Thursday March 4
Daniel Barenblatt will read from his alarming and compelling book, “Plague Upon Humanity.” In World War II, Japan waged biological and chemical warfare against China in one of history’s most monstrous crimes. And even though a half million Chinese were murdered – many in ghastly experimental vivisections – after the war the United States aided the Japanese with the cover-up. 7 p.m., Bluestockings Bookstore.
Best known for thrillers, British author Sarah Dunant will read and sign copies of her new book, “Birth of Venus: A Novel,” an enthralling historical novel set in late 1400’s Florence. In this tale of art, love and betrayal, the daughter of a wealthy cloth merchant seeks the freedom of marriage in order to paint, but finds that she may have bought her liberty at the cost of love and true fulfillment. 7 p.m. Barnes and Noble, Lincoln Center.
Tuesday March 9
Dale Peck will speak about his book, “What We Lost: Based on a True Story.” Dale Peck, Sr., grew up poor on rural Long Island in the 1950s, sharing a one-room house with seven brothers and sisters, an abusive mother, and an alcoholic father haunted by his past. At 14, Dale is kidnapped by his father and taken to his uncle’s farm in upstate New York, where he develops a loving relationship with his uncle, and is happy for the first time. But when Dale’s mother demands that he return, he is forced to choose between his broken family and the land and uncle he has come to love. 7 p.m., The LGBT Center. $6 for members and $10 for nonmembers.
Tony Fletcher will read and sign copies of his book, “Hedonism,” about New York’s top dance club in the early 90’s. When DJ Skippy winds up in a coma, the victim of a mugging, his best friend Holy decides to solve the crime himself. The book is a fast action trip through a hardcore underworld of dance music, wild sex and illegal drugs, a world at odds with normality, where no one sleeps and everyone is a suspect. 7:30 p.m., Barnes and Noble Greenwich Village.
Wednesday March 10
Laurie Lynn Drummond will read and sign copies of her collection of short stories, “Anything You Say Can and Will be Used Against You.” Five policewomen in Baton Rouge share the same basic core values, instincts, and personal integrity, but they meet the life-and-death challenges of their jobs in different ways. Their stories also reveal the terrible personal price that officers have to pay to keep us safe. 7 p.m., Barnes and Noble Chelsea.
Thursday March 11
Leslie Glass, best selling author of the psychological suspense novels featuring NYPD Sergeant April Woo, will speak about police women in fiction. The event, co-sponsored by the Museum of Chinese in the Americas, is part of the Police Museum’s celebration of Women’s History Month. Glass will discuss her most recent book, “The Killing Gift,” as well as the seven other titles in the popular series. 6 p.m., the New York City Police Musuem. $5 suggested donation, $3 for seniors, $2 for children.
Aaron Hamburger will read from his debut book, “The View from Stalin’s Head,” a collection of ten stories which take place in crumbling, post-Communist Prague and feature young, Jewish, gay characters who are living abroad. In “A Man of the Country,” the protagonist endures a yearlong semi-flirtation with handsome Jirka, growing ever more frustrated, but is never quite willing to take the initiative. 7 p.m., Creative Visions Bookstore.
Venues
Barnes and Noble Lincoln Center, 1972 Broadway, 212 595 6859.
Barnes and Noble Chelsea, 675 6th Ave. at 22nd St., 212 727 1227.
Barnes and Noble Greenwich Village, 396 6th Ave., 212 674 8780.
Bluestockings Bookstore, 172 Allen St. at Stanton, 212 777 6028.
Creative Visions Bookstore, 548 Hudson St., 212 645 7573.
KGB, 85 E. 4th St., 212-505-3360.
The LGBT Community Center, 208 W. 13th St. 212 620 7310.
New York City Police Museum, 100 Old Slip, between Water and South Sts., 212 480 3100.
