Each week, we offer a roundup of the best literary events in the city. All events are free and open to the public, unless otherwise noted. Want to submit an upcoming event for consideration? Go here.
Ophira Eisenberg (Screw Everyone: Sleeping My Way to Monogamy)
Tuesday, July 16, 7:30 pm, at the Booksmith (1644 Haight St.)
Eisenberg, the comic and host of NPR trivia show Ask Me Another, had little use for marriage and monogamy, bedding a variety of interesting and often weird men. Her book of essays includes tales of becoming a terrible amateur dominatrix, a partner who hoards stuffed Garfield dolls, and eventually, a man who sees beneath her adventurous facade and manages to help her overcome her fear of commitment.
The Allen Ginsberg Festival
July 11-14 at the Contemporary Jewish Museum (736 Mission St.)
As part of its exhibit celebrating his photography (which runs through September 8), the Contemporary Jewish Museum is hosting a special festival in honor of Allen Ginsberg, featuring literary tours of North Beach with Bill Wilson, Ginsberg's personal archivist and biographer; a panel on Howl and free expression; and a "Beat Cafe" night at the Mechanics' Institute Library. Most events are $10-15; more info here.
Anton DiSclafani (The Yonahlossee Riding Camp For Girls)
Wednesday, July 10, 7 pm, at Book Passage Corte Madera (51 Tamal Vista Blvd.)
Friday, July 12, at Books Inc. Burlingame (1375 Burlingame Ave.)
After she's mysteriously expelled from her family of Florida citrus farmers in the midst of the Great Depression, 15-year-old Thea must reinvent herself at a tony equestrian boarding school high in the Blue Ridge Mountains, where the complex social order is ruled by money and beauty. As the narrative slowly reveals the incident that precipitated Thea's exile, her future and survival at the school also begin to come into question. DiSclafani's debut novel has been one of the hottest books of the summer, with stellar reviews from The New York Times and NPR, among many other publications.
Granta 124: Travel
Tuesday, July 16, 7 pm, at Green Apple Books (506 Clement St.)
Granta online editor Ted Hodgkinson will join forces with a number of guests to read pieces from Granta's latest issue. The magazine has a long history of travel writing, publishing everyone from Saul Bellow to Martha Gellhorn to Paul Theroux, and this issue features the likes of Teju Cole discussing danger in Lagos, Nigeria and Robert Macfarlane exploring the limestone underneath northern England's Peak District.
