Enjoy recent author events, interviews, and bookseller series. Visit our website to learn more: www.skylightbooks.com
Episodes
Friday Jul 01, 2022
SKYLIT: Ross Melnick, ”HOLLYWOOD’S EMBASSIES”
Friday Jul 01, 2022
Friday Jul 01, 2022
In Hollywood's Embassies, a history that stretches from Buenos Aires and Tokyo to Johannesburg and Cairo, Ross Melnick considers these movie houses as cultural embassies. He examines how the exhibition of Hollywood films became a constant flow of political and consumerist messaging, selling American ideas, products, and power, especially during fractious eras. Melnick demonstrates that while Hollywood's marketing of luxury and consumption often struck a chord with local audiences, it was also frequently tone-deaf to new social, cultural, racial, and political movements. He argues that the story of Hollywood's global cinemas is not a simple narrative of cultural and industrial indoctrination and colonization. Instead, it is one of negotiation, booms and busts, successes and failures, adoptions and rejections, and a precursor to later conflicts over the spread of American consumer culture. A truly global account, Hollywood's Embassies shows how the entanglement of worldwide movie theaters with American empire offers a new way of understanding film history and the history of U.S. soft power.
Produced by Nat Freeman, Lance Morgan, & Michael Kowaleski.
Theme: "I Love All My Friends," an unreleased demo by Fragile Gang.
Wednesday Jun 29, 2022
LIT ANGELES, Ep. 3: ”THE REVOLT OF THE COCKROACH PEOPLE” w/ Sesshu Foster & Arturo Romo
Wednesday Jun 29, 2022
Wednesday Jun 29, 2022
Produced by Emily VanKoughnett, Alena Saunders & Michael Kowaleski.
Theme: "I Love All My Friends," an unreleased demo by Fragile Gang.
Sunday Jun 26, 2022
SKYLIT: Sina Grace, ”ROCKSTAR & SOFTBOY”
Sunday Jun 26, 2022
Sunday Jun 26, 2022
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Produced by Nat Freeman, Lance Morgan, & Michael Kowaleski.
Theme: "I Love All My Friends," an unreleased demo by Fragile Gang.
Tuesday Jun 21, 2022
Lit Angeles, Ep. 2: ”L.A. WOMAN” w/ Molly Lambert
Tuesday Jun 21, 2022
Tuesday Jun 21, 2022
Produced by Emily VanKoughnett, Alena Saunders & Michael Kowaleski.
Theme: "I Love All My Friends," an unreleased demo by Fragile Gang.
Tuesday Jun 14, 2022
LIVE ON CROWDCAST: Robbie Couch, ”BLAINE FOR THE WIN” w/ Margot Wood
Tuesday Jun 14, 2022
Tuesday Jun 14, 2022
Except Joey breaks up with him instead. In public. On their one-year anniversary.
Because, according to Joey, Blaine is too goofy, too flighty, too…unserious. And if Joey wants to go far in life, he needs to start dating more serious guys. Guys like Zach Chesterton.
Determined to prove that Blaine can be what Joey wants, Blaine decides to enter the running to become his successor (and beat out Joey’s new boyfriend, Zach) as senior student council president.
But is he willing to sacrifice everything he loves about himself to do it?
Produced by Nat Freeman, Lance Morgan, & Michael Kowaleski.
Theme: "I Love All My Friends," an unreleased demo by Fragile Gang.
Visit https://www.skylightbooks.com/event for future offerings from the Skylight Books Events team.
Tuesday Jun 07, 2022
Lit Angeles, Ep. 1: ”THE BIG SLEEP” w/ Jonathan Ames
Tuesday Jun 07, 2022
Tuesday Jun 07, 2022
Join us for a brand new series in the Skylight arsenal, Lit Angeles! In this soon-to-be-regular segment, our hosts Emily VanKoughnett and Alena Saunders take a deep dive into Angeleno's rich literary history, one book at a time, exploring select titles that they believe illustrate the City of Angels with depth and texture.
In the first episode, they tackle Raymond Chandler's proto-noir detective classic, The Big Sleep, in particular Chandler's timeless anti-authoritarian streak and his all-time protagonist, Phillip Marlowe. They're joined by esteemed author and screenwriter Jonathan Ames (A Man Named Doll, You Were Never Really Here), who talks about his connection to Chandler's work and the future of the noir tradition.
Produced by Emily VanKoughnett, Alena Saunders & Michael Kowaleski.
Theme: "I Love All My Friends," an unreleased demo by Fragile Gang.
Tuesday May 31, 2022
SKYLIT: Sequoia Maner, ”33 1/3 KENDRICK LAMAR’S TO PIMP A BUTTERFLY”
Tuesday May 31, 2022
Tuesday May 31, 2022
This book takes a deep dive into the sounds, images, and lyrics of To Pimp a Butterfly to suggest that Kendrick appeals to the psyche of a nation in crisis and embraces the development of a radical political conscience. Kendrick breathes fresh life into the Black musical protest tradition and cultivates a platform for loving resistance. Combining funk, jazz, and spoken word, To Pimp a Butterfly's expansive sonic and lyrical geography brings a high level of innovation to rap music. More importantly, Kendrick's introspective and philosophical songs compel us to believe in a future where, perhaps, we gon' be alright.
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Produced by Nat Freeman, Lance Morgan, & Michael Kowaleski.
Theme: "I Love All My Friends," an unreleased demo by Fragile Gang.
Monday May 23, 2022
SKYLIT: Naheed Phiroze Patel, ”MIRROR MADE OF RAIN” w/ Vikram Chandra
Monday May 23, 2022
Monday May 23, 2022
With her options in her hometown growing increasingly limited, Noomi leaves for Mumbai and quickly becomes a successful journalist. There she falls in love with Veer, who appreciates her for exactly who she is. When Noomi and Veer decide to marry, Noomi must observe a host of patriarchal wedding rituals at the behest of her new in-laws, whose cultural customs deviate from her own. Soon, Noomi realizes that her worst fears have come to pass--she is trapped in the same cycle of self-destructiveness as her mother, and she must battle her impulses or risk losing it all.
A riveting exploration of class and tradition in contemporary India, Noomi is as quick-witted as she is quick-tempered. At times funny and tragic, taking place over many years of Noomi's life, Naheed Phiroze Patel's exhilarating debut novel, Mirror Made of Rain, shows how society encourages us to see ourselves through the eyes of others.
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Produced by Nat Freeman, Lance Morgan, & Michael Kowaleski.
Theme: "I Love All My Friends," an unreleased demo by Fragile Gang.
Wednesday May 18, 2022
SKYLIT: Sonora Reyes, ”THE LESBIANA’S GUIDE TO CATHOLIC SCHOOL”
Wednesday May 18, 2022
Wednesday May 18, 2022
Sixteen-year-old Yamilet Flores prefers to be known for her killer eyeliner, not for being one of the only Mexican kids at her new, mostly white, very rich Catholic school. But at least here no one knows she’s gay, and Yami intends to keep it that way.
After being outed by her crush and ex-best friend before transferring to Slayton Catholic, Yami has new priorities: keep her brother out of trouble, make her mom proud, and, most importantly, don’t fall in love. Granted, she’s never been great at any of those things, but that’s a problem for Future Yami.
The thing is, it’s hard to fake being straight when Bo, the only openly queer girl at school, is so annoyingly perfect. And smart. And talented. And cute. So cute. Either way, Yami isn’t going to make the same mistake again. If word got back to her mom, she could face a lot worse than rejection. So she’ll have to start asking, WWSGD: What would a straight girl do?
Told in a captivating voice that is by turns hilarious, vulnerable, and searingly honest, The Lesbiana’s Guide to Catholic School explores the joys and heartaches of living your full truth out loud.
Join us for a conversation with author Sonora Reyes as they discuss their new book with Skylight's Nat Freeman.
Produced by Nat Freeman, Lance Morgan, & Michael Kowaleski.
Theme: "I Love All My Friends," an unreleased demo by Fragile Gang.
Visit https://www.skylightbooks.com/event for future offerings from the Skylight Books Events team.
Monday May 16, 2022
LIVE ON CROWDCAST: Julio Anta, ”HOME” w/ Pornsak Pichetshote
Monday May 16, 2022
Monday May 16, 2022
Produced by Natalie Freeman, Lance Morgan, & Michael Kowaleski.
Theme: "I Love All My Friends," an unreleased demo by Fragile Gang.
Visit https://www.skylightbooks.com/event for future offerings from the Skylight Books Events team.
Friday May 13, 2022
LIVE ON CROWDCAST: Catriona Ward, ”SUNDIAL” w/ Caroline Kepnes
Friday May 13, 2022
Friday May 13, 2022
She decides to take Callie back to her childhood home, to Sundial, deep in the Mojave Desert. And there she will have to make a terrible choice.
Callie is worried about her mother. Rob has begun to look at her strangely, and speaks of past secrets. And Callie fears that only one of them will leave Sundial alive…
The mother and daughter embark on a dark, desert journey to the past in the hopes of redeeming their future.
Produced by Natalie Freeman, Lance Morgan, & Michael Kowaleski.
Theme: "I Love All My Friends," an unreleased demo by Fragile Gang.
Visit https://www.skylightbooks.com/event for future offerings from the Skylight Books Events team.
Tuesday May 10, 2022
SKYLIT: Jarred McGinnis, ”THE COWARD”
Tuesday May 10, 2022
Tuesday May 10, 2022
Produced by Natalie Freeman, Lance Morgan, & Michael Kowaleski.
Theme: "I Love All My Friends," an unreleased demo by Fragile Gang.
Visit https://www.skylightbooks.com/event for future offerings from the Skylight Books Events team.
Friday May 06, 2022
Friday May 06, 2022
Produced by Natalie Freeman, Lance Morgan, & Michael Kowaleski.
Theme: "I Love All My Friends," an unreleased demo by Fragile Gang.
Visit https://www.skylightbooks.com/event for future offerings from the Skylight Books Events team.
Wednesday May 04, 2022
SKYLIT: Kelly Barnhill, ”WHEN WOMEN WERE DRAGONS”
Wednesday May 04, 2022
Wednesday May 04, 2022
Produced by Natalie Freeman, Lance Morgan, & Michael Kowaleski.
Theme: "I Love All My Friends," an unreleased demo by Fragile Gang.
Visit https://www.skylightbooks.com/event for future offerings from the Skylight Books Events team.
Saturday Apr 30, 2022
SKYLIT: Claire Kohda, ”WOMAN, EATING”
Saturday Apr 30, 2022
Saturday Apr 30, 2022
Lydia is hungry. She's always wanted to try Japanese food. Sashimi, ramen, onigiri with sour plum stuffed inside - the food her Japanese father liked to eat. And then there is bubble tea and iced-coffee, ice cream and cake, and foraged herbs and plants, and the vegetables grown by the other young artists at the London studio space she is secretly squatting in. But, Lydia can't eat any of these things. Her body doesn't work like those of other people. The only thing she can digest is blood, and it turns out that sourcing fresh pigs' blood in London - where she is living away from her vampire mother for the first time - is much more difficult than she'd anticipated.
Then there are the humans - the other artists at the studio space, the people at the gallery she interns at, the strange men that follow her after dark, and Ben, a boyish, goofy-grinned artist she is developing feelings for. Lydia knows that they are her natural prey, but she can't bring herself to feed on them. In her windowless studio, where she paints and studies the work of other artists, binge-watches Buffy the Vampire Slayer and videos of people eating food on YouTube and Instagram, Lydia considers her place in the world. She has many of the things humans wish for - perpetual youth, near-invulnerability, immortality – but she is miserable; she is lonely; and she is hungry - always hungry.
As Lydia develops as a woman and an artist, she will learn that she must reconcile the conflicts within her - between her demon and human sides, her mixed ethnic heritage, and her relationship with food, and, in turn, humans - if she is to find a way to exist in the world. Before any of this, however, she must eat.
Woman, Eating author Claire Kohda discusses her debut novel with Skylight's Nat Freeman.
Produced by Natalie Freeman, Lance Morgan, & Michael Kowaleski.
Theme: "I Love All My Friends," an unreleased demo by Fragile Gang.
Visit https://www.skylightbooks.com/event for future offerings from the Skylight Books Events team.