• Jim Hightower and co-writer Susan DeMarco will be at Elliott Bay Books tonight at 7:30 PM to discuss his book Swim Against the Current: Even A Dead Fish Can Go With The Flow. Hightower is a radio commentator, writer, public speaker, politician and activist. He’s written seven books about populist politics, served as director of the Texas Consumer Association, and served two terms as Texas Agriculture Commissioner. The event promises to be both a hoot and a holler.

• Tuesday, August 19th at 6:30, the Elliott Bay SF & Fantasy book group will meet to discuss zombie expert and gonzo journalist Max Brooks’ World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War, the follow up to his Zombie Survival Guide. Only by sharing our stories can the healing truly begin…

• In a bizarre twist, Queen Anne Books is hosting a reception, reading, and signing for local author Matt Ruff, also on Tuesday, August 19th at 6:30 PM. Conflicted? There will be no actual zombies at Elliott Bay Books, but Mr. Ruff will almost certainly be on hand at Queen Anne Books. If you haven’t already read Bad Monkeys, this is a great opportunity to meet the man behind the monkeys.

• Wednesday, August 20th, Elliott Bay Books hosts Colorado poet, novelist, and essayist Linda Hogan. Logan will be discussing her new novel, People of the Whale. Hogan’s novel is set among a fictional Washington Native tribe, the A’atsika. Barbara Kingsolver calls Hogan a writer with “unparalleled gifts for truth and magic.” I couldn’t have put it better myself. No, really, I couldn’t.