Marshall Moore
Moore's debut novel The Concrete Sky tells the story of a gay man who winds up in the hospital, where he strikes up a romantic fling with a suspected murderer. Annie Bloom's Books, 7834 SW Capitol Hwy, 246-0053, 7:30 pm, free
* Chuck Palahniuk
Chuck Palahniuk's latest, Fugitives and Refugees, consists of "sort-of snapshots of Portland," focusing on known and unknown landmarks and the people behind them. With interspersed recollections of Palahniuk's Portland adventures, it makes good on the author's promise for a collection of "stories you won't find in any official Portland history book." Don't be surprised to see people stumbling about downtown, book in hand, trying to find the put-in spot for subterranean rafting or the exact spot the author got the shit beat out of him for no good reason (the corner of SW Alder and Fifth). EH Barnes & Noble (Jantzen Beach), 1720 N Jantzen Beach, 283-2800, 7:30 pm, free
Jason
All right, if you're going to go with the cute little one-name thing, at least pick something cool like "Cher," or "Dubya," but "Jason"? It sounds like the student council vice president, or at the very least a homicidal maniac with a ski mask. Despite Jason's self-titling ineptitude, he's an award-winning cartoonist on tour to promote his new book The Iron Wagon, a recasting of a century-old Norwegian mystery with animal characters. Reading Frenzy, 921 SW Oak, 274-1449, 7 pm, free
Period Pieces: Stories for Girls
In fifth grade I got laughed at during the sex education seminar for asking if a woman's period hurts. Thanks to tonight's presenters, Erzsi Deak, Jane Kurtz, and Carmen T. Bernier-Grand, as well as the other authors behind Period Pieces, a collection of stories about nothing but that most sacred of womanly functions, I can now get answers to all my menstrual questions without fear of ridicule. Annie Bloom's Books, 7834 SW Capitol Hwy, 246-0053, 5 pm, free
* Books & Bikes Neighborhood Rides
All Multnomah libraries except Hillsdale will be hosting guided bike tours today that highlight literary sites and Portland history. All participants also get entered in a drawing for prizes like bike gear and airline tickets. Meet at 10 at any library you like. Your local library, 10 am - noon
Terry Goodkind
Goodkind's a cool sci-fi writer, but he's only doing a SIGNING at this event. I hate that shit. What, Goodkind, are you too good to share a little from your work with your fans, or answer a few questions? If they make the effort to buy your books and come out and see you in person, you can put out a little more effort than a hastily-scribbled autograph, you wank. Powell's City of Books, 1005 W Burnside St, 228-4651, 7:30 pm, free
Alafair Burke
Deputy District Attorney Samantha Kincaid investigates the brutal beating of a teenage girl and (surprise, surprise) winds up on a dangerous trail of intrigue in Burke's new thriller Judgment Calls. Powell's City of Books, 1005 W Burnside St, 228-4651, 7:30 pm, free
* Dan Simmons
Simmons is one of the most ambitious mainstream novelists around. The writer of beautifully crafted horror novels like Carrion Comfort turns his attention to Illium, the first of a two-part 5000-year historical epic based on themes in Homer's Iliad and Shakespeare's Tempest. Powell's-Beaverton, 8725 SW Cascade Ave, 643-3131, 7 pm, free
