Book Reading

Bernie Peyton, Robert Lang, and Linda Mihara - Local contributors to New Expressions in Origami: Masterworks from 25 Leading Paper Artists present a beautiful overview of the most outstanding paper craft being made in the world today.

Dani Shapiro reads from Hourglass: Time, Memory, Marriage, the novelist's most intimate and powerful work to date: a piercing, life-affirming memoir about marriage and memory, about the frailty and elasticity of our most essential bonds, and about the accretion, over time, of both sorrow and love.

Laura McBride reads from her new novel, 'Round Midnight, a story that follows the interconnected lives of four women in Las Vegas, each of whom experiences a life-changing moment at a classic casino nightclub.

Leslie Buck presents Cutting Back: My Apprenticeship in the Gardens of Kyoto

FOR KIDS: Meg Fleming presents Ready, Set, Build!  Get Ready for a day full of construction fun!

Robert Hass presents A Little Book on Form: An Exploration Into the Formal Imagination of Poetry, a rousing reexamination of our most enduring mode of literature from one of our greatest living poets, who "writes prose every bit as zestful, penetrating, and sure-footed as his poetry."—Booklist

Mary Gordon reads from her new novel, There Your Heart Lies, a deeply moving novel about an American woman's experiences during the Spanish Civil War, the lessons she learned, and how her story will shape her granddaughter's path.

Ada Calhoun & T.J. Stiles in Conversation about Calhoun's essay collection, Wedding Toasts I'll Never Give.

Cornelia Nixon reads from her new novel, The Use of Fame. "Rarely has a marriage so come alive in a work of fiction. This novel has the power of intensely lived life and the authority of absolute authenticity. The sympathetic presentations of both wife and husband are beautifully drawn. So intense, beautifully written, shining with 'felt […]

Rosalind Rosenberg reads from Jane Crow: The Life of Pauli Murray, "a fascinating look at the incredible life of Pauli Murray, a mixed-race, transgender scholar, lawyer, activist, priest, and trailblazer who played a pivotal role in the civil rights and women's movements of the 20th century."-- The Advocate Thursday, June 1, 2017 - 7:30pm Jane […]

Thad Carhart reads from his delightful memoir, Finding Fontainebleau: An American Boy in France, just out in paperback. "While bringing alive this redolent Gallic chapter of his boyhood (baguettes from the boulangerie; inkwells and laborious handwriting exercises at school), Mr. Carhart also resurrects the mood and mores of a particular window in time: the 1950s […]

Come by to meet Michael Carabetta, author of Words to Ride By: Thoughts on Bicycling, who will be on hand to sign and talk two-wheeled transport. This book is a perfect gift for the cycling dad. Saturday, June 10, 2017 - 3:00pm Notable luminaries throughout history have been inspired and humbled by the simple joy of riding […]

Thomas Centolella presents his new poetry collection, Almost Human, winner of the Dorset Prize, selected by Edward Hirsch. As in a profound love affair, Thomas Centolella’s new poems register attraction, delight, expectations fulfilled and foiled, and moments of great feeling cherished and/or lamented. Employing the vividness of narrative without yielding to its linear strictures and overly […]

Join us to hear Thomas Lynch read the next installment from James Joyce's Ulysses. A classic depiction of exile, estrangement, paralysis, and the disintegration of a society, Ulysses records the events of one average day, June 16, 1904, in the lives of three central figures. "Ulysses will immortalize its author with the same certainty that Gargantua immortalized Rabelais, and The […]

Launch party for her new book, Claymates, a Junior Library Guild Selection. "Silliness and deadpan humor combine into a hopping good story of being happy with who you are."--Booklist Meet the claymates: two balls of clay that can become anything--even best friends! What can you do with two blobs of clay? Create something amazing! But […]

Saturday, July 8, 2017 - 2:00pm Arnold has a plan. The evil genius Zorgo--disguised as Mr. Zachary--will never stop him. That's because Arnold is . . . SUPER SAURUS! No kindergarten in the universe can hold him. Or can it? Deborah Underwood (www.deborahunderwoodbooks.com) has written numerous picture books, including Interstellar Cinderella, Part-time Princess, and the […]

Tuesday, July 11, 2017 - 7:30pm Discussing Brownrigg's new novel, Pages for Her, the story of two women, Flannery and Anne, each at a personal turning point, and the circumstances that lead to their reunion. "Brownrigg . . . approaches her characters with clarity and sensitivity, capturing the nuances in the women's relationships to the people […]

The story of an unusual bond between a world-famous writer and his assistant--a richly plotted novel of friendship and love, artistic ambition, the perils of celebrity, and the power of an unexpected legacy. "Radiant . . . Warmhearted . . . Grippingly readable . . . conclusion finds room for compromise and mutual fulfillment among […]

Celebrating the double launch for their YA novels just releasing: When I Am Through with You ("A tense, masterful thriller that gripped me from the first page."--Kara Thomas, author of The Darkest Corners) and Little & Lion ("Beautifully insightful, honest, and compassionate."--Nicola Yoon), respectively. These two YA authors form a Mutual Admiration Society, so what could be […]

This sweet, rhyming counting book introduces young readers to numbers one through fifteen as Grandma's family and friends fill her tiny house on Brown Street. Neighbors, aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews, and grandkids crowd into the house and pile it high with treats for a family feast. But when the walls begin to bulge and no-body has […]

Celebrating the publication of Coming to My Senses: The Making of a Counterculture Cook, the long-awaited memoir from cultural icon and culinary standard bearer Alice Waters who recalls the circuitous road and tumultuous times leading to the opening of what is arguably America's most influential restaurant. When Alice Waters opened the doors of her "little French restaurant" […]

  "We are in an overheated world--physically and spiritually. It is extremely powerful to read of people who have managed to escape that world, not by traveling to outer space but by heading toward reality. This is subversive in the best possible way."--Bill McKibben Buy a book to reserve your seat. Call the store 510.704.8222 […]

The winner of the Costa Book of the Year Award (his second), longlisted for the Man Booker prize, and just released in paperback. "A true leftfield wonder: Days Without End is a violent, superbly lyrical western offering a sweeping vision of America in the making, the most fascinating line-by-line first person narration I've come across in years."--Kazuo Ishiguro […]

  Buy a book to reserve your seat! Call the store 510.704.8222. A stick is just a stick until an elephant turns it into a flyswatter, an alligator uses it to catch prey, or a child uses a stick as a toy. Anderson shows readers how a simple stick can become a tool or a […]

"Smart and lovely stories, perceptive, compassionate, and sometimes shocking. Who are these people, so helpless in the currents that surround them? Marburg reveals their cowardice, their flaws, and their deep capacities to engage the heart.”—Roxana Robinson Buy a book to reserve your seat! Call the store 510.704.8222 In this debut of extraordinary stories, notions of love and self […]

"Young readers will revel in the whimsical touches, like the peg-legged pigeon sailor and the imaginative map gracing the book's endpapers. This gorgeous, eye-opening adventure is an engrossing reading experience that proudly touts curiosity and finding friendship in kindred spirits." --Booklist (starred review) Buy a book to reserve your seat! Call the store 510.704.8222. In Slater's newest picture book, […]

The author of Mother Bruce and Hotel Bruce presents a riotous sequel in Bruce's Big Move. "Higgins turns classic picture-book scenarios upside down, then wrings them for contemporary laughs."--New York Times on Mother Bruce Bring your little ones to meet Ryan Higgins and be the first on your block to own Bruce's Big Move! After the events of Hotel Bruce, our favorite curmudgeonly bear […]

New York Times bestseller - Winner of the Sophie Brody Medal - An NBCC Finalist for 2016 Award for Fiction - ALA Carnegie Medal Finalist for Excellence in Fiction - Wall Street Journal's Best Novel of the Year - A New York Times Notable Book of the Year - A Washington Post Best Book of the Year - An NPR Best Book of the Year - A SlateBest Book of the Year - A Christian Science Monitor Top […]

A launch celebration and conversation about Doyle's exquisite short story collection, World Gone Missing. Mimosas, raffle prizes, and more! “Laurie Ann Doyle understands how to structure a story so that it sneaks up on you and gives you a thump that leaves you breathless—breathless with wonder.”--Catherine Brady Buy a book to reserve your seat! Call the store […]

Truman Capote's classic story is read by Thomas Lynch the first week of December in a Mrs. Dalloway's tradition. Join us in celebrating the holiday season. Originally published in 1956, this short story based on Capote's childhood tells of a young boy who lovingly makes fruitcakes from scratch at Christmastime with his elderly cousin. This American holiday […]

Join the conversation about snipping and shaping your trees and shrubs! Buy a book (either one) to reserve your seat! Call the store 510.704.8222. Every pruning decision comes down to what stays and what goes. Two local tree enthusiasts present practical and artistic advice to inform and simplify the pruning conundrum. Questions welcomed. Joseph Gaglione […]

Robin Sloan reads from his novel, Sourdough, the much-anticipated new work from the author of the bestselling Mr. Penumbra's 24-Hour Bookstore. Buy a book to reserve your seat! Call the store 510.704.8222. Lois Clary is a software engineer at General Dexterity, a San Francisco robotics company with world-changing ambitions. She codes all day and collapses at night, her […]

Jessica Powers Launching her YA novel, Broken Circle, "a fast-paced, page-turning story!"--Skila Brown, author of Caminar. Buy a book to reserve your seat! Call the store 510.704.8222. Adam wants nothing more than to be a "normal" teen, but his reality is quickly leaking normal. Afraid to sleep because of the monster that stalks his dreams, Adam's breakdown […]

  Buy a book to reserve your seat! Call the store 510.704.8222. Here in Berlin is a portrait of a city through snapshots, an excavation of the stories and ghosts of contemporary Berlin--its complex, troubled past still pulsing in the air as it was during World War II. Critically acclaimed novelist Cristina Garcia brings the people […]

Jennifer Egan reading from Manhattan Beach, the long-awaited, daring, and magnificent novel from the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of A Visit from the Goon Squad. Buy a book to reserve your seat! Call the store 510.704.8222. Manhattan Beach opens in Brooklyn during the Great Depression. Anna Kerrigan, nearly twelve years old, accompanies her father to the house of Dexter Styles, […]

  Buy a book to reserve your seat! Call the store 510.704.8222. Over the years that Victoria Sweet has been a physician, "healthcare" has replaced medicine, "providers" look at their laptops more than at their patients, and costs keep soaring, all in the ruthless pursuit of efficiency. Yet the remedy that economists and policy makers […]

Fred Sasaki & Don Share, Editors, with Poets Ari Banias and Javier Zamora Present Who Reads Poetry: 50 Views from "Poetry" Magazine. Buy a book to reserve your seat! Call the store 510.704.8222. Thursday, October 26, 2017 - 7:00pm Who reads poetry? We know that poets do, but what about the rest of us? When and […]

  Buy a book to reserve your seat! Call the store 510.704.8222. In Private Gardens of the Bay Area (October 2017, The Monacelli Press), seasoned garden writers Susan Lowry and Nancy Berner and landscape photographer Marion Brenner celebrate the different approaches to gardening in the Bay Area and illuminate the unrivalled beauty of Northern California. In this […]

Philip Stead presents the never-before-published, previously unfinished Mark Twain children's story, The Purloining of Prince Oleomargarine. "Completing a story penned by arguably America's greatest author is no easy feat, but the Caldecott-winning author-illustrator (and husband-wife) team proves more than equal to the task. . . . A pensive and whimsical work that Twain would applaud."-- Kirkus, starred review In […]

Alison Roman presents Dining In: Highly Cookable Recipes, with tastes from the book. "This is not a cookbook. It's a treasure map. Alison Roman joyously leads you to the promised land of extraordinary home cooking. Into every one of her stunningly beautiful recipes she's tucked the clues that will invariably lead you to deliciousness: keep it simple, […]

Truman Capote's classic story is read by Thomas Lynch the first week of December in a Mrs. Dalloway's tradition. Join us in celebrating the holiday season. Originally published in 1956, this short story based on Capote's childhood tells of a young boy who lovingly makes fruitcakes from scratch at Christmastime with his elderly cousin. This American holiday […]

Launching Shames's new Samuel Craddock mystery, A Reckoning in the Back Country. Thursday, January 11, 2018 - 7:30pm When Lewis Wilkins, a physician with a vacation home in Jarrett Creek, is attacked by vicious dogs, and several pet dogs in the area around Jarrett Creek disappear, Police Chief Samuel Craddock suspects that a dog fighting ring […]

"A powerful and moving story of travel, mountain culture and human relationships. His writing is sensitive, insightful, and unsparing and reveals the complex and tenuous lives of migrant people and their deep connection to a forest environment. In the best tradition of writers like Bruce Chatwin and Gretel Ehrlich, Himalaya Bound recounts a multi-layered journey into uncertain […]

  The symmetrical, exuberant heart is everywhere: it gives shape to candy, pendants, the frothy milk on top of a cappuccino, and much else. How can we explain the ubiquity of what might be the most recognizable symbol in the world? In The Amorous Heart, Yalom tracks the heart metaphor and heart iconography across two thousand […]

Oliver James' Launch party for Birds of Berkeley, James's charming, full-color field guide to 25 birds easily found in Berkeley.  Sunday February 11th at 2pm at Mrs. Dalloway's "More than an identification guide. It takes us beyond the who’s who to why we care. Learn how to think about birds in a way that will […]

To reserve your seat, please purchase a copy of The Less Is More Garden by talking to one of our booksellers (510) 704-8222 or placing an order via our online store. Small space, big solutions. When it comes to gardens, bigger isn’t always better. A larger space requires more plants, more furniture, more maintenance, and more time. […]

"Raeff writes with vivid assurance about Berlin, America, and Morocco, about men and women, about love and work. As the boundaries between characters shift, as past and present converge, Winter Kept Us Warm casts a dazzling spell. A wonderful novel."--Margot Livesey, author of Mercury and Criminals

Calling all Treehouse Series fans! Join bestselling author Andy Griffiths as he presents the newest release in his award-winning series, The 78-Story Treehouse. Andy’s hilarious and highly interactive presentation will have your kids (and you!) in stitches.  This free event is best for 5—10 year olds, but all ages are welcome. Buy your book at the theater, […]

In the diverse stories of Beautiful Days, Joyce Carol Oates explores the most secret, intimate, and unacknowledged interior lives of characters not unlike ourselves, who assert their independence in acts of bold and often irrevocable defiance. "Fleuve Bleu" exemplifies the rich sensuousness of Oates's prose as lovers married to other persons vow to establish, in their intimacy, […]

Peggy Orenstein The author of Girls & Sex and Cinderella Ate My Daughter delivers her first ever collection of essays--funny, poignant, deeply personal and sharply observed pieces, drawn from three decades of writing, which trace girls' and women's progress (or lack thereof) in what Orenstein once called a "half-changed world."

"A beautiful, richly textured novel, ambitious and delicately crafted."-- Rabih Alameddine In this spellbinding novel, a young man journeys from California to Cairo to unravel centuries-old family secrets. Joseph, a literature student at Berkeley, is the son of a Jewish mother and a Muslim father. One day, a mysterious package arrives on his doorstep, pulling […]

For Young Adults: Elizabeth Partridge Launch for Boots on the Ground: America's War in Vietnam. Sunday, April 15, 2018 - 3:00pm

  To reserve your seat, purchase a copy of To Die But Once by calling the store (510) 704-8222 and speaking to one of our booksellers. During the months following Britain's declaration of war on Germany, Maisie Dobbs investigates the disappearance of a young apprentice working on a hush-hush government contract. As news of the plight of […]

  To reserve your seat, purchase a copy of Desert Gardens of Steve Martino in advance by speaking to one of our booksellers or ordering from our website. This survey of twenty-one gardens by Steve Martino, whose work blends colorful, man-made elements with native plants to reflect the sun-drenched beauty of the desert, is sure to inspire […]

  Grow What You Love is designed to be a simple guide to growing vegetables, herbs and more that will add to the flavor and variety of fresh produce choices throughout the year. Aimed at novice and experienced gardeners alike, it will be an image-driven, how-to adventure from an expert gardener and communicator with an enthusiasm […]

  Showing both the drama of familial intimacy and the ups and downs of the everyday, My Old Faithful introduces readers to a close-knit Chinese family. These ten interconnected short stories, which take place in China and the United States over a thirty-year period, merge to paint a nuanced portrait of family life, full of pain, […]

Georgeanne Brennan presents Windows on Provence: Musings on the Food, Wine, and Culture of the South of France, a book for travelers, for dreamers, for Francophiles, for lovers of Provencalcraft and cuisine, and for anyone who wants to be a part of something beautiful and special. To reserve your seat, purchase a copy of Windows on Provence by speaking to […]

  Wednesday, May 2, 2018 - 6:00pm Rebound is a coming-of-age novel written in verse about basketball, family, and staying true to yourself. The main character, Charlie Bell, is the future father of Jordan and Josh in The Crossover. Set in the 1980's, Rebound also features stunning illustrations by award-winning graphic novel artist Dawud Anyabwile that compliment Charlie's love of […]

"A splendid book that pinpoints the moment at the start of the twentieth century when exile in Europe turned deadly in a way that foretold the end of everything. It tells us the horror that occurred street by street, butchery by butchery--with gripping clarity and an admirable brevity."--Philip Roth Purchase a copy of Pogrom to reserve your […]

Mark Greenside Reads from (not quite) Mastering the Art of French Living, a sequel of sorts to I'll Never Be French (no matter what I do), about which the San Francisco Chronicle wrote: "Imagine Larry David . . . spending a summer in a French village--against his will, of course--and you get some sense of what Mark Greenside goes through." Every year […]

An unprecedented photography practice that guides you to the creativity at your our fingertips, calling for nothing more than your vision and any camera, even the one embedded in your phone. "Zen Camera is to photographers what The Artist's Way is to writers. This master class in creativity deserves a place in your home."--Create with Joy To reserve […]

Jason Dewees Join Mrs. Dalloway's and the Mediterranean Garden Society for a talk and signing by Jason Dewee's on his just released book, Designing with Palms (photography by Caitlin Atkinson). In this comprehensive guide, Dewees shares the many ways palms can transform courtyards, gardens and landscapes. Detailing the most important species and highlighted by striking photography, Designing with Palms imparts […]

Ted Scheinman reads from Camp Austen: My Life as an Accidental Jane Austen Superfan. Thursday, May 24, 2018 - 7:30pm

  Twelve-year-old Lizzie is in trouble. She used to live a comfortable life with her loving father, but after the stock market crash of 1929 and his sudden death, she and her family now live in poverty. Lizzie is expected to help support the family, but she can't even cook without burning food. One day, […]

  To reserve your seat, purchase a copy of Foraged Art by speaking to a bookseller or ordering from our website. Thursday, June 14, 2018 - 7:30pm In the spirit of land artists like Andy Goldsworthy, the book is as much about discovery as it is about creation. Leaves shaped like lips might inspire a face; an […]

Join us for Irish soda bread as Thomas Lynch continues reading the whole of Ulysses. Chapter Nine up next.

Katharine Dion: Launch celebration for her debut novel, The Dependents, a wise and lyrical debut novel about a new widower confronting the truth about his long marriage. "A marvel of a novel. With great subtlety and tact, it evokes the love, devotion, and sadness that bind a grieving father to his troubled daughter. Its cumulative power comes from the depth […]