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Ben Rhodes and Jon Favreau
Monday June 8, 2026
7:30pm
The Ebell of Los Angeles Lounge
741 South Lucerne Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90005
Link in bio

Our American story has been influenced and moved by persuasive, often momentous, rhetoric. Speeches given by presidents, social crusades on both sides of the equation often created social change from the ripples they caused in the moment. In Ben Rhodes' new book, All We Say: The Battle for American Identity, A History in 15 Speeches, we can trace American social and political movement through 15 specific speeches over the course of 250 years. From Abraham Lincoln to Ronald Reagan, from abolitionist Maria Stewart to Frederick Douglass, from Martin Luther King Jr and Louis Brandeis to Donald Trump, we read the speeches that reflect powerful social movements-- and gauge the impact in front of our eyes. What a way to see the evolution and development of our nation's soul, at our best and at our worst. These speeches represent a crystallization of our highest and lowest moments as a nation-- from our most glorious idealism to our most repugnant extremism.

It's easy to see how Ben Rhodes appreciates these speeches that have directed the course of social and political change in our American history. He worked for Barack Obama during Obama's presidential campaign, and was President Obama's Deputy National Security Advisor for Strategic Communications and Speechwriting. Since the end of his tenure with President Obama, Ben has been a commentator for NBC and MSNBC. He's the author of numerous books, and is the co-host of Crooked Media's Pod Save the World.

Jon Favreau was also an Obama speechwriter, after having worked on Obama’s first presidential campaign in that capacity. Jon is one of the geniuses behind Crooked Media, which hosts the landmark podcasts Pod Save the World and Pod Save America, among many others. Crooked Media is one of the most influential new media companies in the country, specializing in platforming progressive thought leaders.

Senator Chris Murphy
Saturday, June 6, 2026
7:30pm
Moss Theater
3131 Olympic Blvd. Santa Monica, CA 90404
Link in bio

When Senator Chris Murphy of Connecticut writes a book, he engages the reader by asking us to consider deeply what makes America tick, what's gone wrong, and how to make us heal. Whether advocating for gun violence prevention, or assailing the Trump administration about its attacks on democratic norms, or demanding answers about the war in Iran, Senator Murphy goes beyond convenient sound bites.

Senator Murphy's new book, Crisis of the Common Good, argues that our current American crises can be viewed as the result of intertwined "cults"--harmful trends that have undermined our society in recent generations, from the predominance of the profit motive over the public good, and the celebration of consumerism over engaged citizenship, to the unchecked spread of addictive technologies, and the rampant rise of corruption in our politics. And as he always does, Senator Murphy leads with idealism and strong arguments, showing how both sides of the political spectrum can find common ground on these issues.

Senator Murphy was a CT congressman when the Sandy Hook shooting massacre took place, and it shook him to his core. He became a fierce and outspoken proponent of gun violence prevention, and several years ago, he wrote a searing book called The Violence Inside Us:A Brief History of an Ongoing American Tragedy. After COVID's reign of terror, Senator Murphy spent a few years analyzing the crippling emotional impact of the pandemic. He has spent the last 18 months calling out the Trump administration's attacks on democracy, and now, the potential disaster of the war in Iran. Senator Murphy has managed to be one of the few Democrats to break through the wall of noise and has been fearless in his criticism of the Trump administration.

Los Angeles—this one’s for you!

On June 10, join internationally acclaimed artist Shepard Fairey in conversation with People For board chair and social impact strategist Lara Bergthold for a timely discussion on how art shapes culture—and why that matters for democracy right now. As the country faces threats to the freedom of expression and our core democratic values, hear how artists, storytellers, and everyday people can help drive social change.

From his iconic Obama HOPE poster to the public art series for the Women’s March, Shepard’s work has been celebrated and deployed in social justice campaigns all over the world. He’s also one of twenty extraordinary artists who have contributed pieces to The Art of Saving Democracy: An Action Kit for Making Change, to be released on June 2.

🎟️ Get tickets + see all upcoming events at ArtofSavingDemocracy.org/events

Many thanks to Writers Bloc Presents, the Ebell of Los Angeles, and Book Soup. Can’t wait to see you at the Ebell at 7:30pm on Wednesday, June 10!

@writersblocla
@ebellofla
@larabergthold
@obeygiant
@booksoup
@storeypub
@artofsavingdemocracy

Caro Claire Burke
Thursday, May 28, 2026
7:30pm
The Ebell of Los Angeles Lounge
741 South Lucerne Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90005
Link in bio

Yesteryear is a novel that we predict everyone will be talking about. A successful, beautiful lifestyle influencer, who is a devoted wife and mother, has accrued an online following of millions. She's got the perfect life. Her fans eat up her posts about living the rural pioneer dream in a gorgeous kitchen: raw milk, fresh eggs, jam, and it all looks perfect. What could possibly go wrong??

Caro Claire Burke, the co-creator of the popular podcast, Diabolical Lies, has written a novel as satirical and biting as her provocative podcast episodes. Caro's new novel, Yesteryear, invokes her podcast's satirical eye as she takes on the inanity of online culture, trendy food consumption, absurd consumerism, and the altogether deceptive allure of a rural, simpler time which of course wasn't simple at all. And there's time travel! Suddenly thrust back into a time and place that isn't as warm and welcoming as it's made out to be in her exhortations, our heroine's wonderful life and online omnipresence count for nothing when she's got to cope with her strange and often cruel new reality, amid her questions about being a woman in America, then and now. Yesteryear is really funny, and it's made for this moment.

Diabolical Lies, a podcast geared to progressive women, features wide-ranging conversations on culture, politics, and everything in between. They're explorations into what makes America tick, from ICE to the "masculinity crisis," to our obsession with the Kennedy dynasty -and so much more. The episodes are always provocative in the best kind of way: they make us think, laugh, and occasionally disagree, but we come away admiring the depth and brains of the discussion.

Rebecca Solnit and Jessica Craven
Sunday, May 3, 2026
3:00pm
Moss Theater
3131 Olympic Blvd. Santa Monica, CA 90404
Ticket link in bio

Political, cultural, and social change happened so fast in the 1960’s that looking back, we get whiplash from the enormity of upheaval that occurred. Who better to tackle the subject of tectonic shifts than Rebecca Solnit.

In her new bestselling book, The Beginning Comes After the End, she reminds us that progressive social transformation in the 60’s and beyond, up to this very decade, has succeeded in dramatic ways. And while the Right might want to drive back this social progress, the Left should remember that activists knew then and now know just how to change the world. And she’s hopeful.

Solnit has written so many groundbreaking books, and won so many prestigious awards, we can barely keep up, and many of her books have become classics. She covers so much topical territory, and it endures. It simply doesn’t age. Solnit’s book, Men Explain Things to Me, is a primer in how to listen to mansplaining and what still goes wrong in conversations between men and women. Her book, Hope in the Dark, published in 2016, could have been written yesterday. It’s about resistance and confronting social crises, and the enormous successes that activism achieved.

In conversation with Jessica Craven. Her Substack, Chop Wood, Carry Water, is a primer on motivating readers into political activism. Chop Wood, Carry Water is enormously popular on Substack, and it offers daily tips on promoting social change.

Steven J. Ross and Patt Morrison
Thursday, April 23, 2026
7:30pm
The Ebell of Los Angeles Lounge
741 South Lucerne Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90005
Link in bio

If you haven’t read Steven Ross’ bestselling and Pulitzer finalist nonfiction book, Hitler in Los Angeles, you simply must. It’s unforgettable and chilling as it takes us through jaw-dropping Nazi conspiracies and plots to murder Jews en masse in Los Angeles during World War II.

Steven’s new book, The Secret War Against Hate: American Resistance to Antisemitism and White Supremacy, is just as effective and chilling as Hitler in Los Angeles. In The Secret War Against Hate, Steven chronicles the shocking rise of white supremacist terrorism against Jews and African Americans following WWII. Determined to “finish the job Hitler had begun,” American Nazis and white supremacists launched deadly attacks against Jews and African Americans across the country.

Ross reveals the astonishing work of a small group of heroes: infiltration, monitoring, and ultimately sabotaging the efforts of these real post-war domestic terrorists. Steven is a Distinguished Professor of History at USC, and Director of the Casden Institute for the Study of the Jewish Role in American Life.

In conversation with Patt Morrison. Patt has more Emmys and Golden Mikes than any mantle can reasonably accommodate. She is an author, a columnist for the Los Angeles Times, a podcast host (Patt Morrison Asks), and an avid postcard collector. She is so entrenched in the best of L.A. culture that Pink’s named a hotdog for her.

Lost Angeles!
NPR’s Planet Money
Thursday, April 16, 2026
7:30pm
Moss Theater in Santa Monica
Link in bio

Money Money Money!! Perhaps it’s a complicated subject for you. But Planet Money comes to the rescue and unravels it for us, with great humor, entertaining stories, and clear explanation. Planet Money is the most entertaining show on, well, the planet, for those of us who need help figuring out the mysteries of money management, and how it impacts us each and every day.

Did you ever agonize about how to maximize your investments? Or what some of those financial terms even mean? Or the best strategies of how to save? Or even how to spend? Fear not, because you’re not alone. For those of us who struggle with the complexities of personal spending in terms of daily life, we turn to the one source that can make sense of it all: Planet Money.

Join the team behind the popular podcast Planet Money and celebrate the publication of their new book, Planet Money: A Guide to the Economic Forces That Shape Your Life. Author and longtime contributor Alex Mayyasi and co-hosts Sarah Gonzalez and Nick Fountain will bring Planet Money’s signature brand of storytelling to the stage and discuss some highlights from the new book, including unlikely origin stories, revealing truths about human behavior, and insightful suggestions for navigating chaotic times drawn from the latest ideas in economics.

Jack Corbett, resident TikToker for Planet Money, will also be on hand for some interactive visuals.

Patrick Radden Keefe and Ava Kofman
Wednesday April 15, 2026
7:30pm
The Ebell of Los Angeles Lounge
Ticket link in bio

In late 2019, a young man jumped to his death in London. Did 19-year-old Zac Brettler leap into the Thames from a balcony of a luxury apartment building on his own, or was it something else, something criminal? And if he did jump, did he intend to kill himself, or did he intend to run from something terrifying? And where was Scotland Yard’s investigation?

No one writes on crime and its rippling orbit quite like bestselling and award winning author Patrick Radden Keefe. In Radden Keefe’s new book, London Falling, we discover that the young man, from an affluent Jewish family in North London, had invented a secret life, an alternative identity for himself: that of the son of a Russian oligarch, heir to an enormous fortune. An heir to a Russian oligarch can certainly catch the eye of corrupt and dangerous criminal elements. London Falling is a most harrowing search for the facts around the young man’s life and sudden death, and takes us into the dangerous terrain of London’s criminal and often extremely wealthy underbelly. And throughout this story, we feel stonewalled and hamstrung by Scotland Yard. If you subscribe to The New Yorker, you might have read the story on which London Falling is based.

Author of several books that have taken readers and critics by storm, Radden Keefe’s bestsellers include Say Nothing and The Empire of Pain to name just two.

In conversation with Ava Kofman, who is a staff writer for The New Yorker. Before joining The New Yorker, she was an investigative reporter at ProPublica, and has won distinguished prizes, including the National Press Club Award and the Hillman Prize for Magazine Journalism.

Patrick Radden Keefe photo credit: Justyna Gudzowska

Cory Booker - More Tickets Released
Plus New Venue
Friday, April 3, 2026
7:30pm
JAMS Performing Arts Center
Santa Monica, CA
Ticket link in bio

Important Update: Due to the WGA staff union strike, our upcoming event with Senator Cory Booker on April 3 will no longer take place at the Writers Guild Theater. It will now be held at JAMS Performing Arts Center, 2425 16th St. Santa Monica, CA 90405. On Pearl between 16th and 17th, just south of Pico.

Join U.S. Senator Cory Booker for a timely and hopeful conversation about our shared American ideals.

Centered around his new book, STAND, Senator Booker will share stirring personal reflections and powerful stories of leadership that will challenge us to reclaim our national story and work together to redeem the American dream.

STAND shows that our principles are not luxuries; they are vital, strategic keys to our survival and success. By wielding these tools, we can reclaim our sense of common cause and change the course of our country’s history.

In STAND, Senator Booker offers inspiring and actionable insights for Americans from all walks of life.

Senator Cory Booker is the senior United States Senator from New Jersey. He served as mayor of Newark before becoming New Jersey’s first Black senator and only the fourth popularly elected Black senator in US history.

Pre-signed copies of STAND will be available for purchase at the event.

A Celebration of Jane Austen
Monday, March 23, 2026
7:30pm
The Ebell of Los Angeles - Lounge
Ticket link in bio

What keeps us coming back to Jane Austen time and again? Why and how does she exert such an impact on literary culture, on our pop culture?

It is a truth universally acknowledged that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife. It is a truth similarly acknowledged that a reader in possession of a Jane Austen novel must be in for a great time.

It's little wonder that Pride and Prejudice is still one of the most beloved books of the past 225 years. What draws filmmakers time and again to make and remake her novels?

You'll see for yourselves as four wonderful actors read from scenes from Jane Austen's timeless work.

Actor Andrew Borba has appeared in dozens of film and television shows, including Taken 3, Interstellar, Shameless, and Straight Outta Compton.

John Ross Bowie appeared in Shameless, The Big Bang Theory, Curb Your Enthusiasm, and countless other shows. He is also the author of the critically acclaimed memoir, No Job for a Man.

British actor Lucy Davenport appeared in the UK stage adaptation of Pride and Prejudice, and played Lydia and Elizabeth Bennet, in addition to television and film roles including Dinner for Shmucks, Roe V. Wade, and others.

Kerry O'Malley is a film and television actor whose credits include A Man on the Inside; Nightbitch; David Fincher's The Killer; and so many more.

Better photo! Writers Bloc LA, Book Soup, Odenkirk, what's not fun about that?

Annabelle Gurwitch and Bob Odenkirk
Thursday, March 19, 2026
7:30pm
The Ebell of Los Angeles Lounge
Ticket link in bio

To the uninitiated, and to people who are not yet members of an ever-broadening and we-will-accept-anyone club, cancer is not a funny subject. Until it is. Until Annabelle Gurwitch takes it on. Comedian, actor, and bestselling author Annabelle Gurwitch’s new book, The End of My Life Is Killing Me, is just really really funny.

It’s stunningly relatable to anyone who has met with an oncologist and lived with the fallout. And as she takes us into her experiences of lung cancer diagnosis, treatment, reading about alternative treatments, dealing with physical and psychological life around cancer, and more–she mulls big questions–such as friendship, love, work, grief, travel and maybe even the urge to commit a few crimes here and there. And of course there’s some European rock ‘n roll adventure.

As Gurwitch ponders the transformational qualities of art (and wallpaper), she laces her profound questions with some pretty hilarious reflections. The End of My Life Is Killing Me is a most sublime cocktail of the serious and the wildly funny.

Speaking of serious and wildly funny, there’s Bob Odenkirk. Comedian, actor, writer and producer, Odenkirk has given us some of the most indelible and thrilling performances in recent television. Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul are television classics, thanks to his brilliance. He’s appeared in dozens of films, including The Post, The Spectacular Now, and Nebraska, and created the cult favorite HBO series, Mr. Show.