WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 13
7pm | PHOENIX | FOUND IN TRANSLATION BOOK CLUB | THE END OF DAYS | This month we discuss
The End of Days by acclaimed German author Jenny Erpenbeck, translated by Susan Bernofsky. Winner of the Independent Foreign Fiction Prize and the Hans Fallada Prize,
The End of Days consists essentially of five "books," each leading to a different death of the same unnamed female protagonist.
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7pm | TEMPE | GREG PETERSON | "JUMP START YOUR SPRING GARDEN" | Join Greg as he walks you through the most important things to know about starting your spring garden. Being a lifelong Phoenix gardener, it is often assumed that he has growing all figured out — so much so that when people tell him they have two black thumbs he just laughs, then promises them that he has killed more plants, including trees, than they probably ever will. In reality, gardening in the desert is simple if you know the rules.
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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 14 | HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!
9:15am | PHOENIX | FAMILY EVENT | BABY TIME | Babies (accompanied by a favorite adult) enjoy songs, activities to promote movement, rhymes, books, and playtime in each lively session. Baby Time gives your baby the opportunity to hear lots of language while you get to know other families with young children.
Also join us in Phoenix at 9:15am on Thursdays, February 21 and 28. More »
10am | PHOENIX | FAMILY EVENT | STORYTIME | Join us for interactive storytime for pre-schoolers and kindergarteners.
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FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 15
7pm | PHOENIX | STORYLINE SLAM | "CRUSHING IT!" | 10 STORYTELLERS. 6 MINUTES. 1 WINNER! Ten tellers will have 6 minutes each to share a story based on the theme of "Crushing It!" Sign up on TheStoryline.org January 19 through Saturday, February 9 to tell a story. Eight names will be drawn on Sunday, February 10 and posted on the TheStoryline.org. At least two more names will be drawn at the beginning of the show. Five members of the audience will be the judges. The storyteller with the most points at the end of the show receives a $30 cash prize.
Cost: $6 online / $8 at the door. Register online. More »
SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 16
3pm | TEMPE | TEEN EVENT | TEEN ADVISORY BOARD (T.A.B.) | DARK OF THE WEST | Teens meet to discuss Joanna Hathaway's YA fantasy debut
Dark of the West.
T.A.B. will be reading advanced copies provided by the publisher. If you are interested in reading the book beforehand and joining in our discussion on February 16, please contact our T.A.B. coordinator Leah with your request. Limited copies available. More »
5:30-8:30pm | TEMPE | INSIGHTS TAROT READINGS | James R. Betz offers advice on life, relationships, and career choices.
Cost: $20 for 15 minutes. Registration at 480.730.0205. More info: 602.840.2222.
MONDAY, FEBRUARY 18 | PRESIDENTS' DAY
7pm | PHOENIX | JASMINE GUILLORY | THE PROPOSAL AND THE WEDDING DATE | The
New York Times bestselling author of
The Wedding Date presents her latest, a novel about what happens when a public proposal doesn't turn into a happy ending, thanks to a woman who knows exactly how to make one on her own... When freelance writer Nikole goes to a Dodgers game with her actor boyfriend, his man bun, and his bros, the last thing she expects is a scoreboard proposal. Saying "no" isn't the hard part—they've only been dating for five months, and he can't even spell her name correctly. The hard part is having to face a stadium full of disappointed fans... At the game with his sister, Carlos Ibarra comes to Nik's rescue and rushes her away from a camera crew. He's even there for her when the video goes viral and Nik's social media blows up—in a bad way. Nik knows that in the wilds of LA, a handsome doctor like Carlos can't be looking for anything serious, so she embarks on an epic rebound with him, filled with food, fun, and fantastic sex. But when their glorified hookups start breaking the rules, one of them has to be smart enough to put on the brakes.
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TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 19
10:15am | TEMPE | FAMILY EVENT | STORYTIME | Join us for interactive storytime for pre-schoolers and kindergarteners.
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7pm | PHOENIX | LONG AND SHORT OF IT BOOK CLUB | WHERE THE DEAD SIT TALKING AND FRIDAY BLACK | Long and Short of It Book Club is a new bimonthly club that explores one book and one story collection connected by a single theme. Tonight we discuss racial identity in America through two of 2018's best releases. Brandon Hobson's
Where the Dead Sit Talking is a coming-of-age drama about a young Cherokee boy in 1980s Oklahoma. Nana Kwame Adjei-Brenyah's
Friday Black is a collection of surreal short stories about race, violence, and consumerism. Hobson was a finalist for the National Book Award, while Adjei-Brenyah was a recipient of the "5 Under 35" award.
Stop by either Changing Hands location or order online to get your copies of Where the Dead Sit Talking for 20% off and Friday Black for 10% off. Then meet us at First Draft Book Bar to discuss the picks. More »
7pm | TEMPE | TEEN EVENT | KARA MCDOWELL | JUST FOR CLICKS | Local author Kara McDowell shares her debut young adult novel. Mommy blogs are great...unless the blog happens to belong to your mom. Twin sisters Claire and Poppy are accidental social media stars thanks to Mom going viral when they were babies. Now, as teens, they're expected to contribute by building their own brand. Attending a New York fashion week and receiving fan mail is a blast. Fending off internet trolls and would-be kidnappers? Not so much. Poppy embraces it. Claire hates it. Will anybody accept her as "just Claire?" And what should Claire do about Mom's old journals? The handwritten entries definitely don't sound like Mom's perfect blog persona. Worse, one of them divulges a secret that leaves Claire wondering what else in her life might be nothing but a sham.
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WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 20
7:30pm | OFFSITE | NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC LIVE! PRESENTS CHRISTINA MITTERMEIER | Photographer Cristina Mittermeier visits Mesa Arts Center as part of the National Geographic Live! series. Cristina is a Mexican-born marine biologist and photographer specializing in conservation issues surrounding the ocean and indigenous cultures. Her work centers on the delicate balance between human well-being and healthy ecosystems.
Location: Mesa Arts Center, 1 E Main St, Mesa, AZ 85201. More »
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 21
9:15am | PHOENIX | FAMILY EVENT | BABY TIME | Babies (accompanied by a favorite adult) enjoy songs, activities to promote movement, rhymes, books, and playtime in each lively session. Baby Time gives your baby the opportunity to hear lots of language while you get to know other families with young children.
Also join us in Phoenix at 9:15am on Thursday, February 28. More »
10am | PHOENIX | FAMILY EVENT | STORYTIME | Join us for interactive storytime for pre-schoolers and kindergarteners.
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6:30-8:30pm | TEMPE | WRITING WORKSHOP WITH JEREDITH MERRIN | "POETIC IMAGERY AND INSIGHT: HOW LOOKING OUTSIDE YOURSELF HELPS YOU SEE (AND SAY) WHAT'S GOING ON INSIDE" | In session one of this two-part workshop, participants will explore the relation between Looking and Making, and discuss examples of imagery—especially visual imagery—in a selection of poems. Attendees are invited (but not required) to bring a short poem (by a poet other than themselves) or a stanza from a longer poem that contains imagery they find moving or striking. In the second session, participants return with newly drafted poems to workshop. Beginners welcome.
Cost: $35 + fees for two sessions, February 21 and 28. Register online. More »
FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 22
7pm | OFFSITE | TANIA KATAN | CREATIVE TRESPASSING | Creative disruptor, inspirational speaker, and co-creator of the internationally viral campaign #ItWasNeverADress shows how to sneak more creativity and imagination into your work and life in her new book
Creative Trespassing. Whether you're an entrepreneur seeking new ways to innovate, a newbie trying to spice up routine entry-level work, a free spirit with a rich creative life outside the office looking to bring more of that magic into your job, or just someone who occasionally feels the urge to scream "Why does it say paper jam when there is no paper jam!," Katan will show you how to transform monotony into novelty and get your freakin' spark back between the hours of nine and five.
Location: Virginia G. Piper Theater, Scottsdale Center for the Performing Arts. Tickets available online. More »
7pm | PHOENIX | HANIF ABDURRAQIB | GO AHEAD IN THE RAIN | Poet, essayist, and cultural critic Hanif Abdurraqib discusses and signs copies of his latest book. How does one pay homage to A Tribe Called Quest? The seminal rap group brought jazz into the genre, resurrecting timeless rhythms to create masterpieces such as
The Low End Theory and
Midnight Marauders. Seventeen years after their last album, they resurrected themselves with an intense, socially conscious record,
We Got It from Here . . . Thank You 4 Your Service, which arrived when fans needed it most, in the aftermath of the 2016 election. Abdurraqib digs into the group's history and draws from his own experience to reflect on how its distinctive sound resonated among fans like himself. The result is as ambitious and genre-bending as the rap group itself. Abdurraqib seeks the deeper truths of A Tribe Called Quest; truths that—like the low end, the bass—are not simply heard in the head, but felt in the chest.
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SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 23
5pm | TEMPE | CHARLES J. BABBITT | BIRDING ARIZONA: WHAT TO KNOW, WHERE TO GO | Third-generation Arizonan Charles J. Babbitt shares his guide for beginning and experienced birders who want to enjoy some of the best bird watching in Arizona. Arizona is recognized as one of America's foremost birding destinations, with almost half of all the birds of North America seen in our state. Birders come from across the country to see our local birds and the occasional Mexican rarity. This book features some of the best birding locations in Arizona, with maps and descriptions of the birds that can be seen at each site.
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5:30-8:30pm | TEMPE | TAROT READINGS | Mystic Journeyz with Suzi Coggins. "Your Angels Are Waiting."
Cost: $20 for 15 minutes. Registration at 480.730.0205. More info: mysticjourneyz.com.
