Four novelists, two authors of a book about Hammonassett State Park and an illustrator of children’s books will speak at events presented by R.J. Julia Booksellers of Madison. All require reservations: 203-245-3959 or rjjulia.com.
On June 25 at 4 p.m. at the bookstore, 768 Boston Post Road, Madison, Nina George, author of the best-selling “The Little Paris Bookshop,” will give a free talk about her latest novel, “The Little French Bistro” (Crown, $26), about a French wife who leaves her husband and finds a new life. French pastries and wine will be served.
On June 26 at 7 p.m. at the bookstore, novelist Luanne Rice, who has published 32 books, will give a free talk about “The Beautiful Lost” (Point, $18.99). It is about a teenage girl who suffers depression after her mother leaves and then gets involved with a handsome, brooding young man with dark secrets.
On June 27 at 7 p.m. at Water’s Edge, 1525 Boston Post Road, Westbrook, Adriana Trigiani, the best-selling author of the Big Stone Gap novels and other romantic and witty books, will talk about her new novel, “Kiss Carlo” (Harper, $27.99), about an Italian-American family experiencing change in the post-World War II boom years. Tickets are $36 and include one copy of “Kiss Carlo” and light refreshments.
On June 28 at 7 p.m. at the bookstore, Brian Noe and Shelby Docker will give a free talk about their local history book, “Hammonasset Beach State Park” (Arcadia Publishing, $21.99). The book tells the story of the popular Connecticut recreation spot from its opening to the present day.
On June 29 at 7 p.m., Sarah Healy will give a free talk about her novel, “The Sisters Chase” (Houghton Mifflin, $25), about sisters made homeless when their mother dies and how fiercely the older one protects her younger sister as they travel the country seeking a better life.
On June 30 at 5:30 p.m., Connecticut artist and Wendell Minor, who illustrated the children’s classic, “The Seashore Book” by Charlotte Zolotow, which has been redesigned and reissued (Charlesbridge Publishing, $16.99), will give a free talk at the bookstore.
Bank Square Books
Bank Square Books of Mystic will present two author events. With Otis Library of Norwich, the bookstore will host a Delicious Discussions luncheon with Leah DeCesare, author of “Forks, Knives, and Spoons” (Sparkpress, $16.95), at the Mohegan Sun Casino, 1 Mohegan Sun Blvd. Uncasville, on June 27 at noon.
The novel suggests men can be defined by a “Utensil Classification System” — they are either forks, knives or spoons (or maybe sporks) — and tells how two young women use the system in college and beyond. DeCesare also writes the nonfiction parenting series, “Naked Parenting,” drawing on her work as a doula, early parenting educator and mother of three.
Tickets $40 and include a copy of the book and a buffet lunch at Michael Jordan’s Steak House at Mohegan Sun. Preregistration is required: 860-536-3795.
On June 29, from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. at the bookstore, 53 W. Main St. Mystic, three local poets will give a free reading. Glenn Shea, a Connecticut native, has two collections published by Salmon Poetry in Ireland. Suzy Lamson, of Waterford, has published in literary journals and is the author of two collections. Joanie DiMartino, executive director of the Smith-Harris House in Niantic, also has published two poetry collections and in literary journals and anthologies. Information: banksquarebooks.com or 860-536-3795.
Martyr And Traitor
Virginia DeJohn Anderson, an author and a professor of history at the University of Colorado, Boulder, will give a free book talk on June 27 at 7 p.m., at the Mark Twain House & Museum, 351 Farmington Ave., Hartford.
Her book, “The Martyr and the Traitor: Nathan Hale, Moses Dunbar, and the American Revolution” (Oxford University Press, $27.95), tells how in 1776 the two Connecticut men took on dangerous missions. Registration and information: 860-247-0998 or marktwainhouse.org.
The Wright Flyer
On June 27 at 7 p.m., Avon Free Public Library, 281 Country Club Road, Avon, will host a celebration open to all of the completion a quarter-scale model of a 1903 Wright flyer, a project of the 2016 Avon Reads community project that centered on “The Wright Brothers” by David McCullough. Information: 860-673-9712 or avonctlibrary.info.
Sunday Poetry Series
The Clinton Art Gallery, 20 E. Main St., Clinton, continues its free monthly poetry readings on June 25, from 2 to 4 p.m., with poets Gray Jacobik, Steve Parlato and Nancy Meneely. Guests may bring their own poetry to read at an open mike session. Information: pattonybarone@aol.com or 203-627-4148.
Riverwood Poetry Series
“A Day in the Life of an Immigrant Latino Poet,” a free reading by poet and author Bessy Reyna about her experiences and work as an immigrant, and a conversation with immigration attorney Carolina Guiral, will take place June 25, from 2 to 4 p.m., at the Harriet Beecher Stowe House and Museum, 77 Forest St., Hartford. The free event is presented by the Riverwood Poetry Series.
Reyna, who was born in Cuba and grew up in Panama, earned master’s and law degrees from UConn.
Guiral, a native of Colombia, moved to the U.S. as a teenager, when her family fled persecution by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia. A graduate of the UConn School of Law, she became an advocate for immigrant communities and is an attorney at Milagros Immigration Law, in Hartford.
The event is free, but donations will be gratefully appreciated. Information: facebook.com/riverwoodpoetry.
Poetry And Dance
“In Their Shoes, a Response,” a program of poetry readings by Lana Orphanides, John L. Stanizzi, Edwina Trentham and Rhonoda Ward, with dance performances by L’Ana Burton and music by Glenn Hardy will be held at Lyman Allyn Art Museum, 625 Williams St., New London, on June 28, from 5 to 6 p.m., followed by a reception. Admission is $10; free for museum members and New London residents. Reservations: 860-443-254.
‘The Elifer Chronicles’
Julie Boglisch, a Windsor Locks resident, has published her debut novel, “The Elifer Chronicles” (Cawing Crow Press, $16.99), a story of an America that has closed its borders and two children whose mother goes missing. Boglisch will give a free talk on June 28 at 7 p.m., at Kent Memorial Library, 61 Ffyler Place, Suffield.
Registration: 860-668-3896, or suffield-library.org or at the library.
‘The Kitty’
Shawn P. Flynn, author of “The Kitty: Who Rescued Me After I Rescued Him” (Abbe Road, $9.95), will talk about his book about a stray cat that provided love, companionship and healing when Flynn’s life took an unexpected turn. He will give a free talk on June 28 at 7 p.m. at Enfield Public Library, 104 Middle St., Enfield. Information: 860-763-7510.
