The best book events in February in Seattle. by Julianne Bell Want more? Here's everything we recommend this month: Music, Visual Art, Literature, Performance, Film, Food, and This That. Mark Z. Danielewski FEB 4 Mark Z. Danielewsk i is most well known for his debut novel and postmodern horror cult classic House of Leaves, which famously requires active participation (including turning the book upside down at times) from the reader to decipher its multiple nonlinear narratives, cryptic text, and copious footnotes. Reading it feels like a descent into madness and will have you glancing around to make sure no one (or nothing) else is in the room with you. He’s now embarking on a tour to promote his longest novel to date, Tom’s Crossing, which came out last October and clocks in at 1,200 pages. It’s a dark, epic Western/ horror hybrid that required 10 drafts and which Danielewski has said he considers the “pinnacle” of his work. Here’s a chance to catch a living horror legend in the flesh. (Elliott Bay Book Company, 7 pm, all ages, free) JULIANNE BELL ‘Document’ by Amelia Rosselli with Translator Deborah Woodard with Rachel Karyo FEB 4 A newly translated collection of 1970s anti-fascist poetry by a female poet? I’m listening! Italian poet Amelia Rosselli’s last collection to be translated into English, Document, explores how poetry can document our contemporary experiences through the lens of classical models. Rosselli was long obsessed with classical sonnets, particularly Petrarchan sonnets, in which meaning is conveyed through sequence and structure. Through the collection of 175 poems, Rosselli speaks to her experiences in postwar Italy, meditating on violence, class struggle, religion, consumerism, and capitalism, all topics that unfortunately still resonate 50 years after they were written. For this QA and book signing, Document translator Deborah Woodard will be joined by poet Rachel Karyo. (Third Place Books Ravenna, 7 pm, all ages, free) AUDREY VANN Chuck Klosterman FEB 4 Chuck Klosterman bucked himself up from tiny-town obscurity all the way to toast of Manhattan and staff position at the Gray Lady itself (though he’s since moved to Portland). Music scribing put him on top, but he’s branched out into broader cultural criticism, plus the occasional novel; now he’s tackling “America’s game” in time for Super Bowl weekend. His new book, Football, approaches the mighty gridiron as a “hyperobject” so massive in time/space that its true contours can’t be mapped. As an honest effort, though, he essays the six-man variant (silly me, I only knew about eight-man), the myth of the Great Man Theory (or at least Great Jock Theory), the sport’s seamless melding with television, and the morality of potentially crippling violence as public spectacle. No word on whether he’ll tackle arena football (Washington Wolfpack and Seattle Sabercats represent!), women’s football (we’ve got the Majestics, the Spartans, and the Thunder), fantasy football (I vote ecchh), and/or video games (scratch Madden, I’m sticking with Atari). Want to know more? Ask the answer man himself. (Town Hall, 7:30 pm, all ages) ANDREW HAMLIN Nicola Griffith FEB 17 Seattle-based author and self-described “queer cripple with a PhD” Nicola Griffith has received countless honors, including two Washington State Book Awards and six Lambda Literary Awards, and was inducted into MOPOP’s Science Fiction and Fantasy Hall of Fame in 2024. Her novels Hild, Spear, and Menewood explore the medieval era through a queer perspective, and she also cofounded the #CripLit movement with the late activist Alice Wong. Her latest work, She Is Here, is a new installment in PM Press’s Outspoken Authors series, in which “today’s edgiest fiction writers showcase their most provocative and politically challenging stories.” Griffith’s contribution combines fiction, nonfiction, poetry, and artwork to discuss topics ranging from disability justice to the distinction between love and ownership. (Third Place Books Ravenna, 7 pm, all ages, free) JULIANNE BELL More Aja Monet Feb 5, Town Hall Seattle, 7:30 pm Emily Nemens Feb 11, Elliott Bay Book Company, 7 pm Roddy Bottum Feb 13, Elliott Bay Book Company, 7 pm Nick Offerman Feb 15, Moore Theatre, 7 pm, all ages Cristina Rivera Garza Javier Zamora Feb 24, Town Hall Seattle, 7:30 pm Early Warnings James McBride March 3, Town Hall Seattle, 7:30 pm Stephen Graham Jones March 30, Town Hall Seattle, 7:30 pm George Saunders: Vigil: A Novel Apr 7, Town Hall Seattle, 7:30 pm Patrick Radden Keefe April 22, Town Hall Seattle, 7:30 pm Marlon James May 6, Town Hall Seattle, 7:30 pm Emily Wilson May 12, Town Hall Seattle, 7:30 pm Tommy Orange May 21, Town Hall Seattle, 7:30 pm ...read more read less