Christopher Moore, "The Serpent of Venice." 2 p.m. May 4. Doors open at 1 p.m. Talk, Q&A and signing. $30, includes copy of the book. Alfred Uhry Auditorium, Druid Hills High School, 1798 Haygood Dr. N.E., Atlanta. eagleeyebooks.com/chrismoore.html. In his latest historical farce, Moore channels Shakespeare and Poe for a bawdy, uproarious story of intrigue and murder.
Kate Sweeney, "American Afterlife: Encounters in the Customs of Mourning." 7:15 p.m. May 6. Reading and signing. Free. Decatur Library Auditorium, 215 Sycamore St., Decatur. 404-370-8450, Ext. 2225; georgiacenterforthebook.org/Events/show.php?id=693. Also appearing: 2 p.m. May 10. Discussion and signing. Free. Tall Tales Book Shop, Toco Hill Shopping Center, 2105 LaVista Road N.E., Atlanta. 404-636-2498, talltalesatlanta.com/events.html. WABE reporter-producer Sweeney explores how we memorialize our dead, where these practices came from, and what this says about us.
Cassandra King, "The Same Sweet Girls' Guide to Life: Advice From a Failed Southern Belle." 1:30 p.m. May 6. Luncheon, talk and signing. $27, includes copy of the book. Gabriel's Restaurant and Bakery, 800 Whitlock Ave., Marietta. 770-427-9007, gabrielsdesserts.com. Tickets available at Book Exchange, 770-427-4848, bookexchangemarietta.com. King offers advice, Southern-style, that can sustain you through life's inevitable ups and downs.
Greg Iles, "Natchez Burning." 6:30 p.m. May 7. Reading and signing. Free with purchase of the book. Ticketed event. FoxTale Book Shoppe, 105 E. Main St., Woodstock. 770-516-9989, foxtalebookshoppe.com/events. Iles returns with a mesmerizing thriller, the first in a trilogy featuring Mississippi lawyer and former prosecutor Penn Cage.
Clifton Crais, "History Lessons." 7 p.m. May 7. Signing. Free. A Cappella Books, 208 Haralson Ave. N.E., Atlanta. 404-681-5128, acappellabooks.com/upcoming-events. Crais tells of his efforts to overcome his amnesia concerning a traumatic childhood. His account offers insights into the relationship between history and memory.
Pearl Cleage, "Things I Never Told My Daughter: Lies, Lessons and Love Affairs." 6 p.m. May 9. Reading, discussion and signing. Free. Events space, Fourth Floor, SCAD Atlanta, 1600 Peachtree St. N.W., Atlanta. 404-253-3206, scad.edu/event/2014-05-09-civil-rights-activist-feminist-and-author-pearl-cleage-shares-work. The new memoir by Cleage ("What Looks Like Crazy on an Ordinary Day") is a compilation of journal entries from her years as a civil rights activist, feminist and author.
Victoria Wilcox, "Gone West." 2 p.m. May 10. Lecture and signing. $10, reservations required. Margaret Mitchell House and Museum, 990 Peachtree St. N.E., Atlanta. 404-814-4150, atlantahistorycenter.com/visit/event/381?calendar=month. Wilcox tells how a gentleman becomes an outlaw, an outlaw becomes a lawman, and a Southern son named John Henry becomes a legend known as Doc Holliday.
Alan Paul, "One Way Out: The Inside History of the Allman Brothers Band." 1 p.m. May 10. Signing. Free. Eagle Eye Book Shop, 2076 N. Decatur Road, Decatur. 404-486-0307, eagleeyebooks.com/calendar.html. Paul's oral history includes never-before-published interviews with Gregg Allman, Dickey Betts, Jaimoe, Butch and Derek Trucks, Warren Haynes, Oteil Burbridge, Jimmy Herring, Eric Clapton, Bob Weir and others.
Jackson Pearce on writing the young adult novel. 10:30 a.m. May 10. Free, registration required. Northeast Spruill Oaks Library, 9560 Spruill Road, Johns Creek, Atlanta. 770-360-8820, northfulton.com/calendar-52960.114126.html. Author-in-residence Pearce will discuss how to conceive, outline and write a young adult novel.
