Cara Black, Chelsea Clinton, Angela Davis, Téa Obreht, Tommy Orange and Anna Quindlen are among the big names promoting new releases. This month also welcomes fascinating new memoirs by West Coast writers Satsuki Ina, Margaret Juhae Lee, Susan Lieu, Halifu Osumare and Grace Loh Prasad.
To submit an event to the calendar, email books@baycitynews.com.
March 1
Kate Brody: The Los Angeles writer’s debut novel “Rabbit Hole” has been described as an addictive and thrilling page turner about a high school teacher who, obsessed with her sister’s long-ago disappearance, gets caught up in internet conspiracy theories. [7 p.m., Books Inc., 2251 Chestnut St., S.F.]
March 1
Tommy Orange: The multi-award-winning author of “There There” discusses his new novel “Wandering Stars” in a Leadership Speaker Series ticketed talk ($40) with Greg Sarris, whose writings address Native American themes and issues. [7 p.m., Angelico Hall, Dominican University of California, 20 Olive Ave., San Rafael
March 5
Margaret Juhae Lee: The Oakland writer and editor launches “Starry Field: A Memoir of Lost History,” an account of her search for her Korean grandfather, appearing in conversation with Eirinie Carson, a Black British Londoner and writer living in California. [7 p.m., City Lights Books, 261 Columbus Ave., S.F.]
March 5
Cara Black: The popular mystery writer is in town with “Murder at la Villette,” the 21st book in her best-selling Aimée Leduc Investigation series. [7 p.m., Bookshop West Portal, 50 W. Portal Ave., S.F.]
March 5
John King: The San Francisco Chronicle writer and architecture critic, a Pulitzer Prize finalist, discusses “Portal: San Francisco’s Ferry Building and the Reinvention of American Cities.” [7 p.m., Books Inc., 1491 Shattuck Ave., Berkeley]
March 6
Tony Platt: The affiliated scholar at Berkeley’s Center for the Study of Law and Society discusses “The Scandal of Cal: Land Grabs, White Supremacy, and Miseducation at UC Berkeley” with University of California, Berkeley English professor Susan Schweik. [6 p.m., Books Inc., 1491 Shattuck Ave., Berkeley]
March 7
Grace Loh Prasad: The Bay Area writer launches “The Translator’s Daughter,” her memoir about facing language, cultural, political and generational barriers as a Taiwanese-American immigrant who wants to connect with her birthplace. [7 p.m., Booksmith, 1727 Haight St., S.F.]
March 7
Timmon Wallis: The longtime peace activist and executive director of NuclearBan.US discusses “Warheads to Windmills: Preventing Climate Catastrophe and Nuclear War,” in which he describes how assets from nuclear weapons of mass extinction can be converted to evidence-based climate solutions. [7 p.m., Books Inc., 855 El Camino Real #74, Palo Alto]
March 8
Joel Selvin: The San Francisco music critic’s new book “Drums & Demons: The Tragic Journey of Jim Gordon” details how Gordon, a big-time rocker whose schizophrenia went undiagnosed, ended up in prison until his death in 2023. [7 p.m., Copperfield’s Books, 140 Kentucky St., Petaluma]
March 10
Angela Hume: The feminist historian and critic and guests discuss “Deep Care: The Radical Activists Who Provided Abortions, Defied the Law, and Fought to Keep Clinics Open,” an account of happenings at the Women’s Choice Clinic in Oakland from the early 1970s until 2010. [3 p.m., San Francisco Public Library, Learning Studio, fifth floor, 100 Larkin St., S.F.]
March 16
Chelsea Clinton: The author greets fans in a non-seated ticketed ($24) event that includes entry for one parent and one child to the signing line plus the choice of either Clinton book: “She Persisted” or “She Persisted Around the World.” [11 a.m., Book Passage, 1 Ferry Building, S.F.]
March 16
Halifu Osumare: The author speaks about her memoir “Dancing the Afrofuture: Hula, Hip Hop, and the Dunham Legacy” in which she reveals her transition from dancer activist to scholar. [2 p.m., African American Museum and Library at Oakland, 659 14th St., Oakland]
March 17
Margaret Juhae Lee: The Oakland writer and editor speaks about “Starry Field: A Memoir of Lost History,” an account of her search for her Korean grandfather and how his persecution in the early 20th century affected his descendants across generations and continents. [7 p.m., A Great Good Place for Books, 6120 La Salle Ave., Oakland]
March 18
Guy Kawasaki: In a ticketed ($10) event presented by Book Passage and Shack15, the tech marketing guru, venture capitalist, Canva evangelist and Remarkable People podcaster speaks about “Think Remarkable: 9 Paths to Transform Your Life and Make a Difference.” [6 p.m., Shack15, 1 Ferry Building Plaza, Suite 201, S.F, RSVP required]
March 20
Cara Black: The acclaimed mystery writer speaks about “Murder at la Villette,” the 21st book in the best-selling Aimée Leduc Investigation series. [6 p.m., Book Passage, 51 Tamal Vista Blvd., Corte Madera]
March 20
Angela Davis: City Arts & Lectures presents the legendary activist and philosopher, whose new book is “Abolition, Politics, Practices, Promises (Vol I),” in conversation with New Yorker staff writer Hilton Als. The ticketed ($49) event includes a copy of the book. [7:30 p.m., Sydney Goldstein Theater, 275 Hayes St., S.F.]
March 20
Christina Hwang Dudley: The romance writer, a Bay Area native and Stanford University graduate, is promoting her novel “Pride and Preston Lin,” a fun, modern-day retelling of Jane Austen’s “Pride and Prejudice.” [7 p.m., Books Inc., 855 El Camino Real #74, Palo Alto]
March 20
Guy Kawasaki: The venture capitalist and Remarkable People podcaster speaks about “Think Remarkable,” described as a “pocket pamphlet” with “practical, tactical and sometimes radical” tips on how people can transform their lives and make a difference. [7 p.m., Kepler’s Books, 1010 El Camino Real, Menlo Park]
March 20
Lisa Ko: The award-winning author of “The Leavers” speaks about her new novel “Memory Piece,” a story about friends that spans eras from the 1980s, to art and tech subcultures of the 1990s, to an imagined portrait of the 2040s. [7 p.m., Green Apple Books, 1231 Ninth Ave., S.F.]
March 21
Katie M. Flynn: The San Francisco writer, educator and editor speaks about “Island Rule,” her new “genre-bending” and “eerie” novel of 12 interconnected stories, with Bay Area novelist Tania Malik. [7 p.m., Books Inc., 1491 Shattuck Ave., Berkeley]
March 22
Susan Lieu: The Vietnamese-American playwright and performer discusses “The Manicurist’s Daughter: A Memoir,” an “emotionally raw” account of searching for answers after her mother dies during plastic surgery, with Santa Rosa educator Pamela Lind Devlin. [7 p.m., Copperfield’s Books, 775 Village Court, Santa Rosa]
March 23
Anna Quindlen: Book Passage presents the best-selling empathic novelist, on tour with her latest volume “After Annie,” in a ticketed ($45 includes book) talk with podcaster and former radio reporter Anna Sale. [3 p.m., Calvary Presbyterian, 2515 Fillmore St., S.F.]
March 25
Bruce Reyes-Chow: The Presbyterian minister, consultant and blogger, a San Jose resident, speaks about “Everything Good about God Is True: Choosing Faith,” which expands on his mission to engage in “living and expressing a life and faith that are complex, just, expansive and kind.” [7 p.m., Books Inc., 855 El Camino Real #74, Palo Alto]
March 26
Felecia Gaston: The Marin City historian, also founder of Performing Stars, a nonprofit serving low-income youngsters, discusses “A Brand New Start…This Is Home: The Story of WWII Marinship and the Legacy of Marin City” with Book Passage CEO Elaine Petrocelli in a ticketed ($30 includes book) event. [6:30 p.m., Guzman Hall, Dominican University, 50 Acacia Ave., San Rafael]
March 26
Colin Winnette: The San Francisco writer launches the paperback edition of his novel “Users,” about the struggles of a developer at a virtual reality company and long listed for a 2024 PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction. [7 p.m., Green Apple Books, 1231 Ninth Ave., S.F.]
March 27
Matthew Desmond: The Princeton University scholar and Pulitzer Prize winner for “Evicted: Poverty and Profit in the American City” discusses his new volume “Poverty, By America” with public interest journalist Bernice Yeung in a ticketed ($39) talk presented by City Arts & Lectures and the San Francisco Public Library. [7:30 p.m., Sydney Goldstein Theater, 275 Hayes St., S.F.]
March 29
Téa Obreht: The author of the best-selling “The Tiger’s Wife” discusses her new dystopian novel “The Morningside” with Bay Area novelist Parini Shroff in a ticketed ($35 includes signed book) event. [7 p.m., Copperfield’s Books, 140 Kentucky St., Petaluma]
March 30
Wendy Wallbridge: The pioneer in the coaching field speaks about “Spiraling Upward: The 5 Co-Creative Powers for Women on the Rise,” described as a “step-by-step roadmap for professional women to unlock their power and achieve success on their own terms.” [1 p.m., Book Passage, 51 Tamal Vista Blvd., Corte Madera]
March 30
Satsuki Ina: The Bay Area psychotherapist shares “The Poet and the Silk Girl: A Memoir of Love, Imprisonment, and Protest,” which details how her Japanese-American parents defied oppression during World War II, and how their story resonates today. [4 p.m., Book Passage, 51 Tamal Vista Blvd., Corte Madera]