Thursday 4/16: Local author Traci Taylor share her collection of interviews and letters from LGBTQ people from around the country and the globe, gathered over four years in her latest book, Voices From The Rainbow. Another Read Through, 7 p.m., free.
T.C. Boyle reads from his latest novel, The Harder They Come. Powell’s City of Books, 7:30 p.m., free.
Marian Palaia reads from her powerful debut novel, The Given World. Powell’s on Hawthorne, 7:30 p.m., free.
Friday 4/17: Join Reading Frenzy to celebrate the release of Luke Ramsey’s new book IS? (Intelligent Sentient?). Reading Frenzy, 6 p.m., free.
G.L. Morrison, Tessara Dudley, Myrya Grace, and Christopher Luna read as Poet Posse. Tonic Lounge, 7 p.m, $10 – $13.
French mathematician Cédric Villani writes about the years leading up to his winning of the Fields Medal, the most coveted prize in mathematics, in his new book, Birth of a Theorem: A Mathematical Adventure. Powell’s City of Books, 7:30 p.m., free.
Saturday 4/18: Literary Arts hosts a storytelling workshop with Mindy Nettifee, with day one on Saturday afternoon and day two being Sunday morning. Participants will also receive a pass for two to attend a 2015 Back Fence PDX: Mainstage show and a guest list spot to attend a Moth StorySLAM. Literary Arts, 1–4 p.m., $150.
The Exquisite Poets Union and the Unnamed Photography Ensemble unite for a reading and artists’ reception open to the public. Glyph, 2 p.m., free.
Exploring natural feelings of lingering rage, Portland Playback Theater will present its new show, Damn I Hate You: Stories of Resentment and Grudges. You come up and tell the story on stage and watch as actors and musicians bring it to life on the spot. Hipbone Studio, 7:30 p.m., $15.
Storytelling showcase Back Fence PDX will host its version of Russian Roulette wherein performers must spin the wheel o’ prompts and are given five minutes to come up with a true five-minute story. Hilarity and humiliation ensue. Returning favorites will include LA’s Geek Girl Authority founder Audrey Kearns, along with Portlanders Shelley McLendon and Jason Rouse, and newbies Leo Daedalus, Amy Miller, Curt Hopkins, C. Joseph Jordan and Caitlin Weierhauser. Disjecta, 8 p.m., $18.
Sunday 4/19: Non-profit organization Calyx hosts a cocktail and dessert benefit, featuring readings by Kerry Cohen, Kate Gray, Paulann Petersen, Lois Leveen, and Willa Schneberg. Mystery location disclosed to those buying tickets, 2 p.m, $20.
Every month over a period of 10 years, poet and critic David Biespiel published a brief, dazzling essay on poetry in the Oregonian in what became the longest-running newspaper column on poetry in the US. He shares the piece with local audiences at this reading. Powell’s on Hawthorne, 4 p.m., free.
Pure Surface invites local poet Robert Duncan Gray to read from latest work with the accompaniment of dance by Jin Camou and film by Simon Boas. Valentine’s, 7 p.m., free.
The lives of more than 25 actresses lost before their time—from Marilyn Monroe to Brittany Murphy—are explored in Amber Tamblyn‘s Dark Sparkler, a haunting, provocative new work by the acclaimed poet and actress. Powell’s City of Books, 7:30 p.m., free.
Monday 4/20: Join VoiceCatcher for a reading in celebration of National Poetry Month, featuring Tricia Knoll, Barbara Lamorticella, Donna Prinzmetal, Hannah Sams, Helen Kerner, Christine Dupres, and J. Pearl Waldorf. Glyph, 5 p.m., free.
Proving that there is no better outlet for angst-ridden and disaffected youth than artistic expression, the fourth annual Verselandia! Poetry Slam will bring together the winners from individual poetry slams from high schools across the city for the chance to win prizes and sweet, sweet glory, with one student being chosen as grand slam champion. Newmark Theatre, 7 p.m. $13.50 – $73.
To celebrate National Poetry Month, the Clinton Street Theater opens up its stages to anyone interested in reading any poem—their own or someone else’s. Clinton Street Theater, 7:30 p.m., free.
Viet Thanh Nguyen reads from his stunning debut novel on clashing loyalities, The Sympathizer. Powell’s on Hawthorne, 7:30 p.m., free.
Peter Coyote reads from his spiritual biography, The Rainman’s Third Cure. Powell’s City of Books, 7:30 p.m., free.
Tuesday 4/21: Oregon Book Award finalist Brian Doyle reads from his latest book, Martin Marten. Broadway Books, 7 p.m., free.
Join professor Marat Grinberg and poet/translator Judith Pulman for Verses from a Cataclysm, a bilingual reading of new translations of Boris Slutsky, Jewish soldier poet, followed by a Q&A session. Oregon Jewish Museum and Center for Holocaust Education, 7 p.m., $5 – $8.
Before he rose to fame as a filmmaker and the author of Ghost World and David Boring, Daniel Clowes made his name from 1989 to 1997 by producing 18 issues of the beloved comic book series Eightball. Those issues have been collected in an anthology that Clowes will share his thoughts and experiences on. Powell’s City of Books, 7:30 p.m., free.
Wednesday 4/22: Mary Norris has spent more than three decades in the New Yorker‘s copy department, maintaining its celebrated high standards. She shares her experiences in her new book, Between You and Me: Confessions of a Comma Queen. Powell’s on Hawthorne, 7:30 p.m., free.
Jennifer Jacquet’s Is Shame Necessary? presents us with a trenchant case for public shaming as a nonviolent form of resistance that can challenge corporations and even governments to change policies and behaviors that are detrimental to the environment. Powell’s City of Books, 7:30 p.m., free.
