Kamala Harris book tour; Rebecca Yarros and Stacey Abrams headline Portland Book Festival • Oregon ArtsWatch

Show’s over, folks. And didn’t October do
A bang-up job? Crisp breezes, full-throated cries
Of migrating geese, low-floating coral moon.

Nothing left but fool’s gold in the trees.
Did I love it enough, the full-throttle foliage,
While it lasted? Was I dazzled? The bees

Have up and quit their last-ditch flights of forage
And gone to shiver in their winter clusters.
Field mice hit the barns, big squirrels gorge

On busted chestnuts. A sky like hardened plaster
Hovers. The pasty river, its next of kin,
Coughs up reed grass fat as feather dusters.

Even the swarms of kids have given in
To winter’s big excuse, boxed-in allure:
TVs ricochet light behind pulled curtains.

The days throw up a closed sign around four.
The hapless customer who’d wanted something
Arrives to find lights out, a bolted door.

— November by Maggie Dietz

November is a big month for literary events in Portland, with Kamala Harris coming to town Nov. 5 as part of her book tour for 107 Days. Harris’s newly published memoir takes a deep dive into her short 2024 political campaign, including first-hand accounts of the whirlwind experience and her thoughts on the political process. Her appearance, put on by Literary Arts, sold out immediately, but if you missed getting a ticket, don’t despair — readers will have plenty of opportunity to wallow in books and writer talks three days later during the Portland Book Festival.

On Saturday, Nov. 8, more than 100 writers, interviewers, and artists will gather at the Portland Art Museum, Portland’5, and eight other stages near Portland’s South Park Blocks for the Portland Book Festival to discuss and read from works ranging from fiction and children’s books to sci-fi, poetry, memoirs, and more. The festival kicks off Nov. 1 with the citywide Cover to Cover series, which starts with a Kurdish dance workshop and continues through Nov. 9 with events — many of them free — in bookshops and venues across Portland.  

Advance tickets to the festival start at $18; general admission the day of the festival is $25. Youth 17 and under are admitted free. Umbrella tickets, tickets to the headliners, and tickets for certain talks that include a book are also available; tickets and pricing details are here.

HEADLINING AUTHORS

Taking a page from Kamala Harris, romantasy author Rebecca Yarros‘ appearance at the book festival sold out within hours. Yarros is the author of more than 20 novels; the most recent release in her best-selling Empyrean series is Onyx Storm.

Tickets are still available to the festival’s other headliner, Stacey Abrams, American politician, lawyer, and voting rights activist. She will talk about her new book, a thriller titled Coded Justice, with Dave Miller, host of Oregon Public Broadcasting’s Think Out Loud, at noon in the Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall.

SO MUCH MORE

We can’t list all of the dozens of scheduled authors and presenters, but standouts include Spokane’s Jess Walter, author of So Far Gone; Susan Orlean, New York Times bestselling author and staff writer at The New Yorker and author of a new memoir, Joyride; Emma Donoghue, whose newest historical novel, The Paris Express, is based on a 1895 train disaster; historian Jill Lepore, whose We the People is a timely examination of the U.S. Constitution; and Portland writers Omar El Akkad and Karen Russell, both finalists for the 2025 National Book Award.

If that sneak peek sounds exhilarating to you, don’t miss more writers, including Olufunke Grace Bankole, Melissa Febos, Lidia Yuknavitch, Reginald Dwayne Betts, Patricia Smith, Mai Der Vang, Jennifer Perrine, Julian Brave Noisecat — the list goes on. The festival also includes pop-up readings, workshops, classes, and a book fair (readers who want to get a jump on their book buying might consider a ticket to Readers Night on Nov. 7.). Visit the Portland Book Festival to get a full look at events and plan your day.

WEEK 1: NOV. 1-7

Poetry Reading With H.G. Dierdorff, Emmi Greer, and Kyle Marbut
Presented by Up Up Books
5 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 1
Up Up Books
1211 S.E. Stark St., Portland
Free

H.G. Dierdorff, author of Rain, Wind, Thunder, Fire, Daughter and educator at Clackamas Community College, will participate in a poetry reading alongside Emmi Greer, writer, educator, and editor of the Buckman Journal. Kyle Marbut, a Virginia-based poet and bookmaker, will also read from their poetry collection, Black Swan Theory.

Dante in the Dark
Presented by the Center for Sacred Learning in collaboration with the Portland Book Festival
7 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 4
Trinity Episcopal Cathedral
147 N.W. 19th Ave., Portland
Free

A cast of actors, poets, and scholars will read from Dante’s Inferno with live improvisation on the Trinity Cathedral pipe organ. The event, part of Portland Book Festival’s city-wide Cover to Cover series, will take place surrounded by candlelight, bringing Dante’s “haunting vision of the tenebrous depths of hell to light” for audience members.

What We Hold & Leave Behind: Photos of Special Objects and Linked Poems by Oregon Senior Seasoned Poets
Presented by Portland Book Festival
7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 4
Mother Foucault’s Bookshop
715 S.E. Grand Ave., Portland
Free

Jim Lommasson, photographer and “What We Carry” photograph project creator, and Willa Schneberg, Oregon Book Award-winning poet, will present a collaborative project that celebrates the lives of Oregon “senior seasoned” poets, including Paulann Petersen, Kim Stafford, Carlos Reyes, and Ingrid Wendt. Through images of objects of special significance, Lommasson explores what truly matters to more than 20 poets — work, family, identity, place, and relationships. These elder poets paired photos of their objects with poems, and hand-wrote them in the white space of digital prints. In a 90-minute program, slides of the finished images will be projected as each poet reads the poem associated with their object. 

This Is Not a Quiet Panel: Womxn Writing for Their Lives
Presented by Up Up Books and Unsolicited Press
6:30 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 5
Up Up Books
1211 S.E. Stark St., Portland
Free

Join Unsolicited Press for an evening of conversation with a panel of womxn authors exploring the complexities of identity, memory, and survival through writing. Featured speakers Amy Baskin, Elisa Carlsen, Kerry Donoghue, Summer Stewart, Mari Matthias, and Aileen Keown Vaux will discuss sexuality, motherhood, and the historical erasure of women’s voices, delving into personal and collective narratives, craft, and the power of literature to challenge social norms. A Q&A session with the speakers and a book signing will follow the discussion.

An Evening With Award-Winning Author Pablo Cartaya
Presented by Astoria Public Library
5 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 5
Astoria Public Library
1512 Duane St., Astoria
Free

Pablo Cartaya, New York Times bestselling writer and author of Curveball, will read from his book, Marcus Vega Doesn’t Speak Spanish, at the Astoria Public Library in an event billed as “more of a performance than a talk.” Cartaya, who uses both English and Spanish during his presentations, encourages Spanish-speaking families and community members to attend the event, which features personal anecdotes and performances.

Fishtrap Fireside
Presented by Fishtrap
7 p.m. Friday, Nov. 7
Fishtrap
107 W. Main St., Enterprise
Free

This month’s Fishtrap Fireside reading features locals Talia Filipek, Catherine Matthias, and Randi Movich. Filipek, who is based at Hoof Hearted Farm in Joseph, will read from her new works, while Matthias, author of The Word Gobblers – a handbook for parents working with children struggling to read, will talk about her newly published middle-grade historical fiction book, When the Sky Turned to Dust. Filipek and Matthias will be joined by Movich, a nurse, former Peace Corps volunteer, and world traveler, who will share stories from her time living in France, Israel, and Africa.

WEEK 2: NOV. 8-14

Poetry Reading: Bobby Elliott and Mary Ardery
Presented by Broadway Books
6 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 12
Broadway Books
1714 N.E. Broadway St., Portland
Free

Bobby Elliott, winner of the 2025 Agnes Lynch Starrett Poetry Prize and University of Virginia Poe/Faulkner Fellow, will read from his debut poetry collection, The Same Man. The book, a story about a father-son relationship and the unspoken truths of memory, is an “aching chronicle of the early days of parenthood and the wounds of the past.” He will be joined by Mary Ardery, Academy of American Poets Prize recipient, reading from her debut book, Level Watch. Ardery’s work is based on her experiences as a wilderness guide for women in a substance-abuse treatment program and contains narrative-lyric poems that chronicle the nuanced exploration of intoxication and recovery in nature.

Central Oregon Writers Guild 2025 Literary Anthology
Presented by Roundabout Books & Cafe
6:30 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 13
Roundabout Books & Cafe
900 N.W. Mt. Washington Drive, Suite 110, Bend
$5 general admission or book purchase

The Central Oregon Writers Guild presents their 2025 Member Anthology reading. The fourth annual anthology, featuring writers from the Central Oregon literary community, includes poetry, fiction, and nonfiction.

Author Reading and Book Signing: Melissa Hart and Brian Trapp
Presented by Tsunami Books
7 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 13
Tsunami Books
2585 Willamette St., Eugene
Free

Join authors Melissa Hart and Brian Trapp for a discussion about growing up as a “sib” in a special needs family. Hart’s new book, Down Syndrome Out Loud: 20+ Stories of Disability & Determination, was called “a powerful testament to the strength and potential of individuals with Down syndrome, and an essential read for anyone seeking representation or to broaden their understanding of intellectual disabilities” by School Library Journal. The event will be followed by a Q&A.

WEEK 3: NOV. 15-21

NW Authors Series & The Gathering Present Karen Kitchen: Native Story Hour
Presented by Cannon Beach Library
1 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 15
Cannon Beach Library
131 N. Hemlock, Cannon Beach
Free

Karen Kitchen, educator, researcher, Indigenous storyteller, and citizen of the Osage Nation, will present Native Story Hour as part of The Gathering, a weekend-long celebration of Native American Heritage Month. Native Story Hour is a family event designed to promote Native authors, illustrators, and publishers, and engage children and their families through story and song. Kitchen will tell traditional stories and perform songs. Children will also be able to experiment with and make their own Indigenous instruments.

WEEK 4: NOV. 22-30

Sean Sherman in Conversation With Kate Nelson
Presented by Powell’s Books
7 p.m. Monday, Nov. 24
Powell’s City of Books
1005 W. Burnside St., Portland
Free

Sean Sherman, three-time winner of the James Beard Award, Oglala Lakota, and founder of The Sioux Chef, will discuss his new book. Turtle Island explores the foods that connect the environments, traditions, history, and cultures of the Native communities of North America. The book features expansive narrative histories and focuses on the people and communities producing, gathering, and cooking foods that capture the resilience of tribal communities. Sherman will be joined Turtle Island co-author Kate Nelson.