Raven Book Store

Today is the last day to order presale of our limited run of Lawrence Reads Q***r Lit totes! If you've been putting off ordering, now is the time to get them in! Every purchase of a tote enters your name in the raffle to win a copy of former Raven owner 's insightful new book HOW TO DEFEND BOOKS AND WHY, an ARC of Char Adams' brilliant BLACK-OWNED, and a $15 Raven gift card.

If you've already ordered yours, you are in the raffle! Ordering multiple totes enters your name multiple times. Help us fight book bans, protect diverse literature, and raise money for PEN America!

More information can be found on our website at the link in our bio!

THURSDAY, JUNE 18, 7PM! Celebrate the release of the debut memoir My Name Was Baby: An Intersex Memoir five days before it's official release date! This is an exciting memoir coming from Kansas's own Chris Arnone, described by author Georgiann Davis as "a brave and intimate exploration of the search for identity, belonging, and the meaning of manhood beyond the narrow rules of masculinity." Books will be available for sale and signing. Learn more about the book and event on our website at the link in our bio!

We are very excited to celebrate the return of the NYT bestselling fantasy trilogy The Moon Heresies with Lawrence's very own Tessa Gratton! The thrilling sequel, The Shape of Monsters, comes out June 16th, and you (yes, you!) can participate in the release party festivities on June 17th at 7PM! Joining her in conversation is Kansas City romance author Megan Bannen. Books will be available for sale and signing. Preorder yours today! More info available at the link in the bio :)

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Join us tomorrow night and learn all about the forgotten Mother of Surrealism. Michèle Ge**er Klein shares her new book Surreal: The Extraordinary Life of Gala Dalí at the Raven on Tuesday, June 9 at 7pm. Books will be available for sale and signing. See you there!

Today is the LAST DAY to vote for the Raven in all your favorite Best of Lawrence categories! Oddly enough, our retired bookstore cat, Dashiell, was nominated for Best Store Cat of Lawrence. Though he is not officially a store cat anymore, we still want you to vote for him! Just look at him! Enjoying retirement :)

The Raven Book Store says Happy Pride!! This year, we are raising money to donate to PEN America to fight book bans targeting LGBTQ and BIPOC communities in America with this adorable tote designed by q***r Lawrencian artist & printed by our favorite local screen printers, .

Totes are $25, with $5 of each sale going to PEN America. This is a presale, since we will not be printing a large quantity. If you want a tote, order now! Presales close on June 17. They will be available on June 28. Ordering available in-store and online! Link is in the biooooo

About the Tote:
"Lawrence Reads Q***r Lit." This is the phrase we've had stuck in our brains all year. As anti-trans legislation continues to be one of the main focuses of the Kansas legislature, all while ICE intimidates our neighbors, while residents go unhoused, while big money threatens our state Supreme Court, while voting rights go unprotected. As our federal officials propose not one, but three separate bills that would ban books focused on telling q***r stories. There was always the thought and the comfort: Lawrence Reads Q***r Lit. We feel very lucky to be in a part of our state that not only accepts but uplifts and celebrates q***r people. To be able to say truthfully that this, too, is Kansas.

Each of the books you'll see stacked underneath our ever-perched Sammy is a book written by a q***r author who's lived in Kansas, often right in our hometown of Lawrence. They are Darius the Great Is Not Okay by , The Four Profound Weaves by , Not Without Laughter by Langston Hughes, Luminous by , The Bloody and the Damned by , Come Out, Come Out by , and The Mercy Makers by .gratton.

And, of course, we had to include our boys, Sammy & Dean, because cats make everything better.

Happy June! Happy Pride! We are very excited to announce all the book-ish events we have coming up this month. With genres spanning from history to mystery, fantasy to memoir and beyond, there's a whole lot to be excited for this month at the Raven. As always, you can find more info on our website, and you can get there by following the link in our bio!

6/3: Nate Bukaty with Perfect Pitch
6/9: Michèle Ge**er Klein with Surreal: The Extraordinary Life of Gala Dalí
6/17: Tessa Gratton with sequel The Shape of Monsters
6/18: Chris M. Arnone with debut memoir My Name Was Baby
6/25: Leonard Krishtalka with new mystery The Body on the Bricks
6/26: Various authors sharing Lyda Conley
6/26: Robyn Hitchcock with Stranded int he Future

Join us this Tuesday, May 19 at 7pm as local Lawrence author Bryan Welch shares his new, searing memoir THE GIFT KF A BROKEN HEART: HOW OUR GRIEF CAN CONNECT US at the Raven! Books will be available for sale and signing. Find more info at the link in our bio!

Learn all about one of the most influential artists in experimental theater in the last century! Shauna Kelly shares her new book I’VE GOT THE SHAKES: PERFORMING RICHARD FOREMAN in conversation with Theresa Buchheister at the Raven this Tuesday, May 12 at 7pm.