Wednesday August 9th: The Grip of It Reading

Jac Jemc is one of the finest young(ish) visiting writers who read at the APRIL Festival. Tonight, she celebrates the release of her latest novel, a haunted house story with the exceptional title The Grip of It, with APRIL co-founder and Seattle author Tara Atkinson. Expect creepy fun and literary excellence. Elliott Bay Book Company, 1521 10th Ave, 624-6600, http://elliottbaybook.com . Free. All ages. 7 p.m.

Thursday August 10th: The Clockwork Dynasty Reading

Daniel H. Wilson’s novels about the robot uprising of the future, Robopocalypse and Robogenesis are two modern classics in the geeky sci-fi canon. His latest book, The Clockwork Dynasty, looks instead to the past, unveiling a secret society of robots who have changed the course of human history. Elliott Bay Book Company, 1521 10th Ave, 624-6600, http://elliottbaybook.com . Free. All ages. 7 p.m.

Friday August 11th: Earth as It Is Reading

In the new novel by Jan Maher, a young woman in the 1930s walks in on her husband as he’s trying on her lingerie. She leaves him. He leaves Texas behind to move to Chicago and finds a cross-dressing subculture. Will he be able to come to terms with his secret life? University Book Store, 4326 University Way N.E., 634-3400, http://www2.bookstore.washington.edu/. Free. All ages. 7 p.m.

Saturday, August 12th: Casino: A Palimpsest

See our Event of the Week column for more details. Frye Art Museum. 704 Terry Ave., 622-9250, http://fryemuseum.org. Free. All ages. 11 a.m.

Sunday August 13th: Secrets of the Weird Reading

Author Chad Stroup’s latest urban fantasy takes place on the streets of a town called Sweetsville, where a drug called Sweet Candy makes wishes come true. What do neo-Nazis and unlicensed surgeons and cults have to do with it? Look, you’ll have to read the damn book to find out.

University Book Store, 4326 University Way N.E., 634-3400, http://www2.bookstore.washington.edu/. Free. All ages. 7 p.m.

Monday August 14th: New People Reading

Danzy Senna is one of the very most interesting social writers the 21st century has yet to produce. Her long-awaited new novel, New People, is about a biracial couple who find themselves divided along lines that they don’t fully comprehend. Senna explodes American conceptions of class and race in ways that will make readers completely uncomfortable. Elliott Bay Book Company, 1521 10th Ave, 624-6600, http://elliottbaybook.com . Free. All ages. 7 p.m.

Tuesday August 15th: Capitol Hill History

If you’re the kind of person who learns more by doing and seeing, you should take David Williams’s most recent book, Seattle Walks: Discovering History and Nature in the City out on a stroll. In a time of relentless growth, it’s important to remember what came before. Tonight, Williams will talk with two board members of the new Capitol Hill Historical Society. Elliott Bay Book Company, 1521 10th Ave, 624-6600, http://elliottbaybook.com . Free. All ages. 7 p.m.