NYC alternative book talks
Overview of The PowerHouse Arena, a bookstore in Brooklyn specializing in photo and art books. Credit: The PowerHouse Arena
There are literary happenings in New York City on a nightly basis, but the look and feel of the traditional book event is changing. Luxury hotels are hosting conversations with authors over cocktails, live music events are being catered by celebrity New York chefs launching cookbooks, and poetry is being paired with film. Bars like Joe's Pub and Pete's Candy Store are replacing the local Barnes & Noble as choice reading venues. Here are some alternative author events taking place this month.
Alexander McCall Smith
WHAT The premier forum for compelling conversations between writers is the New York Public Library, and this month's Talks at the Schomburg spotlights Alexander McCall Smith, author of the bestselling "No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency" series. Novelist Akhil Sharma will moderate a comprehensive discussion about McCall Smith's life, writing and beloved series, which is set in Botswana.
WHEN|WHERE April 15 at 7 p.m.,
New York Public Library, Schomburg Center. Langston Hughes Auditorium.
515 Malcolm X Blvd.
INFO $15, 212-491-2200, nypl.org.
Beth Gutcheon
WHAT Where to host an event for Beth Gutcheon's latest novel, "Gossip," a tale of friendship and betrayal set on the Upper East Side's Madison Avenue? The 130-year-old Villard Mansion, home to The New York Palace Hotel, of course. Gutcheon is the featured author in the Palace's Monthly Book Series, a swank meeting of book lovers with wine and appetizers.
WHEN|WHERE April 17 at 6:30 p.m. Library Room, New York Palace Hotel, 455 Madison Ave.
INFO Free; books available for purchase. 212-888-7000, newyorkpalace.com
Zak Pelaccio
WHAT The chef-owner of New York's indulgent Fatty Crab and Fatty 'Cue restaurants will launch his new cookbook, "Eat With Your Hands," at the Powerhouse Arena in Brooklyn's DUMBO neighborhood. Featuring live music by Woods, drinks by Tiger Beer and tastes of the Asian-influenced, carnivore-friendly recipes that made Pelaccio famous.
WHEN|WHERE April 17 at 7 p.m. Powerhouse Arena. 37 Main St., Brooklyn
INFO Free, 718-666-3049, powerhousearena.com
Daniel Wolff/ Jonathan Demme
WHAT Bowery Poetry Club's ongoing series, It Begins with a Poem, will host an evening highlighting Wolff's poems, and showcase his forthcoming documentary with director Demme, "I'm Carolyn Parker," a portrait of a New Orleans woman in the wake of Hurricane Katrina.
WHEN|WHERE April 22 at 7 p.m. Bowery Poetry Club Bar, 308 Bowery
INFO $10, 212-614-0505, bowerypoetry.com
Zadie Smith/ Colm Tóibín
WHAT Selected Shorts, a popular literary program at the Upper West Side's Symphony Space, pairs writers with stage and film actors in presentation of spoken-word short stories. At the end of the month, Smith ("White Teeth") and Tóibín ("Brooklyn") will present their favorite stories to be performed by actress Lois Smith and others.
WHEN|WHERE April 25 at 7 p.m. Peter Jay Sharp Theatre,
2537Broadway
INFO $27 ($15 for ages 30 and under), 212-864-5400; symphonyspace.org
