127. Reading the City
May 11 to 17
Welcome back to Reading the City, a weekly newsletter of bookish events in NYC.
This week, a collaboration between The Freya Project and Les Bleus literary salon promises to be a beautiful evening, there’s new books from Emma Copley Eisenberg and Isaac Fitzgerald amongst others, and The Drift celebrates their latest issue with a party.
Also, if you haven’t heard about Page Break retreats then you should check them out; there’s just two spots left on this weekend’s excursion upstate reading Palaver by Bryan Washington.
As ever, get in touch with events I should have on my radar (details on how to submit are here), and please share the love with your bookish friends!
Monday, May 11
LAUNCH | Isaac Fitzgerald: American Rambler
Isaac Fitzgerald (Dirtbag, Massachusetts) celebrates the launch of American Rambler: Walking the Trail of Johnny Appleseed—in this moving blend of memoir, history, and travelogue, Fitzgerald sets off to the heart of America, following the path of the legendary Johnny Appleseed on an epic journey that both takes him far from home and brings him closer to it. In conversation with Roxane Gay (Bad Feminist). Fitzgerald’s Manhattan launch will be Tuesday at The Strand with Emily St. John Mandel.
$10, redeemable in-store; 7-8pm; Books Are Magic Montague, 122 Montague Street, Brooklyn, and livestreamed free
SERIES | Franklin Park Reading Series
Franklin Park welcomes authors Xochitl Gonzalez (Last Night in Brooklyn), Emily Nemens (Clutch), Monika Ostrowska (Squirming), Zach Powers (The Migraine Diaries), Kim Samek (I Am the Ghost Here), and Kevin Sampsell (Baby in the Night). Hosted by founder Penina Roth, enjoy drink specials, mingle with fellow book enthusiasts, and get a shot at readers’ latest books in the free-to-enter raffle.
Free; 8-10pm; 766 Franklin Avenue, 618 St Johns Pl, Brooklyn
TALK | Hunter Distinguished Writers Series: Angela Flournoy
The Hunter MFA Creative Writing Program and the Distinguished Writers Series present Angela Flournoy (The Wilderness). The event is open to students and the public.
Free; 7.30pm; Faculty & Staff Café, Hunter West, 8th Floor, 68th Street and Lexington Avenue, Manhattan
LAUNCH | Y.M. Abdel-Magied: At Sea
I love the sound of this one. Yassmin Abdel-Magied presents At Sea, her first adult novel and her American debut—a propulsive novel of ambition, greed, and the deadly fury of Mother Nature, as a female driller takes charge of an isolated offshore oil rig with an entirely male crew—in conversation with culture writer Shamira Ibrahim. Musical performance by Alsarah. In partnership with Acacia Magazine.
Free; 7.30pm; Greenlight bookstore, 686 Fulton Street, Brooklyn
Tuesday, May 12
ONE-OFF | The Freya Project x Les Bleus: New Beginnings
The Freya Project teams up with Les Bleus literary salon to raise money for The Mariposa Fund, an abortion fund for people who are undocumented or impacted by the immigration system, with readings by Hannah Lillith Assadi (Paradiso 17), Libby Flores (All Good Men, forthcoming), Soraya Palmer (The Human Origins of Beatrice Porter and Other Essential Ghosts), and Stephanie Wambugu (Lonely Crowds).
Free; 7-9pm; Elsa, 136 Atlantic Avenue, Brooklyn
SERIES | Must Love Memoir
A monthly reading series dedicated to telling personal stories, hosted by Krystal Orwig and Hope Elizabeth Kidd (subscribe to Substack then Krystal says for news of when their submission window opens), this month features Tom Sleigh (Rosie: A Memoir of Farewell), Carly Ann Filbin (the founder of Written in Brooklyn), Ally Agudelo, Hannah Donigan, and Jerry Portwood (the founder of The Queer Love Project).
Free; 7.30pm; Jake’s Dilemma, Oak Cellar Room, 430 Amsterdam Avenue, New York
LAUNCH | Kerri Schlottman: Daytime Moon
Kerri Schlottman (Tell Me One Thing) celebrates the launch of Daytime Moon—an unforgettable journey through hidden stories, the depths of women’s secrets, the shimmering fluidity of memory, and the magic of transmutation—in conversation with Laura Venita Green (Sister Creatures).
$10; 6.30-8pm; P&T Knitwear, 180 Orchard Street, Manhattan
SERIES | Patio no. 19
With readers Conor Hultman, Arthur Sillers, nicole Sellew (Lover Girl), Shy Watson (Cheap Yellow), Tracy O’Neill (Woman of Interest), and Andrew Ridker (Hope). Hosted by Bronwen Lam and David Dufour.
Free; doors, 7pm; T.J. Byrnes Bar & Restaurant, behind 55 Fulton Market, 77 Fulton St, Manhattan
LAUNCH | Mikki Brammer: Good Joy, Bad Joy
Mikki Brammer (The Collected Regrets of Clover) celebrates the release of her new book Good Joy, Bad Joy—a vibrant, heartfelt novel about friendship over the decades, self-discovery, and what it means to have a life well-lived—in conversation with Tracey Lien (All That’s Left Unsaid).
Free; 6.30pm; Barnes & Noble, 194 Atlantic Ave, Brooklyn
ONE-OFF | Paula Bomer: The Stalker
The lovely Black Spring Books is hosting Paula Bomer (The Stalker) for a reading, alongside Megan Nolan (Acts of Desperation), Izzy Casey, and Bud Smith (Teenager).
Free; 7pm; Black Spring Books, 672 Driggs Ave, Brooklyn
Wednesday, May 13
LAUNCH | Emma Copley Eisenberg: Fat Swim
Emma Copley Eisenberg (Housemates) celebrates the launch of her new short-story collection, Fat Swim—loosely linked stories examining bodies and queerness in the city of Philadelphia, Fat Swim traverses violence and desire in a world full of looking and watching—in conversation with Tembe Denton-Hurst (Homebodies).
$10; 7-8.15pm; The Center for Fiction, 15 Lafayette Avenue, Brooklyn, and livestreamed
LAUNCH | Bindu Bansinath: Men Like Ours
Bindu Bansinath, senior writer for New York Magazine’s The Cut, launches her debut Men Like Ours, a darkly funny and moving story about death, life, and community in a South Asian suburban enclave of New Jersey. In conversation with Daphne Palasi Andreades (Brown Girls). Wine reception to follow.
Free; 7.30pm; Greenlight bookstore, 686 Fulton Street, Brooklyn
Thursday, May 14
SERIES | Letters Live
Bookish adjacent but I love this event. Letters Live features a surprise star-studded cast (previous shows have welcomed Bryan Cranston, Cynthia Erivo, Benedict Cumberbatch, etc.) reading remarkable letters from across history.
From $65; 7.30pm; The Town Hall, Manhattan
LAUNCH | The Drift Issue Seventeen Launch Party
The Drift celebrates Issue Seventeen with short readings from issue contributors Emma Adler, Lily Gabaree, Ismail Ibrahim, Adam Judah Krasnoff, Megan Marz, Gracie Newman, Caroline Porter, Maia Silber, Kion You, and Ege Yumuşak, followed by a party. Free for subscribers.
$20, including magazine issue; 7pm; NeueHouse, 110 E 25th St, Manhattan
FUNDRAISER | Lit Mags Unite Against ICE!
Epiphany Magazine, Eckleburg Review, and Split Lip Magazine team up for an open mic night with all ticket sales benefitting the Immigrant Defense Project. Readings from recent contributors Christina Cooke (Broughtupsy), Quinn Ranzen, Joshua Garcia (Pentimento), and Skyler Melnick, with music from Roselle.
$5; 6-9pm; Starr Bar, 214 Starr St, Brooklyn
Friday, May 15
FUNDRAISER | I Feel Nothing Like Good: A Fundraiser Against Genocide & Anthology Launch
Join Taylor & Co. Books, The Poetry Society of New York, and Poets House for a fundraiser sit-in in protest of genocidal regimes, marking the launch of the anthology I Feel Nothing Like Good: Poets Against Genocide, which brings together over 50 poets from around the world responding to the ethical dissonance of living through ongoing violence, erasure, and state-sanctioned harm. Proceeds from both the anthology and the event will be donated to The Sameer Project, a mutual aid organization providing direct humanitarian aid to Palestinians in Gaza, and the Sudanese American Physicians Association, a network of medical professionals working to support & strengthen the Sudanese healthcare community in the U.S. & beyond.
Pay what you can; 6-8pm; Poets House, 10 River Terrace, Manhattan
SERIES | The Parlor
An interdisciplinary reading series in Ditmas Park, organized by Emily Roese, Andrea Abello, and the Brooklyn Artery. Line up TBA.
Free, but donations encouraged for the writers; 7.30-9.30pm; Brooklyn Artery, 1004 Cortelyou Rd, Brooklyn
LAUNCH | Aziz Abu Sarah and Maoz Inon: The Future Is Peace
Palestinian Aziz Abu Sarah and Israeli Maoz Inon, two lifelong peace activists and guides to Israel/Palestine, discuss their new book, The Future Is Peace: A Shared Journey Across the Holy Land, about a life-changing journey across their countries and the mythic, political, and personal histories that divide—and bind—them and their peoples.
Free, with registration; 7-8pm; NYPL, Stephen A. Schwarzman Building, 476 5th Ave, Manhattan, and livestreamed
SERIES | Words and Music
An evening of words and music, hosted by Sam Rappaport, in a private residence (BYOB & shoes off), featuring readers and performers Alex Sniatkowski, Colette Estelle, Jack McGovern, Holiday Dmitri, and Lily Arminda.
Free; doors, 8pm, show 9pm; Park Slope, address upon RSVP
Saturday, May 16
ONE-OFF | Book Release Party & Community Conversation: Livonia Chow Mein
Join Yellow Peril Books to celebrate the release of Abigail Savitch-Lew’s debut novel Livonia Chow Mein—a gripping story centered around a Chinese family-owned restaurant on Livonia Avenue and its relationship to the neighborhood’s Jewish and Black residents over the course of a century—with Rev. Cathie Wright-Lewis, novelist and director of Power in the Pen Writing Workshop, facilitating the evening. The event will feature a Chinese American buffet meal, poetry readings by members of Power in the Pen Writing, a reading and Q&A with Savitch-Lew, and an interactive community discussion on Black-Asian solidarity.
Free, with RSVP; 4-6.30pm; Brownsville Heritage House Inc, 581 Mother Gaston Boulevard, Brooklyn
ONE-OFF | Writing Field Trip to Queens Museum with Lisa Ko
This is new to me but sounds like a great Saturday. Hosted by One Story, join a writing field trip to Queens Museum and Flushing Meadows Corona Park to find inspiration through a guided tour, a craft lecture by Lisa Ko (Memory Piece), a generative writing exercise, and a reading of student work.
From $10, sliding scale; 12.30-3.15pm; Queens Museum.
This post was written by a human. Please check all details before attending.
I’m a Brooklyn-based journalist and author. My debut novel Amphibian is out now. I’m here and here on Instagram.
Thank you so much for doing these roundups!!!!! ❤️❤️❤️❤️
Thanks for the shoutout for Daytime Moon's launch tomorrow! <3