Bakery

All writers and all experience levels are welcome!

We’re starting a Shut Up and Write event on Mondays too, thanks to @jack_andcat.

Hosted by @literarypixie!

RSVP at link in bio.

Where: Bar Alcove & Bakery

Date: Wednesday the 7^th

Time: 6:45 pm – 8 pm

Address: 1929 Hillhurst Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90027

Website: Instagram Page

Angelica Page & Bountiful: Growing Up with Geraldine Page: A Daughter’s Memoir at Book – In-Person Event

Angelica Page will discuss Bountiful: Growing Up with Geraldine Page: A Daughter’s Memoir.

An intimate examination of Oscar Award-winning film and stage actress Geraldine Page, written with compassion and honesty by her only daughter, Angelica Page.

Bountiful: Growing Up with Geraldine Page is the first book about the legendary artist, presenting a one-of-a-kind look at her body of work and private life, with insider stories of her stage and film career (she was nominated for four Tony Awards and eight Academy Awards, finally winning an Oscar for her ethereal performance in The Trip to Bountiful), her relationships with other renowned actors including her husband and Angelica’s father Rip Torn, Actors Studio founder Lee Strasberg, and her interactions with legends such as James Dean, John Wayne, Jackie Kennedy, and many more.

Angelica Page, daughter of Geraldine and Rip Torn, skillfully weaves in stories of her own coming of age: being mesmerized by her mother’s stage performances as a child and a rebellious young adult; learning to swim in Grace Slick’s guitar-shaped pool; hanging out with Twiggy in London; enduring a chaotic home life with frequent fights between her mother and father that drove her from home to the 1980s punk rock scene of CBGBs, Max’s Kansas City, and the Mudd Club. This is as much a theatrical history lesson as a first-person survival guide to life in the fast lane. A love song sung by the daughter of a remarkable artist who should not be forgotten any time soon. Includes more than 40 photos from family archives.

Where: Book Soup

Date: Wednesday the 7^th

Time: 7 pm – 8 pm

Address: 8818 Sunset Blvd., West Hollywood, CA 90069

Website: https://booksoup.com/event/2026-10-07/angelica-page-discusses-signs-bountiful-growing-geraldine-page-daughters-memoir

Sam Quinones, with Mark Weingarten, & Our Lady of the Angels: The Virgin of Guadalupe on the Walls of Los Angeles at Chevalier’s – In-Person Event

Sam Quinones, in conversation with Mark Weingarten, will discuss Our Lady of the Angels: The Virgin of Guadalupe on the Walls of Los Angeles.

Our Lady of the Angels is the first book of photojournalism from Quinones, the best-selling author of Dreamland, The Least of Us, and True Tales from Another Mexico. Published in both English and Spanish with a foreword by Gustavo Arellano, it documents the murals of the Virgin of Guadalupe that appear on storefronts, alleyways, and street corners across Los Angeles.

In Los Angeles, the Virgin has migrated from the churches to the streets. Quinones’s photographs capture how immigrant entrepreneurs—mechanics, bakers, taco vendors—commission murals of the Virgin as a form of security they can actually afford, because even the most hardened gang members revere her image and often refuse to deface any wall where she appears. In neighborhoods once scarred by gang warfare, these murals turned walls into urban sanctuaries.

The book is also a record of a disappearing Los Angeles. As property values climb and corporate chains replace local mom-and-pop shops, many of these murals are being lost. Each image is a testament to community, artistry, and devotion—a visual pilgrimage through urban altars where spirituality meets street art.

Sam Quinones is a Los Angeles-based independent journalist who worked for ten years in Mexico, where he wrote the first two of his four books of narrative nonfiction. In 2004 he returned to Los Angeles, where he spent another ten years as a reporter for the Los Angeles Times.

Marc Weingarten is a writer, editor, and filmmaker in Los Angeles who writes the Book Club newsletter for the Los Angeles Times. He is the author of The Gang That Wouldn’t Write Straight: Wolfe, Thompson, Didion, Capote and the New Journalism Revolution, Station to Station: The History of Rock and Roll on Television, and Thirsty, a history of Los Angeles and its fraught relationship with water.

Our Lady of the Angels is published by Angel City Press at Los Angeles Public Library. Books will be available for purchase and signing.

Where: Chevalier’s

Date: Wednesday the 7^th

Time: 7 pm – 8:30 pm

Address: 133 N. Larchmont Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90004

Website: https://chevaliersbooks.com/event/2026-10-07/journalist-sam-quinones-sam-quinones-his-new-book-our-lady-angels-virgin-guadalupe

Tatiana Schlote-Bonne, with Special Guests, & What Feeds Below at Skylight – In-Person Event

What Feeds Below is a deliciously creepy YA horror fantasy that asks: Who do you become in the face of absolute darkness, and what would you do to survive?

The darkness isn’t empty. It’s hungry.

At the edge of the City of the Void, a massive chasm extends miles into the earth, its treacherous terrain overrun with vicious monsters and carnivorous plants. For orphaned best friends Petra and Jade, guiding treasure-seeking tourists down into the Void is the only way to earn enough to pull themselves up out of the slums for good.

Petra prefers to play it safe and take jobs only in the Void’s upper levels, where the dangers are better understood, while Jade wants to risk a descent to the deepest and most mysterious Sixth Layer. Because the deeper they go, the better the payout, and the sooner their dreams can become reality. Their friendship is Petra’s whole world, and Jade’s approval means everything—so Petra agrees to do it Jade’s way.

When their job goes wrong and Jade is lost in the Void, Petra must plunge deeper than she’s ever dared to save her friend. But she doesn’t know the truth of the Void…or what really waits for her in its depths.

Tatiana Schlote-Bonne is the author of the horror novels Such Lovely Skin, The Mean Ones, and What Feeds Below. She has an MFA from The Nonfiction Writing Program at the University of Iowa. When she’s not writing, she’s either gaming, lifting weights, or teaching people how to lift weights. She is of Japanese, Mexican, and European descent, and lives in Iowa. Find her on IG @thebuffwriter.

Carlyn Greenwald writes romantic and thrilling page-turners for teens and adults. Her books have been featured on Forbes, The Boston Globe, Goodreads, IMDb, Autostraddle, Horror Fuel, and others. A film school graduate and former Hollywood lackey, she now works in publishing. She resides in Los Angeles, mourning ArcLight Cinemas and soaking in the sun with her dogs. You can find her online at @carlyn_gee on Instagram.

Justine Pucella Winans (they/she) is a critically acclaimed and award-winning author of queer fiction. They have written a variety of funny and/or scary books across age ranges, receiving accolades such as a Stonewall Honor, Indies Introduce, Junior Library Guild Gold Standard selections, and multiple starred reviews. When not writing, she can be found taking too many photos of her cats, training Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, actively avoiding real life scary situations, and working their true goal of becoming a Pokémon trainer.

Keala Kendall (kay-ah-luh; she/her) is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of How Far I’ll Go and Nobody Gets Left Behind in Disney’s A Twisted Tales series, and the Reese Witherspoon May Sunnie Reads Pick, That Which Feeds Us: A Hawaiian Gothic. Hapa Native Hawaiian, she is a cofounder of Pacific Islanders in Publishing and a past organizer of the Books for Maui charity auction. Born in Honolulu, raised on Molokaʻi, she now lives as part of the Native Hawaiian diaspora in Los Angeles.

Liz Kerin is the author of the Night’s Edge duology and dark fantasy adventure The Phantom Forest. Most recently, Liz signed a two book deal with Sourcebooks for her forthcoming horror novel How to Disappear Completely, which will be out in February 2027. In addition to her work in literary fiction, Liz is also a screenwriter and award-winning playwright. She is a graduate of the Department of Dramatic Writing at NYU Tisch and has numerous film/TV projects in development, including adaptations of her own novels. She lives in Southern California where you can find her working in her garden or hiking in the hills with her Corgi, Clementine.

Where: Skylight

Date: Wednesday the 7^th

Time: 7 pm

Address: 1818 N. Vermont Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90027

Website: https://skylightbooks.com/event/2026-10-07/tatiana-schlote-bonne-w-special-guests-what-feeds-below

Monte Burke & Men of Troy: The Epic Afternoons, wild Nights, and Enduring Legacy of Pete Carroll’s USC Trojans at Vroman’s – In-Person Event

Monte Burke will present and discuss The Epic Afternoons, wild Nights, and Enduring Legacy of Pete Carroll’s USC Trojans.

From a New York Times bestselling author, a deeply reported account of how the USC Trojan football team captivated the sporting world in the 2000s.

The University of Southern California received thousands of calls, emails and letters in 2001, after hiring former NFL coach, Pete Carroll, to resurrect its moribund program. Carroll was a “failure,” a “fraud,” and a “flake” according to USC boosters, the fans in Los Angeles and the college football cognoscenti. But by the middle of the decade, he had turned USC into a legendary juggernaut, with multiple Heisman Trophy winners and national championships.

In Men of Troy, Monte Burke provides the definitive account of this singular dynasty, based on original reporting and more than 150 new interviews. Burke illustrates how Carroll and his colorful cast of coaches and players—including cross-eyed quarterback turned national heartthrob, Matt Leinart, and the electric, generational running back, Reggie Bush—not only took over college football, but Los Angeles and the country, as well.

Burke not only takes readers through the iconic games of the era, but also behind the scenes—in the locker room, on the recruiting trail and into the LA nightlife scene, where the players enjoyed their celebrity status and, at times, succumbed to illicit temptations. He also puts the dynasty in proper context, tracing the breathtaking rise of the program, the sudden and inglorious fall, and the scandal that left a program in ruins and precipitated the drastic changes that led to the current era of college football.

Where: Vroman’s

Date: Wednesday the 7^th

Time: 7 pm

Address: 695 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, CA 91101

Website: https://vromansbookstore.com/event/2026-10-07/monte-burke

Anansi Writers Workshop at The World Stage – In-Person Event

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. Our 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. Hosted by Jessica Gallion aka “Yellawoman.”

7:30 pm – 8:30 pm — Formal workshop
8:30 pm – 9:00 pm — TBA.
9:05 pm – 10:00 pm — Open mic.

Suggested: $10.00 Donation via PayPal: The World Stage Gallery.

NOTE: See site for further details and any change in the schedule. Contact on Instagram @ _yellawoman.

Where: The World Stage (use left rear entrance)

Date: Wednesday, the 7^th

Time: 7:30 pm – 10 pm

Address: 4321 Degnan Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90008

Website: Instagram Page

Story Salon LA at Art Parlor, Valley Village – In-Person & Virtual Hybrid Event

Los Angeles’s longest running storytelling venue is now a hybrid event!

An alternative to stand-up clubs + self-conscious performance spaces

Story Salon challenges you all to tell stories in 90 seconds! Can you do it? If you can, join us!

Tickets can be purchased early with the link in bio or at storysalon.com.

Theme: Crispy Fillet-O-Fish Freestyle.

Where: Art Parlor

Date: Wednesday the 7^th

Time: 7:30 pm – 9:30 pm (Doors at 7 pm)

Address: 5302 Laurel Canyon Blvd., Valley Village, CA 91607

Website: Instagram Page

Wednesday Night Poetry Workshop with Rooja Mohassessy via Beyond Baroque – Online Event

The West Coast’s longest-running free poetry workshop is offered by Beyond Baroque on Zoom and welcomes new and seasoned poets to share their work and provide feedback. Please be prepared to share one poem. This workshop will be hosted via the Zoom video-conferencing platform. Please be prepared to share one poem.

Please spend some time before the workshop learning how to share documents via Zoom. It will keep the session moving if you’re able to make your poem viewable quickly and easily. An instructive video is available on the site.

The workshop can sometimes reach high levels of attendance, which means not everyone will get a chance to read every session.

Rooja Mohassessy is an Iranian-born poet and educator. Her debut poetry collection, When Your Sky Runs Into Mine, is an Elixir Press Award winner. Her poems and prose appear in Narrative Magazine, Nimrod, Southern Humanities Review, The Rumpus, and The Adroit Journal. Her work is anthologized in Colossus: Body and California Fire & Water: A Climate Crisis Anthology. Poetry media and podcasts that feature Rooja include NPR, The Hive Poetry Collective, and The Slowdown. She is a MacDowell Fellow and serves as a poetry editor for CALYX Journal. Rooja holds a Master of Fine Arts in Writing from Pacific University.

NOTE: See site for further details, tickets, and information.

Where: Beyond Baroque Literary Arts Center

Date: Wednesday, the 7^th

Time: 8 pm – 10 pm

Address: Online event (see site)

Website: Beyond Baroque Event Page

Poetry Reading & Open Mic by Two Idiots Peddling Poetry with Ben Trigg & Guest Jax NTP at The Ugly Mug – In-Person Event

Host Ben Trigg guest poet Jax NTP to share her work.

Jax NYP is a poet, educator, and editor who teaches critical thinking, literature, and composition at IVC, GWC, and SAC. In the classroom, they encourage students to interrogate language, question power, and occasionally personify inanimate objects, gently coaxing thesis statements toward existential clarity. Outside the classroom, they edit literary journals to amplify marginalized voices and surface wherever poems refuse to stay on the page across Orange County.

Rooted in queer absurdity and immigration’s afterlives, their poetry uses cephalopod logic to explore how fragmentation and displacement become inheritances nobody asked for, sending the banal to breakfast with the uncanny and the grotesque.

Their work has appeared in Cordite Poetry Review, Hobart, 3AM Magazine, and Lunch Ticket. Vi Khi Nao interviewed them as the Featured Poet in Sinister Wisdom Issue 120, and Breakwater Review nominated them for Best New Poets. Berkeley Poetry Review published their chapbook, Midterm: Localities & Haunts.

Their debut poetry collection, In Bones & Tentacles: How to Pivot When You’re Paralyzed (Moon Tide Press, 2026), is now available. They are currently working on their fourth poetry manuscript. IG: @jaxntp.

Where: The Ugly Mug, Orange

Date: Wednesday, the 7^th

Time: 8 pm – 10 pm

Address: 261 N. Glassell St., Orange, CA 92866

Website: Facebook Page

Lit Angels: Morning Writing with Francesca Lia Block at Village Well Books & Coffee – In-Person Event

Where: Village

Well Books & Coffee

Date: Thursday the 8^th

Time: 10 am – 11 am

Address: 9900 Culver Blvd. #1B, Culver City, CA 90232

Website: Event Page

Author Talk: Carolyn Russo & The Ascent of Rauschenberg, via Virtual Program, LACL – Online Event

Join our online conversation with author and Smithsonian curator Carolyn Russo as we dive into her book, The Ascent of Rauschenberg. Explore the towering legacy, inspirations, and creative heights of one of America’s most influential artistic icons.

Most famous for his groundbreaking “Combines”—painting and sculpture hybrids that often incorporated everyday objects—American artist Robert Rauschenberg (1925-2008) created within a range of mediums, including collage, performance, photography, and printmaking. But a connective tissue through it all was his fascination with flight. The Ascent of Rauschenberg explores the flight motif across his work, spanning birds, insects, aviation, spaceflight, sensory experiences, and metaphors for his own life.

More than 150 images reveal the vibrant scope of his work, from lithographs inspired by the Apollo 11 launch that NASA invited him to witness and document, to a Combine featuring a taxidermied eagle that evokes Roman mythology. Nine accompanying essays reflect on his many flight themes and subtleties that might otherwise be overlooked. The book also includes archival photographs and personal papers from the Robert Rauschenberg Foundation.

Carolyn Russo is curator of the art collection at the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum. She has lectured internationally on the subject of art and flight and is the author of several publications including The Ascent of Rauschenberg: Reinventing the Art of Flight, Art of the Airport Tower, In Plane View: Abstractions of Flight, and Women and Flight: Portraits of Contemporary Women Pilots.

Where: Virtual Program, LACL

Date: Thursday the 8^th

Time: 11 am – 12 pm

Address: Online Event

Website: https://visit.lacountylibrary.org/event/17443856

Lawndale Library Book Club: Crying in H-Mart at Lawndale Library, LACL – In-Person Event

Join us for a facilitated discussion of fiction and nonfiction titles. A limited number of titles are available for attendees at the library. October’s Pick: Crying in H-Mart by Michelle Zauner. For ages 18+.

In this exquisite story of family, food, grief, and endurance, Michelle Zauner proves herself far more than a dazzling singer, songwriter, and guitarist. Vivacious and plainspoken, lyrical and honest, Zauner’s voice is as radiantly alive on the page as it is onstage. Rich with intimate anecdotes that will resonate widely, Crying in H Mart is a book to cherish, share, and reread.

Where: Lawndale Library, LACL

Date: Thursday the 8^th

Time: 11 am – 12 pm

Address: 14615 Burin Ave., Lawndale, CA 90260

Website: https://visit.lacountylibrary.org/event/16729705

Poetry: The Art of Liberation at East Los Angeles College – In-Person Event

Join us to celebrate our voices to build our community.

A poetry reading featuring local Black and Latino/a/x poets whose art captures the experience in our communities and highlights the power we hold when we build and celebrate together.

Featuring Brenda Vaca, Publisher of Riot of Roses Press.

Hosted by Profesora Lorena Madrigal.

Where: ELAC Umoja and the English Department, E3/E7 Quad

Date: Thursday the 8^th

Time: 12:15 pm – 1:30 pm

Address: 1301 Avenida Cesar Chavez, Monterey Park, CA 91754

Website: Facebook Page

“Saved by a Story” Seniors Writing Group at Westwood Branch Library, LAPL – In-Person Event

Join us Monthly on the second Thursday, 1 pm – 2:30 pm.

Come enjoy creativity and community in a nonjudgmental environment. Discover the bounty of stories that lie within!

Where: Westwood Branch Library, LAPL

Date: Thursday the 8^th

Time: 1 pm – 2:30 pm

Address: 1246 Glendon Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90024

Website: https://www.lapl.org/events/saved-story-seniors-writing-group

Mystery Book Club: The Murder at World’s End at Culver City Julian Dixon Library, LACL – In-Person Event

Join Culver City Julian Dixon Library’s Mystery Book Club to discuss The Murder at World’s End by Ross Montgomery. For adults.

Join us in the meeting room for an in-person book discussion.

Summary provided by the publisher:

Cornwall, 1910. On a remote tidal island, the Viscount of Tithe Hall is absorbed in feverish preparations for the apocalypse that he believes will accompany the passing of Halley’s Comet. The Hall must be sealed from top to bottom—every window, chimney, and keyhole closed off before night falls. By morning, he will be dead in his sealed study, murdered by his own ancestral crossbow.

All eyes turn to Stephen Pike, Tithe Hall’s newest under-butler. Fresh out of Borstal for a crime he didn’t commit, he is the wrong man in the wrong place at the wrong time. His unlikely ally? Miss Decima Stockingham, the foul-mouthed, sharp as a tack, eighty-year-old family matriarch. Together, this mismatched duo must navigate secret passages, buried grudges, and rising terror to unmask the killer before it’s too late.

Where: Culver City Julian Dixon Library, LACL

Date: Thursday the 8^th

Time: 3:30 pm – 4:30 pm

Address: 4975 Overland Ave., Culver City, CA 90230

Website: https://visit.lacountylibrary.org/event/17306489

Teen Time Book Club: Banned Books at Village Well Books & Coffee – In-Person Teen Event

Set against a backdrop of crafts and snacks, Teen Time is Village Well’s newest and coolest book club! If you are 14-18 and love reading, join us the second Thursday of each month.

For our October meeting we will discuss banned books and censorship. Please select a title to read from the ALA’s website: https://www.ala.org

Our activity will be writing postcards thanking banned and challenged authors for their work! While you’re reading, try to consider why someone would bring a challenge against that title. What would you say in defense of the title?

RSVP!

Where: Village Well Books & Coffee

Date: Thursday the 8^th

Time: 4:30 pm – 5:30 pm

Address: 9900 Culver Blvd., #1B, Culver City, CA 90232

Website: Event Page

Hispanic Heritage Month Event: Authors Reyna Grande & Leslie Priscilla at El Toro Library, OCPL – In-Person Event

Reyna Grande is an award-winning author whose work powerfully illuminates the complexities of immigration, family separation, and the pursuit of the American Dream. Born in Mexico, Grande embarked on a perilous journey to the U.S. at age nine to reunite with her parents—a defining experience that fuels her writing. Breaking generational barriers, she became the first in her family to graduate from college, earning a BA from UC Santa Cruz and an MFA from Antioch University. Her diverse body of work includes her celebrated memoirs, Migrant Heart: Essays About Things I Can’t Forget, The Distance Between Us and A Dream Called Home, and the novels Across a Hundred Mountains, Dancing with Butterflies, and the historical epic A Ballad of Love and Glory.

Leslie Priscilla is a first-generation, non-Black Xicana with Rarámuri lineage and the daughter of two Mexican immigrants. She is mother to three bicultural children and stepmother to one, and a certified Parent Coach with nearly two decades of experience working with families. Through her organization Latinx Parenting, she offers coaching, workshops, support, training, and advocacy for Latinx/Chicanx families and the professionals who serve them, locally, nationally, and internationally. Her vision is a movement rooted in children’s rights, social and racial justice, and the individual and collective practice of nonviolence and reparenting. It’s a vision grounded in intergenerational and ancestral healing, cultural sustenance, and the active decolonization of oppressive practices in our families, toward liberation. She is the author of the book CHANCLA: Healing Our Families, Ourselves, and Our Culture and is born, raised, and remains based in Santa Ana, CA.

Limited complimentary books available, while supplies last. Books available for purchase, courtesy of Lido Village Books. No registration required, all ages welcome. Early arrival suggested.

For more information, call 949-855-8173 or email ocpl.eltoro@occr.oc.gov

Where: El Toro Library, OCPL

Date: Thursday the 8^th

Time: 6 pm

Address: 24672 Raymond Way, Lake Forest, CA 92630

Website: https://libraries.oc.gov/author-talk-reyna-grande-leslie-priscilla

Feminist Book Club: Japanese Gothic at Cellar Door Bookstore – In-Person & Online Hybrid Event

Participants will discuss Japanese Gothic: A Folk Horror Novel of Japanese Mythology, Murder, and Family Duty Across Two Lifetimes by Kylie Lee Baker.

Japanese Gothic is a lyrical, wildly inventive horror novel interwoven with Japanese mythology, following two people living centuries apart who discover a door between their worlds.

October, 2026: Lee Turner doesn’t remember how or why he killed his college roommate. The details are blurred and bloody. All he knows is he has to flee New York and go to the one place that might offer refuge—his father’s new home in Japan, a house hidden by sword ferns and wild ginger. But something is terribly wrong with the house: no animals will come near it, the bedroom window isn’t always a window, and a woman with a sword appears in the yard when night falls.

October, 1877: Sen is a young samurai in exile, hiding from the imperial soldiers in a house behind the sword ferns. A monster came home from war wearing her father’s face, but Sen would do anything to please him, even turn her sword on her own mother. She knows the soldiers will soon slaughter her whole family when she sees a terrible omen: a young foreign man who appears outside her window.

One of these people is a ghost, and one of these stories is a lie.

Something is hiding beneath the house of sword ferns, and Lee and Sen will soon wish they never unburied it.

PLEASE NOTE: this book club is now on the 2nd Thursday of the month.

There will also be an opportunity to join this book club through Zoom.

Where: Cellar Door Bookstore

Date: Thursday the 8^th

Time: 6 pm – 7 pm

Address: 6675 Magnolia Ave., Riverside, CA 92506

Website: https://cellardoorbookstore.com/event/2026-10-08/feminist-book-club-japanese-gothic

Author Event: Ana Castillo & A Night of Stories, Discussion, and Book Signing at The Untold Story Off-site at Liberty Community Plaza – In-Person Event

Participants will meet author Ana Castillo and discuss her stories and work. There will be a book signing opportunity.

Ana Castillo is a celebrated Chicana author known for her powerful novels, poetry collections, and essays exploring identity, gender, and social justice.

Where: The Untold Story Off-site at Liberty Community Plaza

Date: Thursday the 8^th

Time: 6 pm – 7 pm

Address: 14138 Telegraph Road, Whittier, CA 90604

Website: Instagram Page

Author Postcard Party: Protect the Freedom to Read at Underdog Bookstore – In-Person Event

Fight back against book bans and learn more about the bills circulating in the House and the Senate at this fun postcard-writing party!

Hosted by local authors against book banning, C.B. Lee, Sofia Aguilar and Kelly R. Nelson, you’ll find resources on how to contact your representatives, write postcards, and connect with other activists.

Snacks, beverages, and postcards will be provided!

RSVP at website to let us know you’ll be there.

You can also check out Underdog’s Free Queer Banned Books initiative here or pick up a free queer banned book in-store!

Where: Underdog Bookstore

Date: Thursday the 8^th

Time: 6 pm – 8 pm

Address: 312 South Myrtle Avenue, Monrovia, California, 91016

Website: https://www.underdogbookstore.org/events/postcard-party

Carol Davis, with Jennifer Pastiloff, & Restoration at Diesel, A Bookstore – In-Person Event

Carol Davis, in conversation with Jennifer Pastiloff, will discuss her debut novel, Restoration.

Restoration follows American architect Risa Meier from San Francisco to rural England, in 1984, to restore a crumbling centuries-old barn on a remote family estate. Fresh from a devastating loss and eager for distance from her life back home, she throws herself into the project, but the work quickly becomes something more complicated. As she begins uncovering the building’s layered history, letters from the past begin to surface, revealing a family history she never fully understood. The deeper she goes into the restoration, the more the project begins to mirror her own reckoning with grief, inheritance, and identity. Set against the quiet beauty of the English countryside, Restoration illustrates the ways the past lives inside the structures we inherit—both the physical ones we restore and the emotional ones we carry with us.

Carol Davis has worked as a researcher, archivist, teacher, and writer in close collaboration with architects and art conservators in New York City, Los Angeles, and London. She holds a BA in art and architectural history and an MFA in writing and literature. Restoration is her first novel.

Jennifer Pastiloff trots the globe as a public speaker and to host her retreats to Italy, as well as her one-of-a-kind workshops, which she has taught to thousands of people all over the world. The author of the popular Substack, also called Proof of Life, she teaches writing and creativity classes called Allow, and workshops called Shame Loss, when she isn’t painting and selling her art. She has been featured on Good Morning America, and Katie Couric, and in New York magazine, People, Shape, Health magazine, and other media outlets for her authenticity and unique voice. She is deaf, reads lips, and mishears almost everything, but what she hears is usually funnier (at least she thinks so). The author of the national bestseller On Being Human, Pastiloff lives in Southern California with her son, Charlie Mel.

Where: Diesel, A Bookstore

Date: Thursday the 8^th

Time: 6:30 pm – 8 pm

Address: 225 26^th St., Suite 33, Santa Monica, California, 90402

Website: https://dieselbookstore.com/event/2026-10-08/carol-davis-restoration

Ellen O’Connell, with Melissa Seley, & Book of Hours at Book Soup – In-Person Event

Ellen O’Connell, in conversation with Melissa Seley, will discuss Book of Hours: A Novel.

Following an unnamed woman’s journey from mystical childhood experiences to fertility struggles and motherhood, Book of Hours examines spiritual doubt, bodily autonomy, and expectations of women in a passionate debut.

As a child, the girl sees visions of saints. Saint Nicholas in elementary school. Saint Catherine of Siena during her confirmation. This secret, combined with her Catholic upbringing, breeds a fascination with female saints, who only achieved their holiness after enduring extreme suffering. Her obsession intensifies when she discovers “Le Roman du Mont Saint-Michel,” a medieval French poem about a pregnant pilgrim saved by Saint Michael while miraculously giving birth in stormy seas.

The obsession fades as she steps into her marriage. But as she grapples with a years-long stretch of infertility, the woman finds herself once again grasping at the tale of “Le Roman du Mont Saint-Michel”—searching for an explanation for her miscarriages and unsuccessful IVF treatments. She asks herself, hasn’t she suffered enough? Where is the holiness that was promised her? Entwining her story with the pilgrim’s turbulent pregnancy up until her own violent delivery, the woman delivers a healthy baby, but is left with the question: at what point does holy suffering end?

A celebration of the sacredness of women, and inspired by Whittet’s own experience with childbirth, Book of Hours confronts the erasure of women’s stories, historically and presently, through the lens of medieval mysticism and contemporary motherhood.

Where: Book Soup

Date: Thursday the 8^th

Time: 7 pm – 8 pm

Address: 8818 W. Sunset Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90069

Website: https://booksoup.com/event/2026-10-08/ellen-oconnell-whittet-conversation-melissa-seley-discusses-signs-book-hours

Susan Coll, with Dylan Landis, & Word Salad at Chevalier’s – In-Person Event

Susan Coll, in conversation with Dylan Landis, will discuss World Salad: A Novel.

In Word Salad, former economics major Matilda moves back to her hometown of Washington, D.C. to care for her ailing mother, desperate for money. She takes a job at her neighborhood bookstore and tries in vain to make sense of the illogical business of books. She is forced to team up with a new hire, the enigmatic and larger-than-life Sage, who turns up on her first day with zero administrative skills and a tiny, incessantly urinating dog.

Something in the chaos reminds Matilda of her long-neglected creative side, and she begins to rediscover the person she was before so much got in the way. Then she and Sage are handed the job of staging an event for the reclusive and controversial Dr. Jordan Rutabaga, a windbag public intellectual with a cult following and a long list of alleged misdeeds. As the event date approaches, a lawsuit, a snowstorm, and Rutabaga’s own sinister presence combine to leave Matilda on the verge of coming undone.

Susan Coll is a USA Today and Washington Post bestselling writer and the author of eight previous novels, including The Literati, Real Life & Other Fictions, and Bookish People. Her work has appeared in the Washington Post, the New York Times, NPR.org, and The Atlantic. Her novel Acceptance was made into a television movie starring Joan Cusack. She works as an event consultant at Politics and Prose Bookstore and served five years as president of the PEN/Faulkner Foundation.

Dylan Landis is the author of List of All Possible Desires, published in May by Soho Press, which completes her Rainey Royal Cycle alongside the novel Rainey Royal, a New York Times Editors’ Choice, and the novel in stories Normal People Don’t Live Like This. Her work has appeared in The O. Henry Prize Stories and The Best American Nonrequired Reading, and she has received a National Endowment for the Arts fellowship in fiction. A former journalist who covered medicine for the New Orleans Times-Picayune and interior design for the Chicago Tribune, she lives in Los Angeles, nearby Chevalier’s Books!

Books will be available for purchase and signing.

Where: Chevalier’s

Date: Thursday the 8^th

Time: 7 pm – 8 pm

Address: 133 N. Larchmont Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90004

Website: https://chevaliersbooks.com/event/2026-10-08/word-salad-author-susan-coll

Trenches Full of Poets Reading Series & Open Mic: Chelle, Jade Daniels & Pam Concepcion at Page Against the Machine – In-Person Event

After a summer hiatus, the Trenches Full of Poets Reading Series returns in full fall force on Thursday, October 8th at 7:00 pm! The event will feature in-store readings from a diverse trio of SoCal poets, Chelle, Jade Daniels and Pam Concepcion, followed by an open mic opportunity.

Chelle is a poet and educator from Orange County, California. Writing poetry from the age of nine, inspired by Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s The Rime of the Ancient Mariner and John Milton’s 𝘗𝘢𝘳𝘢𝘥𝘪𝘴𝘦 𝘓𝘰𝘴𝘵, she set out to write her own version of the epics that started it all. She calls these poems Bangerz, which is also the title of her upcoming manuscript. Inspired by Dostoyevsky’s Underground Man from Notes from Underground, Bangerz follows a spiraling unreliable narrator who takes readers on a journey through Southern California, collecting unhinged experiences that could all be told sitting at a café smoking a cigarette.

Jade Daniels (all pronouns) is a multi-faceted story-teller, artist, and community member currently based in Long Beach, CA. Jade’s work is intentionally held at the crossroads of spiritually-centered creative expression, generative story-telling, and abolitionist work and practice. Jade’s motivating force in her work is to create and contribute to spaces of healing, connection, story-telling, and culture-building with a focus on anti-imperial, anti-capitalist, global struggle specifically informed and centered by the labor and contributions of women, gender non-conforming, and gender expansive peoples.

Pam Concepcion is a poet and a multimedia artist from Metro Manila, Philippines. She loves to write social melodramas on how political, social, and economic issues can intimately affect our relationships with ourselves, friends, lovers, family, and everyone around us. Her first book, (Un)becoming, a coming-of-age collection of poetry, photos and collages, was published by Riot of Roses in June 2026. She is currently the host of Avenue 50 Studio’s monthly poetry reading and mic series La Palabra.

Taking its name from a Clash lyric, Trenches Full of Poets Reading Series is a monthly poetry series created, curated, and hosted by Los Angeles-based poets and editors, Nikolai Garcia and Mauricio Andres Moreno with the goal of supporting a diverse array of published SoCal authors and the local independent bookstores that carry their works.

The event takes place on the second Thursday of every month and is always free and open to the public, no tickets or reservations required.

Where: Page Against the Machine

Date: Thursday the 8^th

Time: 7 pm – 9 pm

Address: 2714 E. 4^th St., Long Beach, CA 90814

Website: Facebook Page

Natalie Baszile, with Dana Johnson, & Family and Friends at Reparations Club – In-Person Event

Natalie Baszile, in conversation with Dana Johnson, will discuss Family and Friends.

From the author of Queen Sugar, a piercing examination of friendship and loyalty as two best friends find themselves at odds over their beliefs on race, identity, and allyship, especially when it comes to their teenage children.

Babs and Nora became friends thanks to their kids. Now, the desire to protect their children might tear them apart.

Babs and Nora have spent a decade’s worth of morning walks sharing family secrets, local drama, and advice—everything from tips on lingerie choices to Babs’s suggestions to Nora, a white woman, on how to raise Nathan, her adopted Black son.

But their worlds are turned upside down when the cops are called on their kids while they’re home alone, leading to a traumatic police encounter for Nathan. In the aftermath, Babs and Nora find themselves divided as never before, and Nathan looks for refuge with Babs and her family, where, unlike in his own home, race, identity, and culture are always up for discussion. Babs can see that Nathan is a young Black man without community trying to find himself. Torn between respecting Nora’s boundaries and embodying the values so important to her own family, Babs will make a choice that will shape their lives forever.

Set in a tight-knit enclave in the Bay Area, Friends and Family is an eye-opening exploration of friendship and privilege, race and community, and what it means to truly be a good friend and ally.

Natalie Baszile is a writer and filmmaker. Her debut novel, Queen Sugar, was named a Best Book of the Year by the San Francisco Chronicle, an NAACP Image Award nominee, and was the inspiration for the acclaimed television series co-produced by Ava DuVernay and Oprah Winfrey. Her non-fiction book, We Are Each Other’s Harvest: Celebrating African American Farmers, Land & Legacy, was a Wall Street Journal Book of the Year. Natalie’s non-fiction work has appeared in National Geographic, O, The Oprah Magazine, The Bitter Southerner, and numerous anthologies. Natalie has had residencies at the Ragdale Foundation, Virginia Center for the Arts, Hedgebrook, SFFILM, and the Djerassi Resident Arts Program. Her short film “Black Girl in Paris” premiered at the Martha’s Vineyard African American Film Festival. A native Californian, Natalie’s southern roots stem from Louisiana, South Carolina, and Alabama. She lives in the Bay Area.

Dana Johnson is the author of the short story collection In the Not Quite Dark. She is also the author of Break Any Woman Down, winner of the Flannery O’Connor Award for Short Fiction, and the novel Elsewhere, California. Both books were nominees for the Hurston/Wright Legacy Award. Her work has appeared in Ploughshares, Zyzzyva, The Paris Review and Callaloo among others, and has been included in several anthologies. Among her latest work is Trailblazer: Delilah Beasley’s California, a fictionalized account of the life of African American historian and scholar Delilah Beasley. Born and raised in and around Los Angeles, she is a professor of English at the University of Southern California.

Where: Reparations Club

Date: Thursday the 8^th

Time: 7 pm

Address: 3054 South Victoria Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90016

Website: Eventbrite Page

Nathan Gelgud, with Courtney Stephens, & No Concessions! at Skylight – In-Person Event

Nathan Gelgud, in conversation with Courtney Stephens, will discuss No Concessions!

No Concessions! Come complete with suggestions on how to be an effective revolutionary while fighting the all-consuming evils of corporate Hollywood: Meditate! Fight your inner urge to binge watch! Engage in a cinema fast to truly appreciate the oeuvre of an auteur! With his trademark slapstick zingers, Gelgud lovingly skewers leftist radical politics while illustrating how late-stage capitalism has made ethical decision-making fraught with compromise.

Nathan Gelgud has worked in movie theaters and video stores. He’s been an alt weekly film critic. He lives in Los Angeles. Gelgud’s first book with Drawn & Quarterly, Reel Politik was published in 2025.

Courtney Stephens is the director of four feature films: The American Sector, Terra Femme, Invention, and, most recently, John Lilly and the Earth Coincidence Control Office. Her work has shown in cinemas and festivals across the world, and she is the recipient of a Guggenheim Fellowship, a Fulbright Scholarship, fellowships from MacDowell and Yaddo, and other honors. She co-curates the Los Angeles microcinema, Veggie Cloud.

Where: Skylight

Date: Thursday the 8^th

Time: 7 pm

Address: 1818 N. Vermont Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90027

Website: https://skylightbooks.com/event/2026-10-08/nathan-gelgud-wcourtney-stephens-no-concessions

Ticketed: Hernan Diaz, with Percival Everett, & Ply: A Novel at Vroman’s – In-Person Event

Hernan Diaz, in conversation with Percival Everett, will discuss Ply: A Novel.

The Pulitzer Prize–winning author turns to the future with a novel that examines the place of technology in the American imagination.

Centuries from now, at the dawn of a historical epoch filled with both uncertainty and promise, an orphan is adrift in a city on the brink of a great transformation. The state has been dismantled, and humans are reinventing social bonds and learning new ways to coexist with nature. Following a childhood defined by loss, survival, and found family, the orphan grows up to become a “pincher,” someone who steals electricity from the grid to sell it on the black market. It’s a high-risk life, one that brings her into a rich art and music scene where she powers underground concerts. It also leads her to a colossal scientific invention that could change the very fabric of reality.

After rewriting America’s past with his two previous novels, Hernan Diaz defies expectations with his third and gives us a breathtaking glimpse into the future. A major achievement from a major contemporary writer, Ply questions the place of technology in the American experiment with a plot that grabs both heart and mind. It is a novel of ideas built from a story of people. Combining Dickensian odyssey, family drama, and scientific thriller, Ply poignantly charts the tenuous boundaries of selfhood and the distance that inevitably stands between us and those we love.

Where: Vroman’s Off-site at Pasadena Presbyterian Church

Date: Thursday the 8^th

Time: 7 pm

Address: 585 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, CA 91101

Website: https://vromansbookstore.com/event/2026-10-08/hernan-diaz

Lit Angels: Morning Writing with Francesca Lia Block at Village Well Books & Coffee – In-Person Event

Where: Village Well Books & Coffee

Date: Friday the 9^th

Time: 9 am – 10 am

Address: 9900 Culver Blvd. #1B, Culver City, CA 90232

Website: Event Page

Weekly Pajama Storytime at Once Upon a Time, Montrose – In-Person Kids & Family Event

Our most popular story time is ready to delight and dazzle! This is also the prime time to see Pippi Longstocking, our bookstore cat in action.

There is a large FREE parking lot off Florencita Dr. as well as metered parking along Honolulu Ave. and Montrose Ave.

Free to attend.

NOTE: Free to attend.

Where: Once Upon a Time

Date: Friday, the 9^th

Time: 9:30 am

Address: 2207 Honolulu Ave., Montrose, CA 91020

Website: Once Upon a Time Event Page

Bilingual Storytime at Village Well Books & Coffee – In-Person Event

Bilingual Storytime! Exposing your children to multiple languages is highly beneficial for their learning and development, and what better way to do it than through this fun activity where we will read a wonderful story in both English and Spanish.

¡Hora de cuentos bilingüe! Exponer a tus hjijos a varios idiomas es de gran beneficio para su aprendizaje y desarrollo, y qué mejor que hacerlo en esta divertida actividad en donde leeremos un maravilloso cuento en inglés y en español.

Where: Village Well Books & Coffee

Date: Friday the 8^th

Time: 11 am – 12 pm

Address: 9900 Culver Blvd. #1B, Culver City, CA 90232

Website: Event Page

Writing Gets Lonely: Open Writing Studio at Heavy Manners Library – In-Person Event

No frills, No prompts, Just write!

Offered every other Friday.

NOTE: Ticketed.

Where: Heavy Manners Library

Date: Friday, the 9^th

Time: 1 pm – 3 pm

Address: 2115 Sunset Blvd,, Los Angeles, CA 90026

Website: https://www.heavymannerslibrary.com/events/writing-gets-lonely-open-writing-studio-10-9

Self-Care Book Club: Why Has Nobody Told Me this Before? at Cellar Door Bookstore – In-Person Event

Participants will discuss Why Has Nobody Told Me this Before? by Julie Smith.

Drawing on years of experience as a clinical psychologist, online sensation Dr Julie Smith provides the skills you need to navigate common life challenges and take charge of your emotional and mental health in her debut book.

Filled with secrets from a therapist’s toolkit, Why Has Nobody Told Me This Before teaches you how to fortify and maintain your mental health, even in the most trying of times. Dr Julie Smith’s expert advice and powerful coping techniques will help you stay resilient, whether you want to manage anxiety, deal with criticism, cope with depression, build self-confidence, find motivation, or learn to forgive yourself. Why Has Nobody Told Me This Before tackles everyday issues and offers practical solutions in bite-sized, easy-to-digest entries which make it easy to quickly find specific information and guidance.

Julie Smith is a clinical psychologist and international bestselling author. Her first book Why Has Nobody Told Me This Before? has sold over 2 million copies across the world and has been translated into 45 languages. It spent well over 100 weeks on the Sunday Times bestseller list, making it the top selling nonfiction book of 2022 in the UK. Dr. Julie is the author of The New York Times bestseller, Open When…She has over 10 million followers across social media platforms where she shares insights from therapy that we can all use for everyday life. She lives in England with her husband Matthew and their three children.

Where: Cellar Door Bookstore

Date: Friday the 9^th

Time: 6 pm – 7 pm

Address: 6675 Magnolia Ave., Riverside, CA 92506

Website: https://cellardoorbookstore.com/event/2026-10-09/self-care-book-club-why-has-nobody-told-me

Banned Books Speakeasy at Tia Chucha’s Centro Cultural & Bookstore – In-Person Event

We’re celebrating Banned Books Week with an evening of celebration of forbidden literature at Tia Chucha’s with a 1920s Prohibition-style secrecy twist. Join us for a moody and romantic evening full of jazz tunes, delicious bites, and delightful sips.

More secrets revealed about our Banned Book Speakeasy, coming soon.

Where: Tia Chucha’s Centro Cultural & Bookstore

Date: Friday the 9^th

Time: 6 pm – 10 pm

Address: 12677 Glenoaks Blvd., Sylmar, CA 91342

Website: Instagram Page

Ecology Horror Tour Panel at Underdog Bookstore – In-Person Event

Join us for an Ecology Horror Tour panel featuring authors Joshua Millican, Bitter Karella, Allison Mick, and moderated by Eve Harms.

Joshua Millican is a graduate of UC Santa Cruz where he earned degrees in American Literature and Creative Writing. He is a journalist (Dread Central), an actor (Cannibal Comedian), and an active member of the HWA. Millican’s best-known works of fiction include Teleportasm (Killer VHS Series #3) and Chopping Mall: The Novelization. His latest novel, Dopefoot, is a gory cryptid mystery released June 16th, 2026, via Mad Axe Media.

Bitter Karella is a genderfluid transvestite goblin, who writes gonzo psycho-sexual body horror with a grotesquely humorous edge. His short story “Low Tide Jenny,” originally published in Seize the Press magazine, was a winner of the Brave New Weird award for best new weird fiction of 2022 by Tenebrous Press. Her work has also appeared in Bag of Bones’ “Step into the Light,” Tenebrous Press’ “Your Body is Not Your Body,” Ghoulish Books’ “Bound in Flesh,” and From Beyond Press’ “This World Belongs to Us.” Their first novel, Moonflow, is now available from Orbit’s new horror imprint Run For It.

Allison Mick is a Los Angeles-based writer on the comedy-horror spectrum. She is the author of the eco-horror novel HUMBOLDT CUT and the upcoming story collection DIVE (Nov 2026, Tenebrous Press). Her writing also appears in Trailer Park Boys: Big A$$ Comic Collection (Devil’s Due Comics) and The Hard Times: The First 40 Years (Mariner Books).

Eve Harms is a writer of horror, exploitation, and bizarro fiction. Her trans body horror novella TRANSMUTED was featured in Sadie Hartman’s award-winning book 101 Horror Books to Read Before You’re Murdered. In addition to her love for storytelling, her belief in art and the power of self-expression feeds her passion for zines, the creative commons, and the work of independent creators. She currently resides in the Los Angeles area with her children’s book illustrator partner and two cats.

Where: Underdog Bookstore

Date: Friday the 9^th

Time: 6 pm – 8 pm

Address: 312 South Myrtle Avenue, Monrovia, California, 91016

Website: https://www.underdogbookstore.org/events/ecology-horror-tour

Semillas Open Mic: Alexia Jaimes at La Colmena – In-Person Event

Están invitadoa este Semillas open mic!

Come through and you’ll be in for another special guest feature, Santa Ana’s own Alexis Jaimes!

Alexis Jaimes is a poet, educator and Co Orange County Poet Laureate from Santa Ana, California. As the proud son of Mexican immigrants, his work explores the intersections of cultural memory, language, generational trauma, and healing. He is the author of The Seeds We Sow (Daxson Publishing, 2026) and Corazón Coalesced (Bottlecap Press, 2024). His work has appeared in numerous presses as well as showcased at the Fullerton Museum Center and the Huntington Beach Art Center. He teaches in a dual-language classroom, believing in the power of language in all its forms. Alexis can also be found hosting or attending open mics throughout Orange County.

Bring a friend, bring a poem, a song, bring your energy. Aquí estamos!

Where: La Colmena Market

Date: Friday the 9^th

Time: 6:45 pm – 8:45 pm

Address: 1901 West Walnut St., Santa Ana, CA 92703

Website: Instagram Page

Book Launch: Nicholas Russell, with Brian Evenson, & Observer at Stories Books & Café – In-Person Event

Join us to hear Nicholas Russell, in conversation with Brian Evenson, discuss a disquieting, atmospheric debut horror novel about a young woman investigating her mother’s disappearance at an abandoned Nevada observatory, for fans of Jeff VanderMeer and Mariana Enriquez.

Nicholas Russell is a writer from Las Vegas. His work has appeared in McSweeney’s, Conjunctions, The Baffler, No Tokens, Defector, and Hunger Mountain. Observer is his first novel.

In conversation with Brian Evenson, Shirley Jackson Award–winning author of Song for the Unraveling of the World and Last Days.

Where: Stories Books & Cafe

Date: Friday the 9^th

Time: 6:30 pm – 9 pm

Address: 1716 W. Sunset Blvd., Los Angeles, California, 90026

Website: https://storiesla.com/events/6213820261009

Noel Alumit & Talking to the Moon at Skylight – In-Person Event

Noel Alumit will present and discuss: Talking to the Moon.

From the award-winning author Noel Alumit comes this heartbreaking story of a racially motivated shooting that triggers the memories, hopes, and dreams of a Filipino American family. Inspired by an actual event, this funny, rich novel unflinchingly tackles the most explosive topics facing America today: race, religion, and sexuality.

Twentieth Anniversary Edition.

Where: Skylight

Date: Friday the 9^th

Time: 7 pm

Address: 1818 N. Vermont Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90027

Website: https://skylightbooks.com/event/2026-10-09/noel-alumit-talking-moon

Swing Set Open Mic Night at Move Long Beach Forward – In-Person Event

Our NEXT and final open mic of the year is coming up!

If you haven’t gotten the chance to come now is the time✨

Come celebrate our 5-year anniversary this October 9th 7 pm.

Where: Move Long Beach Forward

Date: Friday the 9^th

Time: 7 pm – 9 pm

Address: 2217 E. Sunset Blvd., Long Beach, California, 90814

Website: Instagram Page

Open Mic Night at Village Well Books & Coffee – In-Person Event

This all-inclusive event will create space for local artists of any medium to share their talents with the community. Come hang out, as an audience member, or a performer, and meet some talented locals!

Sign-ups for performers are at the door, day of, 30 minutes prior to the event. Sets are limited to 5 minutes. All performances must be family-friendly. We will provide two microphones and two mic stands. Please bring any other equipment you will need. This event is free, no registration is required!

Where: Village Well Books & Coffee

Date: Friday the 9^th

Time: 7 pm – 9 pm

Address: 9900 Culver Blvd. #1B, Culver City, CA 90232

Website: Event Page

Trish Lundy, with Veronica Bane, & The Worst is Yet to Come at Vroman’s – In-Person Event

Trish Lundy, in conversation with Veronica Bane, will discuss The Worst is Yet to Come.

From the author of The One That Got Away with Murder comes a fresh YA mystery about a girl who survives a murder attempt and the boy who finds her bleeding on the side of the road as they team up to find out who is targeting teen girls in their small, Rust Belt community. Perfect for fans of Holly Jackson and Karen M. McManus.

High school might be officially over, but the real nightmare is just beginning. When two best friends are attacked on graduation night, only one of them makes it out alive.

Left for dead at an abandoned house but determined to find out who killed her best friend, Rose is rescued by former high school quarterback and heartthrob, Jake, who becomes an unexpected ally…and maybe something more. But when she learns that seventeen years ago, another girl suffered the exact same fate in the exact same place, she wonders if a murderer might be back with a vengeance…or is a copycat killer on the loose?

Time is running out, because whoever the killer is, they’re eager to correct their biggest mistake: letting Rose live. As Rose follows the trail of evidence, she’s led down a path of horrors that threatens to expose the insidious secrets at the heart of her community—secrets the killer will do anything to keep quiet.

Trish Lundy is an East Coast transplant who now calls California home. She received her BA in English from UCLA, where she fell in love with the craft of writing. She’s worked in the film industry, in marketing, and is also a former hospice & palliative care volunteer. The One That Got Away with Murder is her debut novel.

Where: Vroman’s

Date: Friday the 9^th

Time: 7 pm – 9 pm

Address: 695 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, CA 91101

Website: https://vromansbookstore.com/event/2026-10-09/trish-lundy

Art, Storytelling, Poetry, Comedy & Dancing Showcase at MCAU Gallery & Art Center– In-Person Event

Lida Parent Harris hosts a Showcase of Art, Poetry, Comedy and Dancing at MCAU Gallery & Cultural Center.

$20 admission & parking.

Where: MCAU Gallery & Cultural Center

Date: Friday the 9^th

Time: 7 pm – 9 pm

Address: 348 N. Vermont Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90004

Website: Instagram Page

Booksellers Club, Quarterly Meeting at Bookman – In-Person Event

Promoting Literacy & Unity through Social Media: How Can We Connect as OC Booksellers?

All booksellers in OC are welcome.

Scan the QR code at website to be added to the OC Booksellers Directory.

Where: Bookman

Date: Saturday the 10^th

Time: 8 am – 9:30 am

Address: 320 E. Katella Ave., Orange, CA 92867

Website: https://www.libromobile.com/event-details/booksellers-club-quarterly-meeting

Lit Angels: Morning Writing with Francesca Lia Block at Village Well Books & Coffee – In-Person Event

Where: Village Well Books & Coffee

Date: Saturday the 10^th

Time: 10 am – 11 am

Address: 9900 Culver Blvd. #1B, Culver City, CA 90232

Website: Event Page

Book Launch: Suzanne and Max Lang & Dragon Dog at Children’s Book World – In-Person Kids Event

Join us for Dragon Dog Halloween Picture Book Party with Suzanne & Max Lang and special guest, Grumpy Monkey.

From the #1 New York Times bestselling creators of Grumpy Monkey comes a new character—part dragon, part dog, ALL FIERCE—in this hilarious, fire-snorting fantasy that celebrates friendship, courage, and the many forms fierceness (and fluffiness) can take. When the evil wizard Simpkin Sowerbutts attempts to create a dragon as loyal as a dog and instead spawns a dog as fierce as a dragon, he banishes his embarrassing and so fluffy creation. Outcast and alone, Dragon Dog roams the land looking for a home only to find foes around every corner. But Dragon Dog prides himself on being fierce—like a dragon—and defeats all who challenge him. Soon everyone in the land of Quatsch is afraid of him. Everyone except a lost little lamb named Dandelion. Dragon Dog helps his new friend find her way back to her flock, and Dandelion helps Dragon Dog embrace his fluffy side and find a place to call home.

Suzanne Lang is the author of the New York Times bestselling Grumpy Monkey books as well as several other titles. When she’s not writing books, Suzanne writes for animation. When she’s not doing that, she hangs out with her very funny kids, feeds her many pets, and tries (but usually fails) to take a nap!

Max Lang has illustrated over 20 books including all of the books in the Grumpy Monkey series. When he is not making books he makes films. He has co-directed several animated films including The Snail and the Whale, Zog, Room on the Broom, and The Gruffalo. He has received a BAFTA, two Emmys, two Oscar nominations, and many other honors for his film work. In his spare time, he tries to make his kids laugh with dad jokes.

Where: Children’s Book World

Date: Saturday the 10^th

Time: 10:30 am – 11:30 am

Address: 10580 1/2 W. Pico Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90064

Website: https://childrensbookworld.com/event/2026-10-10/suzanne-max-lang-person-dragon-dog-book-launch

Book Club for Adults: Still Life at Hacienda Heights Library, LACL – In-Person Event

Join the discussion of Louise Penny’s novel Still Life.

New members are always welcome.  Copies of the Book Club books will be available for pick-up at the Ask Us Desk one month prior to the book club meeting date.

Please be aware that refreshments will be served at this program.

Where: Hacienda Heights Library, LACL

Date: Saturday the 10^th

Time: 10:30 am – 11:30 am

Address: 16010 La Monde St., Hacienda Heights, CA 91745

Website: https://visit.lacountylibrary.org/event/16309217

Writing the Body of Freedom: Free Workshop with James Coats at Riverside Main Library – In-Person Event

Join author and writer James Coats for a 4-week free workshop titled: Writing the Body of Freedom, at the Riverside Main Library on Saturdays, October 19, 26, 31, and November 7, 2026, from 10:30 am – 12:30 pm.

Register by using the QR code at website.

Where: Riverside Main Library, Reading Room

Date: Saturday the 10^th

Time: 10:30 am – 12:30 pm

Address: 3500 Mission Inn Ave., Riverside, CA 92501

Website: Instagram Page

Book Club: A Fever in the Heartland at Westwood Branch Library, LAPL – In-Person Event

Read the book and join the discussion of A Fever in the Heartland: The Ku Klux Klan’s Plot to Take Over America, and the Woman Who Stopped Them by Timothy Egan.

Please be aware that refreshments will be served at this program.

Where: Westwood Branch Library, LAPL

Date: Saturday the 10^th

Time: 11 am

Address: 1246 Glendon Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90024

Website: https://www.lapl.org/events/book-club-9

Caffeinated Verse: Poetry Open Mic at Malibu Library, LACL – In-Person Event

Join Malibu Poet Laureate Charlotte Ward to hear readings of original pieces written by local poets and bring a poem of your own to read during the open mic. For adults.

This event is part of the City’s free poetry workshops in partnership with Malibu Library, the Malibu Poet Laureate Committee, the Malibu Arts Commission, and the Friends of the Malibu Library, offering community members engaging, educational opportunities to find expression through poetry with a renowned local poet.

Where: Malibu Library, LACL

Date: Saturday the 10^th

Time: 1:30 pm – 4 pm

Address: 23519 West Civic Center Way, Malibu, CA 90265

Website: https://visit.lacountylibrary.org/event/17212302

Writing with the Poetry of Queer Ancestors with City of West Hollywood Poet Laureate Jen Cheng at West Hollywood Library, LACL – In-Person LGBTQIA+ Event

Join us as we celebrate LGBTQ+ History Month with curated poems of our LGBTQ+ ancestors. For adults.

Poems from Pat Parker, Benjamin Alire Sáenz, Andrea Gibson, Alan Ginsberg, and others will inspire our own writing in this class. No experience needed, just bring your writing instruments and come with curiosity!

Light refreshments provided by the Friends of the West Hollywood Library.

Jen Cheng is the fifth Poet Laureate of West Hollywood, author of a poetry collection Braided Spaces, a Poet Laureate Fellow with The Academy of American Poets, a California Arts Council Fellow, and a Tin House Workshop alumna. She is a multidisciplinary artist who blends East-West influences as Feng Shui Poetry. She is a teaching artist with writing centers such as The Poetry Society of New York, The Loft Literary Center, and UCLA Extension. Connect with her on social media @JenCvoice or at http://www.JenCvoice.com.

Attendance is limited and advance registration is required. Please register every individual in your party. This will be used to save your spots in the program. We cannot guarantee availability for any unregistered attendees.

Where: West Hollywood Library, LACL

Date: Saturday the 10^th

Time: 2 pm – 4 pm

Address: 625 San Vicente Blvd, West Hollywood, CA 90069

Website: https://visit.lacountylibrary.org/event/17107707

YA Lit Book Club: Twenty Four Seconds From Now at Chatsworth Branch Library, LAPL – In-Person Event

Adults and teens are invited to discuss Jason Reynolds’ Twenty Four Seconds From Now. In a series of moments spanning two years, 17 year-old Neon navigates the progression of his relationship with Aria, culminating in a case of the jitters as the two intend to take the next big step in their relationship.

Copies available at the Reference Desk. E-books available via Libby.

Chatsworth Teen Volunteers can receive service hours for reading and participating in group discussion.

Where: Chatsworth Branch Library, LAPL

Date: Saturday the 10^th

Time: 3 pm – 4 pm

Address: 21052 Devonshire St., Chatsworth, CA 91311

Website: https://www.lapl.org/events/ya-lit-book-club-discusses-twenty-four-seconds-now-jason-reynolds

Book Talk: Arvind Ethan David & The Great Game at West Valley Branch Library, LAPL – In-Person Event

Join us as we welcome Arvind Ethan David to talk about his debut novel The Great Game!

London, 1905: Law student and military veteran Balvinder dev Singh has found an extralegal way to fund his studies. As friend and accomplice to the infamous gentleman thief AJ Raffles, he rubs shoulders with the upper crust—and steals their valuables. That is, until their next mark, an imperialist general, is grotesquely murdered in the library of his Mayfair mansion. Bal and Raffles find themselves implicated in a series of killings that soon attracts the attention of Scotland Yard—and the aging Sherlock Holmes himself. As Bal works to clear his name, he must hide his checkered past from a new acquaintance, the beautiful Irish violinist Maud Adler. Her fiery views lead Bal to question his own place in the world. But when he comes face-to-face with a plot to strike at the very heart of the British government, he must decide how much he’s willing to risk for his adopted city.

Arvind Ethan David is an Olivier Award nominated playwright, whose stage work includes adaptations of his late mentor Douglas Adams novels The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy and Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency, a Stoker nominated graphic novelist, a writer and producer of television and the writer of multiple chart-topping Audio originals. As a producer, Arvind is responsible for the Tony & Grammy winning musical Jagged Little Pill and the Asian Academy Award winning movie The Garden of Evening Mists, based on the Booker shortlisted novel.

Copies of The Great Game will be available for purchase and signing after the talk.

Where: West Valley Branch Library, LAPL

Date: Saturday the 10^th

Time: 3 pm – 4 pm

Address: 19036 Vanowen St., Reseda, CA 91335

Website: https://www.lapl.org/events/arvind-ethan-david-talks-about-great-game

Book Discussion: We Have Always Lived in the Castle at North Hollywood Library, LACL – In-Person Event

Join our monthly book discussion led by a different member of our staff and the book of their choice.

Check out We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson and join the discussion.  

Mary Katherine “Merricat” Blackwood lives in isolation with her sister Constance and Uncle Julian after most of their family mysteriously dies from poisoning. When their cousin Charles arrives, he threatens their peaceful life and brings old secrets back to the surface. As the story unfolds, Merricat’s dark secrets are revealed, showing just how far she will go to protect her sister and their home.

Where: North Hollywood Branch Library, LAPL

Date: Saturday the 10^th

Time: 3 pm – 4 pm

Address: 5211 Tujunga Ave., North Hollywood, CA 91601

Website: https://www.lapl.org/events/october-book-discussion

Annie Meyers-Shyer & This Oak House at Book Soup – In-Person Event

Anie Meyers-Shyer will discuss and sign This Oak House: A Renovation Story with Interiors to Inspire Your Own Home.

Filled with practical advice and inspiring beauty, This Oak House is perfect for design enthusiasts, lovers of old houses, and anyone undertaking their own home project.

Annie Meyers-Shyer is the creator of the popular Instagram account @ThisOakHouse, where she documented the renovation of her historic Gerard Colcord home in Los Angeles and continues to share her personal experiences and design expertise.

Where: Book Soup

Date: Saturday the 10^th

Time: 3 pm

Address: 8818 W. Sunset Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90069

Website: https://booksoup.com/event/2026-10-10/annie-meyers-shyer

LiveTalks LA Presents: Michael Douglas & One Helluva Ride at Robert Frost Auditorium – In-Person & Online Hybrid Event

Hollywood icon Michael Douglas tells the unfiltered story of his life for the first time in his new memoir, One Helluva Ride. At long last, a full and uncensored account of a remarkable life—real, raw, deeply honest and vulnerable.

A first-time film producer who stunned the world by winning an Oscar at 31. A maverick who changed Hollywood and became a global movie star. With 50 celebrated years in the entertainment business, Michael Douglas is a legend. His list of accolades is long and includes two Academy Awards, five Golden Globes, a Primetime Emmy and two SAG awards. Also, a steadfast public servant, activist and philanthropist, Douglas’ commitment to disarmament, nuclear non-proliferation and demoracy have been heralded by the United Nations. Beginning with his fractured childhood and a complex relationship with his superstar father, Kirk Douglas, Michael Douglas finally reveals, with unflinching honesty, the story of his life.

Michael Douglas is an international movie star with a list of classic films that have not only captured the cultural zeitgeist but often defined it while grossing billions of dollars (One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, The China Syndrome, Romancing the Stone, Jewel of the Nile, Fatal Attraction, Wall Street, War of the Roses, Basic Instinct, Falling Down, The American President, Traffic and Behind the Candelabra.) He is a father, son, husband, actor, producer, brother, and friend who has won multiple awards. He was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2018.

RSVP: Ticketed

Where: Robert Frost Auditorium

Date: Saturday the 10^th

Time: 3 pm – 4 pm

Address: 401 Elenda St., Culver City, CA 90230

Website: LiveTalks Event Page

Saturday Afternoon Poetry: Deep Critique Workshop by DKC – Online Zoom Event

Join us online for a Poetry Writing Workshop with DKC (Submit up to 3 poems totaling no more than 150 lines including the subject of or at least mentioning bite for Four Feathers Press online edition: BITE by emailing donkingfishercampbell@gmail.com by 11:59 pm, October 16th).

All events are curated by Don Kingfisher Campbell.

Where: Saturday Afternoon Poetry, Online

Date: Saturday, the 10^th

Time: 3 pm – 4:30 pm

Address: Online SAP Zoom Event

Website: https://saturdayafternoonpoetry.blogspot.com/

Cellar Door and Clarissa Cervantes Present: Kelly Lytle Hernández & Racist by Design at Cellar Door Off-site at Boardwell Park – In-Person Event

Our neighbors, friends, coworkers, family members, and other important members of our community here in Riverside are still being stolen from us by ICE.

Now Riverside city councilwoman Clarissa Cervantes has partnered with Cellar Door to bring MacArthur Fellowship winner Kelly Lytle Hernández to Riverside for a very special discussion about her latest book, Racist by Design: Two Centuries of U.S. Immigration Control, on Saturday, October 10th from 4:00 pm to 7:00 pm at Bordwell Park.

A few years ago, we hosted Kelly Lytle Hernández at our first store location to discuss her book Bad Mexicans and there wasn’t even standing room left. When we found out Kelly would return to talk about Racist by Design, we called Councilwoman Cervantes, who has been instrumental in leading the community in our fight to protect families. We decided to move this event to a bigger venue, and bring in the groups that are making a difference taking care of the affected families who’ve been targeted by ICE.

Eddie Torres and Benjamin Wood from IC4IJ (Inland Coalition for Immigrant Justice) will be in-conversation with Kelly Lytle Hernández about her new book and the impact it can have in our fight for justice. Joining us at Bordwell Park will be Riverside Migra Watch/We Keep Us Safe, CHIRLA (Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights), and UCR’s Center for Ideas and Society. If you’re looking for a way to help, these organizations will be at the event to guide you.

Tickets are free and we will have books for sale at the event, but if you want to guarantee you will get a copy, please purchase the book bundle at our website. You will be able to pick up your book either at the event or at the store prior to the event. Otherwise, please just get the free admission here so that we have an accurate count of people who will be attending.

Where: Cellar Door at Boardwell Park

Date: Saturday the 10^th

Time: 4 pm – 7 pm

Address: 2008 Martin Luther King Blvd., Riverside, CA 92507

Website: https://cellardoorbookstore.com/racistbydesignevent

Book Event: Eve Alter & Sea-Oath at David Horvitz’s Poetry Garden – In-Person Event

Hesse Press presents Eve Alter reading and discussing her new collection Sea-Oath at the Poetry Garden.

“Sea-oath is a catalog of internal and generational mythologies, a procedural formalist poetic experiment, and a transcript of an internal trial between the speaker and God.

In Sea-oath, Alter approaches the central theological reckoning of the collection through constructed metrical forms, neologistic indexing, and paratactic syntax in an attempt to articulate and organize memories and histories that had originally been buried by dissociation, self-punishment, and mental and physical escape.

What kind of God permits and witnesses the cyclical transmission of suffering, and how can I understand my life and my path within my inheritance?” – from the description on Asterism Book’s listing of Sea-oath.

Where: David Horvitz’s Poetry Garden

Date: Saturday the 10^th

Time: 5 pm – 7 pm

Address: 1911 7^th Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90018

Website: https://ma.to/event/sea-oath-book-release-10-oct-2026

Book Event: Reggie Myles & D.E.N.A.B.O.Y at Octavia’s Bookshelf – In-Person Event

We are so excited to host Pasadena native, Reggie Myles as he celebrates his debut poetry book, D.E.N.A. B.O.Y. on Saturday October 10th at 5 pm.

Reggie Myles is an African American and Afro-Salvadoran spoken word poetry artist, community organizer, and cultural worker from Pasadena, CA. His writing centers the Black experience through themes + concepts of joy, healing, resistance, identity, and spirituality. Reggie is a wordsmith, invoking the radical imagination and connections in his garden of poems. His voice weaves together the personal and the communal, allowing his poems to be not only a text but also a gathering of memory, resistance, and truth.

Reggie is the founder of Elijahs Roses, an artistic platform and creative brand that showcases his multidisciplinary projects and poetry. He also has a Bachelor of Arts degree from UCLA in Sociology and African American Studies. Lastly, his community work centers social and economic justice for Black communities through Black labor movements and mutual aid organizing with the Pasadena Black Equity Project.

Where: Octavia’s Bookshelf

Date: Saturday the 10^th

Time: 5 pm – 7 pm

Address: 1353 North Hill Ave., Pasadena, CA 91104

Website: https://www.octaviasbookshelf.com/events/dena-boy-with-reggie-myles

Fundraiser for Beyond Baroque Literary Arts Center: Dinner at Private Residence – In-Person Event

Location Provided after RSVP (Residence in Los Angeles area)

We’re kicking off our fall fundraiser season with an intimate dinner gathering! The evening will be full of food, drinks, literature, art, and community. Listen to readings from poets Donna Spruijt-Metz, Shahé Mankerian, Rhonda Mitchell, Gustavo Hernandez, and Michelle Bitting. We’ll have food-related writing prompts, special items, and an inspiring evening of sharing recipes, stories, and cultures.

The dinner will take place at a private residence in Los Angeles. Address will be shared with those who purchase a ticket. Limited seating, please arrive early. A purchased ticket does not guarantee a seat.

RSVP: Ticketed

Where: Beyond Baroque Literary Arts Center

Date: Saturday the 10^th

Time: 6 pm – 8 pm

Address: Private Residence

Website: Beyond Baroque Event Page

The Dark Woods Project: A Forest Horror Authors Collective Reading at Village Well Books & Coffee – In-Person Event

Join us for a reading and conversation from The Dark Woods Project!

The Dark Woods Project is a writers’ collective bound by explorations of Forest Horror (including Redwood Gothic and Eco-horror). The authors delve into the ominous complexities and primal fears of Forest Horror, specifically in the Pacific Northwest. While diverse in perspective and scope, Moonflow by Bitter Karella, Humboldt Cut by Allison Mick, and Dopefoot by Joshua Millican are united by their distinct geography and powerful themes.

Bitter Karella is a genderfluid transvestite goblin, best known as the creator of the three-time Hugo- nominated microfiction comedy account @Midnight_Pals which asks what if all your favorite horror writers were to gather around the campfire and tell scary stories like in the classic Nickelodeon series Are You Afraid of the Dark? Karella writes gonzo psycho- sexual body horror with a grotesquely humorous edge. His short story “Low Tide Jenny,” originally published in Seize the Press magazine, was a winner of the Brave New Weird award for best new weird fiction of 2022 by Tenebrous Press.

Bitter Karella’s Moonflow is a debut horror novel—a gloriously queer and irreverent psychedelic trip into the heart of an eldritch wood and the horrors of (cis)terhood. A trans shroom dealer ventures into a haunted forest in search of a new kind of hallucinogenic mushroom only to run afoul of a murderous cult of lesbian separatist hippies and the bound nature god they keep in the temple cellar.

Allison Mick is a Los Angeles-based comedy-horror writer, and the author of Humboldt Cut (Erewhon Books), an eco-gothic novel about a suicidal psych nurse’s return to her hometown in the redwoods. Mick’s writing also appears in Trailer Park Boys: Big A$$ Comic Collection (Devil’s Due Comics) and The Hard Times: The First 40 Years (Mariner Books).

Allison Mick’s Humboldt Cut is a darkly humorous debut eco-horror novel, as a Black woman returns home to the redwood forests of northern California, only to unearth the monsters that lurk among the trees. The forest births unnatural entities made of human flesh and petrified bark. The redwoods remember what’s been done to them, and avenge the devastation that the logging industry has caused.

Joshua Millican is a graduate of UC Santa Cruz where he earned degrees in literature and creative writing. He is a journalist (Dread Central), an actor, and an active member of the HWA. Millican’s best- known works of fiction include Teleportasm (Killer VHS Series #3) and Chopping Mall: The Novelization. His new novel, Dopefoot, is a gory cryptid mystery that released June 16th, 2026 via Mad Axe Media.

About Dopefoot: After accepting work on an isolated cannabis farm in Northern California, a college drop-out finds himself caught in all-out war. Overstimulated smugglers and well-funded mobsters vie for control of this fertile territory. Beneath it all, in the darkest corners of the forest, even darker forces are stirring.

Purchase your ticket by clicking link at website! Attendees can apply their purchase of a ticket towards a $10 credit for any featured book at the event.

RSVP!

Where: Village Well Books & Coffee

Date: Saturday the10^th

Time: 6 pm – 7:30 pm

Address: 9900 Culver Blvd., #1B, Culver City, CA 90232

Website: Event Page

Ticketed: An Evening with Eric Idle, with Sacha Gervasi, & Idle in Provence at Vroman’s – In-Person Event

Eric Idle, in conversation with Sacha Gervasi, will discuss his memoir, Idle in Provence: A Brief History of Thyme.

In 1971, at the beginning of Monty Python mania, Eric Idle bought a crumbling ruin in the hills of Provence. With no electricity, no water, no road, and no plan, he set out to transform the neglected stone shack into what he lovingly calls a shackeau.

Idle in Provence is the story of the transformation of both the place and the man. Against the sun-drenched backdrop of southern France, Idle penned iconic songs and scripts, hosted a revolving door of eccentric and brilliant friends—George Harrison, Robin Williams, Paul Simon, and others—and found a rare kind of peace far from the madness of showbiz. Equal parts memoir, travelogue, and comedy masterclass, the book is filled with laugh-out-loud moments, tender reflections, and the kind of sharp, self-deprecating wit only Idle can deliver.

As he reflects on love, loss, friendship, and joy, Idle paints a vivid portrait of a place that became more than a home—it became a sanctuary. The story spans decades. It’s a love letter to France, to old friends, and to the wild, unpredictable journey of being alive.

Eric Idle is a comedian, actor, author, and singer-songwriter who found immediate fame on television with the sketch-comedy show Monty Python’s Flying Circus. Following its success, the group began making films that include Monty Python and the Holy Grail, Monty Python’s Life of Brian, and Monty Python’s The Meaning of Life. Eric wrote, directed, and created The Rutles: All You Need Is Cash, the world’s first-ever mockumentary, as well as the Tony Award-winning musical Spamalot. His memoir Always Look on the Bright Side of Life was a New York Times bestseller.

Sacha Gervasi is a British journalist and filmmaker. In 2010, his documentary, Anvil! The Story of Anvil! won the Independent Spirit Award for Best Documentary, the International Documentary Association awards for Feature Documentary and Music Documentary, and an Emmy for Outstanding Arts and Cultural Program. The Directors Guild of America nominated Gervasi for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Documentary. His debut narrative feature was the Oscar-nominated Hitchcock (2012), starring Anthony Hopkins and Helen Mirren. Gervasi wrote and directed the semi-autobiographical HBO film My Dinner with Hervé (2018), starring Peter Dinklage, Jamie Dornan, David Strathairn and Andy Garcia. The film was nominated for an Emmy for Outstanding Television Movie, and received nominations from the Producers Guild of America and the Writers Guild of America. He also wrote Steven Spielberg’s The Terminal (2004). As a journalist he has written for Punch Magazine, The Observer, The Financial Times and The London Sunday Times.

RSVP: TICKETED

Where: Vroman’s Off-site at Arcadia Performing Arts Center

Date: Saturday the 10^th

Time: 7 pm

Address: 188 Campus Dr., Arcadia, CA 91007

Website: https://vromansbookstore.com/event/2026-10-10/eric-idle

Maritere R. Bellas & Tío Ricky Doesn’t Speak English/Tío Ricky no habla inglés at Chevalier’s – In-Person Event

Maritere R. Bellas will present Tío Ricky Doesn’t Speak English/Tío Ricky no habla inglés.

Enrique is a bilingual boy who thinks speaking Spanish is a chore, until he learns it’s exactly the superpower he needs to save his uncle and the day. When Tío Ricky comes to town, he needs his nephew’s help: since he doesn’t speak any English, Enrique has to translate for him at the store, the post office, and the bank. It all feels like a hassle, until Enrique ends up in a situation where his bilingual skills turn out to be life-saving. Along the way, he discovers that speaking two languages isn’t just useful but powerful, and that it can bring a family closer together. Told in both English and Spanish, it’s a warm, funny story about how you don’t need a superhero cape to be a hero.

Maritere R. Bellas is an award-winning Puerto Rican author, speaker, podcast host, and bilingual parenting mentor who has spent three decades supporting bilingual, multilingual, and multicultural families. She created and co-hosts the Mamás 411 Podcast, which reaches listeners in 27 countries, and has written two parenting books and three bilingual children’s books.

Bilingual hardcover picture book, 40 pages, published by Lil’ Libros in 2025. Best for ages 4–8.

Where: Chevalier’s

Date: Sunday the 11^th

Time: 11 am – 11:45 am

Address: 133 N. Larchmont Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90004

Website: https://chevaliersbooks.com/event/2026-10-11/tio-ricky-doesnt-speak-english-tio-ricky-no-habla-ingles-maritere-r-bellas

Typewriter Poets On Demand with L.A. Poet Society at Melrose Trading Post – In-Person Event

Poets with L.A. Poet Society participate in providing typewritten poetry on demand for customers each Sunday at Melrose Trading Post.

No cover. Donations appreciated.

Where: Melrose Trading Post

Date: Sunday the 11^th

Time: 11 am – 5 pm (specific times and stage may vary)

Address: 7850 Melrose Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90046

Website: Instagram Page

Lit Angels: Morning Writing with Francesca Lia Block at Village Well Books & Coffee – In-Person Event

Where: Village Well Books & Coffee

Date: Sunday the 11^th

Time: 11 am – 12 pm

Address: 9900 Culver Blvd. #1B, Culver City, CA 90232

Website: Event Page

The Writers Coffeeehouse at Village Well Books & Coffee – In-Person Event

The Writers Coffeehouse is open to everyone. The Coffeehouse is a bunch of writers sitting around talking about writing…with coffee. No agenda, just chatting about the latest trends in the industry, the craft of writing, markets, pitching and selling, conquering frustration, defeating writers block, and all of the good things that come from the community of writers. No previous publishing experience necessary. The Writers Coffeehouse attracts everyone, from absolute beginners to award-winners and bestsellers.

The Coffeehouse is hosted by Lisa Diane Kastner, founder of Running Wild Publishing.

Lisa Diane Kastner is the Founder of Running Wild, LLC, a content creation, distribution, and licensing company. Featured in FORBES and several other publications, she’s been named to multiple “Best of”s. A writer and editor for more than twenty years, she has identified talent like the multimillion selling, global phenomenon Jamie Ford’s Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet, Reuben “Tihi” Hayslett’s Dark Corners which was named one of the best of the year by Kirkus Reviews, and Shay Galloway’s completely groundbreaking The Valley of Sage and Juniper, among many others.

She has been mentored by such legends as the National Book Award winner and Pulitzer Prizewinner Percival Everett; multiaward winning and NYTimes bestseller Jonathan Maberry; and multi-award winning and NYTimes bestseller Jackie Mitchard.

Lisa began Running Wild with the belief that we can change the world through story. A noted author in her own right, Lisa was a Drexel Scholar, obtained her BS from Drexel University, her MBA from Pennsylvania State University, and her MFA from Fairfield University.

Find out more about Lisa and Running Wild.

Where: Village Well Books & Coffee

Date: Sunday the 11^th

Time: 12 pm – 3 pm

Address: 9900 Culver Blvd. #1B, Culver City, CA 90232

Website: Event Page

Fundraiser: Poetry in the Time of War and Genocide, Writing Our Humanity and Resistance, with Teresa Mei Chuc at People’s Cafe – In-Person Event

How do the words and weapons used by the oppressor violently erase lives and narratives through the propaganda and war machine? What is the impact of silence? How could we wield the language of poetry and truth, the tools of our ancestors that echo through millennia, to connect and resist?

Join us on Sunday, October 11 from 2 pm to 4 pm at People’s Cafe Memories of El Monte to write and build a community of poets and writers against war and genocide.

This poetry workshop, facilitated by Teresa Mei Chuc, poet, publisher, educator and former Altadena Poet Laureate, is a fundraiser for the Veterans for Peace & About Face delegation on a Peace Speaking Tour to Japan and Okinawa.

Suggested donation — $25 but no one will be turned away for lack of funds.

Where: People’s Café, Memories of El Monte

Date: Sunday the 11^th

Time: 2 pm – 4 pm

Address: 10809 Garvey Ave., El Monte, CA 91733

Website: Instagram Page

Cellar Door Book Club: The Reformatory at Cellar Door Bookstore – In-Person Event

Participants will discuss The Reformatory: A Novel by Tananarive Due.

Gracetown, Florida.

June 1950.

Twelve-year-old Robbie Stephens Jr. is sentenced to six months at the Gracetown School for Boys, a reformatory, for kicking the son of the largest landowner in town in defense of his older sister, Gloria. So begins Robbie’s journey further into the terrors of the Jim Crow South and the very real horror of the school they call The Reformatory.

Robbie has a talent for seeing ghosts, or haints. But what was once a comfort to him after the loss of his mother has become a window to the truth of what happens at the reformatory. Boys forced to work to remediate their so-called crimes have gone missing, but the haints Robbie sees hint at worse things. Through his friends Redbone and Blue, Robbie is learning not just the rules, but how to survive. Meanwhile, Gloria is rallying every family member and connection in Florida to find a way to get Robbie out before it’s too late.

The Reformatory is a “hallucinatory, haunting, terrifying, and moving” (S.A. Cosby, bestselling author of All the Sinners Bleed) work of historical fiction written as only American Book Award–winning author Tananarive Due could, by piecing together the life of the relative her family never spoke of and bringing his tragedy and those of so many others at the infamous Dozier School for Boys to the light in this riveting novel.

Tananarive Due is an American Book Award and NAACP Image Award–winning author, who was an executive producer on Horror Noire: A History of Black Horror for Shudder and teaches Afrofuturism and Black Horror at UCLA. She and her husband, science fiction author Steven Barnes, cowrote the graphic novel The Keeper and an episode for Season 2 of The Twilight Zone for Paramount Plus and Monkeypaw Productions. Due is the author of several novels and two short story collections, Ghost Summer: Stories and The Wishing Pool and Other Stories. She is also coauthor of a civil rights memoir, Freedom in the Family: A Mother-Daughter Memoir of the Fight for Civil Rights (with her late mother, Patricia Stephens Due). Learn more at TananariveDue.com.

Where: Cellar Door Bookstore

Date: Sunday the 11^th

Time: 2 pm – 3 pm

Address: 6675 Magnolia Ave., Riverside, CA 92506

Website: https://cellardoorbookstore.com/event/2026-10-11/cellar-door-book-club-reformatory

Learn to Love Reading: Max Brallier and Sarah Mlynowski at Children’s Book World – In-Person Kids Event

Join award winning authors & friends, Max Brallier and Sarah Mlynowski, for a fun-filled talk about writing stories & creating books that kids love!

Celebrating the launch of Sarah’s first book in her new short chapter series, The Luckies: Rumor Has It, and just in time for the spooky season Max’s spine tingling, edge of your seat, story collection, The Dark and Other Scary Stories.

Sarah Mlynowski is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author and coauthor of over fifty books for teens, tweens, kids, and adults, including the Whatever After series, the Best Wishes series, and the Upside-Down Magic series, which was adapted into a Disney Channel movie. Originally from Montreal, Sarah now lives in Los Angeles with her family.

The Luckies #1: Rumor Has It is an exciting new line of books that feature short, irresistible stories that include both full-color and black-and-white art that’s sure to keep you hooked. Rumor Has It, follows two stepsisters who don’t get along at all. When a blended family brings together two very different girls—each with their own secrets, crushes, and schemes—drama ensues. Will Annie and Leela find a way to get along, or is their luck about to run out? Fast-paced and bingeable, this book features gorgeous illustrations by artist Madi Wong that bring the characters and setting to life.

Max Brallier is the New York Times bestselling author of more than 20 books for children, including the Mister Shivers early reader series, and The Last Kids on Earth middle-grade series. Under the pen name Jack Chabert, he is the creator and author of the Eerie Elementary series with Scholastic Branches. Max lives in Los Angeles with his wife and daughter.

The Dark: This scary story collection—from the New York Times bestselling author of the Last Kids on Earth series—will send SHIVERS down your spine! Read if you dare! This collection of ten terrifying tales by New York Times bestselling author Max Brallier is THE book to share at sleepovers or around a campfire! Each story is illustrated in haunting, full-color artwork by Letizia Rubegni, and told with spare yet scare-inducing text. If you love sleepless nights and monsters that lurk in the dark, then this spine-chilling book is for you! Hand this book to anyone searching for a good scare! It’s perfect for new and newly independent readers alike. And it is a must-have for fans of Max Brallier’s Mister Shivers Acorn series because it includes nine of the series’ spookiest stories in one place, PLUS a brand-new, hair-raising story exclusive to this collectible edition.

Where: Children’s Book World

Date: Sunday the 11^th

Time: 2 pm – 3 pm

Address: 10580 1/2 W. Pico Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90064

Website: https://childrensbookworld.com/event/2026-10-11/learn-love-reading-beloved-authors-sarah-mlynowski-and-max-brallier

Matt Singer, with Tim Grierson, & Funny Business: The Old-School Wedding Crashers and Knocked-Up Virgins Who Changed Comedy Forever at Vroman’s – In-Person Event

Matt Singer, in conversation with Tim Grierson, will discuss Funny Business: The Old-School Wedding Crashers and Knocked-Up Virgins Who Changed Comedy Forever.

A celebration of a generation of iconic comedies—the raunchy, blockbuster “Frat Pack” films of the early 2000s—and a no-holds-barred look at their rise and fall in Hollywood, the effects of which can still be felt in the fractured media landscape of today.

If you were a moviegoer in the early aughts, you had a front-row seat to a golden age of comedy. Ben Stiller, Seth Rogen, Will Ferrell, Owen Wilson, Steve Carell, and Vince Vaughn became unlikely leading men—a band of rowdy wedding crashers, hungover bachelors, and 40-year-old virgins dubbed the “Frat Pack” that took Hollywood by storm over the span of a single decade. Then, seemingly overnight, Frat Pack movies vanished. Or did they?

In Funny Business, award-winning author and film critic Matt Singer traces the path these gonzo stars and directors took from the fringes of comedy to the mainstream—beginning on tiny stages like Second City and the Groundlings, then infiltrating into talent incubators like SNL, eventually leading to the big screen. Along the way, he shares insider stories of the films that raised a generation, including: The 40-Year-Old Virgin, Zoolander, Borat, Anchorman, Old School, and The Hangover.

How did these movies and their stars come to dominate a generation of moviemaking? Who won—and who was left out—of this comedy boom? And can studio comedies make a comeback in our modern digital and streaming world? Funny Business points the way forward to a (possible) new future for cinema—never forgetting that the audience always gets the last laugh.

Matt Singer is the editor and film critic of ScreenCrush.com and a member of the New York Film Critics Circle. He is also the author of Marvel’s Spider-Man: From Amazing to Spectacular and Opposable Thumbs: How Siskel & Ebert Changed Movies Forever. He lives in Brooklyn with his wife and two daughters.

RSVP

Where: Vroman’s

Date: Sunday the 11^th

Time: 2 pm

Address: 695 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, CA 91101

Website: https://vromansbookstore.com/event/2026-10-11/matt-singer

LiveTalks LA Presents: Olivia Harrison, with Cameron Crowe, & George Harrison: The Third Eye at Robert Frost Auditorium – In-Person & Online Hybrid Event

Join us for an event to celebrate The Third Eye, an extraordinary collection of more than two hundred photographs by George Harrison, capturing the Beatles at work and at play—many published for the first time. Olivia Harrison, George Harrison’s widow and the curator of The Third Eye, will join Cameron Crowe for a conversation illustrated with George’s photographs, exploring his unique artistic vision and the extraordinary moments they capture.

The Third Eye opens a window into the world of the Beatles—and the transformative cultural moment that they sparked—through the singular artistic vision of George Harrison. From 1963 to 1969, Harrison traveled the world with his bandmates, Pentax in hand, chronicling their impossible path from Liverpool to Ed Sullivan, Adelaide to Rishikesh, the Eiffel Tower to the beaches of Tahiti and beyond. This extraordinary collection of George’s personal photos and 8mm film stills includes singular images of Paul, John, Ringo, and George and the band’s friends and entourage as they rocketed to stardom and fostered the joyful madness that came to be known as Beatlemania. The candid, unguarded photos, brimming with Harrison’s wit, intelligence, and penchant for experimentation (he was enamored of selfies, long before the iPhone), and snapped in those rare moments out of the spotlight offer a remarkable, inside look at the human beings behind the Beatles.

George Harrison became known to millions of fans in the 1960s as the lead guitarist of the Beatles. His solo album, All Things Must Pass, topped the US and UK charts for weeks and remains the highest-selling solo album by any of the Beatles. He was the recipient of many awards, including twelve Grammys, appointment as an MBE by the Queen, and induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame both as a member of the Beatles and as a solo artist.

After meeting her husband George when she worked at A & M Records, Olivia Harrison went on to help run his Dark Horse record label. In 1990, she founded the Romanian Angel Appeal to support orphans. Since George’s death in 2001, she has continued their international aid partnership with UNICEF and is the curator of his legacy. With Martin Scorcese directing, she produced the HBO documentary George Harrison: Living in the Material World. In 2021, along with surviving members of the Beatles and Yoko Ono, she shared an Emmy as producer of The Beatles: Get Back

Cameron Crowe has chronicled music and culture for decades. His best-selling books include Fast Times at Ridgemont High, Almost Famous, Conversations with Wilder and his 2025 memoir, The Uncool. He wrote the screenplay for the smash hit Jerry Maguire, has produced acclaimed documentaries including David Crosby: Remember My Name and is currently at work on a feature-film based on the life and music of the legendary Joni Mitchell. Crowe has won an Oscar, a Grammy, the PEN Literary Award and been nominated for a Tony and a DGA award.

RSVP: Ticketed

Where: Robert Frost Auditorium

Date: Sunday the 11^th

Time: 4 pm

Address: 401 Elenda St., Culver City, CA 90230

Website: LiveTalks Event Page

What Books Press Fiction Launch: Sean Bernard, Paul Bergstraesser, and Dylan Bassett at Village Well Books & Coffee – In-Person Event

Sean Bernard, Paul Bergstraesser, and Dylan Bassett will gather to discuss and read from their new work.

Sean Bernard directs the BA Creative Writing Program at the University of La Verne. He studied creative writing at Arizona, Oregon State, and the Iowa Writers Workshop, and has received grants and fellowships from numerous groups including the National Endowment for the Arts. His novel, Studies in the Hereafter, was published in 2015, and his collection Desert sonorous was awarded the 2014 Juniper Prize. His prose has appeared in The Iowa Review, Santa Monica Review, The Common, Glimmer Train, The Gettysburg Review, and elsewhere.

Can Writing Be Taught & Other Novel Ideas by Sean Bernard is a singular journey into the dark and tender heart of literature, wandering the minefields of the private act and the public surrender of writing and the fraught tension of a long, complex relationship between a teacher and student, mentor and mentee, lover and lover. Plus, a murder mystery spreading out from its center.

Paul Bergstraesser’s prose and poetry have appeared in The Barcelona Review, The Portland Review, Another Chicago Magazine, and The American Journal of Poetry. He was awarded a National Endowment for the Arts prose fellowship and has been a finalist for the Autumn House Press fiction prize numerous times. He teaches creative writing and literature at the University of Wyoming and lives in Laramie with his wife and son.

The Less Said by Paul Bergstraesser encourages its readers to dive into the obsessive, darkly comic mind of the 60ish narrator, P—. He’s been diagnosed with terminal cansha, he calls it, and decides, along with his wife and college-age son, that a final celebration of life is in order. Over a single weekend, friends and family travel to a destination to fete P—one last time. The wrinkle: P—has hired a killer to dispatch him, the where and when unknown. Against this backdrop, P—compulsively records random memories from his life into a voice recorder, a request from his son. What emerges is an end-of-life story that deftly balances the play of irony and a heartbreaking humanity.

Dylan Bassett is the author of the novel Gad’s Book (2023). His fiction and plays have appeared in Chicago Review, Gulf Coast, Cincinnati Review, and elsewhere. He teaches creative writing at the University of Central Florida and is the founding editor of Bench Editions.

Nearest Exit by Dylan Bassett is a fragmented novel set in airports around the world. It treats the airport as a charged zone of anonymity and exposure where moments of confession, absurdity, and recognition emerge in transit. Composed from conversations and encounters with strangers, it takes up topics such as mental illness, religion, and technology.

Where: Village Well Books & Coffee

Date: Sunday the 11^th

Time: 4:30 pm – 6 pm

Address: 9900 Culver Blvd. #1B, Culver City, CA 90232

Website: Event Page

Second Sunday Poetry Series: William Slattery at The Studio Theatre at St. Denis Building – In-Person Event

This Open Mic poetry show, hosted by Alex M. Frankel, happens on the second Sunday of every month. Great poets perform their work, sell and sign books, and mingle with audience members and open mic participants.

William Slattery’s poems and essays have appeared in The Magazine of Speculative Poetry, Poetry LA, Santa Clara Review, ONTHEBUS, The Herman Review, The Los Angeles Review of Los Angeles, Antioch Review, and elsewhere. His first book, Slattery’s Wake, was written with the help of Alex M. Frankel’s Saturday afternoon poetry workshop, that Slattery has attended since the years when it was co-anchored by Alex and Bob Foster at Beyond Baroque.

Tom Laichas on Slattery’s Wake:

The poet William Slattery is dead, and William Slattery—the deceased’s biographer, though no relation—attends his wake. Between the alcohol and the acid, this is the party your mother warned you about…sex, psychedelia, campus politics, fortune-telling, death, quantum physics, poetics, New Jersey Irishry, God, and tequila. With a sly formalism, Slattery’s epic gives antic side-eye to Dante, Eliot, Joyce, and Berryman.

Where: The Studio Theatre at St. Denis Building

Date: Sunday the 11^th

Time: 5 pm

Address: 3433 Cahuenga Blvd. West, Los Angeles, CA 90068

Website: https://www.secondsundaypoetry.com/upcoming-poets.html

Library Girl 17^th Anniversary Celebration: Meet Me at the Forgiveness Tree at Ruskin Group Theater – In-Person Event

Second Sunday of every month!

Created by Susan Hayden, this 17th anniversary event features spoken word, poetry, and live music.

Performers: Includes readings from Jane Cantillon, Cory BessKepp Cofer, Jeff Greenstein, Cassandra Lane, Victoria Looseleaf, Bruce McIntosh, Genesis Perez, and John Waldman, plus music by Victoria Jacobs.

Jane Cantillon is a poet known for her autobiographical works that often explore themes of identity, sexuality, and community. She has participated in various literary events, including readings that highlight the experiences of LGBT seniors and the nuances of queer memoirs.

Cory BessKepp Cofer is an HBO Def Poet and two-time National Poetry Team member, his debut collection of poetry Dreaming Under Polka-Dot Stars was published in January 2023 by World Stage Press. A lifelong educator, Cofer earned a Master of Arts in Education. He co-founded the open mic A Mic & Dim Lights.

Jeff Greenstein N/A

Cassandra Lane is the Los Angeles-based Author of We Are Bridges (Feminist Press, 2021). She is also editor in chief of L.A. Parent. Born and raised in Louisiana, Cassandra made the transition from La. to L.A. in 2001.

Victoria Looseleaf is an American author, arts journalist, and poet, known for her contributions to various publications including the Los Angeles Times and Dance Magazine. She has also written a biography of Leonardo DiCaprio and created the cable access show “The Looseleaf Report,” featuring numerous notable guests.

Bruce McIntosh N/A

Genesis Perez is a queer Chicana poet and performer from Oxnard, California. They are the Program and Bookstore Assistant at Beyond Baroque Literary Arts Center. From 2019 to 2020 they were the Youth Poet Laureate of Ventura County. They released their debut collection of poetry, Flash Photography in 2021. Perez has performed at .Paak House, Medicine for Nightmares, and Stories Books and Cafe.

John Waldman spent eleven years in San Francisco and then three in Champaign, Illinois, before settling in Culver City, California where he lives with his wife Elizabeth and his son Louis. Much of his adult life has been an ongoing pattern of playing soccer until he needs a knee operation and teaching elementary school. His poems have appeared in Cream City Review, Brooklyn Review, Spoon River Poetry Review, and other publications.

Victoria Jacobs is an accomplished drummer and singer songwriter from Chicago, with a rich career in her adopted town of Los Angeles.

If you’d like, I can help you find info on parking options at the Santa Monica Airport or how to reserve tickets before seating sells out.

Where: Ruskin Group Theater

Date: Sunday the 11^th

Time: 7 pm – 9 pm (Taco Cart in parking lot at 6 pm)

Address: 2800 Airport Ave., Santa Monica, CA 90405

Website: Facebook Page

Fantasy Romance LA Book Club: House of Rayne at The Ripped Bodice – In-Person Event

Bookseller Grace leads our fantasy and paranormal romance book club.

Book for October: House of Rayne by Harley Laroux.

We meet at 7:15 pm on the second Sunday in the store!

No membership is necessary, but RSVP is required.

Where: The Ripped Bodice

Date: Sunday the 11^th

Time: 7:15 pm – 8:30 pm

Address: 3806 Main Street, Culver City, CA 90232

Website: https://therippedbodice.com/event/2026-10-11/fantasy-romance-la-book-club-october-2026

Los Angeles Literature

Online magazine covering L.A.'s vast literary community.

Los Angeles Literature Events: 10/05/26 – 10/11/26

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Brian Dunlap

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