November Events: READ THIS WHEN THINGS FALL APART & so much more!

November 2025

Dear Friends of Women & Children First,

The bookstore has been a hub of activity this past month as so many of you have stopped by to pick up signs for the No Kings Rally or whistles to join the collective resistance against ICE's illegal abductions of our community members. Thank you for your whistle donations, your energy, your organizing, your voices, your hugs, and your care. We keep us safe.

This November is an avalanche of big fall books and big fall events! While our Margaret Atwood event is entirely sold out, we have plenty of other exciting programs on the horizon. We're especially thrilled to welcome local authors Kelly Hayes for the release of Read This When Things Fall Apart: Letters to Activists in Crisis and Sophie Lucido Johnson for Kin: The Future of Family. Both of these books feel like much-needed gifts right now.

Plus, Oyinkan Braithwaite will be chatting with Gillian Flynn about her explosive new novel, Cursed Daughters. And you'd better register now for our highly anticipated December release party for Leah Johnson and George M. Johnson's There's Always Next Year.

We can't wait to see you at the bookstore. Always political. Always literary. Always here for you.

With love & books,

W&CF

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November Events

Saturday, November 1 at 10:30 a.m.

Special Children's Storytime

Leaf Town Forever

by Kathleen Rooney and Beth Rooney

Women & Children First

Join us for an extra-special Children's Storytime Event to celebrate the release of Leaf Town Forever by local authors Kathleen Rooney & Beth Rooney, illustrated by Betsey Bowen! Doors open at 10:15am and storytime starts at 10:30am!

The true story of a Midwestern “town” created with leaves, sticks, and children’s imaginations!

Read More & Register

Tuesday, November 4 at 7 p.m.

Trans Sex: Nurturing Trans Erotic Embodiment and Gender-Pleasure

by Lucie Fielding

Women & Children First

Join us for an event with Lucie Fielding for the release of Trans Sex: Nurturing Trans Erotic Embodiment and Gender-Pleasure.

This radically re-visioned and expanded edition of Trans Sex offers a joyously pleasure-centered approach to nurturing trans erotic embodiment and finding gender-pleasure in the body.

Wednesday, November 5 at 7 p.m.

Queen Mother: Black Nationalism, Reparations, and the
Untold Story of Audley Moore

by Ashley D. Farmer

Women & Children First

In the world of Black radical politics, the name Audley Moore commands unquestioned respect. Across the nine decades of her life, Queen Mother Moore distinguished herself as a leading progenitor of Black Nationalism, the founder of the modern reparations movement, and, from her Philadelphia and Harlem homes, a mentor to some of America's most influential Black activists.

Thursday, November 6 at 7 p.m.

The Autobiography of H. Lan Thao Lam

by Lana Lin

in conversation with Suzanne Scanlon

Women & Children First

Join us in welcoming Lana Lin for an event in conversation with Suzanne Scanlon to celebrate the release of The Autobiography of H. Lan Thao Lam, which was longlisted for the 2025 National Book Award.

In her 1933 The Autobiography of Alice B. Toklas, Gertrude Stein invented a new literary form by narrating her own story from the perspective of her partner, blurring the lines between portrait and self-portrait. Almost a century later, experimental filmmaker and artist Lana Lin has resurrected Stein’s project to tell a different story of queer love, life, and artistic collaboration.

Tuesday, November 11 at 7 p.m.

Read This When Things Fall Apart edited by Kelly Hayes

with Tanuja Devi Jagernauth & May Schenwar

Women & Children First

Join us for an event with Kelly Hayes in conversation with Tanuja Devi Jagernauth and Maya Schenwar to celebrate the release of Read This When Things Fall Apart: Letters to Activists in Crisis.

In social movements, some heartbreaks are all but inevitable. Campaigns will be lost. Mental health crises will occur. Social ills, like gender-based violence, will manifest themselves in movement spaces. People will experience profound personal losses. Grief, alienation, and despair can grind us under. Sometimes, we need accompaniment. Sometimes, we need to be met where we're at by a caring voice of experience. Read This When Things Fall Apart is a care package for activists and organizers building power under fascistic, demoralizing conditions.

Wednesday, November 12 at 7 p.m.

Simone in Pieces

by Janet Burroway

in conversation with Rosellen Brown

Women & Children First

We are thrilled to host the book launch celebration for Simone in Pieces by Janet Burroway. For this event, Janet will be joined in conversation by Rosellen Brown.

Readers first meet Simone Lerrante, a Belgian war orphan, as a child refugee in Sussex, England. Her memory has been damaged by trauma. This novel offers a kaleidoscopic vision of her fractured life and piecemeal understanding of self across multiple points of view. Following her from Cambridge to New York City and across the United States—through a disastrous marriage, thwarted desire, and the purgatory of academic backwaters—the novel charts Simone’s unexpected reconnection with her past, which provides both autonomy and inspiration for her future.

Thursday, November 13 at 7 p.m.

Kin: The Future of Family

by Sophie Lucido Johnson

in conversation with Laura Danger

Women & Children First

Doesn’t it seem like there simply isn’t enough time to take care of ourselves, our families, and our to-do lists? Even when we’re partnered and surrounded by friends, we’re often too afraid of burdening others to ask for help. So how do we survive today’s age of overwork and stress, and who can we turn to for the support we need to stay afloat?

Now, writer and cartoonist Sophie Lucido Johnson offers a radical answer to our age of overwhelm in Kin: The Future of Family. With richly reported stories and insights from psychology and sociology, Lucido Johnson explores the importance of our closest relationships (beyond the nuclear family) and provides the tools to forge kinship: relationships built on emotional support, physical care, and shared resources.

Friday, November 14 at 7 p.m.

Slightest Green: A Novel by Sahar Mustafah

in conversation with Faisel Mohyuddin

Women & Children First

We are thrilled to host an event celebrating the release of The Slightest Green, the newest novel by Sahar Mustafah. For this event, Sahar will be joined in conversation by Faisal Mohyuddin.

In the middle of dinner one evening, Intisar Jaber receives a phone call that will upend her quiet life in Chicago: her father is dying, and she must go to Palestine to pay her final respects. But Intisar hasn't seen or heard from Hafez for nearly two decades, ever since he abandoned her and her mother to join the resistance.

Sunday, November 16 at 7 p.m.

Cursed Daughters by Oyinkan Braithwaite

in conversation with Gillian Flynn

Women & Children First

Join us for a reading, conversation, and book-signing for Cursed Daughters: A Novel by Oyinkan Braithwaite. For this event, Oyinkan will be in conversation with Gillian Flynn!

A young woman must shake off a family curse and the widely held belief that she is the reincarnation of her dead cousin in this wickedly funny, brilliantly perceptive novel about love, female rivalry, and superstition from the author of the smash hit My Sister, the Serial Killer (“A bombshell of a book... Sharp, explosive, hilarious"—The New York Times).

Wednesday, November 19 at 7 p.m.

Dandelion: A Memoir in Essays by Danielle Bainbridge

in conversation with Jane Hseu

Women & Children First

We are excited to host local author Danielle Bainbridge for the book launch of Dandelion: A Memoir in Essays. For this event, Danielle will be joined in conversation by Jane Hseu.

Dandelion: A Memoir in Essays is a profoundly personal exploration of the complex intersections of race, gender, queerness, and mental health. Through a collection of essays, poetry, and reflections tumbling back and forth through time, Danielle struggles to navigate the precarious balancing act of Blackness and societal pressures, chronic illness, and resilience.

Monday, December 1 at 7 p.m.

Panel Discussion featuring:

Tracy Baim, Rebecca Makkai, Victoria Noe
& Rosa E. Martinez Colón

Women & Children First

Funding for direct service and research for HIV has been decimated, AIDS denialists have a champion leading the Department of Health and Human Services, and international programs like PEPFAR have been destroyed. How can allies use their voices to convince the general public that these developments don't only affect people living with HIV, but everyone?

This World AIDS Day, join us for a panel discussion featuring Tracy Baim, Rebecca Makkai, and Victoria Noe, moderated by Rosa E. Martínez Colón.

Tuesday, December 2 at 6:30 p.m.

There's Always Next Year

by Leah Johnson & George M. Johnson

Women & Children First

Join us as we celebrate the launch of There's Always Next Year by Leah Johnson and George M. Johnson!

"A snow-kissed, warmhearted ode to new beginnings, second chances, and the real, enduring magic of love and community." —Becky Albertalli, #1 New York Times-bestselling author of Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda

From New York Times-bestselling author George M. Johnson and USA Today-bestselling author Leah Johnson comes a revolutionary new holiday romcom for fans of Lynn Painter, Alice Oseman, and Nicola Yoon.

Tuesday, December 9 at 7 p.m.

In-person Workshop: Tools for Community Crisis Care

Women & Children First

It is common for us to run into people experiencing a mental health crisis in our neighborhood, at work, on the bus, or in our apartment buildings. When we see someone in crisis, we can get activated, too, and have difficulty knowing how to be helpful. Helping someone in crisis can feel messy and chaotic. That’s ok!

Join this 90-minute workshop to find tools to help you support others in crisis.

Women & Children First Book Groups