Heather Means, "My Special Force." 7:15 p.m. Jan. 13. Talk and signing. Free. Decatur Library Auditorium, 215 Sycamore St., Decatur. 404-370-8450, Ext. 2225; www.georgiacenterforthebook.org/Events/show.php?id=645. In a modern-day tale of love and war, Atlanta author Means weaves her own story together with the letters she and her husband, Ryan, wrote to each other while he was stationed in Iraq.
James Carville and Mary Matalin, "Love & War: Twenty Years, Three Presidents, Two Daughters and One Louisiana Home." 8 p.m. Jan. 14. Lecture and signing. $10. Atlanta History Center, 130 W. Paces Ferry Road N.W., Atlanta. 404-814-4150, www.atlantahistorycenter.com/cms/Lectures+/494.html#january. Two distinct voices describe personal and public histories of the past 20 years. Matalin's focus is on the personal and political events of a transformational age. Carville's concentration is politics. Both reflect on raising their daughters and the family's move to New Orleans, post-Katrina, where their efforts to rebuild and promote the city have become a central part of their lives.
Josh Green, "Dirtyville Rhapsodies." 6 p.m. Jan. 16. Talk and signing. Free. SCAD's Ivy Hall Writers Series, Ivy Hall, 179 Ponce de Leon Ave. N.E., Atlanta. 404-253-3324, www.scad.edu/calendar/events. Green, an Indiana native who relocated to Georgia in 2007, got his start in journalism covering cops and courts for the Gwinnett Daily Post. Green's short-story collection was named a top read of 2013 by Paste magazine, and The Atlanta Journal-Constitution said its "most unforgettable stories strike an improbable balance between sideshow, sermon and war cry." Half of the book's 18 stories take place in Atlanta.
Sue Monk Kidd, "The Invention of Wings." 7 p.m. Jan. 16. Talk and signing. Free. First Baptist Church of Decatur, 308 Clairmont Ave., Decatur. 404-373-1653, www.georgiacenterforthebook.org/Events/show.php?id=646. Also appearing: 12:30 p.m. Jan. 17. Signing. Free. Barnes & Noble Buckhead, 2900 Peachtree Road N.E., Atlanta. 404-261-7747, http://store-locator.barnesandnoble.com/store/1907.
Laurie Halse Anderson, "The Impossible Knife of Memory." 7 p.m. Jan. 17. Talk and signing. Free. Decatur Library Auditorium, 215 Sycamore St., Decatur. 404-370-8450, Ext. 2225; www.georgiacenterforthebook.org/Events/show.php?id=647. The best-selling author of "Wintergirls" and "Speak" will talk about her new book, which tells the story of a young girl and her father, who suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder.
Lostintheletters presents: Jacob Appel, Christeene Alcosiba, Caleb Ludwick and Komal Patel Mathew. 8 p.m. Jan. 18. Readings. Free. Mint Gallery, 636 N. Highland Ave. N.E., Atlanta. 404-946-8982, www.facebook.com/Lostintheletters. Writers Ludwick ("The First Time She Fell") and Appel ("The Biology of Luck") join poets Mathew and Alcosiba to read from their works in this monthly series, which has included luminaries such as George Singleton, Josh Russell, Anis Shivani and Lydia Ship.
