Join us as Milkweed Books welcomes poet John Balaban for a reading from his newest book Passing Through a Gate, an essential collection of his prize-winning poems in one place, threaded through with essays that link poetry to Balaban’s extensive travels, whether hitchhiking throughout the United States or wandering the countryside of Vietnam during wartime to record and translate folk poetry. John will read and be joined in conversation by local author Michael Bazzett, followed by time for audience questions and a book signing.

Enjoy a social hour in our brick-and-mortar indie bookstore…

Please join Milkweed Books in hosting poet Willie Edward Taylor Carver Jr. as he reads from his debut poetry collection Gay Poems for Red States.

ABOUT THE BOOK

In Gay Poems for Red States, Carver counters the injustice of a persistent anti-LGBTQ+ movement by asserting that a life full of beauty and pride is possible for everyone. More than a collection of poetry, Carver’s earnest and heartfelt verses are for those wishing to discover and understand the vastness of Appalachia, and for the LGBTQ+ Appalachians who long for a future—for a home—in an often unwelcoming place.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Willie…

Guggenheim fellow Eduardo C. Corral, author of Guillotine (Graywolf Press, 2020) and award-winning debut poet Benjamin Garcia, author of Thrown in the Throat (Milkweed Editions, 2020) come together to read and discuss the work they published during the pandemic. This event is presented with support from the Battery Park City Authority.

Join us as Milkweed Books welcomes Lauren Russell for the launch of her new collection, A Window That Can Neither Close Nor Open, out August 27th. In A Window That Can Neither Open nor Close, the stakes of writing are also the stakes of living. “Though I no longer wanted to die,” writes Lauren Russell, “our first years together were not easy … because I also did not want to live.” From this enigmatic in-between, Russell dives into multitudes: cats and questions; compulsion and devotion; narrative and diagnosis; language and loneliness; scrupulosity and stasis; suicidality and love. After a…

Join us at Milkweed Books to welcome Iowa poet Margaret Yapp and launch her new poetry collection, Green For Luck, out with EastOver Press on April 23.

ABOUT THE BOOK

Green for Luck wanders green city blocks, denying happen-stance and making lists. Margaret Yapp attends to mundanity as a string that holds us close to the earth, building quotidian divinities, landing jokes just to make sure we’re listening. In this book, words push the left and upper margins, forcing the body of the page to act as negative space, a place where the light gets in. Green for Luck speaks through Scrabble, through…

Join us for the our monthly reading and panel discussion event series Milkweed Presents, hosted by In Winter’s Kitchen author Beth Dooley! Beth will lead readings and a conversation on the topic of food, love, and loss with special guest speakers Karen Babine, Theresa McCormick, and Marnie Wells.

Please join us in-person at Open Book for an unforgettable reading and discussion at 6 p.m., and come early for a book-signing and social hour at Milkweed Books, our brick-and-mortar independent bookstore, at 5 p.m.

Thank you to our event sponsor Friesens.

Milkweed Presents is a monthly event series…

Join Milkweed Books as we host a launch event for three neurodivergent writers and their new books with Cow Tipping Press and Unrestricted Interest.

Mary Ayetey likes to write. She is a Black Autistic writer and winner of the Cow Tipping Prize. She likes Disney. She likes trolls. She likes listening to calm music and upbeat music. She’s been writing the first book of Henriette Meets Mully, and she wrote the “Respect” poem and “Pepper Spray.” She also likes to paint.The Ghosts I Know introduces a bold literary voice. At times blurring the past, and other times distilling exquisite details from…