BookSwell

Join us for PEN Presents: Justin Torres's BlackoutsPEN America Los Angeles is delighted to present beloved author Justin Torres upon the release of his new novel, Blackouts. This hybrid text is a collage of vignettes, image, and blackout poetry born from a true artifact, Sex Variants: A Study in Homosexual Patterns. Ekphrastic and archival, Torres pieces together the fictional histories of the narrator and his peer, “playful raconteur” Juan Gay, as well as the real-life creator of Sex Variants, Jan Gay, a woman whose scholarship was historically co-opted. In conversation with Torres is Angela Flournoy, author of The Turner House. She is a contributing writer at The New York Times Magazine, and her nonfiction has appeared in many publications, including The Nation, The Los Angeles Times, and The New Yorker. Join us for a conversation about authorship, the art of fiction, and the possibilities of the novel. This free program will be followed by Q+A and a book signing.

Nana-Ama Danquah will read from and discuss her groundbreaking memoir, WILLOW WEEP FOR ME: A BLACK WOMAN'S JOURNEY THROUGH DEPRESSION.ABOUT THE BOOKThe first book to focus on black women and depression, seen through the personal journey of a young black woman’s descent into despair.Nana-Ama Danquah, a “working-class broke,” twenty-two-year-old single mother, began to suffer from a variety of depressive symptoms after she gave birth to her daughter, which led her to suspect that she might be going crazy. Understanding the importance of strength in a world that often undervalues black women’s lives, she shrouded herself and her illness in silence and denial. “Black women are supposed to be strong―caretakers, nurturers, healers of other people―any of the twelve dozen variations of Mammy,” writes Danquah. But eventually, she could no longer deny the debilitating sadness that interfered with her ability to care for her daughter, to pursue her career as a writer, and to engage in personal relationships. “This is how the world feels to me when I am depressed,” she writes. “Everything is blurry, out of focus, fading like a photograph; people seem incapable of change; living feels like a waste of time and effort.”She moves back to the city of Read More ...

Ed Begley Jr. with Mary Steenburgen & Ted Danson discussing his memoir, To the Temple of Tranquility...And Step On It!Join us for an in-person* Live Talks Los Angeles event:Wednesday, October 11, 2023, 8pm*Virtual event airs on October 16 at 6pm PT/9pm ETEd Begley Jr. with Mary Steenburgen & Ted Danson discussing his memoir, "To the Temple of Tranquility...And Step On It!"TICKETS:$48 General Admission ticket + signed copy of the book$70 Two General Admission tickets + one signed copy of the bookAdditional books available for purchase at eventFace masks recommendedTickets also include opportunity to watch the virtual event The virtual version of this event airs on October 16, at 6pm PT/9PM ET and is available on video-on-demand for five days Tickets for the virtual event can be purchased here (includes the book)ASL interpreter provided upon request.Free parking at the venueBeloved actor and environmental activist Ed Begley Jr. shares hilarious and poignant stories of his improbable life, focusing on his relationship with his legendary father, adventures with Hollywood icons, the origins of his environmental activism, addiction and recovery, and his lifelong search for wisdom and common ground. Ed Begley, Jr. is an actor and environmental activist. He has appeared in hundreds of films, television Read More ...

Cliff Sloan discusses THE COURT AT WAR with Rich Marmaro.ABOUT THE BOOKThe inside story of how one president forever altered the most powerful legal institution in the country, with consequences that endure today.By the summer of 1941, in the ninth year of his presidency, Franklin Roosevelt had molded his Court. He had appointed seven of the nine justices—the most by any president except George Washington—and handpicked the chief justice.But the wartime Roosevelt Court had two faces. One was bold and progressive, the other supine and abject, cowed by the charisma of the revered president. The Court at War explores this pivotal period. It provides a cast of unforgettable characters in the justices—from the mercurial, Vienna-born intellectual Felix Frankfurter to the Alabama populist Hugo Black; from the western prodigy William O. Douglas, FDR’s initial pick to be his running mate in 1944, to Roosevelt’s former attorney general and Nuremberg prosecutor Robert Jackson.The justices’ shameless capitulation and unwillingness to cross their beloved president highlight the dangers of an unseemly closeness between Supreme Court justices and their political patrons. But the FDR Court’s finest moments also provided a robust defense of individual rights, rights the current Court has put in jeopardy. Sloan’s intimate Read More ...

Arnold Schwarzenegger with Jamie Lee Curtis discussing his book, "Be Useful: Seven Tools for Life" Join us for an in-person* Live Talks Los Angeles event:Friday, October 13, 2023, 8pm*Virtual event airs on October 18 at 6pm PT/9pm ETArnold Schwarzenegger with Jamie Lee Curtisdiscussing his book "Be Useful: Seven Tools for Life"TICKETS:$55 General Admission ticket + signed copy of the book$25 General Admission tickets Face masks recommendedTickets also include opportunity to watch the virtual event The virtual version of this event airs on October 18, at 6pm PT/9PM ET and is available on video-on-demand for five days Tickets for the virtual event can be purchased here (includes the book)ASL interpreter provided upon request.Free parking at the venueThe seven rules to follow to realize your true purpose in life—distilled by Arnold Schwarzenegger from his own journey of ceaseless reinvention and extraordinary achievement, and available for absolutely anyone.....Arnold Schwarzenegger is an Austrian-born bodybuilder, actor, businessman, philanthropist, bestselling author, and politician. He served as the thirty-eighth governor of California.The world’s greatest bodybuilder. The world’s highest-paid movie star. The leader of the world’s sixth-largest economy. .In his new book, he details the seven tools he believes we all need to follow to find true purpose and Read More ...

An Afternoon with Sir Patrick Stewart discussing his memoir, "Making It So." *** US Orders only. We only ship to addresses in the USJoin us for a virtual Live Talks Los Angeles event:Sunday, October 15, 2023, 3pm PT/6pm ETAn Evening with Sir Patrick Stewart discussing his memoir, "Making It So"* interviewer to be announcedTICKETS:$50 Ticket: Virtual Admission + copy of the bookTicket includes opportunity to watch the event on video-on-demand for five days, thru October20 at midnight.Books ship one week after the event.The long-awaited memoir from iconic, beloved actor and living legend Sir Patrick Stewart!Sir Patrick Stewart is a distinguished stage and screen actor whose illustrious career spans six decades. A classically trained theater artist who got his start at England’s Royal Shakespeare Company, Stewart’s legendary performances have garnered him three Olivier Awards, Emmy and Tony Award nominations, and a Grammy Award, among countless honors. His beloved screen work, known to audiences worldwide, includes his iconic portrayals of Star Trek’s Jean-Luc Picard and X-Men’s Professor Charles Xavier. Follow him on social media at @SirPatStew. From his acclaimed stage triumphs to his legendary onscreen work in the Star Trek and X-Men franchises, Sir Patrick Stewart has captivated audiences around the world and across multiple Read More ...