BookSwell

Self-care is a radical act.The ARC - Respite Deck, West Hollywood Aquatic and Recreation Center (ARC), 8750 El Tovar Place, West Hollywood, CA 90069Celebrate National Poetry Month and lounge with a poet at the City’s 2nd annual Poetry Spa Day!This is an in-person event that will refresh and renew your soul through creative intersections with poetry, poets, and poetic “treatments.”Join the fun and relaxation at the Respite Deck of the City of West Hollywood’s Aquatic and Recreation Center at West Hollywood Park. From 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m., explore poetry at “spa stations” such as Feng Shui Poetry, Poemaroma (essential oils), Lotus Poetry (origami), and other poetic experiences. At 7:30 p.m., gather at the steps to hear all the poets share their words.Poetry Spa is a concept created by Brian Sonia-Wallace during his term as 2020-23 West Hollywood City Poet Laureate. This year’s event is curated by current West Hollywood City Poet Laureate Jen Cheng, and the spa stations and poets include:Terry Wolverton, author of eleven books, including her latest, Season of Eclipse, hosts the Poemaroma spa station.A. K. Toney is a griot, writer, musician, and educator who hosts the Listening Libations spa station where attendees get to mix poetry Read More ...

Do you like K-pop? Do you like reading? Join author Christine Ma-Kellams reading/signing for her new book The Band @Barnes & Noble TorranceJoin us for the Book Launch for The Band!Do you like K-pop? Do you like reading? Well if the answer to those questions were yes, get excited, Barnes & Noble Torrance is hosting debut author Christine Ma-Kellams to speak about her new book The Band. A book that is whip smart and darkly funny, follows a psychologist with a savior complex, who offers shelter to a recently cancelled K-Pop idol on the run.Join us Friday, April 19th at 6:00pm to have a discussion and signing with free book swag. More details & RSVP on Barnes & Noble Torrance website: https://stores.barnesandnoble.com/event/9780062166408-0

We are excited to welcome Piper Huguley to the Ontario City Library! This is a free event however you will need to reserve a seat.Piper G. Huguley’s biographical historical fiction, By Her Own Design: a novel of Ann Lowe, Fashion Designer to the Social Register (William Morrow Publishing) tells the inspiring story of the Black fashion designer of Jackie Kennedy’s wedding dress. By Her Own Design was a Booklist top 100 Editor’s Choice selection for 2022 and was named one of the top 100 books of 2022 in Canada by the Globe and Mail newspaper.Her next historical fiction book, American Daughters (April 2024), is the story of the decades-long interracial friendship between Alice Roosevelt and Portia Washington, the rebel teenage daughters of President Theodore Roosevelt and Booker T. Washington, respectively. She is a literature professor at Clark-Atlanta University and blogs about the history behind her novels at http://piperhuguley.com . She lives in Atlanta, Georgia with her husband and son.Piper's books will be available for purchase and signing at the event.Current Friends of Ontario City Library members are able to have early access to this event beginning at 6:00 pm. You can meet the author before the event begins and have Read More ...

Join author Sheila Yasmin Marikar as she discusses her new novel in conversation with Tinx.About the BookSix old friends descend on Napa Valley for a luxurious weekend of fine wine and good times…until old tensions simmer to the surface. So much can go wrong in this dark comedy by the author of The Goddess Effect.Just get yourselves here, everything else is on us.Raj and Rachel Ranjani have invited a small group of their ride or dies from college for a celebratory weekend in Napa Valley. On the agenda: three nights in the couple’s vineyard mansion, a lavish dinner at Napa’s hottest new restaurant, exclusive tastings, and the grand opening of the Ranjanis’ ultra-high-end winery. It’s a reunion of six friends who haven’t seen each other in years. What could go wrong?To start, there’s the less-than-warm welcome: a brick flung through a window and palpable tension between the hosts. But no worries―all Raj has to do is pop a few bottles of vintage Dom, and the college vibes come rushing back. So do old resentments, animosities, and unrequited crushes. Soon enough, the illusion of friendship shatters like a gossamer wineglass, and one of the friends ends up dead. Everyone has their Read More ...

Join Katharine Haake as she discusses her latest book in conversation with author Lou MathewsABOUT THE BOOKIn Katharine Haake's new eco-fable, What Happened Was, emissaries from the postworld return to us with accounts of a future that spooled itself out because we weren’t paying attention. In it, everything looks a lot like now, only a little bit different. Intimate, precarious, often beguiling, sometimes hilarious, and never free of political context, these reports are haunted by loss. Whether parts of the body or children in trees, things disappear in this world without warning or sense as everything fades toward oblivion and dead parents taunt from the grave: What made you think you were so special it wouldn’t happen to you?ABOUT THE AUTHORKatharine Haake is the author of the eco-dystopian science fiction fable, The Time of Quarantine, and the California hybrid prose lyric, That Water, Those Rocks, and three collections of stories. Her work has appeared broadly and been recognized as distinguished by Best American Fiction and Best American Essays, among others. She is a professor of creative writing at California State University, Northridge.ABOUT THE INTERLOCUTORLou Mathews is the author of the novels L.A. Breakdown, an L.A. Times Best Book, and Shaky Read More ...

Janet Sternburg in Conversation with Lorenz KienzleIn a conversation with Villa Aurora Fellow Lorenz Kienzle, Author and photographer Janet Sternburg will present her newest publication LOOKING AT MEXICO / Mexico Looks Back (2023).

This is the book fair for every adult still chasing that elementary school book fair day vibe... and we added cocktails!Remember the smell of brand new books and fresh erasers on book fair morning? What a time to be alive! As lifelong book lovers, we love a good book fair and a little nostalgia. You know we had to kick it up a notch though. Glitter pens and gin, bookmarks and bourbon, vibes and vodka, and of course our carefully curated collection of culturally diverse books. Wow, say that 3 times fast. You can expect books, cocktails, music, art, and community. The books cost money but the vibes are free! Inner children welcome, real children are gently discouraged.

Cinderella Abel Book Relaunch signing & meet and greet with LA Times Bestseller Author Kamisha WellsFREE EVENT you can purchase a autograph signed copy of my novel at the event ! Meet and Greet the Author RED CARPET photos provided by Getty images Live DJ ( Food , Drinks not free ) 360 photobooth laughter and fun.Also, feel free to extend the invitation to your friends and family! The more, the merrier.

Come, celebrate with author, Salena Sheppherd at the bottom of the barrel book signing celebration!It's time to celebrate Bottom of the Barrel book!Bottom of the Barrel: How God Rescued, Redeemed, and Revived Me is a deeply personal portrait and journey of intergenerational trauma, systematic disempowerment, emotional injury, and its effect from one generation to the next. This book provides readers a raw look at poverty, abuse, and neglect. The internal wounds of the victim are validated and the conscience of the bully is explored. The Author's story demonstrates healing is possible and the power of God to break the cycle of pain, even when you hit rock bottom.

discussing her book "An Unfinished Love Story: A Personal History of the 1960s"Join us for an in-person and virtual* Live Talks Los Angeles event:Monday, May 6, 2024, 8pm*Virtual event airs on May 11 at 3pm PT/6pm ETAn Evening with Doris Kearns GoodwinAn Unfinished Love Story: A Personal History of the 1960sTICKETS:$50 General Admission ticket + signed copy of Doris Kearns Goodwin's book$25 General Admisison ticket$125 VIP Reception with Doris Kearns Goodwin (6:30-7:30pm)+ Reserved Section Seat and Signed BookAdditional books available for purchase at eventFace masks recommendedThe virtual version of this event airs on May 11 at 3pm PT/6PM ET and is available on video-on-demand for five days. Tickets for the virtual event can be purchased here (includes the book)ASL interpreter provided upon request.F ree parking at the venueOne of America’s most beloved historians artfully weaves together biography, memoir, and history. In An Unfinished Love Story: A Personal History of the 1960s, Doris Kearns Goodwin takes you along on the emotional journey she and her husband, Dick Goodwin embarked upon in the last years of his life.Doris Kearns Goodwin’s work for President Johnson launched her career as a presidential historian. Her first book was Lyndon Johnson and the American Dream. Next Read More ...

Hear from a panel of poets and writers as they share their stories and discuss what it means to be Asian American during AAPI Heritage MonthWeHo Reads: Asian Diaspora Talk StoryWednesday, May 8, 2024 | 6:30 - 8:30 p.m.6:30 reception, 7 pm start, 8:30 endWest Hollywood Library Community Room, 625 N. San Vicente Blvd.Hear from a panel of poets and writers as they share their stories, connect across the diaspora, and discuss what it means to be Asian American during May Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month. Musical guest Jett Kwong opens this event by celebrating the panel of Asian/Pacific American authors, including Ryka Aoki, Curtis Chin, Jasmin Iolani Hakes, Angela Peñaredondo, and Fariha Róisín, and hosted by West Hollywood City Poet Laureate Jen Cheng.WeHo Reads is a literary series presented by the City of West Hollywood. More information and events at www.weho.org/wehoreads. BookSwell, a literary events and media company dedicated to lifting up writers from historically excluded communities, is producing the WeHo Reads 2024 season. Additional support is provided by UCLA Extension Writers’ Program and Poets & Writers as well as media partnerships with Book Soup and Los Angeles Review of Books.

discussing her book "An Unfinished Love Story: A Personal History of the 1960s"About this event*** US Orders Only***Join us for a virtual Live Talks Los Angeles event:Saturday, May 11, 2024, 3pm PT/6pm ETAn Evening with Doris Kearns GoodwinAn Unfinished Love Story: A Personal History of the 1960sTICKETS:$45 General Admission ticket + signed copy of Ed Zwick's bookUS Orders only. We only ship to addresses in the USThe virtual version of this event airs on May 11, at 3pm PT/6PM ET and is available on video-on-demand for five days.One of America’s most beloved historians artfully weaves together biography, memoir, and history. In An Unfinished Love Story: A Personal History of the 1960s, Doris Kearns Goodwin takes you along on the emotional journey she and her husband, Dick Goodwin embarked upon in the last years of his life.Doris Kearns Goodwin’s work for President Johnson launched her career as a presidential historian. Her first book was Lyndon Johnson and the American Dream. Next was the Pulitzer Prize–winning No Ordinary Time: Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt: The Homefront in World War II. She earned the Lincoln Prize for Team of Rivals, in part the basis for Steven Spielberg’s film Lincoln, and the Carnegie Medal for Read More ...

Join acclaimed author Tracie McMillan for a conversation about her highly anticipated new book, "The White Bonus"Join acclaimed author Tracie McMillan for a conversation about her highly anticipated new book, "The White Bonus: Five Families and the Cash Value of Racism in America."McMillan, whose previous book was the bestseller "The American Way of Eating," will be joined by author and columnist Erin Aubry Kaplan for a lively discussion of how race influences economic status in the U.S.Preorder book: https://bookshop.org/p/books/the-white-bonus-five-families-and-the-cash-value-of-racism-in-america-tracie-mcmillan/19987573?ean=9781250619426Light refreshments will be provided.

discussing her book, "The Backyard Bird Chronicles"Join us for an in-person and virtual* Live Talks Los Angeles event:Monday, May 20, 2024, 8pm*Virtual event airs on May 25 at 3pm PT/6pm ETAn Evening with Amy TanThe Backyard Bird ChroniclesTICKETS:$50 General Admission ticket + signed copy of Amy Tan's book$25 General Admisison ticket$125 VIP Reception with Amy Tan (6:30-7:30pm)+ Reserved Section Seat and Signed BookAdditional books available for purchase at eventFace masks recommendedThe virtual version of this event airs on May 11 at 3pm PT/6PM ET and is available on video-on-demand for five days. Tickets for the virtual event can be purchased here (includes the book)ASL interpreter provided upon request.F ree parking at the venueA gorgeous, witty account of birding, nature, and the beauty around us that hides in plain sight, written and illustrated by the best-selling author of The Joy Luck ClubAmy Tan is the author of several novels, including The Joy Luck Club and The Bonesetter’s Daughter. She is a co-producer and co-screenwriter of the film version of The Joy Luck Club and is on the board of American Bird Conservancy. She lives in Sausalito, California.“The drawings and essays in this book do a lot more than just describe the Read More ...

discussing her book, "The Backyard Bird Chronicles"*** US Orders Only***Join us for a virtual Live Talks Los Angeles event:Saturday, May 25, 2024, 3pm PT/6pm ETAn Evening with Amy TanThe Backyard Bird ChroniclesTICKETS:$45 General Admission ticket + signed copy of Ed Zwick's bookUS Orders only. We only ship to addresses in the USThe virtual version of this event airs on May 25, at 3pm PT/6PM ET and is available on video-on-demand for five days.A gorgeous, witty account of birding, nature, and the beauty around us that hides in plain sight, written and illustrated by the best-selling author of The Joy Luck ClubAmy Tan is the author of several novels, including The Joy Luck Club and The Bonesetter’s Daughter. She is a co-producer and co-screenwriter of the film version of The Joy Luck Club and is on the board of American Bird Conservancy. She lives in Sausalito, California.“The drawings and essays in this book do a lot more than just describe the birds. They carry a sense of discovery through observation and drawing…The birds that inhabit Amy Tan’s backyard seem a lot like the characters in her novels.” —David Allen Sibley, from the forewordIn 2016, Amy Tan grew overwhelmed by the state Read More ...

"Reading the Constitution: Why I Chose Pragmatism, Not Textualism"Join us for an in-person and virtual* Live Talks Los Angeles event:Tuesday, May 28, 2024, 8pm*Virtual event airs on June 3 at 6pm PT/9pm ETStephen Breyer,Former Associate Justice, US Supreme CourtReading the Constitution: Why I Chose Pragmatism, Not TextualismTICKETS:$25 General Admission ticket Signed books available for purchase at eventFace masks recommendedThe virtual version of this event airs on June 3, at 6pm PT/9PM ET and is available on video-on-demand for five days. Tickets for the virtual event can be purchased here (includes the book)ASL interpreter provided upon request.F ree parking at the venue.A provocative, brilliant analysis by recently retired Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer that deconstructs the textualist philosophy of the current Supreme Court’s supermajority and makes the case for a better way to interpret the Constitution.Stephen Breyer is a former associate justice of the Supreme Court who served there for twenty-eight years until retiring in 2022. He lives in Cambridge, Massachusetts.“A rocket from a Supreme Court justice... Justice Breyer shows how the current Supreme Court's alleged textualism and originalism are unsound. His book is a judicial arms-control agreement advocating moderation and a path to what he calls ‘workable democracy.’ You will Read More ...

discussing his memoir, "You Never Know"Join us for an in-person and virtual* Live Talks Los Angeles event:Wednesday, May 29, 2024, 8pm*Virtual event airs on June 4 at 6pm PT/9pm ETAn Evening with Tom Selleckdiscussing his memoir, You Never KnowTICKETS:$55 General Admission ticket + book with signed book plateAdditional books available for purchase at eventFace masks recommendedThe virtual version of this event airs on June 4, at 6pm PT/9PM ET and is available on video-on-demand for five days. Tickets for the virtual event can be purchased here (includes the book)ASL interpreter provided upon request.F ree parking at the venue.Frank, funny and open-hearted, You Never Know is an intimate memoir from one of the most beloved actors of our time. With never-told stories from all corners of his personal and professional life, Tom Selleck recounts his friendships with Frank Sinatra, Carol Burnett, Sam Elliott, James Garner and more.Tom Selleck is an award-winning actor and producer best known for his iconic role as Thomas Magnum in the original Magnum P.I. television series. Among the many unforgettable roles he has played are PI Lance White on The Rockford Files, Peter Mitchell in Three Men and a Baby, Matthew Quigley in Quigley Down Under, and Read More ...

discussing his book, "What This Comedian Said Will Shock You."Join us for an in-person and virtual* Live Talks Los Angeles event:Tuesday, June 4, 2024, 8pm*Virtual event airs on June 11 at 6pm PT/9pm ETAn Evening with Bill Maherdiscussing his book, What This Comedian Said Will Shock YouTICKETS:$55 General Admission ticket + signed copy of Bill Maher's book$80 Two General Admisison tickets + one signed copy of the bookAdditional books available for purchase at eventFace masks recommendedThe virtual version of this event airs on June 11, at 6pm PT/9PM ET and is available on video-on-demand for five days.Tickets for the virtual event can be purchased here (includes the book)ASL interpreter provided upon request.F ree parking at the venueThe host of HBO’s Real Time with Bill Maher has written his funniest and most opinionated book ever—a brilliantly astute and acerbically funny vivisection of American life, politics, and culture.Bill Maher has hosted Real Time on HBO for the last twenty-one years. Before that Maher created and hosted Politically Incorrect on ABC. He lives in Los Angeles, California.“Whether you agree or disagree with him—and I do both—Bill Maher had proven himself to be an illuminating force in a world that values heat over light. Read More ...