Wednesday June 15: Grunt Reading

Perhaps you’ve read one or two of Mary Roach’s very funny investigations of weird everyday science (Stiff, about death and dying, was her debut; Bonk, about sex, was another high point). Her latest, Grunt, is about the science of war, and it promises more shocking, ridiculous, and downright disgusting revelations. I'll be joining Roach onstage for a Q&A. Town Hall Seattle, 1119 8th Ave., 652-4255, http://townhallseattle.org. $5. All ages. 7:30 p.m.

Alternate Wednesday June 15: Words West

Because I'm involved with the Mary Roach reading and therefore biased, here's another event for your consideration. And it's a fine event, too: West Seattle’s finest reading series celebrates the conclusion of another stellar season with two excellent writers: Christopher Robinson is the co-author of a novel called War of the Encyclopaedists. He’s joined by Michael Schmeltzer, who wrote the Floating Bridge Press Chapbook Award-winning book Elegy/Elk River. C & P Coffee Company, 5612 California Ave SW. Free. All ages. 7 pm

Thursday June 16: Happy Family Reading

See our Event of the Week column for more details. Seattle Public Library, 1000 4th Ave., 386-4636, http://spl.org. Free. All ages. 7 p.m.

Friday June 17: Ultimate Bicycle Owner's Manual Reading

Self-described “Bike Snob” Eben Weiss has become one of the loudest and most-quoted bicycling advocates in the United States; if the Wall Street Journal needs a biking expert, he’s who they’ll call. So when he titles a book The Ultimate Bicycle Owner's Manual, he knows what the hell he’s talking about. University Book Store, 4326 University Way N.E., 634-3400, http://www2.bookstore.washington.edu/. Free. All ages. 7 p.m.

Saturday June 18: Labor of Love Reading

Moira Weigel’s book Labor of Love: The Invention of Dating is billed as a “history of sex and romance in America.” While she probably could’ve written five hundred tantalizing pages on forbidden pilgrim sex alone, the book aims to be a comprehensive survey, from petting parties to drive-in sex to OKCupid. Elliott Bay Book Company, 1521 10th Ave, 624-6600, http://elliottbaybook.com . Free. All ages. 7 p.m.

Sunday June 19: Staged Reading of Ulysses

You shouldn’t read James Joyce’s Ulysses on your own. You should come at Ulysses with study guides and David Lasky’s famous comic adaptation and this performance by Seattle’s own Wild Geese Players. Seeing and hearing the text come alive is one of the very best ways into one of the very best books in the English language Seattle Public Library, 1000 4th Ave., 386-4636, http://spl.org. Free. All ages. 2 p.m.

Monday June 20: I Almost Forgot About You Reading

Terry McMillan is a goddamned legend, a bestselling and hugely influential literary figure. Her books broke through the shelves of those embarrassing “African-American Literature” ghettos that Borders bookstores used to keep next to their fiction sections and delivered African-American literary voices to the mainstream. A new novel from her is always an event. Seattle Public Library, 1000 4th Ave., 386-4636, http://spl.org. Free. All ages. 7 p.m.

Tuesday June 21: All Those Vanished Engines Reading

Every summer, Seattle sci-fi writing workshop Clarion West brings big-name authors to town for a reading series. This year, they’re kicking it off with Paul Park, whose Princess of Roumania fantasy series was a huge critical and popular success. His latest, All Those Vanished Engines, combines Park’s own family history with a sci-fi alternate history of the U.S. University Book Store, 4326 University Way N.E., 634-3400, http://www2.bookstore.washington.edu/. Free. All ages. 7 p.m.