Get Lit: Murder, Blues, Poetry and Politics

Remember when you were a little bitty Houstonist and someone would read to you at night and you could just lose yourself in the story, abandoning all other thoughts of the day? Well you can still do it now, you know. In fact, you might be all the more eager to shed your quotidian annoyances now that you're grown.

Here are a few places to hear some stellar writers read from their work:

Friday November 9th at 6PM
Clive Cussler: book signing and discussion
Murder by the Book 2342 Bissonnet
FREE
#1 New York Times best-selling thriller writer Clive Cussler will sign & discuss his new novel, The Chase. This is one of the most famous thriller writers alive, so you won't snooze through this reading, for sure. You'll be lucky to get in the door, most likely. NOTE: Clive Cussler will ONLY sign: 1. As many copies of THE CHASE and his other books, purchased at Murder By The Book the evening of the signing. 2. Up to three additional books. No exceptions!

Friday, November 9th at 7PM
Ben Ratliff, reading from Coltrane: The Story of Sound
Wortham Center, Cullen Theater, 501 Texas Avenue
Jazz critic for The New York Times Ben Ratliff will speak and sign his book. Sponsored by Da Camera of Houston. This is a pre-concert talk for the Greg Osby Five. Tickets for the concert are $26.50 - $45.

Friday November 9th at 7PM
Gulf Coast Reading Series
Brazos Bookstore, 2421 Bissonnet
Readings by UH Creative Writing Students, sponsored by Gulf Coast Magazine.
FREE

Sunday, November 11 at 4:00 PM
Mark Steiner An Honest Calling: The Law Practices of Abraham Lincoln
Brazos Bookstore, 2421 Bissonnet
Reading and signing. Co-sponsored by the South Texas College of Law
FREE

Monday, November 12 at 11:30 AM
Paul Krugman: The Conscience of a Liberal
Westin Galleria Hotel, 5060 W. Alabama St
The New York Times columnist and premier economist will speak on his newest book, The Conscience of a Liberal. Sponsored by the Houston Forum. $65 ticket includes lunch and signed first-edition copy of The Conscience of a Liberal.

Monday, November 12 at 7:30 PM
Inprint Brown Reading Series: Elizabeth Alexander and Taha Muhammad Ali
Alley Theatre, Neuhaus Stage, 615 Texas Avenue
Two world-class poets reading from selected works. Elizabeth Alexander writes languidly about the African-American experience using wit and mood. Taha Muhammad Ali is one of the foremost Palestinian poets alive, and has been writing passionately for five decades about love, loss and the cultural divide of the Arab-Israeli crisis. This is going to be an excellent reading. $5.

Tuesday, November 13 at 7:30 PM
Ken Burns
The Wortham Center, Brown Theater, 501 Texas Avenue
Celebrate Veterans Day with Ken Burns as his series, The War, is released on PBS. Sponsored by the Progressive Forum. Tickets $15-$64.