The Seattle Public Library’s author programs, book discussions and community dialogues this June feature a wide range of authors and topics.
Four events will be held at the Central Library’s Level 1 Microsoft Auditorium. The events at Central Library will also be livestreamed via Zoom.
Registration is required for both in-person and online attendance; check the event description at spl.org/Calendar for registration and links. All events are free and open to the public. Contact the Library’s Ask Us service by phone at 206-386-4636 or by email or chat at www.spl.org/Ask.
EVENTS SCHEDULE
From 1 p.m. to 2 p.m., Saturday, June 4, The Language of Machines: Asian Voices on New Poetics From Tech, Robotics and Video Games – online. Poets Neil Aitken (“Baggage’s Dream”), Betsy Aoki (“Breakpoint”) and Margaret Rhee (“Love, Robot”) share insights about crafting award-winning poems from programming languages, video games, AI and robotics. This event is presented in partnership with Open Books: A Poetry Emporium and supported by The Seattle Public Library Foundation, author series sponsors the Gary and Connie Kunis Foundation, Open Books and Seattle City of Literature.
From 7 p.m. to 8 p.m., Tuesday, June 7, Quintard Taylor Discusses "The Forging of a Black Community" – Central Library and online. Celebrate the release of the second edition of this seminal work about Seattle’s Central District by the Scott and Dorothy Bullitt Professor of American History and professor emeritus at the University of Washington. With a new foreword and afterword, “The Forging of a Black Community” is essential to understanding the history and present of the largest Black community in the Pacific Northwest. The author will appear in conversation with Dr. Quin’Nita Cobbins-Modica. This event is presented in partnership with the Northwest African American Museum, Elliott Bay Book Company and University of Washington Press, and is supported by The Seattle Public Library Foundation and the Gary and Connie Kunis Foundation.
From 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m., Thursday, June 9, Virtual It's About Time Writers' Reading Series – online. Join this virtual event by the Ballard Branch, featuring writers Kelly Martineau, Anne Liu Kellor, Mary Pan and Jenne Hsien Patrick.
From 2 p.m. to 4 p.m., Sunday, June 12, Virtual Writers Read – online. This monthly reading series features local writers reading from their diverse repertoires of poetry, short stories, novels and essays. It is presented in partnership with African-American Writers' Alliance on the second Sunday of the month.
From6 p.m. to 7 p.m., Tuesday, June 14, Alex Graham and Phoebe Gloeckner discuss "Dog Biscuits" – online. A conversation about “Dog Biscuits,” Graham’s pandemic-inspired graphic novel and one of the most talked-about comics of 2020. Alex Graham is a painter and cartoonist from Denver, currently residing in Seattle, and Phoebe Gloeckner is a cartoonist, writer, trained medical illustrator, and professor at the University of Michigan School of Art and Design. The event is presented in partnership with Elliott Bay Book Company and Fantagraphics Books, and is supported by The Seattle Public Library Foundation and the Gary and Connie Kunis Foundation.
From 7 p.m. to 8:30 p.m., Tuesday, June 21, Clarion West presents Susan Palwick – Central Library and online. Join us for a Clarion West summer reading series event with award-winning writer Susan Palwick. Palwick has published four novels with Tor Books and her second short story collection, “All Worlds Are Real,” was published in 2019. Palwick’s fiction has been shortlisted for the World Fantasy Award, the Mythopoeic Award, and the Philip K. Dick Award. She currently works as a hospital chaplain for a large nonprofit medical system in Reno. This event is presented in partnership with Clarion West and University Book Store, and supported by The Seattle Public Library Foundation, author series sponsors the Gary and Connie Kunis Foundation, Open Books and Seattle City of Literature.
From 6 p.m. to 7 p.m., Wednesday, June 22, The Bullitt Lecture in American History presents Judy Heumann and Jae Kim – online. Join for a conversation with disability rights icon Judy Heumann, who will discuss her book “Being Heumann” and the disability rights movement. Heumann has been instrumental in the development and implementation of legislation such as Section 504, the Individuals with Education Act, the Americans with Disabilities Act and the Rehabilitation Act. She is featured in the Oscar-nominated documentary, “Crip Camp: A Disability Revolution.” This event is supported by The Seattle Public Library Foundation, author series sponsor Gary Kunis, and media sponsor The Seattle Times, and presented in partnership with the Arc of King County and Elliott Bay Book Company.
From 7 p.m. to 8 p.m, Thursday, June 23, Julie Pham discusses "7 Forms of Respect" – Central Library and online. In this practical guide, Dr. Julie Pham helps navigate the ambiguity of what it means to respect others, offering questions and exercises that will transform work communication and relationships. She will appear in conversation with Seattle bridge builder, journalist and entrepreneur Mónica Guzmán. This event is supported by The Seattle Public Library Foundation and the Gary and Connie Kunis Foundation.
From 7 p.m. to 8 p.m., Monday, June 27, Ottessa Moshfegh discusses "Lapvona" – Central Library and online. Join us to hear Moshfegh discuss her new novel “Lapvona,” in which a motherless shepherd boy finds himself the unlikely pivot of a power struggle that puts all manner of faith to a savage test. Moshfegh is a fiction writer from New England whose first nove, “Eileen,” was shortlisted for the National Book Critics Circle Award and the Man Booker Prize, and won the PEN/Hemingway Award for debut fiction. Moshfegh will appear in conversation with writer Kim Fu. This event is supported by The Seattle Public Library Foundation and the Gary and Connie Kunis Foundation.
7 – 8:30 p.m., Tuesday, June 28, Clarion West presents P. Djèlí Clark – Central Library and online. Join us for a Clarion West summer reading series event with P. Djèlí Clark, the award-winning and Hugo, Nebula, Sturgeon, and World Fantasy nominated author of the novel “A Master of Djinn.” His stories have appeared in online venues such as Tor.com, Daily Science Fiction and Heroic Fantasy, and in print anthologies including Griots, Hidden Youth, and Clockwork Cairo. This event is presented in partnership with Clarion West and University Book Store, and supported by The Seattle Public Library Foundation, author series sponsors the Gary and Connie Kunis Foundation, Open Books and Seattle City of Literature.