LitPDX seeks to amplify marginalized voices, and welcomes all, their ideas, their events, and their words.

For details regarding specific events please contact the organizers or venues. If you are an organizer or venue and would like to reach out to us please feel free to contact us or submit an event using our submission form. We’d love to hear from you!

Delve Readers Seminar Online Fall 2020: Fairytales Retold

Online N/A, Portland, OR, United States

When exactly is “once upon a time,” what does it mean to live “happily ever after,” and how do these tropes from childhood storybooks find their way into so much contemporary literature and film? These traditional frames for fairytales are just one of the aspects we’ll study in this Delve; we will examine other aspects of structure, characters, and motifs of folktales, both in collected oral tales and literary retellings of those same tales over time, into the current day. We will analyze these stories in various contexts to discover their shifting messages, paying close attention to how they have been used for enculturation, and how their historical values linger today. We will explore the roles of teller and audience, asking how societal norms are…

$230

Kim Johnson in Conversation with Black Cultural Library Advocates

Online N/A, Portland, OR, United States

Kim Johnson's debut novel, This Is My America, has been described as a cross between The Hate U Give and Just Mercy. Join Carla Davis and Ebonee Bell, members of Multnomah County Library’s Black Cultural Library Advocates team, as they chat with Ms. Johnson about first novels, love triangles, and how teens and young adults can advance antiracism and social justice. More about the book: This Is My America tells the story of 17-year-old Tracy Beaumont, who is in a race against time to prove her imprisoned father's innocence and save him from death row. Then the unthinkable happens and the police accuse Tracy's talented older brother, Jamal, of a horrible crime. Register for event via Zoom: https://multco-us.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJwrceyupzsuHtPs75wBd5COqAEidcutsXms

Free

FALL Online: Bizarre Encounters: Fiction Workshop with Elinam Agbo

Online N/A, Portland, OR, United States

A student finds a man living in her closet. A couple receives a package of pig fetus in the mail. Tiger King. Bad Tinder dates. More and more, reality feels like fiction. In this class, students will be asked to think about the extremes of bizarre reality: from experiences that are commonplace (and still elicit doubt) to those we witness but cannot accept ourselves. We will use generative prompts to mine our experiences for the strangest encounters. Through these narratives, we will discuss perspective, power, and deniability in fiction. We will then conclude the class by exploring how these ideas can grow into longer projects. NOTE: To protect everyone during the COVID-19 pandemic, we're offering our workshops via Zoom. All students must first sign up for a free Zoom…

$65 – $83

Horror Book Club (Remote)

Online N/A, Portland, OR, United States

The Books Around the Corner Horror Book Club is led by the owner/librarian, Stephanie Rose, and meets monthly on the fourth Thursday of every month at 6PM. We would like to extend an invitation to all of our horror loving customers (RSVP is not required). Our book discussions aim to bring people together to talk about books in a safe and inviting atmosphere. Our meetings are lovely and inclusive; we invite you to attend. Come and enjoy a lively discussion about the chosen book with other readers. Our September pick is The Living Dead by George A. Romero and Daniel Kraus and we will meet on September 24th. About the book: Set in the present day, The Living Dead is an entirely new tale, the…

Free

Teen Author Q&A and Writing Workshop with Aiden Thomas

Online N/A, Portland, OR, United States

Teens, join Aiden Thomas, author of Cemetery Boys, for a Q&A and scary story writing workshop. Register/join via Zoom: https://multco-us.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJUpcu-urj8sHN28CgjrXNpTTRKtEj3s8uuJ Aiden Thomas is a YA author with an MFA in Creative Writing from Mills College. Originally from Oakland, California, they now make their home in Portland, OR. As a queer, trans Latinx, Aiden advocates strongly for diverse representation in all media. Aiden’s special talents include: quoting The Office, useless trivia, Jenga, finishing sentences with “is my FAVORITE”, and killing spiders. Aiden is notorious for not being able to guess the endings of books and movies, and organizes their bookshelves by color. Aiden's debut novel, CEMETERY BOYS, is a Dia de Muertos paranormal romance about Yadriel (a gay, trans brujo) who accidentally summons the wrong ghost…

Free

Livestream Reading: Catherine Hamilton: Victoria’s War

Online N/A, Portland, OR, United States

Annie Bloom's welcomes Portland author Catherine Hamilton for a livestream reading from her novel, Victoria's War. Register here: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZwoc-uopjMqEtUnHOG9XUVMLsccFrsmkDLM Victoria's War is a work of historical fiction about 19-year-old Victoria Darski, a Polish Catholic woman sold into slavery during the Nazi occupation of Europe, and Etta Tod, the 20-year-old deaf daughter of a German baker who buys Victoria. Poland, 1939: Eager to study literature at the University of Warsaw, Victoria waits with bags packed. But Hitler invades Poland and classes are canceled. German officers burst into her family's home, and Victoria's world is turned upside down. She is ordered to work in a Nazi sewing factory. Making military shirts, Victoria sews a straight pin inside the collar in defiance. At a secret resistance meeting with…

Free

Kids’ Storytime with Ryan T. Higgins

Online N/A, Portland, OR, United States

Author and illustrator Ryan T. Higgins joins us to read from his new picture book, We Will Rock Our Classmates (Disney-Hyperion), the headbanging companion to his bestseller, We Don't Eat Our Classmates. Penelope is a T. rex, and she's very good at it. She also likes to rock out on guitar! With the school talent show coming up, Penelope can't wait to perform for her classmates. But sharing who you are can be show-stoppingly scary, especially when it's not what people expect. Will Penelope get by with a little help from her friends? Register for the Zoom event  /  Buy the Book

Free

Jewell Parker Rhodes & Kelly McWilliams

Online N/A, Portland, OR, United States

From award-winning, bestselling author Jewell Parker Rhodes (Ghost Boys) comes a powerful coming-of-age story about two brothers, one who presents as white, the other as black, and the complex ways in which they are forced to navigate the world, all while training for a fencing competition. Powerful and emotionally gripping, Black Brother, Black Brother (Little, Brown) is a careful examination of the school-to-prison pipeline and follows one boy's fight against racism and his empowering path to finding his voice. Agnes loves her home of Red Creek. There, she cares tirelessly for her younger siblings and follows the town's strict laws. What she doesn't know is that Red Creek is a cult, controlled by a madman who calls himself a prophet. Then Agnes meets Danny, an…

Free

Livestream Reading: Nancy Lane: Pretty Chrysanthemum and Other Stories

Online N/A, Portland, OR, United States

Annie Bloom's welcomes Oregon author Nancy Lane for a livestream reading from her new collection, Pretty Chrysanthemum and Other Stories. Join here: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81611677344?pwd=QjYzVzVkWFZFcjZGZFoycHV3eGh5UT09 Signed copies will be available shortly after the event. If you would like a personalized signature, please leave a comment when ordering. These sixteen stories remind readers how family is at the core of human experience and how relationships, especially those between parent and child, rely on the power of love to overcome challenges. Five stories feature historical content from 1897 through 1971. Eleven contemporary stories pose challenging situations. Throughout these tales, the pull of family, the power of love, and unshakeable human decency prevail.

Free

Young Adult Book Club (Remote)

Online N/A, Portland, OR, United States

The Young Adult Book Club meets the last Tuesdays of every month at 6pm. Our book discussions aim to bring people together to talk about books in a safe and inviting atmosphere. Our meetings are lovely and inclusive; we invite you to attend. You don't have to RSVP, just come and enjoy a lively discussion. We welcome both teens and adults to join this book club! Join us on September 29th for our next Young Adult Book Club. We will discuss I Wish You All the Best by Mason Deaver. About the Book: Perfect for fans of Adam Silvera and Becky Albertalli, Mason Deaver's stunning debut will rip your heart out before showing you how to heal from tragedy and celebrate life in the process.…

Free