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Book Events: Authors Live!, 'Scrooge' Fun And Anne Rice

Special To the Courant
It's free — Annual Connecticut Children's Book Fair at Uconn's Storrs campus.

A free family event centered on Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol" will be presented by Hartford Stage and author Carlo DeVito at Barnes & Noble at Blue Back Square in West Hartford on Saturday, Nov. 8, from 1 to 3 p.m.

DeVito will talk about his book, "Inventing Scrooge" (Cider Mill Press, $18.95), which examines how Dickens' life is reflected in his classic tale. There will be caroling by Hartford Stage's Musical Theatre Cabaret students and a children's book reading of "A Christmas Carol" by Johanna Morrison, who will portray the Ghost of Christmas Past in the annual Hartford Stage production of "A Christmas Carol – A Ghost Story of Christmas" at Hartford Stage in December. There also will be refreshments and a Barnes & Noble book fair, with a portion of proceeds benefitting the theater and chances to win tickets to the show or receive discount coupons.

Information: 860-520-7114 or tmacnaughton@hartfordstage.org

 UConn Children's Book Fair

Kids who love to read and parents (and grandparents) who want to encourage reading can meet accomplished authors and illustrators when the free 23rd Annual Connecticut Children's Book Fair takes place Saturday, Nov. 8 and Sunday Nov. 9, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. in Rome Commons Ballroom, Rome Hall, South Campus Complex at the University of Connecticut, Storrs campus.

The authors and illustrators, who will give presentations and sign books, are Nora Raleigh Baskin, Patrick Henry Bass, Jerry Craft, Anika Denise, Christopher Denise, Anna Dewdney, Jane Dyer, Chris Grabenstein, Jeff Kinney, Natalie Lloyd, Jean Marzollo, Barbara McClintock, Wendell Minor, Florence Minor, Caragh O'Brien, Dan Poblocki, Judy Schachner, Pat Schories, Kevin Sherry Len Vlahos, Lauren Tarshis and Nancy Elizabeth Wallace.

Kinney, author of the best-selling "Wimpy Kid'' series, has a new book, "The Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Long Haul" (Amulet, $13.95) and will give a presentation at 10 a.m. Sunday. Costumed book characters also will be on hand for photos. (He also will appear at an event sponsored by R.J. Booksellers in Madison on Saturday, Nov. 8. See information below.)

Information on participating writers and artists and their presentation and signing times: bookfair.uconn.edu.

Empathy And Woe

Registration is open now for a free Authors Live! reading and discussion at Noah Webster Library, 20 S. Main St., West Hartford, on Nov. 9 at 2 p.m., with Leslie Jamison, author of "The Empathy Exams: Essays" (Graywolf, $15) and a contributor to the New York Times Book Review and Gary Greenberg, a Connecticut psychiatrist, award-winning magazine writer and author of "The Book of Woe: The DSM and the Unmaking of Psychiatry" (Blue Rider, $28.95).

They will talk about how pain provides a way to understand ourselves and others and offer a critique of the mental health industry. Registration: westhartfordlibrary.org.

Russell House Reading

Wesleyan University's Russell House Series, held at 350 High St., Middletown, brings noted authors to the campus for free talks.

Ariel Levy, a staff writer at The New Yorker and author of "Female Chauvinist Pigs: Women and the Rise of Raunch Culture," will speak on Wednesday, Nov. 5, at 8 p.m.

Levy won a National Magazine Award for her essay, "Thanksgiving in Mongolia." She is the author of "Female Chauvinist Pigs: Women and the Rise of Raunch Culture" (Free Press, $15.99) and her work has appeared in "Best American Essays 2008" and "Best American Travel Writing 2011."

Information: 860-685-3448 or wesleyan.edu/writing

Nook Farm Book Talk

Susan Eaton, the author and award-winning journalist who spent four years doing research at Simpson-Waverly Elementary School, an all-minority school in Hartford, will discuss her book, "The Children in Room E4: American Education on Trial" (Algonquin, $14.95) as the free Nook Farm Book Talk series continues on Wednesday, Nov. 5, from 5 to 6:30 p.m. at the Harriet Beecher Stowe Center, 77 Forest St., Hartford. The series is presented with the Mark Twain House & Museum Center.

Her book tells the story of a student in a class led by a dedicated teacher, as lawyers work to end educational segregation in the city.

Eaton is research director at the Charles Hamilton Houston Institute for Race and Justice at Harvard.  Registration: 860-522-9258, ext. 317 or Info@StoweCenter.org.

Twain House Events

Gothic novelist Anne Rice, whose latest book "Prince Lestat'' is a sequel to her mega-hit "Interview With A Vampire,'' and her son Christopher Rice, a best-selling paranormal thriller author, will give a talk at 7 p.m. Nov. 5 for the Mark Twain House & Museum at Hartford Stage, 50 Church St., Hartford. Tickets: $35 at 860-537-5151 or www.hartfordstage.org.

The Twain House will present a free Book/Mark conversation with Twain scholar R. Kent Rasmussen and Twain House Executive Director Cindy Lovell on Thursday, Nov. 6 at 7 p.m. at the Mark Twain House Museum Center, 351 Farmington Ave., Hartford. Rasmussen, who has published nine books about Twain, has written the introductions to new editions of Twain's classics, "The Adventures of Tom Sawyer" and "Adventures of Huckleberry Finn."

On Tuesday, Nov. 4 at 7 p.m. at the Museum Center, author Robert M. Dowling will give a free Book/Mark talk on his biography of the great playwright, "Eugene O'Neill: A Life in Four Acts" (Yale University Press, $36). Dowling is a professor of English at Central Connecticut State University and an expert on O'Neill's life and work.

Reservations are recommended for both events: 860-280-3130 or www.marktwainhouse.org.

Writing classes continue at the Twain House with a workshop on songwriting, focusing on techniques for writing lyrics, led by Donna Martin on Saturday, Nov. 8, from 1 to 4 p.m. The cost is $40.

Martin is a songwriter and performer who has recorded six CDs of original music. She has appeared with Bonnie Raitt, Sarah McLachlan, Charlie Daniels and others and has taught songwriting at the Greater Hartford Academy of The Arts for the past 14 years. Registration: 860-280-3130 or julia.pistell@marktwainhouse.org.

Dick Cavett In New Haven

Dick Cavett, the accomplished talk show host, will discuss his new book, "Brief Encounters: Conversations, Magic Moments, and Assorted Hijinks" (Holt, $26) at WSHU Public Radio's "Join the Conversation" author series on Monday, Nov. 3, at 7 p.m., at Long Wharf Theatre, 222 Sargent Dr., New Haven. Cavett will talk about his conversations with such celebrities as James Gandolfini, John Lennon, Mel Brooks and Nora Ephron as well as politics, travel, comedy writing and more.  Reservations: www.wshu.org. Tickets are $30 and include a copy of the book.

Spoken Word Evening

Writers Asylum will present "An Evening of The Spoken Word," featuring readings of prose and poetry by Connecticut authors, on Saturday, Nov. 8, at 7 p.m. at The Gallery on the Green, 5 Canton Green Road, Canton. Doors will open at 6:30 p.m.

Taking part in the free event will be Aliina Hopkins, David K. Leff, Lou Mandler, Jonathan Gillman, Christine Beck, and Charles Lipka. Information: 860-693-4102.

"War is Not a Game"

Author Nan Levinson will give a free talk about her new book, "War is Not a Game: The New Antiwar Soldiers and the Movement They Built" (Rutgers University Press,$29.95) on Saturday, Nov. 8, at 1 p.m. at New Haven Free Public Library, 133 Elm St., New Haven.

The book presents an uncensored soldiers' view of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and their struggles upon returning home.  Information: 203-946-8130.

Authors At R.J. Julia

Gail Sheehy, whose best-selling "Passages" has become a classic, will speak on Thursday, Nov 6, at 7 p.m. about her new memoir, "Daring: My Passages" (Morrow, $29.99) at R.J. Julia Booksellers, 768 Boston Post Road, Madison. The book details her career as a journalist and author struggling to make her way in what was then "a man's world" and the famous people she encountered. Sheehy has published 16 books and is a contributing editor to Vanity Fair. "Passages" was named one of the 10 most influential books of our times by the Library of Congress. Admission is $6, and all proceeds will benefit the Jewish Community Center of Greater New Haven.

On Thursday, Nov. 6, at 8 p.m. Congregation Beth Shalom, 55 Kings Highway Chester, Israeli novelist Assaf Gavron, winner of the prestigious Bernstein Prize, will give a free talk about his best-selling novel, "The Hilltop" (Scribner, $26). Gavron, who lives in Tel Aviv, is currently teaching at the Schwalb Center for Israel and Jewish Studies at the University of Nebraska–Omaha. "The Hilltop" is the serious yet satirical story of two brothers that portrays the often frustrating way life goes on in Israel and the country's complicated relationship with the U.S. Gavron, a prize-winning author, has published seven books.

On Saturday, Nov. 8, the bookstore will present author Jeff Kinney, whose latest book for kids is "Diary of a Wimpy Kid, The Long Haul #9" (Amulet, $13.95) at First Congregational Church, 26 Meetinghouse Lane, Madison. Ticketholders for this "road trip" will be assigned start times from 5:30 to 7 p.m. for interactive activities before meeting Kinney, such as visiting the Wimpy Kid van or entering the fancy country fair "Foulest Footwear" contest. Photos of participants are included in the ticket price. Each ticket is $14 and includes the book and the chance to purchase one companion ticket for $5 (plus tax; no book included). Any "Diary of a Wimpy Kid" book purchased at the bookstore prior to Nov. 8 can be signed, but proof of purchase is required. Tickets can be bought at the store or ordered at 203-245-3959 and can be picked up starting Tuesday, Nov. 4. All events require registration: 203-234-3959 or www.rjjulia.com.

Bishop Spong To Speak

Former Episcopal Bishop of Newark, John Shelby Spong, a champion of progressive views on Christianity and human rights who has published 24 books, will give a free talk at 7 p.m., Tuesday, Nov. 4, at First Church of Christ Congregational, 12 S. Main St., West Hartford. He will discuss his book, "The Fourth Gospel: Tales of a Jewish Mystic" (HarperOne, $15.99), which contends the Gospel of John was misinterpreted as a literal account of the life of Jesus.

Information: 860-232-3893 or jpwebsterdir@snet.net.

Conversation With Marcus Engel

Inspirational speaker Marcus Engel, who as a young man was blinded and nearly killed by a drunk driver, yet went on to become a best-selling author of books on patient care and compassion fatigue, will give free talks Monday, Nov. 3 at 9:30 a.m. and 6:30 p.m. at Goodwin College auditorium, One Riverside Dr., East Hartford. His books include "After This...An Inspirational Journey For All The Wrong Reasons," "The Other End of the Stethoscope: 33 Insights for Excellent Patient Care" and two others. Information: 860-727-6919 or jcostello@goodwin.edu.

Old Books Appraisals

Orville Haberman, who owns the antiquarian and used-book business, Connecticut River Books, in Deep River, will give verbal appraisals at the 11th Chester Historical Society Antiques Appraisal event on Saturday, Nov. 8, from 8:30 a.m. to noon, at St. Joseph's Parish Center, 48 Middlesex Ave., Chester.

Haberman appraises books and ephemera, specializing in children's, nautical, hunting, fishing, Americana, arts, antiques and architecture books. The fee is $10 for one item; $20 for two and $25 for three.

Information: ChesterHistoricalSociety.org or 860-558-4701.

Englehart Book Talk

The Courant's prize-winning editorial cartoonist and author, Bob Englehart, will talk about his new book "Trackrat: Memoir of a Fan" (CreateSpace, $20) at two events. In the book, Englehart, a longtime car racing fan, explores this popular sport and also recalls his own childhood, the life of racer Shane Hammond (who was killed in a Connecticut track accident) and the love of family, no matter how fractured.

He will give free readings Sunday, Nov. 2, from 2 to 4 p.m. at the Waterford Library, 49 Rope Ferry Road, Waterford (860-444-5805) and on Saturday, Nov. 8, from 2 to 4 p.m. at Russell Library, 123 Broad St., Middletown (860-347-2528).

Connecticut And Slavery

Anne Farrow, a scholar of Connecticut's history of slave trading and a former Courant reporter and editor, will give a free talk about her new book on the connection between a famous Connecticut family and the slave trade on Sunday, Nov. 2, at 1 p.m. at Stanley-Whitman House, 37 High St., Farmington.

"The Logbooks: Connecticut's Slave Ships and Human Memory" (Wesleyan, $27.95) traces the life of the logbooks' author, Dudley Saltonstall, a controversial figure in Connecticut history who was the brother-in-law of Wethersfield's Silas Deane. The book also explores how history and memory are connected, insights acquired through the experience of coping with Farrow's mother's Alzheimer's disease.

Information: stanleywhitman.org

Mystery Discussion

Carole Shmurak, of Farmington, who writes the Susan Lombardi mystery novels, will lead a free discussion of "Occam's Razor" by Archer Mayor for the Wallingford Mystery Group's New England: Land of Mystery series, on Wednesday, Nov. 5, at 3 p.m. at Wallingford Public Library, 200 N Main St., Wallingford.  Information: 203-265-6754.

'The Map Thief'

The Hickory Stick Bookshop, 2 Green Hill Road, Washington Depot, will present a Meet an Author at 5 event on Friday, Nov. 7 at 5 p.m. Michael Blanding will talk about his book, "The Map Thief: The Gripping Story of an Esteemed Rare-Map Dealer Who Made Millions Stealing Priceless Maps" (Gotham Books $27.50). Admission is the purchase of a copy and includes refreshments and discussion time with the author. Blanding's nonfiction book tells the story of Forbes Smiley, who used his good reputation as a map dealer to facilitate stealing rare maps from Yale's library and other collections, after becoming mired in debt.

Information: 860-868-0525 or hickorystickbookshop.com.

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