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What's happening at WORD?
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Folks gathered in the East River State Park to listen to Henry Chang read,
at the Soho Press installment of our Words by the Water series.
We're hard at work planning our booth for the Brooklyn Book Festival, but be assured that just like last year, it will involve donuts and some of our all-time favorite books. We'll be camped out across from the North Stage, and providing books for the authors featured there as well, so make sure to come visit us! We've also got a killer Bookend event planned, details below.
Reminder to our educator-friends (that's you, teachers and librarians) that we now have a special program, complete with in-store discounts, email updates on kids events and exciting new books, and an Educators' Night event on October 10. All details here! |
This month's featured event:
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 TICKETED: The Emma Straub Hollywood Variety Hour
at Public Assembly
Saturday, September 22, 8 p.m. Every year we put together an event as our contribution to the Bookends for the Brooklyn Book Festival, and we can't wait for this year's! It will feature Emma Straub ( Laura Lamont's Life in Pictures), actor and author Andrew McCarthy, musician Stephin Merritt, and blogging genius Maris Kreizman. Each ticket includes a copy of Straub's novel Laura Lamont's Life in Pictures! Andrew McCarthy is the author of the forthcoming memoir The Longest Way Home, which follows his excursions to Patagonia, the Amazon, Costa Rica, Baltimore, Vienna, Kilimanjaro, Dublin, and beyond. He has also been in numerous movies and TV shows, including staff favorites Weekend at Bernie's and Pretty in Pink. Singer-songwriter Stephin Merritt is one of the principal forces behind The Magnetic Fields. He'll be playing as well as speaking with Emma! Maris Kreizman is the brain behind Slaughterhouse 90210, a blog that marries highbrow lit and pop culture references. Please note: this event is 21+. Doors open at 7 p.m., and the event will start at 8 p.m. SHARP! |
 This month at WORD!
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  For DIY authors:
Tuesday, September 4, 7 p.m.
The Ins and Outs of Self-Publishing with Rachel Fisher and Caryn RoseFind out what it means to self-publish in today's literary world from two ladies who have been there and done that. Rachel Fisher is the author of Eden's Root, a post-apocalyptic YA novel in which the genetic modification of food has brought about global famine. Brooklyn's own Caryn Rose is the author of B-Sides and Broken Hearts, which follows 37-year-old punk rocker Lisa as she ditches her life in Seattle for a new start in LA.
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 For the artistically-appreciative:
Wednesday, September 5, 7 p.m.
Gabrielle Bell and Julia Wertz, in conversation with
Jami Attenberg
Comics artist and Greenpoint local Gabrielle Bell (Lucky, Cecil and Jordan in New York) will launch her new graphic novel The Voyeurs in an event with fellow artist Julia Wertz (Drinking at the Movies, Fart Party). They'll both present their latest work, followed by a conversation with novelist Jami Attenberg (The Middlesteins, The Melting Season).
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 For fans of smart fiction:
Thursday, September 6, 7 p.m.
Steve Stern in conversation with Tobias Carroll
Steve Stern (The Frozen Rabbi) will be reading from his new short story collection The Book of Mischief, which collects stories both old and new, followed by a conversation with Tobias Carroll of Vol. 1 Brooklyn. Stern is not only a consummate storyteller, but a truly entertaining speaker -- highly recommended by the WORD staff!
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 For young crafters and storytellers:
Sunday, September 9, 1:30 p.m.
Ticketed: Show Me a Story Crafting Workshop for Kids
Join crafter Emily Neuberger and jumpstart those narrative skills! She'll be leading leading attendees in crafting story disks, a project from her new book Show Me a Story. Tickets are $16.95/family, and include a copy of the book and all craft materials! Suggested age range: 5 and up.
Show Me a Story contains 40 creative projects and activities encourage kids to free their storytelling instincts. Younger children will love making story stones and a storytelling jar, and then using them to create stories of their own, while older kids will enjoy word grab bags, story walks, and journaling exercises. |
For teens and teens-at-heart:
Monday, September 10, 7 p.m.
YA Night with David Levithan, Mariah Fredericks, Adele Griffin, and Deborah Heiligman
   
Join YA author extraordinaire David Levithan for a panel discussion with fellow authors Mariah Fredericks, Adele Griffin, and Deborah Heiligman! They'll discuss their newest books, the state of YA literature, their inner teens, and more.
In Levithan's new book, Every Day, narrator A wakes in a different person's body, a different person's life. A has made peace with that -- until A meets Rhiannon. Can you truly love someone who is destined to change every day?
Mariah Fredericks' novel The Girl in the Park follows Rain as she tries to solve the mystery of her best friend's murder in Central Park, exposing the cracks in this exclusive New York City world and the teenagers that move within it. She knows there was more to her friend than just the party girl that the papers are making her out to be, and she won't stop until she uncovers the truth.
Adele Griffin's newest, All You Never Wanted, will be out in October, and explores the dark rivalry between sisters Alex and Thea. She's also the author of Tighter, a ghost story set on a deceptively idyllic New England island.
In Deborah Heiligman's Intentions, Rachel's faith in the people around her is shattered by an overheard conversation in her synagogue's sanctuary. How can the adults in her life lecture her about acting with kavanah, intention, when they are constantly making such horribly wrong decisions themselves?
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For those who enjoy a celebration:
Wednesday, September 12, 7 p.m.
Emily Books 1 Year Anniversary Party and Reading
  
Our favorite independent e-bookstore Emily Books is celebrating their first anniversary with a party and reading featuring authors Tamara Faith Berger (Maidenhead), Emily Carter (Glory Goes and Gets Some), and Ariana Reines (Mercury, Coeur de Lion, The Cow). There will be goodies and refreshments for all! Emily Books brings to light some of the smartest, weirdest, previously overlooked fiction around -- not to be missed.
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 For the tough and the cuddly:
Saturday, September 15, 4 p.m.
Launch for Michelle Knudsen's Big Mean Mike
WORD favorite Michelle Knudsen returns with a launch party for her new picture book, Big Mean Mike! Join us for a celebration complete with reading, signing, activities, and refreshments.
Mike is the biggest, meanest dog in town -- he goes to the gym, he drives a loud car, he has a spiky collar and pointy claws. Everyone knows that he is Big Mean Mike! Except, apparently, for some very cute fuzzy bunnies, who keep showing up in his car. How can Mike be big and mean AND be friends with bunnies?! Be prepared to growl, yell, and then go "Awwwwwwwwww!" when reading this one!
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For makers and creators and crafters:
Sunday, September 16, 3 p.m.
Ticketed: Bookbinding Workshop with Nathaniel Kressen
Back by popular demand, join Nathaniel Kressen, local writer and author of Concrete Fever, for an interactive workshop! Kressen will showcase the hand-bound first edition of his debut novel and will teach attendees how to construct their own bound books. Everyone will make a notebook to take home! Tickets are $20, and attendees will get a 20% discount on Concrete Fever.
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 For writers:
Tuesday, September 18, 7 p.m.
Very Short Sentences with Verlyn Klinkenborg
Get writing advice from author and New York Times editorial board member Verlyn Klinkenborg! He'll give tips and tricks, take questions, and discuss the recommendations in his new book, Several Short Sentences about Writing.
This is a book of first steps and experiments. What you'll find here isn't the way to write. Instead, you'll find a way to clear your mind of illusions about writing and discover how you write.
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 For fans of books and music:
Wednesday, September 19, 7 p.m.
Largehearted Lit with Edie Meidav and Kevin Salem
Largehearted Lit, a series exploring the intersections between books and music, returns after summer vacation! Celebrate the release of Edie Meidav's Lola, California with a reading and a musical performance from Kevin Salem, who has written several songs inspired by the book.
In Lola, CA, the year is 2008. Vic Mahler, famous for having inspired cult followers in the seventies, serves time on death row, awaiting his execution in ten days. For years, his daughter, Lana, has been in hiding, but her friend Rose, a lawyer, is determined to bring the two together. Yet when Rose succeeds in tracking down Lana at a California health spa, the pair must negotiate land mines of memory in order to reconcile the past and face their futures.
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 For all book-lovers:
Thursday, September 20, 7 p.m.
Ticketed: First Book-Brooklyn YA Night and Fundraiser
YA all-star authors Gayle Forman, E. Lockhart, Matt de la Pena, and Michael Northrop will talk realistic teen fiction and support First Book-Brooklyn, an organization that provides books to children in need in Brooklyn communities. Tickets are $10 each, and include one raffle ticket for fabulous prizes including signed books and goodies from local vendors. Beer and cupcakes will be lovingly provided by Brooklyn Brewery and Robicelli's, so this event is 21+. All ticket proceeds will go towards funding First Book here in Brooklyn!
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 For writers looking for feedback:
Wednesday, September 26, 7 p.m.
Pitchapalooza returns to Brooklyn
Pitchapalooza is American Idol for books (only without Simon). If you'd like a chance to pitch your book, you can register here. Every registration includes a copy of The Essential Guide to Getting Your Book Published by founding judges Arielle Eckstut and David Henry Sterry, and a 20-minute consultation with them (arranged individually for a later date). Twenty of the registered writers will be selected at random, and will get one minute each to pitch their book! Eckstut and Sterry will be joined by two local judges: blogger David Gutowski and agent Kate McKean. At the end of Pitchapalooza, the judges will pick a winner. The winner receives an introduction to an agent or publisher appropriate for his/her book!
If you don't want to pitch, the event is free; all attendees will come away with with a greater understanding of the ins and outs of the publishing industry.
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All events are free and open to the public unless otherwise noted.
Facebook RSVPs appreciated but certainly not mandatory.
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Book groups
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 Book Group will be switching it up with some nonfiction! Enter Tom Bissell's new collection, Magic Hours: Essays on Creators and Creation. From TV to literature to film, The Big Bang Theory to David Foster Wallace to Werner Herzog, Bissell explores the myriad ways that art comes into being -- and the ways it comes to our attention. The discussion will be on Saturday, October 6, at noon.
 Next up for Classics Book Group is Fancies and Goodnights by John Collier, a collection of some of the strangest short stories you'll ever read from one of the best authors you haven't read yet. With a cast of characters that ranges from man-eating flora to disgruntled devils and suburban salarymen (not that it's always easy to tell one from another), Collier's stories explore the implacable logic of lunacy. Since it's a lot to sink your teeth into, we'll be spending two meetings discussing the stories, on October 13th and November 11th, both at noon. The full list is up online!)
 After focused looks at artists and music scenes, Music Writing Book Group will take a step back for a wider survey. Critic David Hajdu is equally at home writing about jazz musicians and comic book creators; Heroes and Villains: Essays on Music, Movies, Comics, and Culture collects some of his best work. The heart of Heroes and Villains is an extraordinary new piece of cultural rediscovery that tells the untold story of one of the most important -- and, ultimately, one of the most tragic -- figures in American popular music, Billy Eckstine. Through exhaustive new research, Hajdu shows how this great, forgotten singer, once more popular than Frank Sinatra and Bing Crosby, transformed American music by combining sex appeal, sophistication, and black machismo in the era of segregation. Come and discuss on Saturday, October 13, at 3 p.m.
As always, all book group picks are 10% off in the month before their discussion. And if you need help remembering to mark your calendar, or can't make the discussion but still want to complain about that thing that happened on page 210, you can join our Facebook groups! There's one for the regular group, one for Classics, and one for Music Writing.
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WORD's August bestsellers
| |  - Feminist Ryan Gosling, Danielle Henderson
- The Last Bohemia, Robert Anasi (ebook available)
- Boozy Brunch, Peter Joseph
- Cloud Atlas, David Mitchell (ebook available)
- Tiny Beautiful Things, Cheryl Strayed (ebook available)
- Gone Girl, Gillian Flynn (ebook available)
- Crackpot Palace, Jeffrey Ford (ebook available)
- Gone to the Forest, Katie Kitamura (ebook available)
- The Believer, Issue 91: The Music Issue
- Lucky Peach, Issue 4
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Quick links
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This email not enough WORD for you? No worries, we're all over the Internet:Visit our website
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This has been another production of the book-lovin' fools at: WORD 126 Franklin St Brooklyn NY 11222 Open for your reading needs from: 11am to 9pm, seven days a week Available during those hours at: 718.383.0096 And always open at: wordbrooklyn.com |
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