Friday 7/11: Naked Girls Reading is a “group of beautiful ladies who love to read naked.” They have chapters in 23 cities across the globe. Chicago’s is at the Everleigh Social Club in the West Loop, 7 p.m.
Loose Chicks presents an hour-long performance of monologues, stories, and theater pieces from some of the most seductive littérateurs in the city. This month’s feature includes Lily Be, Arin Mulvaney, and Danielle Pinnock. Uncharted Books, 7:15 p.m.
Join Andersonville neighbors Early to Bed and Women and Children First Books as they present “Lust and Letters,” an evening of reading and discussion with two memoirists, Tera Patrick and Shawna Kenney. They also happen to be adult film industry professionals, serious academics, and both have been published in or have appeared in major national media outlets. 7:30 p.m.
Saturday 7/12: Nine of Chicago’s best independent bookstores have teamed up to deliver the city’s first Independent Bookstore Day. These indie sellers are offering great book deals, refreshments, live readings, and tons of giveaways. Hop on the bus or the train and spend the day traveling to Seminary Co-op, The Book Cellar, Sandmeyer’s, Unabridged Books, Open Books, City Lit, Powell’s, 57th Street Books, and Women and Children First. If you visit every bookstore, you’ll receive a handful of puzzle pieces. When assembled they’ll form an exclusively designed print by Lilli Carré. The first twenty patrons at each store get the puzzle pieces. Check stores for schedules, but most start up at 10:30 a.m.
The Blackout Diaries feature comedians and ordinary people telling drinking stories. Tonight’s show will be produced for a CD recording in front of a live studio audience. Timothy O’Toole’s, 8 p.m.
Sunday 7/13: The Uptown Poetry Slam happens every Sunday at The Green Mill, and each week offers something different from talented regulars. An open mic starts the evening, followed by the feature performance, then the slam competition. It’s well-planned, eclectic, and an American original. Marc Kelly Smith founded the Slam movement almost 30 years ago, and if he shows up to host, bring your A-game. 7 p.m.
2nd Story presents “Justice: Stories of Fighting the Good Fight,” featuring stories from Denis Ruiz, Ricardo Gamboa, and Wyl Villacres. There’s also great live music that underscores the stories. Untitled, 7 p.m.
Tuesday 7/15: Story Club South Side presents Steven Strafford, Lauren Sivak, and Scott Whitehair on the theme “Beautiful Poisons.” Three readers will be chosen during the performance for open mic, and they’ll each have 8 minutes to tell a true story. Co-Prosperity Sphere, 7:30 p.m.
Wednesday 7/16: Heather Gudenkauf has thrived despite being born with a profound hearing impairment, and she’s devoted her career to educating children and young adults. Heather comes to Women and Children First Books to promote her novel, Little Mercies. 7:30 p.m.
Story Lab is back at The Black Rock Pub & Kitchen with six brand new Chicago voices telling stories. Featured storytellers include John Dudley, Elizabeth Gomez, Archy Jamjun, Erin Kanary, David Richmond, and Joanne Singleton. If you want to break into the live lit scene in the city, start here. Scott Whitehair is your host. 7:30 p.m.
Thursday 7/17: Freelance journalist and foreign correspondent Laura Postima appears at City Lit Books to promote I Am Warhol, a collection of ten fictional stories based on the work of Andy Warhol. This is the author’s first work of fiction. 6:30 p.m.
James Browning stops at The Book Cellar to promote The Fracking King, a novel that follows the path of a loner who fights to stop fracking in Pennsylvania. Browning has written for The Believer and The Village Voice. 7 p.m.
Cara Brigandi hosts “Grown Folks Stories,” where amateurs and professionals tell stories without notes. Open mic follows. The Silver Room, 7:30 p.m.
