Reading the City
Welcome to Reading the City, a weekly newsletter of bookish events in and around NYC.
This month we have Mary Gaitskill at McNally Jackson, Melissa Febos at Hunter College, horror stories at The Strand, and a conversation between the greats that are Jesmyn Ward and Ta-Nehisi Coates—and a reader poll to help me figure out what next.
Send feedback, send help, send events I should have on my radar, say hi!
Monday, October 23
The Café & Bar Presents Drink & Draft Night
Hosted by Josh Krigman, Drink & Draft is a night to get you unstuck and inspired in your writing, through a series of visual prompts and style experiments. Optional sharing; all genres welcome; no experience necessary.
$25 inc. first drink from the Cafe & Bar (beer, wine, or speciality cocktail); 6pm - 7.30pm; Center for Fiction, 15 Lafayette Avenue, Brooklyn
Kelsey Norris presents House Gone Quiet: Stories
Debut author Kelsey Norris launches her genre-bending story collection, House Gone Quiet, in conversation with Temim Fruchter (City of Laughter, forthcoming).
Free (RSVP encouraged); 7.30pm; Greenlight Bookstore, 686 Fulton Street, Brooklyn
SJ Sindu: The Goth House Experiment w/ Tony Amato
SJ Sindu, Lambda Literary finalist and Publishing Triangle Edmund White Debut Fiction Award–winning author, in conversation with Tony Amato.
$10 inc. equivalent gift card; 7pm - 8pm; Books Are Magic Montague, 122 Montague Street, Brooklyn, and livestreamed
Eskor David Johnson presents Pay As You Go, in conversation with William Pei Shih
Eskor David Johnson discusses his debut novel, Pay As You Go, with William Pei Shih.
$5 for RSVP, redeemable in-store; 7pm; McNally Jackson Seaport, 85 South Street, New York
Tuesday, October 24
Let Us Descend: A Conversation with Jesmyn Ward and Ta-Nehisi Coates
Co-presented by the Center for Fiction and The Town Hall, and also featuring music by The Harlem Chamber Players and readings by Emmy-winner S. Epatha Merkerson and Naomi Pierre (Shakespeare in the Park).
$56.50 inc. a copy of Let Us Descend; 6pm; The Town Hall, 123 W 43rd St, New York
Read The Room Presents … Transformation
Hosted by journalist Kathleen Squires and her husband Ronnie Rodriguez in their event space in Little Italy, the ticket includes chef-prepared food and really great wine. This special installment celebrates the launch of Nikki Vargas’s Call You When I Land, with readings from Marina Budhos (Where We All Have); Matt Gross (The Turk Who Loved Apples); Melinda Hansen (The New York Times); and Kathleen herself (The Wall Street Journal).
$40 inc. food and drink; 6.30pm - 8.30pm; 132 Mulberry Street, No. 502, New York
The Kremlin’s Attacks Against Dissident Voices
Pen America are hosting this panel moderated by Gary Shteyngart and featuring UN special rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Russian Federation Mariana Katzarova, co-chair of HRC Memorial Sergei Davidis, and exiled Russian journalist Elena Kostyuchenko, discussing topics of free expression, human rights, and the closing space for dissent in Russia.
Free, but RSVP necessary; 6.30pm – 8pm; The Institute for Public Knowledge, 20 Cooper Sq New York
Book launch: Greg Jackson presents The Dimensions of a Cave
Greg Jackson launches his second book, The Dimensions of a Cave, in conversation with Christopher Beha (The Index of Self-Destructive Acts) with a wine reception to follow.
Free (RSVP encouraged); 7.30pm; Greenlight Bookstore, 686 Fulton Street, Brooklyn
Lindsay Turner presents The Upstate, with Jimin Seo and Elisa Gonzalez
A reading and conversation with Lindsay Turner about her new book of poetry, The Upstate, with Jimin Seo (OSSIA) and Elisa Gonzalez (Grand Tour).
$5 for RSVP, redeemable in-store; 7pm; McNally Jackson Seaport, 85 South Street, New York
Wednesday, October 25
Dani Shapiro + Jennifer Egan: Signal Fires Paperback Release
Dani Shapiro celebrates the paperback release of her national bestseller Signal Fires in conversation with bestselling author Jennifer Egan.
From $8; 7pm; Strand Book Store, Rare Book Room, 828 Broadway, New York
Ditmas Lit
The Ditmas Park salon this month features: Jennifer Baker (Forgive Me Not); Thea Brown (Loner Forensics); Madison Jamar; and Uzodinma Okehi (House of Hunger).
Free; 8pm; Hinterlands Bar, 739 Church Ave, Brooklyn
American Chordata Issue 13 launch
Featuring readings from Elisa Gonzalez (Grand Tour), poet Francisco Márquez, Megan Fernandes (I Do Everything I’m Told), Loré Yessuff (poembutter), James Kelly Quigley, Kyra Simone (Palace of Rubble), Madeleine Mori, and Christine Marella.
Free; 7pm - 9pm; Petit Paulette, 136 Dekalb Ave, Brooklyn
Paul Murray presents The Bee Sting
Paul Murray presents The Bee Sting, long-listed for the 2023 Booker Prize, in conversation with The New Yorker’s Katy Waldman.
Free (RSVP encouraged); 7.30pm; Greenlight Bookstore, 686 Fulton Street, Brooklyn
Claudia Acevedo-Quiñones: The Hurricane Book w/ Eugenia Leigh
Claudia Acevedo-Quiñones presents her debut The Hurricane Book in conversation with poet Eugenia Leigh (Bianca).
$10 inc. equivalent gift card; 7pm - 8pm; Books Are Magic Montague, 122 Montague Street, Brooklyn, and livestreamed
On America: Tim O’Brien on America Fantastica with Rick MacArthur
To celebrate the launch of America Fantastica, his first novel in twenty years, Tim O’Brien takes part in the Center for Fiction’s “On America” conversation series, along with Rick MacArthur, award-winning journalist and president of Harper’s Magazine.
From $5; 7pm; Center for Fiction, 15 Lafayette Avenue Brooklyn, and livestreamed
Thursday, October 26
Panel: Horror Literature in 2023
Get spooky at this panel discussion with horror writers Nat Cassidy, Clay McLeod Chapman, Rachel Harrison, and Erin E. Adams, moderated by fellow horror writer Cassandra Khaw.
From $8; 7pm; Strand Book Store, Rare Book Room, 828 Broadway, New York
Academy of American Poets’ Chancellors’ Reading
The Academy of American Poets teams up with 92NY’s Unterberg Poetry Center teams to present its annual Chancellors’ reading, featuring: Marilyn Chin, Carolyn Forché, Nikky Finney, Marie Howe, Ed Roberson, Tracy K. Smith, Patricia Smith, and Natasha Trethewey.
From $15; 8pm; Buttenwieser Hall at The Arnhold Center, 92NY, 1395 Lexington Ave, New York, and livestreamed
Distinguished Writers Series
A reading and discussion with Melissa Febos (her fifth book, The Dry Season, is forthcoming) as part of this Hunter Creative Writing Program series, which invites notable writers for intimate class visits. The events are open to students and the public.
Free; 7:30pm; Hunter West, 8th Floor Faculty Dining Room, New York
Jennifer duBois presents The Last Language
National Book Foundation 5 Under 35 Author and PEN/Hemingway finalist Jennifer DuBois discusses her latest novel, The Last Language, in conversation with Anna North (Outlawed).
Free (RSVP encouraged); 7.30pm; Greenlight Bookstore, 686 Fulton Street, Brooklyn
Mary Gaitskill presents The Devil's Treasure, in conversation with Alexandra Schwartz
Mary Gaitskill reads and discusses her new novel, The Devil's Treasure, in conversation with the New Yorker’s Alexandra Schwartz.
$5 for RSVP, redeemable in-store; 7pm; McNally Jackson Seaport, 85 South Street, New York
Kelly Sather: Small in Real Life w/ Michele Filgate
Winner of the 2023 Drue Heinz Literature Prize, Kelly Sather discusses Small in Real Life, in conversation with Michele Filgate (What My Mother and I Don’t Talk About).
$10 inc. equivalent gift card; 7pm - 8pm; Books Are Magic Montague, 122 Montague Street, Brooklyn, and livestreamed
Friday, October 27
Literary Trivia Night at the Café & Bar
Brush up on your bookworm trivia before arriving, either as a team of up to five or you’ll be grouped up, to compete for the title of “The Center for Fiction Trivia Champion.” Prizes and happy hour specials to smooth things over. First-come, first-seated, or to reserve a spot purchase a drink ticket.
Free with a one-drink minimum; 6pm - 7.30pm; Center for Fiction, 15 Lafayette Avenue Brooklyn
Masquerade of the Red Death
An annual gathering of Electric Literature editors, authors, and readers, to celebrate the publications achievements and community with some literary debauchery. Music from DJ Ryan Chapman. Dress code is gothic Victorian, red or black attire, and masks are provided at the door.
$75 inc. free cocktails all night and a curated book giveaway table; 8pm - 11pm; Littlefield, 635 Sackett St, Brooklyn
Saturday, October 28
Haunted Halloween Mansion
Literature-adjacent, but the H.I.P. Lit and the Urbane Conspirators—host to many a literary salon—have a new home in Ditmas Park at The Urbane Arts Club, and to celebrate its launch in style they’re transforming the space into a Haunted Mansion for an evening of frights and delights, including cocktails, light bites, musical performances from Miwa Gemini, and tarot card readings. Costume encouraged.
Free, but RSVP required; 7pm - 12am; 1016 Beverley Road, Ditmas Park, Brooklyn
NB. Please check all details before attending, the fact checker went awol.
I’m a Brooklyn-based writer, editor, teacher, and author of No Way Home: A Memoir of Life on the Run (St. Martin’s Press) and Amphibian (forthcoming from Virago). I’m here and here on Instagram. Get in touch with any bookish events you’d like me to highlight!