Another busy week full of literary events: readings, open mics, book clubs and workshops all throughout the L.Á. area. There is even several YA, teen event and kids events. Local writers reading this week are: bridgette bianca, Lisbeth Coiman, Carla Sameth, Jen Cheng, James Coats, Kim Dower, Arthur Kayzakian and Romaine Washington, among others. Continue reading Los Angeles Literature Events: 02/06/23 – 02/12/23
Another busy week full of literary events: readings, open mics, book clubs and workshops all throughout the L.Á. area. There is even a YA, teen event and several kids events. Local writers reading this week are: Christina Hammonds Reed, Luivette Resto, Matt Sedillo, James Evert Jones, Natalie Sierra and Elisabeth Houston, among others. Continue reading Los Angeles Literature Events: 01/30/23 – 02/05/23
At the stroke of midnight on January 1, 2023, Poet Ceasar K. Avelar became Pomona’s second Poet Laureate. He took over the reins from David “Judah 1” Oliver, a passionate poet who wears many hats—artist, poet, author, art advisor, and is the Co-Host and Founder of LionLike MindState Poetry and Art Series at the Pomona Fairplex. Avelar steps into the role of Poet Laureate, having become known in the Southern California poetry community for his proletariat-infused poetry and as the host of the monthly open mic “Obsidian Tongues” every second Saturday of the month at Café con Libros Press in Pomona’s Arts Colony. Plus, next year FlowerSong Press will publish his debut poetry collection.
Continue reading “New Poet Laureate of Pomona”
The first list of weekly events of the year. There are readings, open mics, book clubs and workshops from Pomona to Venice to Orange and Santa Ana to Long Beach to everywhere in-between. There is even a few YA and kids events. Local writers reading this week are: poet Alma Rosa Rivera, novelist Jordan Harper, spoken word poet Christian Perfas “Soulstuf,” novelist Janet Fitch, poet Patty Chavez and poet Carlos Ornelas, among others. Continue reading Los Angeles Literature Events: 01/09/23 – 01/15/23
Book Club Bonanza and Indigenous Voices: YA Reads A Snake Falls to Earth via Central Library, LAPL – Online Teen Event
This book club for teens will read a YA fiction book to read to celebrate Indigenous Voices month, and today will have an activity related to this month’s selection, A Snake Falls to Earth, by Little Darcie Badger.
NATIONAL BESTSELLERNEWBERY AWARD HONORAMERICAN INDIAN YOUTH LITERATURE AWARD HONORNATIONAL BOOK AWARD LONGLIST, among others.
In this work of Indigenous futurism, the author draws on traditional Lipan Apache storytelling structure to weave another unforgettable tale of monsters, magic, and family.
Nina is a Lipan girl in our world. She’s always felt there was something more out there. She still believes in the old stories.
Oli is a cottonmouth kid, from the land of spirits and monsters. Like all cottonmouths, he’s been cast from home. He’s found a new one on the banks of the bottomless lake.
Nina and Oli have no idea the other exists. But a catastrophic event on Earth, and a strange sickness that befalls Oli’s best friend, will drive their worlds together in ways they haven’t been in centuries.
NOTE: See site for link and details.
Where: Central Library, LAPL
Date: Monday the 14th
Time: 4:30 pm – 5:30 pm
Address: Online Event (see site)
Website: https://lapl.org/whats-on/events/book-club-bonanza-indigenous-voices-0
Continue reading “Los Angeles Literature Events: 11/21/22 – 11/27/22”
Peter Merts & Ex Crucible: The Passion of Incarcerated Artists at Chevalier’s Bookstore – In-Person Event
Prison Arts collective will have an art auction and author and photographer Peter Merts will present and discuss Ex Crucible: The Passion of Incarcerated Artists. The photographs of Ex Crucible show incarcerated men and women creating artworks with a talent, passion, and authenticity that illuminate the humanity of the artists. These intimate photographs demonstrate the importance that creativity can have in these bleak, controlled spaces.
Peter Merts has been a photographer for 40 years, focusing on documentary, portrait, and fine arts projects. Peter has documented California’s Arts in Corrections program, both as a volunteer, and under contract with the California Arts Council. He has photographed in all 36 of California’s adult state prisons and serves on the advisory board of the Prison Arts Collective, a provider of prison arts programming. Peter co-published, with Dr. Larry Brewster, the book Paths of Discovery: Art Practice and Its Impact in California State Prisons (now in its 2nd edition); in 2022, he published a monograph of his prison arts work, Ex Crucible: The Passion of Incarcerated Artists (Daylight Books).
NOTE: See site for free tickets, guidelines, and details.
Where: Chevalier’s Bookstore
Date: Monday the 10th
Time: 6 pm – 7:30 pm
Address: 133 N. Larchmont Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90004
Website: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/art-auction-book-talk-ex-crucible-by-peter-merts-tickets-428745418087
Continue reading “Los Angeles Literature Events: 10/10/22 – 10/16/22”
Los Angeles Literature Events: 09/12/22 – 09/18/22
NOTE: There Are Both Online and Virtual Events Listed Here
Woodland Hills Mystery Book Club Discussion: Your House Will Pay at Washington Irving Branch Library, LAPL – In-Person & Online (Hybrid) Event
A novel about racial tensions in Los Angeles, following two families—one Korean-American, one African-American—grappling with the effects of a decades-old crime.
In the wake of the police shooting of a black teenager, Los Angeles is as tense as it’s been since the unrest of the early 1990s. But Grace Park and Shawn Matthews have their own problems. Grace is sheltered and largely oblivious, living in the Valley with her Korean-immigrant parents, working long hours at the family pharmacy. She’s distraught that her sister hasn’t spoken to their mother in two years, for reasons beyond Grace’s understanding. Shawn has already had enough of politics and protest after an act of violence shattered his family years ago. He just wants to be left alone to enjoy his quiet life in Palmdale.
But when another shocking crime hits LA, both the Park and Matthews families are forced to face down their history while navigating the tumult of a city on the brink of more violence.
Discussion is facilitated by Mary C. Schaffer. Books are read in advance of the meetings and are available to borrow from the Woodland Hills Library Reference Desk or you may place a copy on hold through the library catalog or Libby app.
Please call (818) 226-0017 for more information.
NOTE: See site for link, guidelines, and details.
Where: Woodland Hills Branch Library, LAPL Community Room
Date: Monday the 12th
Time: 4 pm
Address: 22200 Ventura Blvd., Woodland Hills, CA 91364 (or online; see site)
Website: https://lapl.org/whats-on/events/mystery-book-club-8
Continue reading “Los Angeles Literature Events: 09/12/22 – 09/18/22”
NOTE: There Are Both Online and Virtual Events Listed Here
Monday Night Fiction Workshop at Beyond Baroque – Zoom Online Event
This free Monday Night Fiction Workshop led by Raquel Baker is a community writing 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 Assistant Professor of Postcolonial Studies and Transnational Literatures at CSU Channel Islands. She has published poetry and nonfiction and done readings with the Ventura Poetry Project.
Where: Beyond Baroque – Online event (tickets at Eventbrite) (check to verify)
Date: Monday the 5th
Time: 7:30 pm – 10 pm
Address: Zoom Online
Website: https://beyondbaroque.org/free_workshops.html or https://www.eventbrite.com/e/monday-night-fiction-workshop-tickets-411567458347
Continue reading “Los Angeles Literature Events: 09/05/22 – 09/11/22”
NOTE: There Are Both Online and Virtual Events Listed Here
Sara Woster, with Jackie Kashian, & Painting Can Save Your Life at Chevalier’s Bookstore – In-Person Event
Join us to hear Sara Woster, in conversation with Jackie Kashian, discuss and sign her book, Painting Can Save Your Life: How and Why We Paint.
Artist and founder of The Painting School Sara Woster invites readers into the vibrant world of painting as a creative practice powerful enough to transform our lives.
Weaving soup-to-nuts instruction on how to paint–from choosing the right materials to painting the human body–with her own story of discovering a passion for painting, this book includes:
NOTE: See site for guidelines and details.
Where: Chevalier’s Bookstore
Date: Monday the 22nd
Time: 6 pm
Address: 133 N. Larchmont Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90004
Continue reading “Los Angeles Literature Events: 08/22/22 – 08/28/22”
NOTE: There Are Both Online and Virtual Events Listed Here
Quantum Book Club: Her Body and Other Parties at The Book Jewel Bookstore – In-Person Event
Join the Quantum Book Club to discuss the book, Her Body and Other Parties, by Carmen Maria Machado.
In Her Body and Other Parties, Carmen Maria Machado blithely demolishes the arbitrary borders between psychological realism and science fiction, comedy and horror, fantasy and fabulism. While her work has earned her comparisons to Karen Russell and Kelly Link, she has a voice that is all her own. In this electric and provocative debut, Machado bends genre to shape startling narratives that map the realities of women’s lives and the violence visited upon their bodies.
NOTE: See site for RSVP, book purchase, guidelines, and details.
Where: The Book Jewel Bookstore
Date: Monday the 25th
Time: 6 pm
Address: 6259 W. 87th St., Los Angeles, CA 90045
Website: https://www.thebookjewel.com/quantum-book-club
Continue reading “Los Angeles Literature Events: 07/25/22 – 07/31/22”
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