Wednesday, March 6 at 7 p.m.
Am I Man Enough?
Storytelling Show & Podcast
( This is the rescheduled date due to the January weather cancellation. )
Am I Man Enough? is a storytelling show and podcast featuring folks from all backgrounds sharing personal stories that critically examine the culture of toxic masculinity and the construction of manhood. For this event, we have a great lineup that includes Maya Haughton, LeVan D. Hawkins, Himabindu Poroori, Anne Purky, Tony Ho Tran, and Wil Whedbee.
Thursday, March 7 at 7 p.m.
Augusta Savage: Renaissance Woman
Jeffreen M. Hayes In conversation with Leslie Guy
This highly illustrated biography explores the lasting legacy of sculptor Augusta Savage, who was associated with the Harlem Renaissance. Joining Jeffreen M. Hayes in conversation will be Leslie Guy. Jefreen M. Hayes is an art historian and curator. Leslie Guy is a museum professional with more than 20 years of experience dedicated to work that honors collections and communities.
Friday, March 8 at 7 p.m.
Medicare for All Teach-in
Many of our elected representatives and 2020 presidential candidates say they support Medicare for All or universal healthcare coverage, but what does that promise entail and what are the plans to get us there? Learn what Medicare for All means and how it would work in this discussion with the Chicago Democratic Socialists of America Healthcare Working Group.
Wednesday, March 13 at 7 p.m.
Real Queer America: LGBT Stories from Red States
Samantha Allen in conversation with Rivka Yeker
Author Reading
In Real Queer America, Allen takes us on a cross-country road trip stretching all the way from Provo, Utah, to the Deep South. Her motto for the trip: "Something gay every day." Making pit stops at drag shows, political rallies, and hubs of queer life, she introduces us to scores of extraordinary LGBT people working for change. Samantha Allen is a GLAAD Award-winning journalist and the author of Love & Estrogen.
Thursday, March 14 at 7 p.m.
T. Kira Madden in conversation with Lindsay Hunter
Long Live the Tribe of Fatherless Girls: A Memoir
Author Conversation
T. Kira Madden's raw and redemptive debut is a coming of age memoir reckoning with desire amidst the fierce contradictions of Boca Raton, Florida. Long Live the Tribe of Fatherless Girls is equal parts eulogy and love letter. T. Kira Madden is an APIA writer, photographer, and the founding editor-in-chief of No Tokens. Lindsay Hunter is the author of the story collections Don't Kiss Me and Daddy's and the novels Ugly Girls and Eat Only When You're Hungry, a finalist for the 2017 Chicago Review of Books Fiction Award.
Friday, March 15 at 7 p.m.
Laurie Halse Anderson in conversation with Mikki Kendall
Shout
Please note: this event will be held at Swedish American Museum ( 5211 N. Clark St. ) Tickets on sale now only through Brown Paper Tickets.
Laurie Halse Anderson, author of Speak, reveals her personal history as a rape survivor in a poetic memoir Shout. Soul-searching, devastating and triumphant, Shout is a denouncement of our society's failures and a love letter to all survivors. Laurie Halse Anderson is a New York Times-bestselling author. Her two books, Speak and Chains, were National Book Award finalists.
Mikki Kendall is from Chicago and has written for the Washington Post, Ebony, and Essence. Her books Amazons, Abolitionists, and Activists and Hood Feminism are forthcoming in 2019 and 2020.
Friday, March 15 at 7 p.m.
Chris Cander in conversation with Rebecca Makkai
The Weight of a Piano
Author Conversation
The Weight of a Piano follows the obsessive love two women hold for an instrument and the connections it carries. Chris Cander graduated from the University of Houston, with her husband, daughter, and son. Rebecca Makkai is a Chicago-based author of numerous books, including The Great Believers, which was a finalist for the 2018 National Book Award.
Thursday, March 21 at 7 p.m.
Halle Butler in conversation with Kathleen Rooney
The New Me
Book Launch Party
Halle Butler's new novel follows misanthropic and morose, thirty-year-old Millie. Darkly hilarious and devastating, The New Me is a dizzying descent into the mind of a young woman trapped in the funhouse of American consumer culture. Halle Butler is the author of Jillian. She has been named a National Book Award Foundation "5 Under 35" honoree and a Granta Best Young American Novelist. Kathleen Rooney is a founding editor of Rose Metal Press, and her books include the national bestseller, Lillian Boxfi sh Takes a Walk.
Sunday, March 24 at 4 p.m.
Women & Children First's
40th Anniversary Panel DIscussion
Join us for our 40th anniversary panel discussion featuring W&CF co-founders Ann Christophersen and Linda Bubon and current co-owners Lynn Mooney and Sarah Hollenbeck. The group will present the store's Top 10 Bestsellers of All Time. Nostalgia, laughter, and libations will abound!
Friday, March 29 at 7 p.m.
Victoria Noe in conversation with Owen Keehnen
Fag Hags, Divas and Moms: The Legacy of Straight Women in the AIDS Community
Book Launch Party
Fag Hags, Divas and Moms: The Legacy of Straight Women in the AIDS Community fills a gap in the history of the epidemic and in women's history as well. A mix of personal interviews and archival research, the contributions of straight women around the world—not just as caregivers, but activists, researchers, and leaders. Victoria Noe is a Chicago author, speaker, and activist. Owen Keehnen is a grassroots historian and the author of Dugan's Bistro and the Legend of the Bearded Lady.
Wednesday, April 3 at 7 p.m.
Dani McClain
We Live for the We: The Political Power of Black Motherhood
Author Reading
McClain spoke with mothers on the frontlines of movements for social, political, and cultural change who are grappling with a black child's development from infancy to the teenage years, We Live for the We touches on everything from the importance of creativity to building a mutually supportive community to navigating one's relationship with power and authority. Dani McClain is a contributing writer at the Nation and a fellow at the Nation Institute.
Thursday, April 4 at 7 p.m.
Sally Nuamah
How Girls Achieve
Author Reading
Nuamah reveals that developing resilience is not a gender-neutral undertaking. Drawing on her deep immersion in classrooms in the United States, Ghana, and South Africa, Nuamah calls for a new approach: creating feminist schools that will actively teach girls how and when to challenge society's norms and allow them to carve out their own paths to success. Sally Nuamah is a scholar, activist, and filmmaker.
Friday, April 5 at 7 p.m.
Valerie Jarrett in conversation with Susan Sher
Finding My Voice: My Journey to the West Wing and the Path Forward
Authoor Conversation & Reading
Please note: this ticketed event will be held at Senn High School ( 5900 N. Glenwood ). Tickets on sale now only through Brown Paper Tickets! Each ticket includes a pre-signed copy of Valerie's book.
Jarrett grew up in Chicago in the 60s as racial and gender barriers were being challenged. She found her voice in Harold Washington's historic administration, where she began a remarkable journey, ultimately becoming one of the most visible and influential African-American women of the twenty-first century. Valerie Jarrett was the longest serving senior adviser to President Barack Obama, and one of Time's 100 Most Influential People.Susan Sher is the senior adviser to the president of the University of Chicago, where she also serves as the university liaison to the Obama Foundation.
Save the Date
Monday, April 8 at 7 p.m., Sappho's Salon
Friday, April 12 at 7 p.m. Allison Rollins, Library of Small Catastrophes Poetry Reading
Sunday, April 14 at 6 p.m. Fatimah Asghar and Safia Elhillo, Halal If You Hear Me Poetry Reading
Wednesday, April 24 at 7 p.m. Miriam Toews in conversation with Lindsay Hunter, Women Talking Author Conversation
Thursday, April 25 at 7 p.m. George Lakey in conversation with Sameena Mustafa, How We Win: A Guide to Nonviolent Direct Action Campaigning Author Conversation
Friday, April 26 at 7 p.m. Jan-Henry Gray Documents Book Launch Party
Saturday, April 27 ALL DAY Indie Bookstore Day!
Book Groups
Women Aging with Wisdom & Grace Discussion & Potluck
Sunday, March 10
10 a.m. to noon
Suggested Reading: the first half of This Is the Place, ed. by Margot Kahn and
Kelly McMasters
Teens First Book Group
Sunday, March 10 at 5 p.m.
His Majesty's Dragon by Naomi Novik
Social Justice Book Group
Sunday, March 17 at 2:30 p.m.
Chicago Is Not Broke by Tom Tressor
Classics of Women's Literature
Monday, March 18 at 7:15 p.m.
Bonjour Tristesse by Francoise Sagan
Women's Book Group
Tuesday, March 19 at 7:30 p.m.
Eleanor Roosevelt, vol. 3: The War Years and After, 1939-1962
by Blanche Wiesen Cook
Family of Women Book Group
Sunday, April 7 at 2 p.m.
In the Darkroom
by Susan Faludi
Feminist Book Group
Sunday, April 14 at 4 p.m.
Rad Families edited by Tomas Moniz
