James McPherson, "Embattled Rebel: Jefferson Davis as Commander in Chief." 7:15 p.m. Oct. 13. Talk, signing. Free. Decatur Library Auditorium, 215 Sycamore St., Decatur. 404-370-8450, Ext. 2225; bit.ly/1vt7lGm.
Bob Herbert, "Losing Our Way: An Intimate Portrait of a Troubled America." 7 p.m. Oct. 13. Discussion, signing. Free. Carter Presidential Library & Museum Theater, 441 Freedom Parkway, Atlanta. 404-865-7100, 1.usa.gov/1ATtNtU. New York Times columnist Herbert vividly portrays ordinary Americans struggling to survive in a nation that has lost its way.
Paolo Giordano, "The Human Body." 7 p.m. Oct. 14. Lecture, signing. $10. Reservations recommended. Margaret Mitchell House & Museum, 990 Peachtree St. N.E., Atlanta. 404-814-4150, bit.ly/1mNNpyu. The second novel by Giordano ("The Solitude of Prime Numbers") follows a motley crew of Italian soldiers stationed in the deadly Gulistan district of Afghanistan.
Ivonne Hernandez, "Animals, Love, Friendship." 4 p.m. Oct. 15. Talk, signing. Free. Ages 5-12. Atlanta-Fulton Public Library, Buckhead Branch, 269 Buckhead Ave. N.E., Atlanta. 404-814-3500, bit.ly/1yyvf92. Hernandez, the mother of an autistic child, uses the characteristics of animals to familiarize children with what it's like to be autistic.
James Copnall, "A Poisonous Thorn in Our Hearts: Sudan and South Sudan's Bitter and Incomplete Divorce." 7 p.m., Oct. 15. Talk, reading, signing. Free. Carter Presidential Library & Museum Theater, 441 Freedom Parkway, Atlanta. 404-865-7100, 1.usa.gov/1ATtNtU. Benefiting from access to the politicians, rebels, thinkers and events shaping the Sudans, the former BBC correspondent draws a compelling portrait of two misunderstood countries.
Hank Phillippi Ryan, "Truth Be Told." 7 p.m. Oct. 16. Reading, signing. Free. Eagle Eye Book Shop, 2076 N. Decatur Road, Decatur. 404-486-0307, bit.ly/1owXZoX. Ryan's latest Jane Ryland tale serves up eviction and foreclosures, cold-case confessions and, of course, murder.
Steven Pinker, "The Sense of Style: The Thinking Person's Guide to Writing in the Twenty-First Century." 8 p.m., Oct. 16. Talk, signing. $10, or $30 with copy of the book. SCADshow, 173 14th St., Atlanta. 404-253-2740, bit.ly/1mNN2Uu. Cognitive scientist and linguist Pinker ("The Blank Slate") applies insights from the sciences of language and the mind to the challenge of crafting clear, coherent and stylish prose.
Kevin Young and Jericho Brown. 6 p.m. Oct. 17. Poetry reading, signing, reception. Free. Emory University, Joseph W. Jones Room, Level 3, Robert W. Woodruff Library, 540 Asbury Circle, Atlanta. 404-727-6861, bit.ly/1vt77Pz. Atlantans Young ("Book of Hours") and Brown ("The New Testament") will read their latest works.
S. Johnathan Davis and Annie Walls. 7 p.m. Oct. 17. Talk, signing. Free. Coweta Central Library, 85 Literary Lane, Newnan. 770-683-2052, bit.ly/1pphEr4. Atlantan Davis ("900 Miles") and Walls, author of the Famished series, will discuss their zombie genre novels.
Donald McCaig, "Ruth's Journey: The Authorized Novel of Mammy From Margaret Mitchell's 'Gone with the Wind.'" 7 p.m. Oct. 17. Talk, signing. $10. Reservations recommended. Margaret Mitchell House & Museum, 990 Peachtree St. N.E., Atlanta. 404-814-4150, bit.ly/1qCF14r. McCaig ("Rhett Butler's People") recounts the life of one of literature's great supporting characters, from her days as a slave girl to the outbreak of the Civil War.
Callista Gingrich, "From Sea to Shining Sea," and Newt Gingrich, "Breakout." 7 p.m. Oct. 17. Signing. Free. FoxTale Book Shoppe, 105 E. Main St., Woodstock. 770-516-9989, bit.ly/1aMsOF0. Callista Gingrich's children's book follows the wilderness adventures of Lewis and Clark; Newt Gingrich takes on special interest groups, powerful lobbyists and government bureaucrats.
Laurel-Ann Dooley, "Wicked Atlanta." 1 p.m. Oct. 18. Signing. Free. Barnes & Noble Buckhead, 2900 Peachtree Road N.E., Atlanta. 404-261-7747, bit.ly/1wW7kM8. Dooley navigates the sordid side of Atlanta in a book filled with kidnapping, bribery, hit men and more.
