The Brooklyn Book Festival kicks off this Sunday, September 23 (although events and parties are happening all week) and we've picked ten happenings that we think are worth putting down the Kindle for.Book Launch: Joseph Anton: A Memoir by Salman Rushdie*
Though Rushdie may not be in hiding anymore -- quite the opposite, actually -- those days are still on his mind. He'll discuss his most recent work, Joseph Anton, a memoir about his experience as a writer in exile, at this pre-BBF event that also hosts New Yorker fiction editor Deborah Treisman.
Wednesday, 9/19 at powerHouse Arena, 37 Main St., Brooklyn; 7pm-9pm; Limited number of tickets available at the door, which opens at 5pm
Paperback Launch: The Marriage Plot by Jeffrey Eugenides*
Pulitzer Prize-winning author Jeffrey Eugenides, previously known for The Virgin Suicides and Middlesex, celebrates the launch of his most recent, much-loved novel, The Marriage Plot, with a reading and discussion at powerHouse Arena -- his only planned NYC appearance!
Friday, 9/21 at powerHouse Arena, 37 Main St., Brooklyn; 7pm-9pm; Tickets $5
The Other Coast: Stories From L.A.
This L.A.-centric event features readings and discussions by Emma Straub (Laura Lamont's Life in Pictures), Seth Greenland (The Angry Buddhist) and Karolina Waclawiak (How to Get Into the Twin Palms). Topics covered include the Golden Age of Hollywood, satirical analyses of California politics and seedy, after-hours nightclubs.
Brooklyn Borough Hall Courtroom (209 JoralemonSt); 1pm
Artisanal Everything
Although veering off the lit course, this event's trés apropos since even mayo is artisanal in Brooklyn. And, who better to discuss this craze -- and its apotheosis in the Hudson Valley -- than David Rees, an artisanal pencil sharpener (seriously)? He'll be joined by Sam Anderson, critic at large for the New York Times Magazine.
Main Stage at Borough Hall Plaza (209 JoralemonSt); 11am
I'd Like to Apologize to Every Teacher I Ever Had. Tony Danza in Conversation with Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz
Brooklyn sons Tony Danza (yes way) and Marty Markowitz talk about the actor's new book (I'd Like to Apologize...), which touches on Danza's recent foray into teaching high school, after being inspired by a documentary made by Teach For America.
Main Stage at Borough Hall Plaza (209 JoralemonSt); 1pm
Let's Talk About Sex: Grappling With Gender in the 21st Century
You'll have one of the first opportunities to hear from Naomi Wolf since the release of her buzzy new book Vagina: A New Biography on the topic of sex and gender in today's society. She'll be joined by Carlos Andres Gomez (Man Up: Cracking the Code of Modern Manhood) and Kate Bornstein (A Queer and Pleasant Danger). Their discussion will be moderated by Hanna Rosin, The Atlantic Editor whose recent work The End of Men has been making headlines for its thesis that women will dominate the shifting economy.
Main Stage at Borough Hall Plaza (209 JoralemonSt); 2pm
Here in New York
Gossip Girl writer Cecily von Ziegesar created a new 21st Century cultural touchstone as the author of the popular books-turned-cult-CW-series about badly behaved Manhattan prep school kids. She'll be joined by Charles Rice-Gonzalez (Chulito) and Nathan Larson (The Dewey Decimal System) to discuss their works and the city that inspired them.
Main Stage at Borough Hall Plaza (209 JoralemonSt); 5pm
Literary Lions
Acclaimed authors Pete Hamill (Tabloid City), Edwidge Danticat (Create Dangerously) and Paul Auster (Winter Journal) read from their works and share their own stories of living in Brooklyn. There will also be a Q&A.
St. Ann and the Holy Trinity Church (157 Montague St.); 2pm
A Fiction Triumvirate: McFadden, Oates, Whitehead
Bernice L. McFadden, Joyce Carol Oates and Colson Whitehead read from their work following an introduction by Tin House's Rob Spillman.
St. Ann and the Holy Trinity Church (157 Montague St.); 2pm
Creative Life in NYC -- Art, Music and Creative Culture in the 70's, 80's and Beyond
A few of New York's most prominent chroniclers of downtown culture -- like Vanity Fair and New Yorker contributor James Wolcott (Lucking Out: My Life Getting Down and Semi-Dirty in Seventies New York), musician/composer Nile Rodgers (Le Freak: An Upside Down Story of Family, Disco and Destiny) and writer and Village Voice contributor Cynthia Carr (Fire in the Belly: The Life and Times of David Wojnarowicz) -- will be sharing stories and memories about the city's music, art and nightlife scenes throughout the last forty years at this event moderated by Will Hermes (Love Goes to Buildings on Fire: Five Years in New York that Changed Music Forever).
*These events are considered "Bookend Events" and not part of the official Brooklyn Book Festival