Women & Children First Is Full Of Readings This Week

By Staff in Arts & Entertainment on Jun 10, 2014 8:45PM

Women & Children First (5233 N. Clark St.), a feminist bookstore located on the near north side of Chicago, is hosting an array of authors this week. Not uncommon to their standard repertoire, the bookstore weekly welcomes local and visiting authors from all communities of the literary world. This week’s guests include Ana Castillo, Jay Shearer and Susan Jane Gilman.

Ana Castillo is a Chicana writer whose latest novel Give It To Me will be the source book for the night’s reading. Following the story of a middle aged woman named Palma, the book is one of sexual intrigue, scandal and family drama. She will be reading Wednesday June 11 at 7:30 p.m.

Jay Shearer writes a Chicago-based suburban drama entitled Five Hundred Sirens that is the story of stay-at-home dad Phillip Palliard. Winner of USC’s Goldline Press Chapbook Competition, Shearer will present a portion of his novel Thursday June 12 at 7:30 p.m.

Susan Jane Gilman who normally dabbles in the world of non-fiction takes on the realm of the novel in her latest book The Ice Cream Queen of Orchard Street. The book chronicles the life and rise of Lillian Dunkle, a Russian immigrant from New York who turns her life around only to find herself confronted by the price of fame and of running from her past. Women & Children First will host Gilman Friday June 13 at 7:30 p.m.

Events are free and open to the public. The bookstore is a quaintly quirky spot full of titles both contemporary and classic to browse before and after the events.

By: Jaclyn Bauer