Black Bird Bookstore

We host a Poetry & Prose Open Mic at 7pm on the 2nd Wednesday of every month.

Hope is a Discipline

Hope is a discipline. 
On the evening of last week's horrific Tuesday, I went (along with what seemed to be most of San Francisco) to hear Angela Davis speak at City Arts and Lectures. It was a balm to be under the warm glow of an elder's wisdom-filled words at such a time. Towards the end of the evening, an audience member asked how to stay the course in times like these. In her response, she quoted activist Mariame Kaba saying 'hope is a discipline' not an emotion or even an optimism, but rather a practice to keep in motion the continued work we have toward all social justices. Since then, the words have become a mantra I have found myself repeating, perhaps too often. I hope you too can feel some solid ground beneath you from hearing them.
Kathryn
New Art on the Walls at Black Bird
Amy Reid Hirst is an artist and designer based in San Francisco and London. ‘Moon & Water’ is a collection of poetry drawings on folded newsprint paper. The drawings are created from particular words or parts of poems and songs, drawn out on folded newsprint - a medium that came from her time spent as a screen printer. The folded grid system gives both the guides and the parameters to lay out the abstractions of the poems. The lines and shapes that create the work come from explorations into typography and letterforms. Moon & Water drawings and Dust are all based on poems from Mary Oliver.
Come check it out!
Meenal Patel comes back to Black Bird
Saturday, June 4th 9:30am: We will be joined by the delightfully talented San Francisco author-illustrator Meenal Patel for this Saturday's Storytime in the garden. Her beloved books have been gifting favorites for years at Black Bird. Storytime is free and open to all ages. Come support a local author and buy a pile of signed books!
Upcoming Events & Happenings:
Summer Writers Workshop: Six weeks of reading, writing, and building your process. Whether you’re starting a new project or dusting off an old one, this course is designed to help you play with your writing in new ways, and create a space to share meaningful work with others. All writers are welcome to inquire, though this course will focus mainly on fiction and nonfiction. Organized by Isabella Welch, MFA, University of San Francisco. 
Tuesdays 6:00-7:45pm
July 12 - August 16, 2022
Limited to 8-10 students
*Cost: suggested donation of $10-15 per class attended
Email fallwriters@gmail.com for more information and to sign up.
Parent Groups for New and Expecting Parents: Weekly gatherings upstairs at the bookstore. Build community, connect, share experiences and resources, and play. 
Thursday evenings + Friday middays
 
Upcoming Saturday Storytimes:
June 11th: Local author Nina LaCoeur reads from her new children's book 'Mama and Mommy and Me in the Middle'. 
June 18th: Olive the Storyteller
June 25th: Mimi and her Puppets
...and we are very excited to announce that July 9th will be Drag Queen Story Hour featuring Little Miss Hot Mess. Stay tuned for more details later this month.
Thank you for being part of the Black Bird community!