BookSwell

Join us for the West Coast virtual launch of Jonathan Franzen's novel CROSSROADS. This event is presented in partnership with FSG and other stores! In Crossroads, bad decisions and bad faith weigh down the characters—and propel the novel to startling heights.Kathryn Schulz in The New Yorker Purchase tickets here.  Ticket price includes a copy of Crossroads and access to the virtual event. A limited number of signed copies are available, while supplies last. *Signed books will ship/be ready for pickup after the event. Crossroads (FSG) Jonathan Franzen’s gift for wedding depth and vividness of character with breadth of social vision has never been more dazzlingly evident than in Crossroads. It’s December 23, 1971, and heavy weather is forecast for Chicago. Russ Hildebrandt, the associate pastor of a liberal suburban church, is on the brink of breaking free of a marriage he finds joyless—unless his wife, Marion, who has her own secret life, beats him to it. Their eldest child, Clem, is coming home from college on fire with moral absolutism, having taken an action that will shatter his father. Clem’s sister, Becky, long the social queen of her high-school class, has sharply veered into the counterculture, while their brilliant younger brother Read More ...

It’s difficult to capture traumatic personal events in a memoir. How do you do it? We ask two memoirists from Red Hen Press’s Fall 2021 season: Jan Beatty, author of AMERICAN BASTARD, explores her journey trying to find her birth parents. Joan Nockels Wilson’s THE BOOK OF TIMOTHY: THE DEVIL, MY BROTHER, AND ME shares her experiences as she searches for the priest who molested her brother as a child. Both of these memorists explore their pain and family trauma in powerful ways. We’ll discuss what the process was like, putting their deeply personal experiences on paper. Viewable LIVE on Wednesday, October 20 at 4:00pm PT at www.redhen.org/virtual, www.youtube.com/redhenpress, and www.facebook.com/redhenpress.

United States Representative Adam Schiff from California's 28th Congressional District issues a clarion call with his new book "Midnight in Washington: How We Almost Lost Our Democracy and Still Could." Representative Schiff's conversation with Larry Wilmore premieres on October 20, 2021 at 6pmPT. As the congressman who led the first impeachment of Donald J. Trump, Schiff offers a vital inside account of American democracy in its darkest hour. He also warns that the forces of autocracy unleashed by Trump remain as potent as ever. Wilmore is perhaps best known as the host of Comedy Central's "The Nightly Show with Larry Wilmore," which ran for almost two years. Currently he hosts "Larry Wilmore: Black on the Air" for The Ringer Podcast Network. Tickets include a signed copy of "Midnight in Washington: How We Almost Lost Our Democracy and Still Could" ($39). Tickets to watch the event only available ($10). ASL interpreter available upon request.

An in-person memorial and celebration of Beyond Baroque's former executive directorPlease join us in celebrating the life and work of Fred Dewey. The former executive director of Beyond Baroque, Fred was a profoundly committed writer, editor, and thinker who devoted his life to championing artists and creating a public sphere for intellectual engagement. The memorial and tribute will feature readings and remembrances from poets, writers, artists, colleagues, and friends. It will be held outside on Beyond Baroque’s back patio, and food and drink will be served. For those unable to attend in-person, it will be streamed live to Beyond Baroque’s YouTube channel, where it will also be available for viewing after the memorial. Readings and remembrances by: Linda J. Albertano, Will Alexander, Laurel Ann Bogen, Mike Bonin, Dorit Cypus, Simone Forti, Amélie Frank, Chris Kraus, Pegarty Long, Suzanne Lummis, Matthew Mars, Janet Gollery McKeithen, Bill Mohr, Phoebe MacAdams Ozuna, Brooks Roddan, Amy Scholder, Jack Skelley, Judith Taylor, Suzanne Thompson, A.K. Toney, and others TBA. In-person at Beyond Baroque. All attendees must be vaccinated.About Fred Dewey: Fred Dewey (1957-2021) was a writer, teacher, editor/publisher, curator, and co-founder of the Neighborhood Councils Movement in Los Angeles. The author of The School of Read More ...