Top Book & Author Events in Houston This Month: February 2024

Dig into live book events, the latest appearances by authors, and more with our roundup of book and literary events taking place in Houston in February 2024.

This month’s literary events showcase the serious and the whimsical in the world of reading and letters.

Acclaimed authors are in the city to sign their latest, and Houston’s literary and arts organizations come together for some original programming around books.

Here’s the scoop on what’s happening across the Bayou City this month:

Top Book & Author Events in Houston: February 2024

• Blind Date With a Book at Aldine Branch Library | All Month Long | FREE – Readers looking for something new will enjoy the mystery of being “set up” with a new book. Grab a wrapped book and read the description on the front. If it sounds like a match, bring it to the check-out desk to take home. Don’t have a library card? This is the perfect excuse to get one; bring in proof of address and you can sign up with an email and other details. Times vary. 
• Bookworm Festival at Garcia Middle School | Saturday, February 3 | FREE – This bilingual festival celebrates readers, emerging readers and the writers and illustrators who create for them. Filled with workshops, panels and presentations, it’s a family-friendly event that explores the joy of reading. 9am to noon.
• High Drama in H-Town: Writing About Houston at Writespace | Saturday, February 3 – Poet, professor and Houston Chronicle and Chron.com writer Doni Wilson hosts this workshop that helps you get inspired by H-Town and use it in your writing. Exploring poetry, fiction and nonfiction, the goal is to have each writer leave with an idea or draft for a project. $70. 9:30am to 12:30pm.
• Playwriting 101 with ShaWanna Renee Rivon at the DeLuxe Theater | Sunday, February 4 | FREE – The historic Fifth Ward theater is the site of this playwriting workshop, where ShaWanna Renee Rivon teaches the basics of storytelling, story arch, character development and building conflict—all based on Houston’s Black history. Participants must bring a laptop or pen and paper. Noon.
• Inprint Cool Brains! presents Lisa Yee & Dan Santat at Meyerland Performing & Visual Arts Middle School | Sunday, February 4 | FREE – The author and illustrator of The Misfits #1: A Royal Countdown come to Houston to talk to fans about their work. The book tells the story of a secret group of undercover crime fighters. There will be time for Q&A, and books will be available for sale following the presentation. The first 100 families to arrive will receive a free copy of the book. 3pm.
• Elba Iris Pérez at Blue Willow Bookshop | Tuesday, February 6 | FREE – Houston author Elba Iris Pérez heads to the Memorial-area bookshop to discuss her debut novel, The Things We Didn’t Know, which was the inaugural winner of Simon & Schuster’s Books Like Us contest. The novel explores the coming-of-age tale of a girl torn between Puerto Rican traditions and her all-American factory town. Free to attend; books for signing must be purchased from the bookstore. 7pm.
• Black Representation in Comics at Smith Neighborhood Library | Saturday, February 10 | FREE – Local comic book creator and publisher Lane Fobbs discusses Black superheroes, Black creators and more in this event in honor of Black History Month at the Third Ward library. Free with registration. 11am.
• Clint Smith & Patricia Smith at Hobby Center | Monday, February 12 | FREE – Part of Inprint’s Margarett Root Brown Reading Series, poets Clint Smith and Patricia Smith will read from their recent collections, Above Ground and Unshuttered, respectively. Following the reading, Houston Poet Laureate Aris Kian will sit down for an on-stage conversation with the poets. 7:30pm.
• Prudence Peiffer: The Slip at Menil Collection | Thursday, February 15 | FREE – The writer, editor and art historian comes to Menil to discuss her debut book, The Slip: The New York City Street That Changed American Art Forever. The work examines how the Coenties Slip played a role in shaping the artistic journeys of renowned American artists and affected the landscape of Modern Art. 7pm.
• Tia Williams at Kindred Stories | Tuesday, February 20 – The New York Times bestselling author comes to Houston to discuss her latest, A Love Song for Ricki Wilde. The novel is the story of two passionate souls drawn together by magic, romance and opportunity and set against the background of Harlem. $35; includes a copy of the book. 7pm.
• Coinneach MacLeod at Brazos Bookstore | Wednesday, February 21 – The TikTok sensation and author of The Hebridean Baker: At Home: Flavours & Folklore comes to Houston to talk about his new book, and the joy of baking. $30; includes a copy of the book. 6:30pm.
• Vanessa Patrick on The Power of Saying No at Asia Society Texas Center | Wednesday, February 21 – Dr. Vanessa Patrick joins Asia Society Texas to discuss the exploration of personal growth and empowerment discussed in her new book, The Power of Saying No: The New Science of How to Say No that Puts You in Charge of Your Life. An audience Q&A will follow the talk, plus a book signing and drinks-only reception. $15; $25 with the book. 7pm.
• A.J. Finn at Murder by the Book | Thursday, February 22 | FREE – The New York Times bestselling author of The Woman in the Window discusses his latest novel, End of Story. The new book explores what happens when a reclusive novelist writes to his longtime correspondent, “I’ll be dead in three months. Come tell my story.” Free to attend; books for signing must be purchased from the bookstore. 6:30pm.
• Sarah Mughal Rana at Blue Willow Bookshop | Thursday, February 29 | FREE – The author will discuss her new YA novel, Hope Ablaze, with Vaishnavi Patel, author of the New York Times bestseller, Kaikeyi. Rana’s novel is the story of a Muslim teen finding her way in a post-9/11 world, and explores themes of Islamic faith and Pakistani culture, as well as confronting racism and Islamophobia. Free to attend; books for signing must be purchased from the bookstore. 7pm.

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