Poets invited to read their own work along with a favorite poem by another writer. In celebration of National Poetry Month. Tea & light refreshments.
7 p.m., Bookbound, Courtyard Shops. Free. 369-4345.
Readings by local writers. Books and authors include Emily Siwek’s A Monster on Main Street (picture book), Rebecca Biber’s Technical Solace (poetry), and Andy Gutman’s Charlie the Caterpillar and Pop Lullaby (picture books). Signings. Refreshments.
7-8:30 p.m., AADL Westgate, Westgate shopping center, 2503 Jackson. Free. 327-4200
Local flavor and fragrance expert Michelle Krell Kydd, creator of the award-winning smell and taste blog Glass Petal Smoke, discusses both the smell of books (old and new) and literary passages that illustrate just how powerfully the sense of smell can be used in the hands of a gifted writer. Aromatic references in various texts are accompanied by specific scents mentioned in these passages. For all grade 6 & up.
6:30-8:45 p.m., AADL Downtown 4th-fl. meeting rm. Free. 327-4200.
July 3 & 18. Open mike storytelling competition sponsored by The Moth, the NYC-based nonprofit storytelling organization that also produces a weekly public radio show. Each month 10 storytellers are selected at random from among those who sign up to tell a 3-5 minute story on the monthly theme. July themes: “Age” (July 3) & “Boundaries” (July 18). The 3-person judging teams are recruited from the audience. Monthly winners compete in a semiannual Grand Slam. Space limited, so it’s smart to arrive early.
7:30-9 p.m. (doors open and sign-up begins at 6 p.m.), Greyline, 100 N. Ashley. $8. 764-5118.
Local short story writer Alex Kourvo and young adult novelist Bethany Neal host an open house for writers to connect with one another and/or work on their projects.
Toastmasters is an international group devoted to helping each other grow in our abilities to give speeches. The Sweetwaters Toastmasters Club meets twice monthly. We are a fun and friendly group! Toastmasters also helps you develop leadership skills if you wish to do that. Come as many times as you want for free, and decide later if you want to join. In the meantime, come make new friends and have fun!
Sweetwaters Coffee & Tea on Washington Street, 123 West Washington Street. Free. 323-286-3999. https://www.facebook.com/groups/TMSweet/
Shakespeare Scenes in the Arb has come again! Every year, veterans of Ann Arbor’s Shakespeare in the Arb come together for a free, casual performance of a variety of scenes from our favorite Shakespearean plays, in a tour of some less-seen spots in the beautiful Nichols Arboretum.
Shows begin at 6:30 PM on Friday, July 27th, and Saturday, July 28th. Audiences should collect outside the Arb’s Reader Center, and will be led on the path of the show. This year, we’ve got scenes from Julius Caesar, Richard III, Macbeth, Twelfth Night, The Tempest, Much Ado About Nothing, and King Lear!
The show should run about an hour. Be prepared for some short walks, and standing or sitting on the ground to view various scenes. You are welcome to bring blankets to sit on, as long as you don’t mind carrying them from scene to scene!
Literati is pleased to welcome back poet Keith Taylor who will be sharing his new collection Ecstatic Destinations.
About Ecstatic Destinations:
In Ecstatic Destinations, Keith Taylor takes us on a walk through his neighborhood in Ann Arbor, Michigan. His joyous and often wry observations of chance encounters, his neighbors, parks, the history of his own backyard, plus the ever present traffic, spark us to reimagine both the layers of our own most intimate, if everyday environments and our place in them.
On the surface, the book can be said to start and end on a park bench. Keith walks all year and we can feel the passing of the seasons. We get his easy familiarity with his regular stops along the way, the neighbors he meets, everyone’s yards, their trees, and the sounds that surround it all. Night has set by the end; we have arrived.
Artist Mary Shea complements Keith’s journey of reflection and ecstasy with her cover paintings and interior drawings and prints.
Keith Taylor has published many books over the years: collections of poetry, a collection of very short stories, co-edited volumes of essays and fiction, and a volume of poetry translated from Modern Greek.
Shakespeare Scenes in the Arb has come again! Every year, veterans of Ann Arbor’s Shakespeare in the Arb come together for a free, casual performance of a variety of scenes from our favorite Shakespearean plays, in a tour of some less-seen spots in the beautiful Nichols Arboretum.
Shows begin at 6:30 PM on Friday, July 27th, and Saturday, July 28th. Audiences should collect outside the Arb’s Reader Center, and will be led on the path of the show. This year, we’ve got scenes from Julius Caesar, Richard III, Macbeth, Twelfth Night, The Tempest, Much Ado About Nothing, and King Lear!
The show should run about an hour. Be prepared for some short walks, and standing or sitting on the ground to view various scenes. You are welcome to bring blankets to sit on, as long as you don’t mind carrying them from scene to scene!
Readings by members of the 2018 Ann Arbor Youth Poetry Slam Team. The program begins with open mike readings.
7-8:30 p.m., Sweetwaters Coffee & Tea, 123 W. Washington. Free. 994-6663.
