Amherst Books

This Thursday June 4 at 7:00pm, local author Don Lesser will read from and talk about his new novel, Crystal Springs.

Set upon the backdrop of lush hills in Western Massachusetts, Crystal Springs is literary fiction about the love of place, the bonds between found families, and the lasting connections between lifelong friends. Steven Bennett is a historian, chef, and programmer in the quaint rural towns of the Pioneer Valley. Rejected by his first love, he marries another woman and lives an ordinary life hosting barbecues and tip-toeing around a past extramarital affair. When Suzi Carpenter, the young woman who may or may not be his daughter, dies of a suspected overdose, Steven's whole life, and the town, is upended, and he embarks on a quest to discover what, or perhaps who, killed Suzi, only to unearth buried scars and hard truths about old friends.

Tomorrow Tuesday June 2 at 7:00pm, Robert K. Brigham, Professor of History and International Relations at Vassar College, will read from and talk about his new book, This Is a True War Story: My Improbable History with Vietnam, a personal account by a war historian and adoptee who discovers his biological father was a famous Marine combat photographer in Vietnam.

Tonight's event with Cisco Bradley has been postponed. We will keep you updated on a rescheduled date!

We have two events at the store this week!

Tuesday May 19 at 7pm: Local poet Jacob Chapman will read from his new collection, My Wife Made This Possible.

Wednesday May 20 at 7pm: Historian Cisco Bradley will talk about his new book, I Hear Freedom: The Great Migration, Free Jazz, and Black Power.

Tomorrow May 14 at 7pm at the store, Ryan Habermeyer will read from his new novel, Necronauts! He will be joined in conversation by Dennis Sweeney.

Written in the form of ninety-five newspaper obituaries and interspersed with vernacular photography, Necronauts is a loosely reimagined Pinocchio tale and ode to campy old sci-fi films.

We have events tonight and tomorrow at the store.

Wednesday May 6 at 7pm: Jackson Katz will talk about his 2025 book, Every Man: Why Violence Against Women is a Men's Issue.

Thursday, May 7 at 7pm: Nancy Folbre will talk about her new book, Making Care Work: Why Our Economy Should Put People First.

Tomorrow Tuesday, April 5 at 5:30pm, Adam Dahl will celebrate the release of his new book, The Search for World Democracy: W.E.B. Du Bois and The Politics of Space!

Tomorrow at the store, historian Danielle Raad will read from and talk about her new book, Above the Oxbow: Stories Entangled with a Mountain. Blending scholarly analysis and storytelling, it is a journey through the tangle of rich narratives surrounding our own Mount Holyoke.

We have three poetry readings next week here at the store!

Tuesday, April 21 at 6:30pm: Cavar and Niamh Timmons
Wednesday, April 22 at 7:00pm: Selma Asotić with Abigail Chabitnoy
Thursday, April 23 at 7:00pm: Eileen Kennedy and Sharon Tracey

Thursday, April 9 at 7:00pm at the store: a poetry reading featuring Dara Barrois/Dixon, Juliana Ward, and Elizabeth Zuba to celebrate Zuba’s new book of poetry, Where Is Everyone!