Results tagged “literature”

Houstonist missed the grand reopening of the Houston Public Library Central Branch in early June, but we're OK with that. Who wants to explore a library mobbed with people anyway? Instead, we decided to check out the renovation on a lazy Saturday in mid-July after all the brouhaha settled. more ›

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... more ›

Dammit, Houston *is* a literary town! Here's a slew of readings happening this week, from the hilarious David Sedaris to the wry Nick Hornby and the unbalanced Lisa Belkin. Her word choice, not ours. We love books. Wednesday, October 24th at 7:30PM William Henry Lewis and Justin Cronin at DiverseWorks 1117 East Freeway, *FREE* Two heavy-hitting writers with a bucket of awards apiece. Lewis is the author of In the Arms of Our Elders... more ›

Check this, yo. Do you love you some literary salon each month? Well here it is a again, and an excellent pair of peeps for tonight's reading. Join Houston Arts Alliance tonight, from 7PM -8PM at space125gallery for an evening of poetry, scenes and literature. "Meet the Authors" reception begins at 6:30PM. Featured Authors: >>John Pluecker, samplings from his poetry and short stories: John has worked with various community organizations, popular campaigns, and artistic... more ›

Monday? Really? AGAIN? Not buying it. Ugh. Let us help you though it with a little spoken word for a rainy day. Join the Rice University English Department as they welcome Steve Gehrke and Nadine Meyer, husband and wife and both winners of the 2005 National Poetry Series, as part of the Cherry Reading Series. Both Gehrke and Meyer have been widely published and recognized for their poetic work. Gehrke is an assistant professor of... more ›

::Maurice Manning and Emily Fox Gordon Poetry Reading at Diverseworks:: Giving Houstonians a chance to hear tomorrow’s great writers today. The Inprint Studio Series, presented by Inprint in association with the University of Houston Creative Writing Program and Diverseworks, features some of the best young writers in the country, as well as alumni from the University of Houston Creative Writing Program and leading local authors. Now in its second season, the 2007-2008 Inprint Studio Series,... more ›

Callaloo, among the top literary magazines in the country, is sending four writers (all faculty from Callaloo's Creative Writing Workshops) to read in Houston for one night only. Terrance Hayes, Mat Johnson, Tayari Jones, and Tracy K. Smith will give a public reading Thursday, August 16 at 6:00 p.m. at the Ensemble Theatre, located at 3535 Main Street. These four writers have won more than a dozen national awards and fellowships; they are at... more ›

Literary Salon @ space125gallery Join Houston Arts Alliance on tonight. August 2nd, from 7PM -9PM at space125gallery for an evening of poetry and literature. "Meet the Authors" reception begins at 6:30PM. Featured artists: Laurie Clements Lambeth PhD, University of Houston Creative Writing Program Houston Arts Alliance Individual Artist Award Recipient Winner 2006 National Poetry Series Open Competition Cambor Fellowship Recipient, Inprint David Stuart MacLean MFA, New Mexico State University Fullbright Scholar Mary Gibbs and... more ›

Antonya Nelson, one of our resident writer geniuses here in town, recently placed *another* story in the New Yorker, and it takes place in Houston! Get a load of that! The story is called "Shauntrelle." Here are the opening lines: "It isn’t just a husband you divorce but a life. A credit rating. Certain friends—sadly, some of them small children. A mother-in-law, that innocent bystander. And sometimes it seemed to Constance that she had divorced... more ›

MFA's Artful Thursday: Shakespeare's Friends, The Illustrated Version Lecture by Kate Emery Pogue Timed oh so conveniently with next week's start of the Houston Shakespeare Festival, the MFA welcomes Kate Emery Pogue, playwright, Shakespearean actress, teacher, producer, and director for a discussion and story telling based on her book, Shakespeare's Friends . Founder of the Drama Department at Houston Community College Central Campus and former Artistic Director of the Shakespeare-by-the-Book Festival, she is the author... more ›

Jung Center Lecture Series: America and the Religion of No Religion In this lecture series, drawn from his new history of the Esalen Institute, Rice University professor Jeffrey J. Kripal (pictured) explores how the human potential movement reflects a vital, enduring, and often hidden vein of American religious experience. Jeffrey J. Kripal is the J. Newton Rayzor Professor of Religious Studies and Chair of the Department of Religious Studies at Rice University. He is the... more ›

Houston Arts Alliance Literary Salon Tonight, longtime Texas singer/songwriter and current Poet Laureate of Texas, Steve Fromholz will take the stage at Houston Arts Alliance’s (HAA) Literary Salon, and this time he will be without his guitar. Fromholz will speak at the event and read from a collection of his poetry. With a career spanning more than 40 years and involving the likes of Willie Nelson, Lyle Lovett, John Denver and Jerry Jeff Walker, Fromholz’... more ›

Ok, as in the vein of Scholarly Pursuits, so must you Git Literated. Book time. One of Houston's few nonB&N bookstores, Brazos, is supplying those in need of re-love for the English language with some excellent material. Literature, that is. And by literature, we mean the byproduct of political celebrities. Specifically, John Kerry and Molly Ivins. Accordingly, June 1 and June 2. Friday, June 1, Brazos Bookstore welcomes Senator and ex-mightabeen president, John Kerry. Kerry... more ›

Hello, scholar. Remember Homer? Or at least remember having that big old book with highlighting on the first 3 pages and then nothing after? Still having trouble getting through the classics? Why read Homer when you can have it read to you? Exactly - which is why Thursday night, May 31, the Museum of Fine Arts is hosting a Dramatic Reading of The Odyssey. Homer's epic poem will be brought to life by several actors... more ›

Needing to brush up on your smarts? No date for Monday night? Good news. On Monday, May 21, Progressive Forum Houston welcomes playwright and queen of academe, Anna Deveare Smith to the Wortham Center. Smith first received national attention for her play, Fires in the Mirror, which brought the harsh street realities of 1990's Brooklyn to the stage. Smith's work in the theater addresses issues of identity politics and race, and her academic reputation is... more ›

Houston native and country music legend Johnny Bush will be appearing at Brazos Bookstore tonight, to sign copies of his memoirs Whiskey River (Take My Mind): The True Story of Texas Honky-Tonk. Bush was born in Houston, but found himself traveling to central Texas as a teenager, trying to make it as a country singer. A decade later, Bush played with several different bands, including Ray Price’s and Willie Nelson’s – where he became a... more ›

Darren Shan: Book signing and discussion How better to wrap up the Easter weekend than with a little demons and vampires? Join author Darren Shan as he comes to talk about his series ("Cirque du Freak" and "The Demonata") and his new books coming out this spring. Darren Shan's real name is Darren O'Shaughnessy. Although he is Irish, he was born in St. Thomas’ Hospital, London -- directly across the river from the Houses of... more ›

Hello Houstonians! Here's what's on tap.... Friday, November 3 For all your possibly-pretentious dance needs, the Hope Stone dance troupe will respond to the work of Paul Klee through dance over at the Menil Collection (one of Houston's hidden treasures--you must go if you haven't been. We're serious, we're requiring it.) The performance will be in Richmond Hall @ The Menil (1500 Richmond) at 7:30 pm. It's free, and a talk follows the performance. Saturday,... more ›

Love her or hate her, no one in the White House Press Corps has ever stirred up as much controversy as Helen Thomas. The famed journalist will be signing and discussing her new book Watchdogs of Democracy?: The Waning Washington Press Corps and How It Has Failed the Public tomorrow morning at the Brazos Bookstore. In her sixty years as a journalist, Thomas (who's always reminded us of Beaky Buzzard, for some reason) opened the... more ›

Author Karin Slaughter will be in discussing her new thriller Tripych tomorrow night at Murder by the Book. Her popularity has grown over the past few years with her popular Grant County series of books, which started with Blindsighted and ended with last year’s Faithless. She’ll be on hand to discuss her new thriller and to sign purchased copies of her books. Murder by the Book is one of the largest independent specialty book stores... more ›

Guess what? One of the year’s most controversial films came from right here in Houston. The screenplay for Brokeback Mountain was written by Diana Ossana and former River Oaks resident Larry McMurtry. You may know McMurtry’s more famous novels Terms of Endearment and Lonesome Dove, for which he won the 1986 Pulitzer Prize for fiction. He is also the father of Texas singer/songwriter James McMurtry. McMurtry, a former River Oaks resident, now lives and owns... more ›

Mary Gordon's latest novel, Pearl, explores the relationship between an American mother and her daughter, the title character, who goes on a hunger strike and chains herself to the American embassy in Dublin. It's familiar territory for Gordon: Her writing often tackles relationships, uncovering their dynamics with wonderful, precise, usually perfectly crafted language. Patricia Powell's The Pagoda, set in late-19th century Jamaica, also focuses on relationships — but its interactions, between a Chinese shopkeeper, a... more ›