TUESDAY, AUGUST 14
7-8:30pm | TEMPE | JUMP START YOUR FALL GARDEN WITH FARMER GREG | The founder of the Urban Farm and author of
The Urban Farm's Simple Sustainability Series leads a discussion on fall gardening in the desert Southwest. Admittedly, gardening in Phoenix has a unique set of challenges, but by following some simple yet effective steps, growing will become a lot easier. Join Greg Peterson as he walks you through the three most important things to know about starting your garden to successfully grow your own veggies in the desert, and discover your way into an incredible edible fall garden. (And yes, August is the perfect time to start planting!)
More »
THURSDAY, AUGUST 16
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, August 23, and 30.
More »
10am | PHOENIX | FAMILY EVENT | STORYTIME | Join us for interactive storytime for pre-schoolers and kindergarteners.
More »
7pm | TEMPE | AMBER TAMBLYN | ANY MAN | Actor and activist Amber Tamblyn presents her debut novel, bringing to startling life a specter of sexual violence in the shadowy form of Maude, a serial female rapist who preys on men. In this provocative debut, Tamblyn blends poetry, prose, and elements of suspense to give shape to the shocking narratives of victims of sexual violence, mapping the destructive ways in which our society perpetuates rape culture. A violent serial rapist is on the loose, who goes by the name Maude. She hunts for men at bars, online, at home — the place doesn't matter, neither does the man. Her victims then must live the aftermath of their assault in the form of doubt from the police, feelings of shame alienation from their friends and family and the haunting of a horrible woman who becomes the phantom on which society projects its greatest fears, fascinations, and even misogyny. All the while the police are without leads and the media hound the victims, publicly dissecting the details of their attack. What is extraordinary is how as years pass, these men learn to heal, by banding together and finding a space to raise their voices. Told in alternating viewpoints signature to each voice and experience of the victim, these pages crackle with emotion, ranging from horror to breathtaking empathy. As bold as it is timely,
Any Man paints a searing portrait of survival and is a tribute to those who have lived through the nightmare of sexual assault.
More »
FRIDAY, AUGUST 17
5-8pm | PHOENIX | EDUCATORS' TEA | Teachers, educators, and librarians! Today we're celebrating your hard work with a 20% storewide discount all day. We'll have happy hour and refreshments, chair massages, and more. A book representative will offer an exclusive sneak peek at forthcoming buzz books for young readers.
More »
SATURDAY, AUGUST 18
10am | TEMPE | FAMILY EVENT | STORYTIME WITH DIANNE WHITE | GOODBYE BRINGS HELLO AND WHO EATS ORANGE? | Join us for a special storytime with the award-winning author of
Blue on Blue, who reads from her latest picture books.
More »
3pm | TEMPE | TEEN EVENT | TEEN ADVISORY BOARD (T.A.B.)| AND I DARKEN | Teens meet to discuss Kiersten White's
New York Times bestseller
And I Darken. No one expects a princess to be brutal—and Lada Dragwlya likes it that way. Ever since she and her gentle younger brother, Radu, were wrenched from their homeland of Wallachia and abandoned by their father to be raised in the Ottoman courts, Lada has known that being ruthless is the key to survival. She and Radu are doomed to act as pawns in a vicious game, an unseen sword hovering over their every move. For the lineage that makes them special also makes them targets. Lada despises the Ottomans and bides her time, planning her vengeance for the day when she can return to Wallachia and claim her birthright. Radu longs only for a place where he feels safe. And when they meet Mehmed, the defiant and lonely son of the sultan, who's expected to rule a nation, Radu feels that he's made a true friend and Lada wonders if she's finally found someone worthy of her passion. But Mehmed is heir to the very empire that Lada has sworn to fight against, and that Radu now considers home. Together, Lada, Radu, and Mehmed form a toxic triangle that strains the bonds of love and loyalty to the breaking point
More ».
5:30-8:30pm | TEMPE | 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.
7:30-9:30pm | PHOENIX | FILM SCREENING | PHX FILM COLLECTIVE | DO THE RIGHT THING | Changing Hands Phoenix hosts the PHX Film Collective, a group of film fans dedicated to bringing culturally relevant cinema to Central Phoenix, to share movie-going experiences with other film buffs. Our second event is a screening of Spike Lee's
Do the Right Thing, a quintessential New York film, painting in vibrant hues a 24-hour portrait of the Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood in Brooklyn on the hottest day of the summer. That heat is both literal and metaphorical, with racial tensions building to an explosive finale as the mercury rises around a white-owned pizza shop in a black neighborhood. As with Lee's best work, the film shies away from pat explanation and easy answers and remains essential viewing in a racially divided America. Join us for a viewing of this modern classic with an introduction by Dr. Keon McGuire of Arizona State University, whose research focuses on the status and experiences of racial minorities.
Cost: $8. Registration online. More »
