* David Sedaris
See Interview, pg 15. Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall, SW Broadway & Main, 227-2583, 7:30 pm, $30
* Eric Hansen
Travel writers have the dream job, and Hansen doesn't waste his golden opportunity. His new book The Bird Man and the Lap Dancer takes us on adventures with a ballet dancer living with rats and an island of Muslims who have no sexual inhibitions, among other things. Powell's City of Books, 1005 W Burnside St., 228-4651, 7:30 pm
* Ryan Harty & Julie Orringer
The Reed Visiting Writers program continues kicking ass with Harty, author of the extremely promising Southwest-themed short story collection Bring Me Your Saddest Arizona, and Orringer, author of the stunning debut How to Breathe Underwater. Reed College, Psychology Auditorium, 3203 SE Woodstock, 777-7755, 8 pm, free
Confessions of an Economic Hit Man
In the wake of one of the most depressing Election Days imaginable, John Perkins' new expose on the inner workings of rich government and corporate policies will either enrage you back into caring again, or send you down a dark spiral into suicidal hell. Powell's City of Books, 1005 W Burnside St., 228-4651, 7:30 pm
* Tad Williams
Simply one of the best, most influential fantasy writers alive. Powell's City of Books, 1005 W Burnside St., 228-4651, 7:30 pm
* Moby Dick
As part of the ongoing Literature in Performance series, the neat actor Johnny Stallings (of a one-man version of King Lear) performs Melville's most enduring classic. Borders-Downtown, 708 SW 3rd Ave, 221-9814, 7 pm
Paisley Rekdal
The interestingly named Rekdal is the author of the essay collection The Night My Mother Met Bruce Lee, and two collections of poetry, A Crash of Rhinos and Six Girls Without Pants. Portland State University, Smith Center, 1825 SW Broadway, 7 pm
Adam Johnson
In his novel Parasites Like Us, Adam Johnson presents us with anthropology professor Hank Hannah, a classic awkward intellectual. Balding and single, he spends large portions of the book wandering about the campus of Southeast South Dakota University, watering plants, ice fishing, and reflecting on how wonderful his late stepmother Janice was during her too-brief life. Fortunately, things start to pick up a bit when one of Hannah's students, Eggers, uncovers a skeleton of one of the Clovis race, a long-extinct human civilization that everyone seems to be obsessed with. Buried with the find are two mysterious spheres, which, alas, contain the mysterious plague that, yes, wipes out human civilization. Johnson etches his characters with a loving, meticulous eye, but ultimately Parasites is a writing workshop exercise; a beautiful seminar on evoking people and places with a stock story idea to give it a little backbone. JWS Powell's Books on Hawthorne, 3723 SE Hawthorne Blvd, 238-1668, 7:30 pm
Gretel Ehrlich
Ehrlich presents The Future of Ice, a recap of her adventure to the top of the world with nobody but a cold-lovin' canine. Powell's City of Books, 1005 W Burnside St., 228-4651, 7:30 pm
* Roddy Doyle
Perhaps Ireland's most popular author, creator of The Commitments and more recently, Oh, Play That Thing. First Congregational Church, 1126 SW Park Ave, 227-2583, 7:30 pm, $8
Hip Mama's 10th Anniversary Party
Ariel Gore's groundbreaking brainchild celebrates its 10th birthday with readings by Gore, Inga Muscio, MommaCherry, Yantra Bertelli, Sarah Talbot, and Geraldo Valerio, and music by the Mambo Queens. Hip Chicks Do Wine, 4510 SE 23rd, 6:30 pm, donation