Calendar Northern California

Updated September 25, 2008

September 1-30, 2008 S M T W Th F S 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 0 0 0 0

1 SEPTEMBER---monday:
EAST:
• Sacramento Poetry Center presents poetry and comedy with Carol Moon, Michael Rowe, Tim Kahl, Brad Buchanan, hosted by Frank Graham, HQ for the Arts, 1719 25th Street at R Street, Sacramento, 7:30 (www.sacramentopoetrycenter.org)

2 SEPTEMBER---tuesday:
CENTRAL:
• Music biographer Joe Nick Patoski reads from and signs his new book, Willie Nelson: An Epic Life, discussion to follow, The Booksmith, 1644 Haight Street, SF, 7:30 (415/863-8688, www.booksmith.com)
• David Highsmith, Michael Slosek, and Steve LaVoie read from their poetry, Books & Bookshelves, 99 Sanchez Street, SF, free, B.Y.O.B., 7:30 (415/621-3761, www.99sanchez.com)
• Poets Neil Marcus and Petra Kuppers read from their new book. Cripple Poetics: A Love Story, which follows the movement of Bay Area poet and activist Neil Marcus and his partner Petra's courtship through traditional poems, emails, essayistic meditations and Internet Relay Chat., Pegasus Books Downtown, 2349 Shattuck Avenue, Berkeley, free, 7:30 (510/649-1320, www.pegasusbookstore.com)

3 SEPTEMBER---wednesday:
CENTRAL:
• A reading by award-winning poet Frank B. Wilderson, III, Red, White & Black: Cinema and the Structure of US Antagonisms, Moe's Books, 2476 Telegraph Avenue, Berkeley, 7:30 (510/849-2087, www.moesbooks.com)
• Creative Writing Series presents a reading by novelist Katharine Noel, Halfway House, Soda Activity Center, Saint Mary's College of California, 1928 Saint Mary's Road, Moraga, free, 7:30 (925/631-4457, www.stmarys-ca.edu/mfa)
NORTH:
• Sunset Poetry by the Bay presents a reading by May Garsson, open mike follows, Northpoint Coffee House, 1250 Bridgeway, Sausalito, no cover, 7:00-9:00 (www.northpointcoffee.com)

4 SEPTEMBER---thursday:
CENTRAL:
• Holloway Poetry Readings present the Department of English faculty poets, C.S. Giscombe, Robert Hass, Lyn Hejinian, Geoffrey G. O'Brien, John Shoptaw, Maude Fife Room, Third Floor, Wheeler Hall, Room 315, University of California, Berkeley, 6:30
• Poetry at the Albany Library presents a poetry reading by Hannah Stein, Earthlight, and Susan Kelly-DeWitt, The Fortunate Islands, hosted by Catherine Taylor, open reading follows, Albany Library, 1247 Marin Avenue, Albany, free, 7:00-9:00 (510/526-3720, www.aclibrary.org)

5 SEPTEMBER---friday:
CENTRAL:
• The de Young Poetry Series presents a poetry reading by Christian Bök, a leading figure of Newlipo, which uses innovative concepts and procedures in the creation of poetry, and K. Silem Mohammad, Deer Head Nation, who inaugurated Flarf, a poetry movement that makes use of online search engines, de Young Museum of Fine Art, Koret Auditorium, 50 Hagiwara Tea Garden Drive, SF, $12/$8 museum members, 7:00 (tickets: 866/512-6326, www.museumtix.com; information: 415/750-7634, rbaldocchi@famsf.org)
• Studio One Summer Reading Series presents performance poet Daphne Gottlieb and William Moor, Studio One Arts Center, Great Hall, 365 45th Street (at Broadway), Oakland, $3-$15 sliding scale, 7:30

6 SEPTEMBER---saturday:
EAST:
• Writers of the New Sun/Escritores del Nuevo Sol meeting, La Raza Galeria Posada, 1024 22nd Street, Sacramento, 11:00 a.m. (916/456-5323, escritoresdelnuevosol.com)

7 SEPTEMBER---sunday:
NORTH:
• Poet Painters John Brandi, Facing High Water, and former Sonoma County Poet Laureate Geri Digiorno, White Lipstick, in a poetry reading at the opening reception of their visual artworks, recent collages, a window installation of Richard Benbrook's metal creatures are also on display, The Claudia Chapline Gallery, Stinson Beach, free, 3:00-5:00 (415/868-2308, www.cchapline.com)
EAST:
• Wine & Words presents a poetry reading by Lee Herrick, This Many Miles From Desire, and David Smith Ferri, open mike follows, catered by Garre Winery and Café, Martinelli Conference and Event Center, 3585 Greenville Road, Livermore, $5, 2:00-4:00 (Connie@poetrypost.com, map: www.garrewinery.com)

8 SEPTEMBER---monday:
CENTRAL:
• Idiolexicon Poetry Series presents a featured poetry reading, Cafe Royale, 800 Post Street, SF, free, 7:00 (www.idiolexicon.com)
• Word Dancing features poet Dan O., open reading follows, hosted by Jeanne Powell, It's A Grind Coffee House, 1800 Polk Street, at Washington, SF, free, 7:00-9:00 (415/441-1272; host: 415/928-8904)
• Marc Lecard reads from and signs his new novel, Tiny Little Troubles, The Booksmith, 1644 Haight Street, SF, 7:30 (415/863-8688, www.booksmith.com)
• Poetry Express presents slam poet Lucky 7, open mike, come early, mention the poetry and get a ten percent discount on a meal, Priya Indian Cuisine, 2072 San Pablo Avenue, Berkeley, free, 7:00-9:00 (poetryexpress@gmail.com)
• A reading by author and poet Tom Pickard, Ballad of Jamie Allan, Moe's Bookstore, 2476 Telegraph Avenue, Berkeley, 7:30 (510/849-2087, www.moesbooks.com)
EAST:
• Sacramento Poetry Center presents a poetry reading by Terry O'Neal, open mike and refreshments, hosted by Emmanuel Sigauke, HQ for the Arts, 1719 25th Street at R Street, Sacramento, 7:30 (www.sacramentopoetrycenter.org)

9 SEPTEMBER---tuesday:
CENTRAL:
• Grammy Award-winning songwriter Janis Ian reads from and signs her memoir, Society's Child: My Autobiography, discussion follows, The Booksmith, 1644 Haight Street, SF, 7:30 (415/863-8688, www.booksmith.com)
• A poetry reading by John Brandi, Facing High Water, and legendary Beat poet Michael McClure, Touching the Edge, Moe's Bookstore, 2476 Telegraph Avenue, Berkeley, 7:30 (510/849-2087, www.moesbooks.com)

10 SEPTEMBER---wednesday:
CENTRAL:
• Poetry reading by Taylor Brady, active in the Nonsite Collective and co-author of Snow Sensitive Skin, written in collaboration with Rob Halpern, and Rob Halpern, Rumored Place, Imaginary Politics, Books & Bookshelves, 99 Sanchez, SF, 7:30 (415/863-8688, www.booksmith.com, www.nonsitecollective.org)
• Lily Koppel reads from and signs her new book, The Red Leather Diary, The Booksmith, 1644 Haight Street, SF, 7:30 (415/863-8688, www.booksmith.com, www.redleatherdiary.com)
• Neal Stephenson reads from his novel Anathem, Moe's Books, 2476 Telegraph Avenue, Berkeley, 7:30 (510/849-2087)
• Creative Writing Series presents a reading by poet, documentary filmmaker, and librettist Tom Pickard, The Ballad of Jamie Allan, poems, Soda Activity Center, Saint Mary's College of California, 1928 Saint Mary's Road, Moraga, free, 7:30 (925/631-4457, www.stmarys-ca.edu/mfa)
SOUTH:
• Poetry reading by Peter Carroll from his new book, Riverborne: A Mississippi Requiem, Kepler's Books, 1010 El Camino Real, Menlo Park, 7:30 (650/324-4321, www.keplers.com)

11 SEPTEMBER---thursday:
CENTRAL:
• Poetry Center presents a reading of narratives of undocumented lives from the new McSweeney's anthology Underground America, novelist and former lawyer Peter Orner will be joined by associate editors Annie Holmes, Mimi Lok, and David Hill, Poetry Center, Humanities 512, San Francisco State University, 1600 Holloway Avenue, SF, free, 4:30 (www.sfsu.edu/~poetry)
• One City One Book: San Francisco Reads presents a reading by San Francisco Writers Workshop director and writer Tamim Ansary from West of Kabul, East of New York: An Afghan American, book signing follows, The Booksmith, 1644 Haight Street, SF, 7:30 (415/863-8688, www.booksmith.com)
• Holloway Poetry Readings present Tom Pickard with a graduate student to be announced, Maude Fife Room, Third Floor, Wheeler Hall, Room 315, University of California, Berkeley, 6:30
SOUTH:
• Poetry reading by Sally Ashton, These Metallic Days, editor of the DMQ Review, an online journal featuring poetry and art, open mic follows, Willow Glen Books, 1330 Lincoln Avenue, San Jose, 7:00 (408/298-8141, 408/266-1361)

12 SEPTEMBER---friday:
CENTRAL:
• City Lights presents a reading by novelist and playwright Hanif Kureishi, in celebration of his new novel, Something to Tell You, Canessa Gallery, 708 Montgomery Street, SF, free tickets required and available at City Lights Bookstore, 7:00 (414/362-8193, www.citylights.com)
• Opium magazine's Literary Death Match SF presents its Litquake pre-cursor extravaganza, with Tom Barbash, Kim Addonizio, Damion Searls, and Rhea De Ross-Wiess, whose reading efforts will be judged by Instant City's Gravity Goldberg, Litquake co-creator Jack Boulware, and Ian Lendler, Amnesia, 853 Valencia Street, SF, doors open 6:30, show 7:15, $5 (http://literarydeathmatch.com/LDM_Home.html)
• Small Press Traffic Reading Series presents Geyser!, a new play by poet and Jack Spicer scholar Kevin Killian with Wayne Smith, Timken Lecture Hall, California College of the Arts, 1111 8th Street, SF, $5-$10 sliding scale, free to current SPT members and the CCA community, 7:30 (415/551-9278, www.sptraffic.org)
• Last Word presents a group poetry reading by California Poets in the Schools poet-teachers, including Cathy Barber, Judy Bebelaar, Arthur Dawson, Albert Flynn DeSilver, Grace Marie Grafton, Susan Sibbet, and Marty Williams, open mike follows, co-hosted by Dale Jensen, Ralph Dranow, Diana Q., Grace Grafton, Nefeli Caffe, 1854 Euclid Avenue, near Hearst, Berkeley, free, 7:00 (510/841-6374)

13 SEPTEMBER---saturday:
CENTRAL:
• Second Saturday Poetry and Prose Reading features a reading by Women's Poetry Salon of the Bay Area members Christina Hutchins, Jeanne Wagner, Antoinette Constable, Cherise Wyneken, Dawn McGuire, Jan Steckel, Grace Grafton, Andrena Zawinski, Mary Rudge, Lenore Weiss, Marianne Betterly, Tobey Kaplan, and Jeanne Powell, open reading follows, Jeanne Lupton hosts, Frank Bette Center for the Arts, 1601 Paru Street, at Lincoln, Alameda, 7:00 (510/523-6957; to sign up for open: jeany98@aol.com)
NORTH:
• Left Coast Writers Launch presents a poetry reading by Rebecca Foust from Dark Card, her cycle of poems about raising a child with Asperger's Syndrome, winner of the 2007 Robert Phillips Poetry Chapbook Award from Texas Review Press, with the book,s illustrator, Lorna Stevens, in the Gallery, Book Passage, 51 Tamal Vista Boulevard, Corte Madera, 7:00 (415/927-0960, www.bookpassage.com)

14 SEPTEMBER---sunday:
CENTRAL:
• The second and fourth Sunday series, Music of the Word (La Palabra Musical), has moved to Rebecca's Books, featured readers plus open reading, Rebecca's Books, 3268 Adeline Street, Berkeley, free, 3:30 (510/852-4768)

15 SEPTEMBER---monday:
CENTRAL:
• Left Coast Writers presents a story reading by their members on "Labors of Love (Work and Play)," coordinated by author Colette Obrien, at their monthly gathering, Book Passage, Ferry Building, Ferry Plaza, SF, 5:30 (www.bookpassage.com)
• Poetry reading by Peter Neil Carroll from his new book, Riverborne: A Mississippi Requiem, Noe Valley Ministry, 1021 Sanchez Street, SF, 7:00 (650/324-4321, www.keplers.com)
• Comedian Bill Santiago reads from and signs his new book, Pardon My Spanglish: One Man's Guide to Speaking the Habla, The Booksmith, 1644 Haight Street, SF, 7:30 (415/863-8688, www.booksmith.com)
• Lunada: Literary Lounge & Open Mic hosted by Marc Pinate, featuring Xicano hip hop collective, BRWN BFLO, poet and youth advocate Penina Ava Taesali, and Oakland MC Damn Pete; plus artwork by Natalia Ancisco, Galeria de la Raza, 2857 24th Street, at Bryant, SF, 7:30-10:30 (415/826-8009)
• A poetry reading celebrating UC Berkeley presents Pulitzer Prize-winning poet Robert Hass, Time and Materials, reading with his fellow professor and poet Lyn Hejinian, My Life in the Nineties and The Fatalist, also featuring a range of readers from faculty, students, and staff, including a carillon player, a member of the UC Police Department, and campus executives, Sproul Plaza, University of California, Berkeley campus, noon-1:00 (510/643-0421)
• Novelist and essayist/memoirist Anne Lamott, Blue Shoe and Grace (Eventually): Thoughts on Faith, talks with San Francisco Chronicle columnist Jon Carroll to benefit the academic and financial assistance programs of Oakland's Park Day School, no-host bar and cheese reception precedes the conversation, Berkeley Rep, 2025 Addison Street, Berkeley, $25/$18 students, reception 6:00, presentation 7:00 (510/653-0317, www.parkdayschool.org)
• Poetry Express presents John Moore, open mike, come early, mention the poetry and get a ten percent discount on a meal, Priya Indian Cuisine, 2072 San Pablo Avenue, Berkeley, free, 7:00-9:00 (poetryexpress@gmail.com)
EAST:
• Sacramento Poetry Center presents a poetry reading by Jim Nolt, open mike and refreshments, hosted by Rebecca Morrison, HQ for the Arts, 1719 25th Street at R Street, Sacramento, 7:30 (www.sacramentopoetrycenter.org)

16 SEPTEMBER---tuesday:
CENTRAL:
• Frank Wilderson reads from and discusses his new book, Incognegro: A Memoir of Exile and Apartheid, City Lights Books, 261 Columbus Avenue, SF, 7:00 (415/362-8193, www.citylights.com)
• City Arts & Lectures 28th Annual Literary Event series benefits the 826 Valencia College Scholarship Program with a reading by poet, screenwriter and novelist Paul Auster from his novel Man in the Dark, in conversation with novelist Michelle Richmond, Herbst Theatre, 401 Van Ness Avenue at McAllister, SF, individual tickets $20/each, series ticket for all nine events $153, 8:00 (tickets: 415/392-4400, www.cityboxoffice.com, www.cityarts.net)
• Bay Area contributors, including poets Robert Hass, Michael Palmer, D.A. Powell, and Chad Sweeney, read from The Best American Poetry 2008, an anthology edited by Charles Wright with Series Editor David Lehman, Mrs. Dalloway's Literary and Garden Arts, 2904 College Avenue, Berkeley, 7:30 (510/704-8222, www.mrsdalloways.com)

17 SEPTEMBER---wednesday:
CENTRAL:
• Poetry Center tribute to the late Surrealist poet Philip Lamantia, editor Garrett Caples will be joined by Lamantia's friends, including poets Andrew Joron, Brian Lucas, Neeli Cherkovski, and others in a tribute reading that will feature rare video of Philip Lamantia from the Poetry Center's Archives, with a special appearance by Lamantia's widow, Nancy Joyce Peters, co-owner and retired executive director of City Lights Books, The Unitarian Center, 1187 Franklin, at Geary, SF, $5, 7:30 (www.sfsu.edu/~poetry)
NORTH:
• Sunset Poetry by the Bay presents Rebecca Foust, Dark Card, poems on raising a child with Asperger's Syndrome, open mic follows, Northpoint Coffee House, 1250 Bridgeway, Sausalito, no cover, 7:00-9:00 (415/331-0777, www.northpointcoffee.com)
EAST:
• Poetry Night at Bistro 33 presents Crawdad Nelson, Bigfoot Lives, open mic follows, co-hosted by UC Davis faculty Brad Henderson and Andy Jones, Bistro 33, 226 F Street, Davis, free, 9:00-10:30 (530/756-4556)

18 SEPTEMBER---thursday:
CENTRAL:
• Poetry Center Book Award Reading presents Rigoberto González, Other Fugitives & Other Strangers, selected by Bhanu Kapil, The Vertical Interrogation of Strangers, who will also read from her poetry, she teaches classes on narrative, architecture, and the poetics of mutation at Naropa University in Boulder, at The Poetry Center, Humanities 512, San Francisco State University, 1600 Holloway Avenue, SF, free, 4:30 (www.sfsu.edu/~poetry)
• Cartoonist and novelist Lynda Barry reads from and signs her new book, What It Is, The Booksmith, 1644 Haight Street, SF, 7:30 (415/863-8688, www.booksmith.com)
• City Arts & Lectures 28th Annual Literary Event series benefits the 826 Valencia College Scholarship Program with a reading by 2008 Pulitzer Prize-winner and short story writer Junot Diaz from his debut novel, The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao, in conversation with Paul Lancour, Herbst Theatre, 401 Van Ness Avenue at McAllister, SF, individual tickets $20/each, series ticket for all nine events $153, 8:00 (tickets: 415/392-4400, www.cityboxoffice.com, www.cityarts.net)
• Season kick-off of Story Hour in the Library series at UC Berkeley presents Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist, screenwriter, columnist and short story writer Michael Chabon, hosted by Melanie Abrams and Vikram Chandra, reception and book sale follows, Morrison Library, 101 Doe Library, University of California, Berkeley campus, free, 5:00-6:00 (storyhour.berkeley.edu)
• Poetry Flash presents a reading from and in response to Another World Instead: The Early Poems of William Stafford 1937-1947, the first publication of William Stafford's early work as a conscientious objector, with the editor, Fred Marchant, Robert Hass, and Maxine Hong Kingston, Moe's Books, 2476 Telegraph Avenue, Berkeley, 7:30 (510/849-2087, www.moesbooks.com)
NORTH:
• Writers Forum presents a workshop and talk with poet and prose writer Armando Garcia-Davila, Petaluma Community Center, 320 North McDowell Blvd., Petaluma, $15 at the door, 7:00-9:00 (www.thewritespot.us)
• Third Thursday Poetry Reading presents a featured reader, open mike follows, CityArt Building, 284 Main Street, Point Arena, free, 7:30 (707/882-3616)

19 SEPTEMBER---friday:
CENTRAL:
• MFA Writers' Series presents poet and fiction writer Jeffrey Renard Allen, Night Train and Rails Under My Back, novels, MFA Writers' Studio, California College of the Arts, 195 de Haro, at 15th Street, SF, 3:30-5:00 (www.cca.edu)
• Celebrated author of Trainspotting, Irvine Welsh, reads from and signs his new novel, Crime, The Booksmith, 1644 Haight Street, SF, 7:30 (415/863-8688, www.booksmith.com)
• Small Press Traffic Reading Series presents a reading by poet Anselm Berrigan, Some Notes on My Programming, and poet D.S. Marriott, Incognegro, Timken Lecture Hall, California College of the Arts, 1111 8th Street, SF, $5-$10 sliding scale, free to current SPT members and the CCA community, 7:30 (415/551-9278, www.sptraffic.org)
NORTH:
• Mendocino Stories presents Splendid Collisions, music and stories by Todd Walton with Marcia Sloane, James Maxwell, and music performed by Holly Tannen, Mendocino Hotel, 45080 Main Street, Mendocino, sliding scale $5-$15, 7:30 (707/937-1732, www.mendocinostories.com)
EAST:
• Writers of the New Sun/Escritores del Nuevo Sol presents the annual all-Spanish reading, An Evening of Baroque Poetry, based on the poems of the Mexican nun: Sor Juana Inés de La Cruz, open mic follows, La Raza Galeria Posada, 1024 22nd Street, Sacramento, $5 or as you can afford, 7:30 (916/456-5323, escritoresdelnuevosol.com)

20 SEPTEMBER---saturday:
CENTRAL:
• Canessa Gallery Reading Series presents a poetry performance event with Ariel Goldberg, Chad Lietz, and Judith Goldman, inter-arts poets working with text, performance, visual and aural poetics, curated by Erica Lewis, Canessa Gallery, 708 Montgomery Street, SF, $3, 8:00
NORTH:
• Poetry reading by Berkeley Poetry Salon members Rebecca Foust, Dark Card, Nellie Hill, Janell Moon, Riding Free in a Blue Studebaker, Jeanne Wagner, The Zen Piano-Mover, and Andrena Zawinski, open mic follows, Rebound Books, 1611 Fourth Street, San Rafael, 5:00-7:30 (to sign up to read, contact: 415/482-0550, reboundbookstore@aol.com)
• Ninth Annual Sonoma County Book Festival celebrates the literary arts and promote literacy, events include readings, book signings, and panel discussions with over sixty local and nationally acclaimed authors and poets including Cristina Garcia, Toni Mirosevich, James Tipton, Susan Griffin, Noelle Oxenhandler, Lisa Margonelli, Julia Whitty, and Gaye LeBaron; Poetry Main Stage presents, 10:00 a.m.: Mike Tuggle, Terry Ehret, and Dan Bellm, 11:00 a.m.: Gillian Wegener, Andrew Demcak, and Lynne Knight; 1:00: Jack & Adelle Foley, WordWind Chorus, Ellen Bass, and Lee Slonimsky; 2:00: Judy Grahn with Anne Carol, Robert Sward, and devorah major; 3:00: Stephen Kessler, Julia B. Levine, q.r. hand, jr., and David Smith-Ferri; 4:00, City Council Chambers, 100 Santa Rosa Avenue: "The Fame Game: The Fortunes & Misfortunes of Success," a panel with authors Jonah Raskin, Noelle Oxenhandler, Ianthe Brautigan, Stephen Kessler, and Lauren Coodley; booths and exhibits showcasing independent booksellers, publishers and libraries; art and music events, Old Courthouse Square, Santa Rosa, free, 10:00 a.m.-5:00 (for information or to volunteer: 707/527-5412, www.socobookfest.org)
• Sonoma County Book Festival presents An Evening with Michael Krasny, a benefit to keep the book festival's activities running and a kickoff for the 10th annual Book Festival in 2009, Michael Krasny, host of KQED radio's Forum, author of the book Off Mike: A Memoir of Talk Radio and Literary Life, in an onstage interview by radio host and newspaper columnist Gil Mansergh, Glaser Center, 547 Mendocino Avenue, Santa Rosa, $20, 7:00 (tickets: 707/527-5412, www.socobookfest.org)

21 SEPTEMBER---sunday:
CENTRAL:
• Reading by poet Adam David Miller, from his memoir, Ticket to Exile, coming of age in the Jim Crow South, Bird & Beckett Books & Records, 653 Chenery Street, Diamond Street in Glen Park, SF, free, 3:00 (415/586-3733)
• Staughton Lynd reads from and discusses his new book, Wobblies & Zapatistas: Conversations on Anarchism, Marxism and Radical History, City Lights Books, 261 Columbus Avenue, SF, 5:00 (415/362-8193, www.citylights.com)
NORTH:
• Petaluma Poetry Walk presents their pre-Litcrawl concept of readings within walking distance: 10:00 a.m.: Mike Tuggle, Sonoma County Poet Laureate, Terry Ehret, Lucky Break, Dan Bellm, Practice, Gillian Wegener, and friends of the late visual artist Phoebe Washer, whose art will be on display, Petaluma Art Center, 230 Lakeville Street, corner of D Street and Lakeville; 11:00 a.m.: Music by G.P. Skratz and the New Arundo Band, Jeanne Powell, My Own Silence, Lynn Watson, Amateur Blues, Jack Crimmins, Kit Fox Blues, Jungle Vibes, 136 Petaluma Blvd., N.; Noon: Claudia Chapline, Sean Kilty, Cold Blade Against The Heart, Michael Larrain, For One Moment There Was No Queen, Steve Wasserman, Wild Goose Pagoda, Jungle Vibes, 136 Petaluma Blvd., N.; 1:00: Ed Coletti, Michael Rothenberg, Nightmare of the Violins, Terry Carrion, The Apple Box at The Mill, 6 Petaluma Blvd., N.; 2:00: Diane di Prima, legendary poet of the Beat movement and author of forty-three books of poetry and prose, and Maria Mazziotti Gillan, All That Lines Between Us, The Apple Box at The Mill, 6 Petaluma Blvd., N.; 3:00: Al Young, Something About the Blues: An Unlikely Collection of Poetry, Joyce Jenkins, Poetry Flash, and Jonah Raskin, The Radical Jack London, Copperfield's Books, 140 Kentucky Street; 4:00: Sonoma County Poet Laureate Mike Tuggle, Martha Cinader Mims and Tony Mims from Listen & Be Heard, accompanied by Paul Neal, bass, and Carl Trent, drums, Phoenix Theatre, 201 Washington Street; 5:00: Avotcja, poet/playwright, multi-instrumentalist, with Shirley Kazuyo Muramoto on koto and Eugene Warren on bass, Nancy Keane of Poetry at the 33, Michelle Baynes, Homeless in Petaluma, Geri Digiorno, Rosetta Mary, Bella Luma Caffe, Helen Putnam Plaza, 125 Petaluma Blvd. N.; 6:00: "Children of the Beats," hosted by Gerald Nicosia, featuring John Cassady, Visions of Neal, Neeli Cherkovski, Whitman's Wild Children, Latif Harris, Beatitude magazine, Sharon Doubiago, My Father's Love, Nicole Henares, editor of Monterey Poetry Review, North Beach performance poet Jessica Loos, all accompanied by musical backup by Dana Alberts, singer/songwriter and punk rock veteran from the band Minus One, Aqus Café, Foundry Wharf, 189 H Street, all in Petaluma (Geri Digiorno, 707/763-4271, http://geri-digiorno.petaluma360.com)

22 SEPTEMBER---monday:
CENTRAL:
• Poetry Express presents Kirk Lumpkin, open mike, come early, mention the poetry and get a ten percent discount on a meal, Priya Indian Cuisine, 2072 San Pablo Avenue, Berkeley, free, 7:00-9:00 (poetryexpress@gmail.com)
• A reading by poet Lee Slonimsky, Pythagoras in Love, and poet and founder of the WordTemple Poetry Series, Katherine Hastings, Bird.Song.Knife.Heart, Moe's Books, 2476 Telegraph Avenue, Berkeley, 7:30 (510/849-2087, www.moesbooks.com)
EAST:
• Sacramento Poetry Center presents a poetry reading by Robbie Grossklaus and Company, open mike and refreshments, hosted by Tim Kahl, HQ for the Arts, 1719 25th Street at R Street, Sacramento, 7:30 (www.sacramentopoetrycenter.org)

23 SEPTEMBER---tuesday:
CENTRAL:
• Take Me Out to the Ball Game! baseball poetry read by poets Jack Hirschman, Latif Harris, Paul Watsky, Fran Furey, Daryl Brock, Jeff Brain, Tobey Kaplan, and Carolyn Lei-lanilau, hosted by John Oliver Simon, co-sponsored by Center for the Art of Translation, San Francisco Main Library, Koret Auditorium, 100 Larkin Street, at Grove, SF, 6:00-7:30 (415/557-4277, www.sfpl.org)
• A poetry reading by Diane di Prima and Maria Mazziotti Gillan, All That Lies Between Us, director of the Poetry Center at Passaic County Community College in Paterson, New Jersey, Bird & Beckett Books & Records, 653 Chenery Street, Diamond Street in Glen Park, SF, donation/free, 7:00 (to reserve a seat, call: 415/586-3733; www.birdbeckett.com)
• California journalist and historian Rick Wartzman reads from and signs his new book, Obscene in the Extreme, The Booksmith, 1644 Haight Street, SF, 7:30 (415/863-8688, www.booksmith.com)
• No Tell Press poets Hugh Behm-Steinberg, Shy Green Fields, and Jill Alexander Essbaum read from their work, Books & Bookshelves, 99 Sanchez Street, SF, free, B.Y.O.B., 7:30 (415/621-3761, www.99sanchez.com)
• A reading by Larry Beinhart from Salvation Boulevard, Moe's Books, 2476 Telegraph Avenue, Berkeley, 7:30 (510/849-2087, www.moesbooks.com)
NORTH:
• Peter Philips, director of Project Censored and professor of Sociology at Sonoma State University, discusses Censored 2009: The Top 25 Censored Stories of 2007-2008, which he co-edited with Andrew Roth, Reader's Books, 130 E. Napa Street, Sonoma, free, 7:30 (707/939-1779)

24 SEPTEMBER---wednesday:
CENTRAL:
• Poetry reading, conversation, and book signing with Ana Elsner, Ciphers of Uncommon Origin, sponsored by Friends of the San Francisco Library, Glen Park Branch Library, 2825 Diamond Street, near Bosworth, SF, free, 6:30 (415/355-2858, www.sfpl.org)
• Daphne Beal reads from and signs her debut novel, In the Land of No Right Angles, The Booksmith, 1644 Haight Street, SF, 7:30 (415/863-8688, www.booksmith.com)
• Creative Writing Series presents a reading by journalist and creative nonfiction writer Dan White, The Cactus Eaters, Soda Activity Center, Saint Mary's College of California, 1928 Saint Mary's Road, Moraga, free, 7:30 (925/631-4457, www.stmarys-ca.edu/mfa)
NORTH:
• Historical novelist Francis Hamit reads from The Shenandoah Spy: Being the True Life Adventures of Belle Boyd, CSA, the "Confederate Cleopatra," The Depot Bookstore & Café, 87 Throckmorton Avenue, Mill Valley, 7:00 (415-383-2665, www.depotbookstore.com)
• An Evening with the Creative Spirit of Sonoma County Poet Laureate Mike Tuggle, Chester Aaron, and Bart Schneider, Union Hotel, 3703 Main Street, Occidental, fixed price dinner available, includes salad, bread, and pasta or pizza, $15, 5:30-7:00; $10 reading donation benefits Occidental Center for the Arts, reading 7:00 (reservations suggested: 707/874-9392)

25 SEPTEMBER---thursday:
CENTRAL:
• James Nolan reads from his new book, Perpetual Care, City Lights Books, 261 Columbus Avenue, SF, 7:00 (415/362-8193, www.citylights.com)
• In celebration of the Ethnic Studies Department's 40th Anniversary, novelist and playwright Cecile Pineda reads from Redoubt and Bardo99, refreshments, Ethnic Studies Library, 30 Stephens Hall, University of California, Berkeley, free, 6:00 (510/642-3947, http://eslibrary.berkeley.edu)
• Sixteen Rivers Press 10th Anniversary Celebration & Poetry Reading with contributors to the Sixteen Rivers Press CD, Naming the Rivers: The Poets of Sixteen Rivers Press 1999-2008, including Gerald Fleming, Lynne Knight, Jackie Kudler, Nina Lindsay, Carolyn Miller, Murray Silverstein, Helen Wickes and Susan Sibbet