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Torontoist Reads: Literary Events This Week
The last 10 days have been a great time to be a film nut, but now Christmas comes early for book nerds as over the next few weeks two of the biggest events of the year take place, starting with next Sunday’s Word on the Street, which will be followed by the start of the International Festival of Authors in mid-October.
A few events taking place today. Poet Lorette C. Luzajic launches her first book, “The Astronaut’s Wife” this afternoon at Brass Taps (221 Carlton). And later tonight head to Lula Lounge – 1585 Dundas West – for 1Ness Poetry Series, featuring d’bi.young. It’s $18 ($15 advance) and starts at 7pm. Afterwards, head to the Gladstone – 1214 Queen W. – for this week’s instalment of the Haunted Fishtank poetry and spoken word night, hosted by Josh Haggarty. It starts at 9pm and is free.
Tomorrow night at 6pm Danen Jobe reads from “Niagara Blues: Slingerland”, a biography of elusive country/folk artist Jandek, at Circus Books, 253 Garrard East. It’s free.
On Tuesday evening, Justin Zaza launches his new satiric novel, Men are all Murderers and Women are all Whores at the Gladstone – 1214 Queen West. Starts at 7pm and is free.
Also on Tuesday night is the Art Bar Poetry Series. The featured readers this week are Rafi Aaron (Surviving the Censor – The Unspoken Words of Osip Mandelstam), Karen Richardson, and Michael Kleiza. It takes place at the Victory Café – 581 Markham – and starts at 8pm. Free.
The Harbourfront Reading Series presents a quartet of fine authors this Wednesday at 7:30pm. Reading are Trevor Cole, Kevin Patterson, Keith Maillard, and one of the best young writers in Canada, Adam Lewis Schroeder (pictured), whose new novel, Empress of Asia, is one of my most anticipated reads this fall. It takes place at Harbourfront – 235 Queens Quay West – and will cost you $8.
On Saturday night, the Test Reading Series features Diana Fitzgerald Bryden and Jason Christie, who is launching a new book, I-robot. It takes place at the Mercer Union, 37 Lisgar – at 7:30pm and is pay-what-you-can. Also on Saturday, the latest edition of the Perpetual Motion Roadshow rolls into town. This one features poet and musician Tony Curtis, all the way from San Jose, China Martens, and Eric Lab rat. Starts at 8pm. At the Gladstone, 1214 Queen W. PWYC.
The big event this week takes place next Sunday at Queen’s Park. The Word on the Street is Canada’s largest annual outdoor book and magazine festival. It features more than 250 booths manned by your favourite authors, magazines, bookstores and organizations. Scheduled readers include (breathes deeply) Howard Akler, Donna Bailey-Nurse, James Bartleman, Marusya Bociurkiw, Chester Brown, Bonnie Burstow, Terry Carroll, Keith Clemons, Tim Conley, Pier Giorgio Di Cicco, Diane Dupuy, Jon Paul Fiorentino, Robert Fontaine, Sephera Giron, Michael Gualtieri, Devon Harris, Maxine Hyndman, Nancy Kilpatrick, James Little, Lori A. May, Ruth Ohi, Denyse O’Leary, K.D. Patrick, Martha Petrie, Emily Pohl-Weary, Judy Powell, Tina Powell, Swami Sai Premananda, Nathalie Prezeau, Corrado Puina, Richard Scarsbrook, Karl Schroeder, Rob Westhall, Pamela Williams, Robert Charles Wilson, and Maggie L. Wood. (Exhales.) A can’t miss event. Torontoist will be there.