Spring into April in metro Atlanta with a literary downpour: A memoir from country legend Ty Herndon, a reading with Pulitzer Prize in Poetry finalist Danez Smith, “Rednecks” author Taylor Brown’s latest thriller, a deep dive into the world of research labs via a lovable rescue beagle, and an enlightening look at the new urban gardeners.
Poetry reading with five poets. Join poets Elizabeth Michaud (“The Bones in the Garden”), Philip Nutsugah (“Turning Homeward”), Amy Pence (“We Travel Towards It “), Stephen Wing (“Wild Atlanta”), and Jahzara Zamora Woods (“My Lamp is on The Floor”) for readings from their most recent work.
1 p.m. April 4. Reading, signing. Free. Eagle Eye Book Shop, 2076 N. Decatur Road. Decatur, 404-486-0307. eagleeyebooks.com/upcoming-events
Jordon Greene, “How (Not) to Conjure a Boyfriend.” From the award-winning author of “Every Word You Never Said” comes a delightful rom-com about a nonbinary teen kitchen witch finding both family and romance in the least likely of circumstances.
3:30 p.m. April 4. Conversation in-store and on Crowdcast. Free. Charis Books & More, 184 S. Candler St., Decatur. 404-524-0304, charisbooksandmore.com/
Ty Herndon, “What Mattered Most.” An intimate, often hilarious but always sincere memoir from country legend Herndon on his struggles with addiction, mental health, his career, relationships, and being the first openly gay male country superstar.
6:30 p.m. April 4. Talk. $29.99, includes book. FoxTale Book Shoppe, 105 E. Main St., Woodstock. 770-516-9989, foxtalebookshoppe.com/TyHerndon
Credit: Handout
Credit: Handout
Kate Brown, “Tiny Gardens Everywhere: The Past, Present, and Future of the Self-Provisioning City.” Gardeners in cities and suburbs are reclaiming lost commons, transforming vacant lots into vibrant plots, turning waste into compost, and continuing a great tradition of mutual aid, political resistance, and bold experiments in sustainability.
7 p.m. April 8. Conversation. Free. Jimmy Carter Presidential Library, 441 John Lewis Freedom Parkway NE, Atlanta. 404-865-7100, jimmycarterlibrary.gov/events
Poetry at Tech: Reina María Rodriguez, Kristin Dykstra, Wang Yin, Andrea Lingenfelter, Jakub Kornhauser, and Piotr Florczyk. A group of poets and translators from Cuba, China, Poland and the U.S. will participate in Georgia Tech’s International Poetry and Translation Symposium Panel.
11 a.m. April 10. Symposium, panel discussion. Free. Historic Academy of Medicine, Georgia Tech, 875 W. Peachtree Street NW, Atlanta. 404-894-2000, poetry.gatech.edu/events/
Credit: Blair
Credit: Blair
Tommy Hays, “The Marriage Bed.” For a poetry professor at a small college and his wife, a freak accident comes on the heels of a startling revelation — laying bare the foundation of a marriage, and a husband left to grapple with the aftermath. Hays, the award-winning author of “The Pleasure Was Mine,” will discuss his new novel with Jessica Handler (“The Magnetic Girl”).
7 p.m. April 10. Manuel’s Tavern, 602 North Highland Ave. NE, Atlanta. 404-681-5128, acappellabooks.com/events.php
Brian Hester, “She Talks to Fish.” For a young Black woman from the mountains of North Carolina, fish are her counsel and provide her a space of belonging. Amidst her quest for personal growth, the heart of this unique young fly fisher is mesmerized by an enigmatic man who exposes her to what not only becomes her obsession, but, also, guides her pursuits to protect those she loves most.
1 p.m. April 16. Talk. Free. Tall Tales Book Shop, 2105 LaVista Road NE , Atlanta, 404-636-2498, talltalesatlanta.com
Danez Smith, “Bluff.” Smith, a Pulitzer Prize in Poetry finalist, writer, and critic, the author of four celebrated poetry collections and a former World Poetry Slam finalist, brings poetry with performances that engage urgent questions of identity, justice, language, and belonging.
2 p.m. April 17. Reading. Free. Auburn Avenue Research Library, 101 Auburn Ave. NE, Atlanta, 404-613-4001. DanowskiReadingDanezSmith
Taylor Brown, “Wolvers.” From the Southern Book Prize-winning author of “Rednecks”: a suspenseful tale set at the burning edge of today’s Southwest, where once-extinct wolves have returned, the land is tinder-dry and fragile, and desperate men seek to reclaim what they believe is theirs to rule. In conversation with Chuck Reece, co-founder and editor-in-chief of Salvation South.
7 p.m. April 17. Conversation. Free. Manuel’s Tavern, 602 North Highland Ave. NE, Atlanta. 404-681-5128, acappellabooks.com/events.php
Credit: Handout
Credit: Handout
Jane Harper, “Last One Out.” Australia’s Queen of Crime writing and author of “The Dry” is back with the story of a woman who returns home, where her son disappeared five years earlier, to find that some of the townspeople know more than they are willing to admit.
2 p.m. April 18. Conversation. $20, or $40 includes book. Roswell Adult Recreation Center, 830 Grimes Bridge Road, Roswell, 770-594-6120, roswellcac.showare.com/eventperformances.asp?evt=243
Melanie D.G. Kaplan, “Lab Dog: A Beagle and His Human Investigate the Surprising World of Animal Research.” Curious to know more about her adopted beagle — who had spent four years in a research lab — journalist Kaplan embarked on a quest for answers. In a book that’s equal parts journalism and love story, she takes readers on a journey, peeking behind laboratory doors and visiting with researchers, activists, ethicists, veterinarians, lawmakers, and innovators.
4:30 p.m. April 19. Talk, signing. Free. A Cappella Books, 208 Haralson Ave. NE, Atlanta. 404-681-5128, acappellabooks.com/events.php
Jeffrey O. G. Ogbar, ”America’s Black Capital: How African Americans Remade Atlanta in the Shadow of the Confederacy.” In 1861, Atlanta was a final contender to be the capital of the Confederacy. Sixty years later, long after the Civil War, it was the Ku Klux Klan’s sacred “Imperial City.” Historian Ogbar chronicles how a center of Black excellence emerged amid virulent expressions of white nationalism, as African Americans pushed back against Confederate ideology to create an extraordinary locus of achievement.
April 20. Talk. Free-$12. Atlanta History Center, 130 West Paces Ferry Road NW, Atlanta. 404-814-4000. atlantahistorycenter.com/event/jeffrey-o-g-ogbar/
Michelle Collins Anderson, “The Moonshine Women.” After their father is murdered while tending his still, his three daughters travel from the Ozark mountains to the outlaw paradise of Prohibition-era Hot Springs, Arkansas on quests for vengeance, healing, and love — doing whatever it takes to keep their family together.
3 p.m. April 23. Talk, signing. Free. Sandy Springs Library, 395 Mount Vernon Highway NE, Sandy Springs. 404-612-7000. bookmiser.net/events.html
Rick Tulskey, “Injustice Town: A Corrupt City, a Wrongly Convicted Man, and a Struggle for Freedom.” Journalist and co-founder of Injustice Watch, Tulskeytackles the story of Lamonte McIntyre, who at 17, in 1994, was found guilty of a double homicide in Kansas City; 30 years later, the fight to win his exoneration exposed corrupt police and prosecutors, incompetent court-appointed defense lawyers, and a judge who violated ethical standards by his secret past relationship with the prosecutor, whom he favored in his rulings. With Cynthia Tucker.
7 p.m. April 28. Conversation. Free. Decatur Library, 215 Sycamore St., Decatur. 404-370-3070, georgiacenterforthebook.org/events
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