Anna Quindlen, the journalist turned novelist, will speak Tuesday, March 20, at 7 p.m. at First Congregational Church of Madison, 26 Meetinghouse Lane, Madison.
Admission is $30 plus tax and includes a copy of Quindlen’s latest novel, “Alternate Side,” in which a violent act upsets Nora Nolan’s once-safe neighborhood and exposes faults in her marriage and her world.
Quindlen won the Pulitzer Prize while a columnist at The New York Times and has since published many novels, self-help books, collections of columns and a best-selling memoir. Reservations: 203-245-3959 or rjjulia.com.
“Poetry of Presence”
Phyllis Cole-Dai, Ruby R. Wilson, Ginny Connors, David Leff, Sheri Bedingfield and Joan Hofmann will present a free reading from a book celebrating mindfulness called “Poetry of Presence” on Thursday, March 22, at 7 p.m. at Wesleyan RJ Julia Bookstore, 413 Main St., Middletown.
The collection of more than 150 mindfulness poems, mostly by contemporary or recent poets, includes work by Margaret Atwood, Wendell Berry, Robert Bly, Billy Collins, Joy Harjo, Tony Hoagland, Galway Kinnell, Ted Kooser, Mary Oliver, Rumi, May Sarton, Alice Walker and many more. wesleyanrjjulia.com, books@wesleyan.edu or 860-685-3939.
Thorson And Walden
Robert M. Thorson, a geology professor at UConn and a columnist for The Courant, will give a free talk on his book, “The Guide To Walden Pond,” on Wednesday, March 21, at 5:30 p.m., at Barnes & Noble at UConn Bookstore, 1 Royce Circle, Storrs. Information: 860-486-8525.
His latest book is “The Guide To Walden Pond: An Exploration of the History Nature, Landscape and Literature of One of America’s Most Iconic Places.” Thorson has published several books about the 19th century New England philosopher and essayist, Henry David Thoreau. 860-486-3537.
Arts Cafe Mystic
Poetry by Lisa Starr, former poet laureate of Rhode Island, and music by Noah Feldman will be presented in an art gallery setting at Arts Café Mystic, 9 Water St., Mystic, on Friday, March 23, at 7:30 p.m. Admission is $10, free for students. 860-912-2444 or allynsally@sbcglobal.net.
ArtWalk Book Club
Hartford Public Library, 500 Main St., Hartford, will host a quarterly ArtWalk Book Club event in conjunction with its current ArtWalk exhibit by Marilyn Parkinson Thrall, “The Dress/Memory and Metaphor,” which relates to Women’s History Month. Former Chief Librarian Louise Blalock will lead the talk.
On Thursday, March 22, from 5:30 to 7 p.m., the club will discuss “The Hours” by Michael Cunningham, which won the 1999 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction.
Reservations are requested by Monday, March 19: mcallahan@hplct.org or 860-695-6351.
DeLauro At Stowe
Harriet Beecher Stowe Center, 77 Forest St., Hartford, will host a free talk by U.S. Rep. Rosa DeLauro, author of “The Least Among Us: Waging the Battle for the Vulnerable,” on Friday, March 23, at 5:30 p.m., with her guest, U.S. Rep. John B. Larson. DeLauro, a member of the House Democratic leadership, has represented the state’s Third District since 1991.
Reservations: Info@StoweCenter.org or 860.522.9258 x 317.
Bostwick At Hickory Stick
Author Marie Bostwick will sign copies of her latest novel, “Just in Time,” on Saturday, March 24, at 2 p.m. at The Hickory Stick Bookshop. 2 Green Hill Road, Washington Depot.
The book is about three women, grief support group dropouts, whose friendship helps them overcome their losses. 860-868-0525 or hickorystickbookshop.com.
Husbands and Other Sharp Objects
Avon author Marilyn Simon Rothstein will read from her second novel, “Husbands and Other Sharp Objects,” and discuss how she became a novelist on Thursday, March 22, at 7 p.m. at Beth El Temple 2626 Albany Ave., West Hartford, to benefit its Torah Fund.
The event is free, but those who donate $15 to the fund will receive a copy of the book, which continues the story of a midlife wife who loses her brassiere-manufacturer husband to a model but finds new love and a new life.
Reservations: womensnetworkbethel@gmail.com.
Avon Library Events
Jill Santopolo, author of “The Light We Lost,” a romantic story of a couple whose relationship changes over 13 years, will give a free talk celebrating the release of the paperback edition at Avon Free Public Library, 281 Country Club Road, Avon, on Monday, March 19, at 6:30 p.m.
The library will continue its Shades of Jane Austen Book Discussion Series, featuring books inspired by the works of Jane Austen, on Tuesday, Mar. 20, at 7 p.m., with a talk about “Eligible,” a novel by Curtis Sittenfeld.
The library will host a meeting of its Morning Book Club on Wednesday, March 21, at 10 a.m. The book is “Small Great Things” by Jodi Picoult, a best-seller about race, privilege, prejudice, and compassion. Registration is not required, and copies are available at the library. 860-673-9712 or avonctlibrary.info.
Book Club Bookstore
Book Club Bookstore & More, 869 Sullivan Ave. South Windsor, will host a free talk on Wednesday, March 21, at 7 p.m. by South Windsor author Margaret H. Essebaggers Dopirak about her memoir, “Missionary Kid: Born in India, Bound for America.” 860-432-7411 or bookclubct.com.
The Storyteller’s Cottage
The Storyteller’s Cottage, 750 Hopmeadow St., Simsbury, will host a free talk on Thursday, March 22, at 7 p.m., by local author Dr. Kristina Hallett about her book, “Own Best Friend,” which describes eight steps to “a life of purpose, passion and ease.” Hallett is a clinical psychologist and empowerment/transition coach. 860-877-6099 or StorytellersCottage.com.
History Of A Railroad
The Connecticut Valley Railroad, completed in 1871, once ran alongside the Connecticut River between Hartford and Old Saybrook. Today it is known for steam-powered excursion trains that run between Essex and Chester. The Middlesex County Historical Society will sponsor an illustrated free talk about the railroad by historian Max R. Miller, author of “Along the Valley Line,” on Thursday, March 22, at 7 p.m. at Russell Library, 123 Broad St., Middletown. 860-346-0746.
Bank Square Books
On Wednesday, March 21, at 6 p.m., Bank Square Books, 53 W. Main St., Mystic, will present a free discussion with Robin Lloyd, author of the thriller, “Harbor of Spies: A Novel of Historic Havana.” In it, during the 1800s in Cuba, a man forced to work for a profiteering Spanish merchant becomes involved with spies, blockade runners and slave traders.
Lloyd, formerly a foreign correspondent for NBC News who reported from Latin America, the Caribbean, the Middle East and Africa, also is the author of “Rough Passage to London. 860-536-3794 or banksquarebooks.com.
