Bruce Eric Kaplan, the renowned New Yorker cartoonist, visits AADL to discuss his critically praised illustrated memoir I Was a Child. This event, cosponsored by AADL and the Jewish Community Center of Greater Ann Arbor as part of the 2015 Jewish Book Festival, will include a book signing and books will be for sale.

Bruce Eric Kaplan, also known as BEK, is one of the most celebrated and admired cartoonists in America. I Was a Child is the story of his childhood in suburban New Jersey, detailing the small moments we all experience: going to school, playing with friends, family dinners, watching TV on a hot summer night, and so on. It would seem like a conventional childhood, although Kaplan’s anecdotes are accompanied by his signature drawings of family outings and life at home-road trips, milk crates, hamsters, ashtrays, a toupee, a platypus, and much more. Kaplan’s cartoons, although simple, are never straightforward; they encompass an easy irony and dark humor that often cuts straight to the truth of experience. Brilliantly relatable and genuinely moving, I Was a Child is about our attempts to understand the mysteries that are our parents, our families, and ourselves.

Bruce Eric Kaplan is an American artist whose single-panel cartoons frequently appear in The New Yorker. He also has a whole other life as a television writer and producer, currently for HBO’s Girls.

The Jewish Book Festival runs November 4–15. For more information about the Jewish Community Center of Greater Ann Arbor or the Jewish Book Festival, visit jccannarbor.org.

Let’s cook up some training fun with your puppy!

Meet Kathleen Goodman, author of Puppy Possibilities, and learn her “Recipe for Success” in raising the canine companion of your dreams.

Loaded with 200 color photographs, Puppy Possibilities is a one-of-a-kind, illustrated guide, that will teach you everything you need to know before, during, and after you begin your puppy adventure. Kathy’s recipe gives you the ingredients you need to think like a puppy, and teach like a seasoned trainer.

Visit puppytrek.com to see what Kathy’s been up to, and read a review. Kathy will be demonstrating her puppy training techniques with a real puppy! So, leave your apron at home, but bring your puppy questions, and enjoy some time with Kathy, the original puppy whisperer!

This event includes a book signing and books will be for sale after the presentation.

Join us as author Saundra Amrhein shares life stories depicted in her book, "Green Card Stories," including the legal, social, emotional, financial, and spiritual obstacles that mirrors what immigrants continue to face across the USA.

This event is held in conjunction with Ann Arbor District Library’s film and discussion series Latino Americans: 500 Years of History.

"Green Card Stories" depicts 50 recent U.S. immigrants—each with permanent residence or citizenship—in powerfully written short narratives and compelling portraits. Each story is as old as the foundation of this nation, but also reflects the global trends and conflicts of the 21st century. Arriving from all corners of the globe, coming for work, love, to study, invest, or escape persecution, the people in this book share a steely resourcefulness and a determination to fulfill their potential in America.

Saundra Amrhein is a freelance journalist, writer, author, speaker and reporter writing articles, news and blogs about Immigration and Cuba. A former reporter at the St. Petersburg Times, she has been a journalist for more than 21 years, focusing on immigration, asylum, and refugee issues.

The Ann Arbor District Library, the Library of Michigan and the Library of Michigan Foundation are pleased to present this special event, Night Of Notable Authors, featuring 15 authors who were awarded the distinction of having their work selected as a Michigan Notable Book.

The program room of the Library will remain open after 6 pm for this special evening, which includes a panel discussion by 4 distinguished notable authors, followed by an elegant reception in the Library lobby with music, refreshments, a book signing and the chance to mingle with all 15 authors at this event.

Every year, the Library of Michigan selects up to twenty of the most notable books, either written by a Michigan resident or about Michigan or the Great Lakes. The selected books are honored in the year after their publication or copyright date. Each selected title speaks to our state's rich cultural, historical, and literary heritage and proves without a doubt that some of the greatest stories are found in the Great Lakes State.

The Night Of Notable Authors features:

6 – 7:30 pm Panel Discussion

Moderated by Anna Clark (A Detroit Anthology, a 2015 Michigan Notable Book). Panelists include:
Michigan Outdoor Writer and Poet Jerry Dennis (several Michigan Notable Book titles, including The Living Great Lakes: Searching For The Heart Of The Inland Seas, a 2004 Michigan Notable Book)
Mystery Author Loren Estleman (Nicotine Kiss: An Amos Walker Novel, a 2007 Michigan Notable Book)
Memoirist and True Crime Author Mardi Jo Link (two Michigan Notable Book titles, including Bootstrapper: From Broke To Badass On A Northern Michigan Farm, a 2014 Michigan Notable Book)

7:30 – 8:30 pm Reception and Booksigning

Enjoy exquisite music by harpist Deborah Gabrion, elegant refreshments, and the chance to mingle with 15 Michigan Notable Authors:
Steve Amick
Anna Clark
Jack Dempsey
Jerry Dennis
Loren Estleman
Don Faber
Larry Glazer
Lolita Hernandez
Michael Hodges
Sally Howell
Sharon Kegerries
Mardi Jo Link
Donald Lystra
Anne-Marie Oomen
Barbara Rylko-Bauer

Books will be for sale at the event, courtesy of Literati Bookstore and Aunt Agatha’s Mystery Bookshop

The might and majesty of Michigan football is never more evident than when captured in the photographic image. Join us as author Mike Rosenbaum views highlights of U-M Football history and the compelling new book WOLVERINE: A Photographic History of Michigan Football. With over a thousand rare and never-before-seen pictures, it features an in-depth look at five landmark seasons.

• 1925: Benny Friedman, Bennie Oosterbaan, and the “greatest team I ever coached,” according to the illustrious Fielding Yost.
• 1947: A perfect 10-0 season for Fritz Crisler’s Mad Magicians, led by All-Americans Bob Chappuis and Bump Elliott.
• 1969: Bo Schembechler’s first incredible year as coach, featuring the legendary 24-12 upset of the “invincible” Ohio State Buckeyes.
• 1997: Fifty years later another perfect season, crowned with victory in Pasadena and a Heisman trophy for Charles Woodson.
• 2011: Star quarterback Denard Robinson led the Wolverines to an exciting 11-2 season capped with an overtime win at the Sugar Bowl.

The event includes a booksigning and books will be for sale (at a discounted price).

The Michigan History Project is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization committed to telling the stories of the many extraordinary people and places that have made our state their home.

Come with questions, a work in progress, or an empty notebook. All writers are welcome in this casual, supportive environment.

Authors Bethany Neal and Alex Kourvo will be on hand to answer questions and give encouragement. This is an excellent opportunity to meet your fellow Ann Arbor writers and get feedback from published authors.

This is a monthly meetup that welcomes all writers to ask questions, connect with other writers, or simply have a dedicated time and place to work on their projects.

Picture books, early chapter books and middle grade fiction may look simple, but writing them is hard work.

In this workshop, Bethany Neal and Alex Kourvo will be joined by local author Shutta Crum, to discuss inspiration, the writing process, and how children’s books get published. Shutta is the author of over 13 books for children of various ages. Shutta is also a professional storyteller, and a retired Ann Arbor District Library librarian.

This is part of the monthly Emerging Writer’s Workshops which offer support, learning, and advice for local authors.

Each month, two weeks after the workshop, (this month on Thursday, May 19 from 7 – 8:45 pm at Traverwood Branch) there is a Meetup where the instructors will read samples of your work and offer advice and assistance in a casual, supportive atmosphere.

Come with questions, come with a work in progress, or come with an empty notebook. All writers are welcome in this casual, supportive environment. Authors Bethany Neal and Alex Kourvo will be on hand to answer questions and give encouragement. This is an excellent opportunity to meet your fellow Ann Arbor writers as well as get feedback from published authors.

This is a monthly meetup that welcomes all writers to ask questions, connect with other writers, or simply have a dedicated time and place to work on their projects.

Do you have a completed manuscript? Bring your work to a Meet-Up to be in consideration for the library’s new imprint Fifth Avenue Press fifthavenue.press.

Come with questions, come with a work in progress, or come with an empty notebook. All writers are welcome in this casual, supportive environment. Authors Bethany Neal and Alex Kourvo will be on hand to answer questions and give encouragement. This is an excellent opportunity to meet your fellow Ann Arbor writers as well as get feedback from published authors.

This is a monthly meetup that welcomes all writers to ask questions, connect with other writers, or simply have a dedicated time and place to work on their projects.

Do you have a completed manuscript? Bring your work to a Meet-Up to be in consideration for the library’s new imprint Fifth Avenue Press fifthavenue.press.

Come with questions, a work in progress, or an empty notebook. All writers are welcome in this casual, supportive environment. Authors Bethany Neal and Alex Kourvo will be on hand to answer questions and give encouragement. This is an excellent opportunity to meet your fellow Ann Arbor writers as well as get feedback from published authors.

This is a monthly meetup that welcomes all writers to ask questions, connect with other writers, or simply have a dedicated time and place to work on their projects.

Do you have a completed manuscript? Bring your work to a Meet-Up to be in consideration for the library’s new imprint Fifth Avenue Press fifthavenue.press.