Let’s hope that sci-fi and fantasy novelist Charlie Jane Anders has plenty of shelf space at home, because otherwise she’s got a storage unit somewhere jammed with awards. The San Francisco writer, podcaster and literary troublemaker has already won a Hugo, a Nebula, a Crawford, a Sturgeon, a Locus and a Lambda Literary Award for outstanding LGBTQ literature. Her latest novel, The City in the Middle of the Night, is prompting reviewers to dust off their Ursula K. Le Guin comparisons. It’s about a band of humans clinging to life in a thin strip of habitable land between two dangerous extremes. Gee, wonder where she got that idea.

Charlie Jane Anders
Tue, 7:30pm, Free
Kepler’s Books, 1010 El Camino Real, Menlo Park

Former Vice President Al Gore returns with an updated message on the looming impact of global warming. He made waves by outlining the devastating impact rising sea levels would have on the planet in his 2006 documentary, An Inconvenient Truth—which earned him and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change a piece of the Nobel Peace Prize the following year. Kepler’s Literary Foundation brings Al Gore to the Peninsula to discuss his new film, An Inconvenient Sequel: Truth to Power. In the film, Gore aims to expand on his initial premise with an narrative demonstrating how to take meaningful action.

Al Gore
Thu, 7:30pm, $25+
Aragon High School Theater, San Mateo

As the fearless, freewheeling frontman of metal giants Iron Maiden, no obstacle was too high for the leaping and bounding Bruce Dickinson. In 2014 that all changed when doctors discovered a large cancerous lump in his tongue. Dickinson’s 40-year career manning the cockpit for Iron Maiden—quite literally; he is the band’s singer and a commercial pilot—came to an abrupt stop. Radiation therapy fried the singer’s vocal cords. Unable to sing or perform, he penned an autobiography: What Does This Button Do? Listen to personal readings and stories from Dickinson, as he remembers the past and looks to the future.

Bruce Dickinson
Thu, 7:30pm, $15+
Kepler’s, Menlo Park

In a new book by author Dave Eggers and illustrator Shawn Harris, Her Right Foot, Eggers discovers the history behind the Statue of Liberty’s right foot being in mid-stride. She is moving forward. Eggers is known as the founder of McSweeney’s and for his many literary works, including A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius, What Is The What and The Circle. Harris, a visual artist and musician, has produced record and poster art for his own band and other musicians, including Snoop Dogg and Adele.

Dave Eggers & Shawn Harris
Sun, 6pm, $5+
Kepler’s Books, Menlo Park

Those familiar with Diane Keaton’s long and storied career know she is a Renaissance woman. The Oscar-winning actress behind such beloved characters as Annie Hall and Kay Adams is also a producer, director and—apparently—a master of Pinterest. Her new book, The House That Pinterest Built, details how she has used the digital scrapbooking site to inform and shape her design aesthetic. In the book, Keaton discusses her personal design philosophy. Photography by Lisa Romerein will showcase Keaton’s past homes and those she admires. This is a book signing only. Ticket includes a copy of her book.

Diane Keaton
Thu, 4pm, $80+
Kepler’s Books, Menlo Park

Feminist, author and college professor Roxane Gay is coming to Kepler’s to discuss her new book, Hunger. Despite a body of work that has set its sights on society as a whole—discussing pop culture, feminism and identity—her new work sees her turning that focus inward. Through her personal story she explores the feelings of otherness she felt growing up after being sexually assaulted, using her appearance as a fortress and identifying as a lesbian despite being attracted to both men and women. Through the story, Gay illustrates how we all live with contradictions and how those contradictions shape us.

Roxane Gay
Wed, 7:30pm, $20
Kepler’s Books, Menlo Park