Book Reading and Discussion with Laurie Notaro

Laurie Notaro is coming back to Phoenix on Sunday, October 18, for a reading and discussion at the Crescent Ballroom (308 North 2nd Ave). Notaro is a #1 New York Times bestselling author and a former Phoenixian, so this is a homecoming of sorts. She'll be reading from I've Got a New Complaint, her latest collection of essays.

She describes the book as a brutal look at Gen X past its prime, and the essays lean hard into the indignities of middle age. There's the office politics that drove her to casting hexes, confronting a high school bully at her 40th reunion, and a funeral that went so awry she ended up staging her own show. Then there's the later years: getting fired again at 60 and coming up with a retirement plan that includes a bank robbery. She also writes about 'Old People Sex.' It's a collection that doesn't shy away from the messy, awkward, and slightly absurd parts of getting older.

On the day, Notaro will read from the collection and stick around for a discussion. The reading is open to all ages, so you can bring the whole family if you're in the mood for some honest talk about the middle-age grind. Doors open at 11:30 AM, and the event starts at 12 PM. Admission is free.