Words

The American Theater Group will present Tony Danza “In Conversation” at The DMK Black Box Theater at The Union Arts Center, Sept. 28.

For a list of the state’s independent bookstores, click here.

Sept. 20: Raina Telgemeier and Gale Galligan at BergenPAC, Englewood. Adapters/illustrators of “The Baby-Sitters Club” graphic novels.
Sept. 20: Victoria Kann at Books and Greetings, Northvale. Author of “Snickerdoodle.”
Sept. 20: Pooja Makhijani at Watchung Booksellers, Montclair. Author of “Together for Mama: A Story of Hope and Healing.”

Sept. 22: Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, “An Evening With Gurudev: On Power, Presence, and Peace” at State Theatre, New Brunswick.
Sept. 22: “A Conversation with Laurie Hernandez” at Grunin Center for the Arts at Ocean County College, Toms River.
Sept. 22: Poet Katie Farris and fiction writer Jamil Jan Kochai at Labyrinth Books, Princeton. Author of “Three Tenses: A Transmission from the Nineties.”

Sept. 23: Joyce Carol Oates and Katherine Nouri Hughes at Labyrinth Books, Princeton. Authors of “The Frenzy: Stories” and “While We Were Waiting,” respectively.
Sept. 23: Dolph Lundgren at Books and Greetings, Northvale. Author of “Fights Worth Fighting: Finding Strength in Struggle.”
Sept. 23: Anika Noni Rose at Bookends, Ridgewood. Author of “A Princess Is a Princess.”

Sept. 24: Dolph Lundgren, at URSB Carteret Performing Arts & Events Center. Author of “Fights Worth Fighting: Finding Strength in Struggle.”
Sept. 24: Amy Speace at Little City Books, Hoboken. Author of “The Cardinals: Poems.”
Sept. 24: “StorySlam,” presented by Montclair Film at Cinema505, Montclair.

Sept. 24-27: Davide De Pierro at The Vogel at Count Basie Center for the Arts, Red Bank.

Sept. 25: Jerry Cutillo at Word, Jersey City. Author of “Diversely Fragile: The Stories Untold, Vol. 2.”
Sept. 25: Suzanne Lang at Books and Greetings, Northvale. Author of “Grumpy Monkey.”

Sept. 25-27: Jersey City Poetry Festival.

Sept. 26: Stephanie Cowell at Word, Jersey City. Author of “The Man in the Stone Cottage.”
Sept. 26: Linda Perillo at Here’s the Story, Union. Author of “Your Payment Method Has Been Declined (And Other Shocking Things About Me).”

Sept. 27, 11 a.m.: Frank J. Sileo at Bookends, Ridgewood. Author of “Bee Strong: Keep Buzzing Forward.”
Sept. 27, 2 p.m.: Dav Pilkey at Bookends, Ridgewood. Author of “Dog Man: A Sprinkle in Time.”
Sept. 27: Suzanne Lang at Watchung Booksellers, Montclair. Author of “Dragon Dog.”
Sept. 27: Dave Karger at Books and Greetings, Northvale. Author of “50 Movie Nights: Contemporary Stars on Their Favorite Classic Films.”

Sept. 28: Tony Danza “In Conversation,” presented by American Theater Group at DMK Black Box Theater at Union Arts Center.
Sept. 28: Kate McKinnon at Books and Greetings, Northvale. Author of “The Jungle of Carabanana (The Millicent Quibb School of Etiquette for Young Ladies of Mad Science, Book 3).”

Sept. 29: Mike Breen and Walt “Clyde” Frazier,” presented by The Drew Forum at Mayo Performing Arts Center, Morristown.
Sept. 29: Penn and Kim Holderness at Books and Greetings, Northvale. Co-authors of “Get It Done and Have Fun! ADHD Hacks for Awesome Kids.”
Sept. 29: Brian Cullman at Little City Books, Hoboken. Author of “How to Prepare for the Past: Travels in Music and Time.”

Sept. 30: Harry Connick Jr. at Bookends, Ridgewood. Author of “Babe: Elaboratio: A Tribute to My Mother.”
Sept. 30: Min Jin Lee at First Congregational Church, Montclair. Author of “American Hagwon.”
Sept. 30: Shelley Frisch at Labyrinth Books, Princeton. Translator of Thomas Meyer’s “Hannah Arendt: A Life of the Mind.”

Oct. 1: Antony Bugg-Levine at Words, Maplewood. Author of “Investing in America: Expanding Access to Finance to Solve our Shared Challenges.”

Oct. 2: #IMOMSOHARD featuring Kristin Hensley and Jen Smedley at Music Box at Borgata Hotel Casino and Spa, Atlantic City.
Oct. 2: Allan Pepper and Billy Altman at Marquee Club at BergenPAC, Englewood. Co-Authors of “Positively Fourth and Mercer: The Inside Story of New York’s Iconic Music Club, The Bottom Line.”

Oct. 3: Michael Angelo Mangino at ArtYard, Frenchtown. Author of “Muse Junk Mail Dead Flowers.”
Oct. 3: Deesha Philyaw at Watchung Booksellers, Montclair. Author of “The True Confessions of First Lady Freeman.”

Oct. 6: Jessie James Decker, Sydney Rae Bass and Karen Parker at Bookends, Ridgewood. Co-authors of “The Secret Sauce: A Family Cookbook Seasoned With Love.”
Oct. 6: Denise Brown at Books and Greetings, Northvale. Author of “For My Sister Nicole: Love Shouldn’t Hurt — What to Know about Domestic Violence.”
Oct. 6: Yotam Ottolenghi at Watchung Booksellers, Montclair. Author of “Simple Too.”

Oct. 7: Bisa Butler in conversation with Salamishah Tillet at Express Newark. Part of Newark Arts Festival.
Oct. 7: Edward Burns at H.W. Mountz School, Spring Lake. Author of “The Marlboro Road Gang.”
Oct. 7: Clarence A. Haynes at Little City Books, Hoboken. Author of “The Ghosts of Gwendolyn Montgomery.”
Oct. 7: Ming-Na Wen at Bookends, Ridgewood. Author of “Have You Eaten Yet? Family Recipes from a Restaurant Daughter.”

Oct. 8: The Moth Mainstage at State Theatre, New Brunswick.
Oct. 8: Jonathan Santlofer and Joyce Carol Oates at Little City Books, Hoboken. Authors of “Ten Perfect Guests” and “The Frenzy: Stories,” respectively.
Oct. 8: Levy Rozman at Bookends, Ridgewood. Author of “How to Win at Chess, Next Level: The Ultimate Guide for Intermediate Play.”

Oct. 9: Malcolm Gladwell at Mayo Performing Arts Center, Morristown. Author of “The American Way of Killing: The Making of an American Epidemic.” Part of Morristown Festival of Books.
Oct. 9: Adam Wade & Friends, “Fall: In Love — A Night of Storytelling” at 503 Social Club, Hoboken.

Oct. 11: John Edward at URSB Carteret Performing Arts & Events Center.
Oct. 11: Nara Aziza Smith at Bookends, Ridgewood. Author of “Homemade.”

Oct. 12: John Kanell at Bookends, Ridgewood. Author of “Everyday Baking: Because It’s Always Time for Dessert.”
Oct. 12: Jennifer Michelle Herrera at Thunder Road Books, Spring Lake. Author of “Siren Says.”
Oct. 13: Craig Conover at Bookends, Ridgewood. Author of “Patch Work: Bee Brave, Bee Kind, Bee You.”

Oct. 13: “For Such a Time As This in America: Angela Davis & Salamishah Tillet” at Victoria Theater at NJPAC, Newark.
Oct. 13: Heather McGhee at Watchung Booksellers, Montclair. Author of “The Sum of Us: What Racism Costs Everyone and How We Can Prosper Together.”
Oct. 13: Anna Harwell Celenza, “Gershwin, Ellington, and the Search for the American Sound” at Morris Museum, Morris Township.

Oct. 14: Terry Bradshaw at The Vogel at Count Basie Center for the Arts, Red Bank. Author of “Looking for Terry: A Memoir.”
Oct. 14: Lisa Vanderpump at Bookends, Ridgewood. Author of “Home at Villa Rosa: Cooking & Living the Vanderpump Way.”

Oct. 15: Terry Bradshaw at Bookends, Ridgewood. Author of “Looking for Terry: A Memoir.”
Oct. 15: Patrick Breen at Little City Books, Hoboken. Author of “The Story of Her’s.”

Oct. 15-17: Dodge Poetry Festival with Patti Smith, Arthur Sze, Tyehimba Jess, Elizabeth Acevedo, others, at NJPAC and other Newark venues.

Oct. 16: Patti Smith, “Songs and Stories” at Prudential Hall at NJPAC, Newark. Part of Dodge Poetry Festival.

Oct. 17: “Is Brooklyn in the House?,” featuring Nelson George, author of “Brooklyn Bohemians: How the Funky, Fly, Soon-to-Be-Famous Black Artists of Fort Greene/Clinton Hill Changed American Culture,” at Prudential Hall at NJPAC, Newark. Part of Dodge Poetry Festival.
Oct. 17: “Def Poetry Reunion” featuring Antoinette Ellis-Williams, D.Cross, Kraal “Kayo” Charles, Bonafide Rojas and Chris “Flowmentalz” Cook at Victoria Theater at NJPAC, Newark. Part of Dodge Poetry Festival.

Oct. 18: Dan and Phil at BergenPAC, Englewood.

Oct. 19: Andy Cohen, “20 Years of the Real Housewives and Bravoverse” at BergenPAC, Englewood.
Oct. 19: Bethany Joy Lenz at Woman’s Club of Ridgewood. Author of “The Betrayal of Cora Wexford.”

Oct. 20: Jane Leeves at Bookends, Ridgewood. Author of “Daphne & Me: My Live on Frasier (And a Bit More).”

Oct. 21: Ayesha Nurdjaja at Watchung Booksellers, Montclair. Author of “Mediterranean All the Way: Bold Flavors, Built to Share.”

Oct. 22: Allan Pepper and Billy Altman at Little City Books, Hoboken. Co-authors of “Positively Fourth and Mercer: The Inside Story of New York’s Iconic Music Club, The Bottom Line.”

Oct. 23: Caroline Manzo at Sycamore Community Church, Ho-Ho-Kus. Author of “Food & Other Things I Love: More Than 100 Italian American Recipes From My Family to Yours.”

Oct. 24: Alton Brown at State Theatre, New Brunswick.
Oct. 24: Jeff Garlin at Bookends, Ridgewood. Author/photographer of “Best Seat in the House: Moments No One Asked Me to Capture … But I Did Anyway.”

Oct. 28: “Hablando Huevadas” featuring Jorge Luna and Ricardo Mendoza at Prudential Hall at NJPAC, Newark.
Oct. 28: Sophia Bush at Women’s Club of Ridgewood. Author of “And I Will Tell You Mine: Notes from a Life in Progress.”

Oct. 29: Dan Aykroyd at Bookends, Ridgewood. Author of “Soulhider.”
Oct. 29: Lisa Stulberg at Watchung Booksellers, Montclair. Author of “How to Win a Culture War: LGBTQ+ Social Change Through Pop Culture.”
Oct. 29: Isabel Klee, Distinguished Lecture Series at North Avenue Academic Building Auditorium at Kean University, Union.

Oct. 30: “Poe by Candlelight,” Classic American Tales series at Rea’s Farm, West Cape May.

Nov. 1: “Pianist Mishka Rushdie Momen: In Conversation & Performance,” Music & Healing Series at Richardson Auditorium at Princeton University.

Nov. 2: Nigel Ng at Bookends, Ridgewood. Author of “Don’t Mess Up Your Rice: 70 Recipes to Impress Uncle Roger.”

Nov. 4: Theresa Caputo at State Theatre, New Brunswick.

Nov. 5: Dante Gebel at Prudential Hall at NJPAC, Newark.
Nov. 5: George Packer, “Literature, Politics, and Free Speech,” 2026 Philip Roth Lecture at Centennial Hall, Newark Public Library.
Nov. 5: Theresa Caputo at BergenPAC, Englewood.

Nov. 6: “The Bald and the Beautiful” featuring Trixie Mattel and Katya Zamolodchikova at Prudential Hall at NJPAC, Newark.

Nov. 8: Nicole Castrovinci at Watchung Booksellers, Montclair. Author of “Snowballed.”

Nov. 9: Travis Mills at Grunin Center for the Arts at Ocean County College, Toms River.
Nov. 9: Danielle Fishel, Rider Strong and Will Friedle at Bookends, Ridgewood. Co-authors of “Boy Meets World: The Definitive Oral History of the Hit Sitcom Boy Meets World.”

Nov. 10: Gary Sinise at Bookends, Ridgewood. Author of “Graceful Warrior: The True Story of a Son, a Father, and a Family Who Carried Each Other Through.”

Nov. 13: Amy Rigby at Little City Books, Hoboken. Author of “Girl to Country: A Memoir.”

Nov. 17: Louis Masur, “Photographs That Changed America” at Morris Museum, Morris Township.

Nov. 18: Jan Carson at Little City Books, Hoboken. Author of “Few and Far Between: A Novel.”

Nov. 15: “Margaret’s Diary During a Revolution,” performed by Gayle Stahlhuth at The Morristown and Morris Township Library, Morristown.
Nov. 15: Teresa Giudice at Bookends, Ridgewood. Author of “The Queen of New Jersey.”

Nov. 17: Patrick Radden Keefe at Watchung Booksellers, Montclair. Author of “London Falling: A Mysterious Death in a Gilded City and a Family’s Search for Truth.”

Nov. 20: Michael Steele, Distinguished Lecturer Series at Shea Center for Performing Arts at William Paterson University, Wayne.

Nov. 21: Ira Glass, “Stories for a Saturday Night” at McCarter Theatre Center, Princeton.
Nov. 21: #IMOMSOHARD featuring Kristin Hensley and Jen Smedley at Mayo Performing Arts Center, Morristown.

Dec. 4: Neil deGrasse Tyson, “Hope for Civilization” at Prudential Hall at NJPAC, Newark.
Dec. 4: “Christmas Tales in the Barn,” Classic American Tales series at Rea’s Farm, West Cape May.

Jan. 12: Catherine Sanderson, “Happiness, Health, and the Arts” at Morris Museum, Morris Township.

Jan. 15: “The Basement Yard” at Prudential Hall at NJPAC, Newark.

Jan. 28: Reed Timmer, “Dominate the Storm: A Heart-Pumping Evening” at Mayo Performing Arts Center, Morristown.

Jan. 29: Terry Gross at McCarter Theatre Center, Princeton.

Feb. 5: “The Basement Yard” at  Count Basie Center for the Arts, Red Bank.

Feb. 6: “A Night With the Cast of The Sopranos” featuring Matt Servitto, Jason Cerbone, Dan Grimaldi and Robert Funaro at Nash Theatre at Raritan Valley Community College, Branchburg.

Feb. 8: Colson Whitehead, Distinguished Lecture Series at North Avenue Academic Building Auditorium at Kean University, Union.

Feb. 9: Tina Ryan, “Paintings Every Art Lover Should See” at Morris Museum, Morris Township.

Feb. 26: Temple Grandin at URSB Carteret Performing Arts & Events Center.

March 9: Matthew Stanley, “Albert Einstein: The Man Behind the Myth” at Morris Museum, Morris Township.

March 11: Brian Cox, “Emergence” at Prudential Hall at NJPAC, Newark.

April 19: “Pianist Brad Mehldau: In Conversation and Performance, Music & Healing Series at Princeton University Art Museum.
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