Sacramento Lietrary Calendar April/May

TUESDAY, APRIL 15 - 7 p.m. - "Life Sentence" - a weekly poetry reading and open mic. The Coffee Garden, 2904 Franklin Blvd., Sactown. http://www.myspace.com/lifesentenceshow

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 16 - 9 p.m. - Poetry night with John Boe. "Hearty Laughs. Thoughtful Poems. Ribald Stories. Enjoy an Evening with an Award-Winning Storyteller and Poet. A PG-13 Event. Not for Children." Plus open mic after the feature. Bistro 33, 226 F Street in Davis. Every first and third Wednesday. Email aojones@ucdavis.edu to get on the mailing list or join the "Poetry in Davis" at Facebook.com.

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 16 - 6-7 p.m. - Upstairs Poetry reading at The Upstairs Art Gallery, 420 Main St (2nd floor), Placerville. It's an open-mike read-around, so bring your own poems or those of a favorite poet to share, or just come to listen. No charge. For more info, contact piper@innercite.com

THURSDAY, APRIL 17 - 7:30 p.m. - The Nevada County Poetry Series presents "A Bite Out of the Sun" with poets frank andrick and R. D. Armstrong at the offCenter Stage at the CENTER FOR THE ARTS , 314 W. Main St, Grass Valley, $5 general, seniors & students, $1 under 18. Refreshments plus open mic. http://www.thecenterforthearts.org/events/08/08-04-17-poetry.htm

THURSDAY, APRIL 17 - ALL DAY - POEM IN YOUR POCKET DAY - The Academy of American Poets launches the first annual national "Poem in your Pocket Day" The idea is simple: select a poem and carry it with you (poem in your pocket) and unfold it with family friends and co-workers throughout the day. More details are available at their website: poets.org/pocket. THE BOOK COLLECTOR, 1008 24th Street, Sacramento, CA, Between J & K Streets, 916.442.9295, richard@poems-for-all.com, http://www.sacfreepress.com/poems/

THURSDAY, APRIL 17 - 8 p.m. - TBA reads plus open mic. Poetry Unplugged at Luna's, 1414 16th Street. Free. http://www.lunascafe.com, 916-441-3931.

FRIDAY, APRIL 18 - 7-8 p.m. - Tom Miner and Jeff Knorr read at the POETRY IN THE HILLS READING at Wild Mountain Books, 352 Main Street, Placerville. 530-622-4540. Free, Open Mic, contact piper@innercite.com for location

FRIDAY, APRIL 18 - 7:30 p.m. - Arturo Mantoucán & James DenBoer read at La Raza Galeria Posada 1022 - 22nd Street, Midtown Sacramento; Suggested Cost: $5 or as you can afford. Sponsored by Writers of the New Sun/Los Escritores del Nuevo Sol. For more information about Los Escritores call: Graciela Ramirez (916) 456-5323; http://escritoresdelnuevosol.com/

FRIDAY, APRIL 18 - 7:30 p.m. - CHARLES CURTIS BLACKWELL & VINCENT KOBELT (Invited). Poems-For-All is pleased to welcome Charles Curtis Blackwell back to Sacramento. Presently a poet and performer in the Bay Area, Charles once graced the Sacramento scene with his exceptional readings. He comes with a new book of poems, or rather, two vignettes of poetry in one book: "Is, The Color of Mississippi Mud and Lou Next Door." The book's publisher/editor Vincent Kobelt has also been invited to read. THE BOOK COLLECTOR, 1008 24th Street, Sacramento, CA, Between J & K Streets, 916.442.9295, richard@poems-for-all.com, http://www.sacfreepress.com/poems/

SATURDAY, APRIL 19 - 11 a.m. - 3 p.m. - Cache Creek Nature Preserve's Day for the Arts. Mark your calendars for this annual day retreat for artists and all creative practitioners in honor of Earth Day. This is a great chance to reconnect to the earth and find your way into some new work. Bring your yoga mat, your guitar, your paints, your notebook, or just yourself. See The CCNP website at www.cachecreekconservancy.org for maps and directions.

SATURDAY, APRIL 19 - 8 p.m. - Nila Northsun and D. R. Wagner read. Hosted by B. L. Kennedy at Luna's, 1414 16th Street. Free. http://www.lunascafe.com, 916-441-3931.

SATURDAY, APRIL 19 - 7-9 p.m. - Brigit Truex, Lori Jean Robinson, Sidney Singleton and Sean King read at Underground Books Poetry Series at 2814 35th Street next to the Guild Theater. $3. Features plus open mic. Your host: Terry Moore. Call 737-3333 for more info. Every third Saturday.

SATURDAY, APRIL 19 - 7:30 p.m. - Special Sat Session - John Amen and Brad Henderson read at the SPC, 25th and R. Free. 916-979-9706. http://www.sacramentopoetrycenter.org.

SUNDAY, APRIL 20 - 3:30 p.m. exactly - "In celebration of National Poetry Month, we would like to bring local poetry to as many people as humanly possible. In order to do this, we have constructed The Poetry Bomb. The Poetry Bomb, Sunday April 20th, asks every poet who receives word to head out into their community. Stand in an area with a lot of traffic, and begin reading poetry at exactly 3:30pm for about 10 minutes. This is an opportunity to blanket the Chicagoland [or Sacramentoland] area in poetry. This is an opportunity for poetry to leave the bars and coffee shops behind, and move into the minds and ears of everyone around us. Will you be a part of this? Please make sure that the location you choose is both safe and legal. The last thing we want is for anyone to get hurt. Groups of poets also welcomed. If you are interested in being part of the BOMB or would like more information, contact Esteban Colon at esteban_colon@yahoo.com"

SUNDAY, APRIL 20 - 2-4 p.m. - The Pomo Literati is a two hour poetry/spoken word & sound experiment program. Part of the KUSF Spotlight series. This Pomo Lit celebrates National Poetry Month and the start of the programs 9th year on air broadcast via KUSF. Live Readings, Archival & Classic and Contemporary recordings. We have a plan & we are spontaneous. WHO: Poets, Publishers, Journalists, Biographers, Prose Writers, Educators, A nor-cal spanning poetic quartet of solo performances by Neeli Cherkovski, William S. Gainer, Chris Olander, and Josh Fernandez. Sound and word audio experiments from Fari & also collaborative works by Jim ‘The Germ’ Smith. WHERE: KUSF 90.3 fm. www.kusf.edu (please follow prompts). Streaming @ www.kusf.org. Supplemental Information: KUSF Spotlight Series Producer: Nathalie Neal, Engineer/pre & post production: Jim Smith

MONDAY, APRIL 21 - 7:30 p.m. - Sacramento City Ethnic Theater! reads at the SPC, 25th and R. Free. 916-979-9706. http://www.sacramentopoetrycenter.org.

TUESDAY, APRIL 22 - 6-8 p.m. - Poets Corner presents Camille Norton and David Humphreys at the Morris Chapel, University of the Pacific, near corner of Pacific Avenue and Presidents Drive, in Stockton. 209-951-7014. http://www.poetscornerpress.com/events.htm

TUESDAY, APRIL 22 - 7 p.m. - "Life Sentence" - a weekly poetry reading and open mic. The Coffee Garden, 2904 Franklin Blvd., Sactown. http://www.myspace.com/lifesentenceshow

THURSDAY, APRIL 24 - 12:15-1:15 p.m. - Traci Gourdine and Michael Spurgeon read at Raef Hall 160 at American River College, 4700 College Oak Drive, Sacramento - (916) 484-8101 http://inside.arc.losrios.edu/calendar/

THURSDAY, APRIL 24 - 8 p.m. - TBA reads plus open mic. Poetry Unplugged at Luna's, 1414 16th Street. Free. http://www.lunascafe.com, 916-441-3931.

SATURDAY, APRIL 26 - 6 p.m. - ARTHUR WINFIELD KNIGHT- Poet, writer and editor of UNSPEAKABLE VISIONS, a literary journal of Beat Generation writing, Arthur celebrates the release of his latest Novel MISFITS COUNTRY. THE BOOK COLLECTOR, 1008 24th Street, Sacramento, CA, Between J & K Streets, 916.442.9295, richard@poems-for-all.com, http://www.sacfreepress.com/poems/

SATURDAY, APRIL 26 - 7-9 p.m. Brigit Truex reads at The Show at the Wo'se Community Center, 2863 35th Street (off 35th and Broadway across from the parking lot). For vendor or event information please call T. Mo at (916) 208-POET. "The Show" is every last Saturday of the month. $5. This is a family event. "The BEST SHOW IN TOWN with an Open Mic, Top Notch Features and Live Band LSB." Sponsored by the FREEDOM EQUITY GROUP. http://mybmsf.com/bmsf/bmsf_peeps/peeps_poetry/wordouts_moore2.asp

MONDAY, APRIL 28 - 7:30 p.m. - William O'Daly reads at the SPC, 25th and R. Free. 916-979-9706. http://www.sacramentopoetrycenter.org.

TUESDAY, APRIL 29 - 7 p.m. - "Life Sentence" - a weekly poetry reading and open mic. The Coffee Garden, 2904 Franklin Blvd., Sactown. http://www.myspace.com/lifesentenceshow

---MAY---

FRIDAY, MAY 2 - The Other Voice, a poetry reading series sponsored by Unitarian Universalist Church of Davis presents readers from THE YOLO CROW, a quarterly literary journal celebrating the writings of the people of Yolo County. The journal began with two writers having coffee while thumbing through The Writers Market. When one expressed a wish for some place local to send out work the other said, "So, start something". Three years and ten issues later, here they are, a gift to Yolo County and the world. The featured poets for this last reading until September are Chris Campbell, Peter Goblen, Susan Wolbarst, Ronald Lane, and Sherman Stein.The reading begins at 7:30 in the library of the church located at 27074 Patwin Road. Refreshments and Open Mike follow so bring along a poem or two to share. allegras@dcn.org. This is the last reading until September.

FRIDAY, MAY 2 - 7:30 p.m. - WILLIAM WANTLING IS DEAD featuring KEVIN JONES, GENE BLOOM, RICHARD LOPEZ, RICHARD HANSEN and others at The Book Collector. 1008 24th Street, between J & K Streets. 916.442.9295. May 2nd marks the anniversary of the death of mimeo era poet William Wantling. Poet and Wantling Scholar Kevin Jones and others will read their favorite Wantling poems and discuss his importance and impact as a poet. http://www.sacfreepress.com/poems/

SATURDAY, MAY 3 - 7:00 p.m. - The Sacramento City College literary magazine (Susurrus) reading will be held on the Sacramento City College campus in room A6 of the auditorium building.

MONDAY, MAY 12 - 7:30 p.m. - Rebecca Foust & Elizabeth Krause read at the SPC, 25th and R. Free. 916-979-9706. http://www.sacramentopoetrycenter.org.

SUNDAY, MAY 18 - 2:00 - 4:00 p.m. - A poetry reading by winners of the Museum's 2007 Automotive Poetry Contest. Doors open at 2pm and the presentation begins at 2:30pm. $5 for SADS & CVF members, $7 for non-members. Art Deco Authors and Books Also included. Education Center, Towe Auto Museum, 2200 Front Street, Sacramento, CA 95818 (916) 442-6802 Open 7 days 10 am - 6 pm. http://www.toweautomuseum.org

WEDNESDAY, MAY 14 - 7:30 p.m. - Rattlesnake Press presents a littlesnake broadside by STEPHANI SCHAEFER, a new chapbook from QUINTON DUVAL (Among Summer Pines), and Volume Three of CONVERSATIONS, B.L. Kennedy’s Rattlesnake Interview Series. The Book Collector, 1008 24th Street, between J & K Streets, 916-442-9295, richard@poems-for-all.com, http://www.sacfreepress.com/poems/

WEDNESDAY, MAY 14 - 7 p.m. - Sacramento Poets Against the War reading and Sacramento Area Peace Action open house at 909 12th Street, Sacramento, 916-448-7157 or sacpeace@dcn.org. http://www.sacpeace.org/ Free.

THURSDAY, MAY 15 - 8-10 p.m. - UC Davis Graduate Student Reading Series, 126 Voorhies Hall, University of California, Davis, Campus. http://english.ucdavis.edu.

THURSDAY, MAY 15 - 8 p.m. - Writer Beth Lisick and Poet Kayden Kross read plus open mic. Poetry Unplugged at Luna's, 1414 16th Street. Free. http://www.lunascafe.com, 916-441-3931. Hosted by frank andrick.

MONDAY, MAY 19 - 7:30 p.m. - Q. R. Hand and Bill Vartnaw from Taurean Horn Press read at the SPC, 25th and R. Free. 916-979-9706. http://www.sacramentopoetrycenter.org.

MONDAY, MAY 26 - 7:30 p.m. - Chad Sweeney & Josh McKinney read at the SPC, 25th and R. Free. 916-979-9706. http://www.sacramentopoetrycenter.org.

TUESDAY, MAY 27 - Poet Frank Bidart reads at the University of California, Davis, Campus. Time and location TBA. http://english.ucdavis.edu.

MONDAY, JUNE 9 - 7:30 p.m. - F. D. Reeve & Al Garcia read at the SPC, 25th and R. Free. 916-979-9706. http://www.sacramentopoetrycenter.org.