Dr. Justene Hill Edwards With Dr. Kidada Williams
Saturday, May 3rd, 2025
2pm - 3:30pm in the Galleria at Main
The Author Series Committee welcomes Dr. Justene Hill Edwards, Associate Professor of History at the University of Virginia, and author of Savings and Trust: The Rise and Betrayal of the Freedman's Bank (W. W. Norton & Company, 2024). Joining Dr. Hill Edwards will be Dr. Kidada Williams, Professor of History at Wayne State University.
Savings and Trust explores the rise and tragic failure of the Freedman’s Bank, established after the Civil War as a launching pad for economic growth and self-determination within formerly enslaved communities. But only nine years after it opened, the Freedman’s Bank collapsed.
Join us in the Galleria for this important discussion. Seating is available on a first-come, first-serve basis.
Copies of Savings and Trust will be available for sale from Detroit's own 27th Letter Books.
Bernadette Atuahene In Conversation With Stephen Henderson
Sunday, May 4th, 2025
2pm - 3pm in the Galleria at Main
The Author Series Committee is honored to welcome Professor Bernadette Atuahene for a discussion about her latest book, Plundered: How Racist Policies Undermine Black Homeownership in America. She will be joined in conversation by Detroit journalist Stephen Henderson.
When Professor Atuahene moved to Detroit, she planned to study the city’s squatting phenomenon. What she accidentally found was too urgent to ignore. Her neighbors, many of whom had owned their homes for decades, were losing them to property tax foreclosure, leaving once bustling Black neighborhoods blighted with vacant homes.
Through years of dogged investigation and research, Atuahene uncovered a system of predatory governance, where public officials raise public dollars through laws and processes that produce or sustain racial inequity — a nationwide practice in no way limited to Detroit.
In this powerful work of scholarship and storytelling, Atuahene shows how predatory governance invites complicity from well-meaning people, eviscerates communities, and widens the racial wealth gap. By following the lives of two Detroit grandfathers, one Black and the other white, and their grandchildren, Atuahene tells a riveting tale about racist policies, how they take root, why they flourish, and who profits.
Copies of Plundered will be available for sale from Detroit's own 27th Letter Books.
MI Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson With Dennis Archer, Jr.
Wednesday, May 7th, 2025
5:30pm - 7:30pm in the Friends Auditorium at Main
The Author Series Committee welcomes current Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson for a discussion about her new book, The Purposeful Warrior (Open Field, 2025). The book is a road map for shattering the status quo and standing up for ourselves, our communities, and our country. Jocelyn shares powerful stories from her rise in politics—investigating domestic terrorist cells, becoming the youngest woman in U.S. history to lead a top 100 law school, and running the Boston Marathon while more than eight months pregnant—as well as those of paradigm-shifters throughout history, to demonstrate how we can be warriors for ourselves and for each other. Joining Jocelyn will be joined by renowned businessman and advocate Dennis Archer, Jr.
Copies of The Purposeful Warrior will be available for sale from Detroit's own Source Booksellers.
Detroiters Daria Burke and Orlando Bailey on Healing
Tuesday, May 13th, 2025
6pm - 7:30pm in the Galleria at Main
The Author Series Committee is pleased to announced an evening with writer Daria Burke and journalist Orlando Bailey. The native Detroiters will discuss Burke's brand new book, Of My Own Making: A Memoir (Legacy Lit, 2025). In the memoir, Burke shares her journey of uncovering years of childhood trauma through scientific modalities like epigenetics, neuroplasticity, and decades of therapy. In facing the stark reality of her past, Burke reminds us that every moment demands a choice, and that we owe it to ourselves to reparent our inner child and reclaim the lives we deserve.
Copies of Of My Own Making will be available for sale at the event! Seating is available on a first-come, first-serve basis, so make sure you arrive early to secure a spot.
Dr. Ibram X Kendi
Friday, May 16th, 2025
4:30pm - 5:30pm in the Friends Auditorium at Main
Join us to commemorate Malcolm X's 100th Birthday! We are hosting Dr. Ibram X Kendi to celebrate his new book Malcolm Lives!, a book about Malcolm X's youth. The book is geared toward readers aged 10 -14. It was written in collaboration with the Malcolm X Estate and is a powerful biography for young readers. We believe that people of all ages will learn from this book. Books are available before the event at Source Booksellers. Unfortunately Dr. Kendi will not be able to sign books at the event.
To purchase a signed book ahead of time, register for the event using Source Bookseller's Eventbrite.
The event is free and open to the public. To sign up for free reminders about the event, register using DPL's Eventbrite.
Kennedy Ryan With Beverly Jenkins
Sunday, May 18th, 2025
2pm - 4pm in the Friends Auditorium at Main
The Detroit Public Library is excited to welcome New York Times and USA Today bestselling romance author Kennedy Ryan, who will be joined by fellow writer Beverly Jenkins for a special conversation. They will be coming together to discuss Kennedy's latest: Can't Get Enough (Forever, 2025).
Copies of Kennedy's books will be available for purchase from Source Booksellers, and she will stick around after the discussion to meet with fans! Visit sourcebooksellers.com for more information.
This is NOT a ticketed event, so seats will only be available on a first-come, first-serve basis.
Devi Brown With Jessica Nabongo
Wednesday, May 28th, 2025
6pm - 7:30pm in the Friends Auditorium at Main
The Author Series Committee at the Detroit Public Library is excited to welcome writer and renowned healer Devi Brown for a discussion about her new book, Living in Wisdom: A Path to Embodying Your Authentic Self, Embracing Grief, and Developing Self-Mastery (Balance, 2025). Living in Wisdom offers inside-out advice for getting unstuck, relieving your internal suffering, and harnessing the power of your authentic self for true personal growth.
Joining Devi in conversation is Jessica Nabongo, world travel and author of The Catch Me If You Can: One Woman's Journey to Every Country in the World (National Geographic, 2022). The pair will discuss how to achieve self-improvement through spirituality, psychology, ancient wisdom traditions and edgy holistic self-care.
Copies of Living in Wisdom will be available for sale from Detroit's own Source Booksellers.
This is NOT a ticketed event, so seats will only be available on a first-come, first-serve basis.