Litquake 2024

Co-presented with Jewish Community Center San Francisco

Bang Bang, Niner Gang! From award-winning SF Chronicle journalist Mike Silver comes the inside story of the brilliant, hypercompetitive young NFL coaches who threw out decades of received wisdom to fundamentally remake America’s most popular sport. When Kyle Shanahan became the NFL’s youngest offensive coordinator in 2008, he had one prevailing rule: Tell me the why. If a colleague couldn’t justify his position by providing the unassailable reasoning behind it, he was told to get the hell out of Shanahan’s office. Shanahan and the members of his coaching tree—Sean McVay, Mike McDaniel, Raheem Morris, and Matt LaFleur—are now NFL stars and coaching revolutionaries. With The Why Is Everything, Silver draws on unmatched access across the league to take us into the key moments of how it all happened, and in the process gives us a timeless account of friendship, rivalry, and the never-ending pursuit of perfection. Silver will be in convo with 49ers legend Steve Young. Doors at 6:30PM. $17 adv (book bundle avail.) / $20 door
Book sales for this event coordinated by Bookshop West Portal.

What would you call Amy Appelhans Gubser, who, at age 55, became the first-ever person to swim from the Golden Gate Bridge to the Farallon Islands (that’s 29.6 miles) through shark-infested waters? We’d call her one tough broad. Author Caroline Paul would agree. In her new book Tough Broad: From Boogie Boarding to Wing Walking—How Outdoor Adventure Improves Our Lives as We Age, Paul combines vivid anecdotes with the latest science to relate how and why older women can and should lead healthier, more daring lives. Join these two adventurers for a lively conversation—prepare to be inspired! FREE, $10-15 suggested donation
Book sales for this event coordinated by Clio's.

Part of Litquake’s Words Around the WorldSponsored by NORLA Norwegian Literature Abroad and Center for the Art of Translation/Two Lines Press

A single mother forgets her son’s birthday. A theology student excavates the past. A woman reminisces on her marriage, as her cancer-stricken husband enters his final months of life. The work of National Book Award finalist and 2019 PEN Translation Prize winner Hanne Ørstavik explores an ever-evolving theme of complex love, and how it can be intertwined with insecurity, fear, and self-discovery. Ørstavik will revisit her English-translated books Ti Amo, The Pastor, and her literary breakthrough Love, plus a sneak peek of her latest novel—not yet published in the United States—Stay With Me. Join the author in conversation with Stanford doctoral fellow Kristin Keane about the recurrent exploration of love throughout Ørstavik’s 30-year literary career. FREE, $10-15 suggested donation
Book sales for this event coordinated by Telegraph Hill Books.

Co-presented with SF Sketchfest

"Not Today, Satan" is a common refrain uttered when one is rejecting the chaos and distractions life throws our way. But what happens when we embrace the chaos and let the devil take the wheel? For this special Litquake edition of the long-running national LGBTQ+ storytelling show Greetings, from Queer Mountain, host and curator Micheal Foulk (Queer Film Theory 101) invites some of their favorite writers to share work about embracing our inner demons. Featuring R.O. Kwon, Michael Andor Brodeur, Julian Morris, and Amy Estes. Doors at 6:30PM. Bar closes at 9:00PM. $12 adv / $15 door

Take a midweek pause, find stillness, and bask in the words of four phenomenal poets, whose verses will soar to the vaulted ceiling in magnificent Grace Cathedral. A. Van Jordan (When I Waked, I Cried to Dream Again), Dorianne Laux (Life on Earth), Ruben Quesada (Brutal Companion), and Alice Templeton (The Infinite Field) will read work from their latest collections, in one of Litquake’s most beloved annual events, curated by D.A. Powell and Preeti Vangani. FREE, $10-15 suggested donation
Book sales for this event coordinated by Green Apple Books.