Clare Naylor & Mimi Hare
Naylor, a novelist, and Hare, who at 23 was the youngest-ever Development Director at Gracie Films, have collaborated to write a story about the seedy, drug-filled, generally disgusting world of Hollywood office politics. Annie Bloom's Books, 7834 SW Capitol Hwy, 246-0053, 7:30 pm
* Alexander McCall
Powell's presents the author of the immensely likable No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency. He'll share from the latest addition The Full Cupboard of Life. First Baptist church, SW 12th & Taylor, 7:30 pm, free
* Ariel Gore & Maia Swift
Gore presents the latest installment in her ongoing reign as "Hip Mama": Whatever, Mom: A Hip Mama's Guide to Raising a Teenager. She'll appear tonight with the teenaged rapscallion herself, Maia Swift. In Other Words, 3734 SE Hawthorne Blvd, 232-6003, 7 pm
No Chimp Left Behind
A release party for local writer Cassandra Sagan's new satire of Bush politics. Bring your favorite Bush joke, story, quote, song, or monkey-like expression, and join the fun! Laughing Horse, 3625 SE Division, 236-2893, 7:30 pm
* Arianna Huffington
Liberal muckraker Huffington blows through to promote Fanatics & Fools: A Game Plan for Winning Back America. She's also the author of Pigs at the Trough. First Unitarian Church, 1101 SW 12th Ave, 7:30 pm, free
* Democracy Now!
Inflamed journalist and host of the radio show Democracy Now!, Amy Goodman is on a massive national tour to promote her new book The Exception to the Rulers: Exposing Oily Politicians, War Profiteers, and the Media that Love Them. Today's event also includes a screening of the film Independent Media in a Time of War. Bagdad Theater, 3702 SE Hawthorne, , 12:30 pm
* Zelda, Scott and Ernest
Literary Arts presents a strange, intriguing-sounding benefit for Writers in the Schools. Apparently the late George Plimpton and Terry Quinn cobbled together a sort of dramatic text based on the personal writings of Zelda Fitzgerald, F. Scott Fitzgerald, and Ernest Hemingway. Tonight see a staged reading of that text, not by actors, but by nationally renowned authors Calvin Trillin, Mary Karr, and Robert Stone. The price for this show is outrageous, but it's weird enough to merit a mention. Literary Arts, at First Congregational Church, 1126 SW Park, 227-2583, 8 pm, $30-60
* Sniffy For Phil
An evening of literary performance, music, and an "impossible game show" in support of Phil Busse's mayoral campaign. Performers include Sniffy Linings founder and wiz of self-analysis Paul Ash, writer/indie press owner Kevin Sampsell, writer Marissa Madrigal (8lb Gorilla), and more. Organics to You, 2019 SE Belmont, sniffylinings.com, 7 pm, $3 donation
Crescent
Diana Abu-Jaber's Crescent: A Love Story is a Like Water for Chocolate for the Arab-American set. It tells the story of a romance between a half-Lebanese restaurant owner in Los Angeles and an Iraqi exile. Powell's City of Books, 1005 W Burnside St., 228-4651, 7:30 pm
Alix Olson
Queer performance poet/activist Olson has headlined HBO's Def Poetry Jam, and appeared on the cover of Ms. She's the closest thing to a celebrity in the poetry world. Meow Meow, 320 SE 2nd, 230-2111, 9 pm, $10
Michael Connelly
Grim slasher writer Connelly presents the return of his serial killer character "The Poet," in his new book The Narrows. Powell's City of Books, 1005 W Burnside St., 228-4651, 7:30 pm
* Joanna Trollope
The British best-selling queen of emotional anguish, Trollope, blows through on the saddle of her latest heart-wrenching horse, Brother and Sister; about an adopted sibling couple who decide to search for their respective birth parents. Powell's City of Books, 1005 W Burnside St., 228-4651, 7:30 pm, free
