Literary Calendar

7 P.M. Allen Weinstein, archivist of the United States, chats with journalist Cokie Roberts about her new book, Ladies of Liberty: The Women Who Shaped Our Nation, as part of the "American Conversation" series at the National Archives, William G. McGowan Theater, 700 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, 202-357-5000. A booksigning follows.

7 P.M. Simon Winchester discusses and signs The Man Who Loved China: The Fantastic Story of the Eccentric Scientist Who Unlocked the Mysteries of the Middle Kingdom at Politics and Prose Bookstore, 202-364-1919.

8 THURSDAY

Noon. Joyce Antler, a professor of Jewish history and culture, discusses You Never Call! You Never Write!: A History of the Jewish Mother (recently published in paperback) at a luncheon event at the Jewish Community Center of Greater Washington, 6125 Montrose Rd., Rockville, Md. Admission is $18, or $8 for the lecture alone; call 301-348-3750 for details.

12:30 P.M. Award-winning broadcast journalist Barbara Walters will sign copies of her new memoir, Audition, at the Trover Shop, 221 Pennsylvania Ave. SE, 202-547-2665. She will also sign books at 7:30 p.m. at Borders Books-Tysons Corner, 8027 Leesburg Pike, Vienna, Va., 703-556-7766.

6 P.M. Economist Jared Bernstein discusses and signs Crunch: Why Do I Feel So Squeezed? (And Other Unsolved Economic Mysteries) at Barnes & Noble-Market Common, 2800 Clarendon Blvd., Arlington, Va., 703-248-8244. He will also speak on Saturday, May 10, at 6 p.m. at Politics and Prose Bookstore, 202-364-1919.

6:45 P.M. The spring literary season at the Library of Congress wraps up with "The Difficult Art of Translation," a lecture by Charles Simic, the U.S. poet laureate and author of the new collection, That Little Something, in the Montpelier Room, James Madison Bldg., 101 Independence Ave. SE, 202-707-5394. This will be Simic's final appearance as poet laureate.

7 P.M. Matt Taibbi, a national reporter for Rolling Stone, discusses and signs his new book, The Great Derangement: A Terrifying True Story of War, Politics, and Religion at the Twilight of the American Empire, at Politics and Prose Bookstore, 202-364-1919.

7:30 P.M. David Baldacci reads from and signs his new thriller, The Whole Truth, at Borders Books-Baileys Crossroads, 703-998-0404.

7:30 P.M. Marc Sandalow discusses and signs Madam Speaker: Nancy Pelosi's Life, Times, and Rise to Power at the Friendship Heights Village Center, 301-656-2797.

9 FRIDAY

8 P.M. The Writer's Center (4508 Walsh St., Bethesda, Md.) is hosting "The Sound of Words: A Scheme to Rock the Writer's Center," with readings by poets Sandra Beasley and Bernadette Geyer, featured in 32 Poems Magazine, along with music from indie rock band Caribbean. For details, call 301-654-8664.

SPECIAL NOTICES

Actress, playwright and writer Anna Deavere Smith, author, most recently, of Letters to a Young Artist: Straight-up Advice on Making a Life in the Arts -- For Actors, Performers, Writers, and Artists of Every Kind, reflects on Ruth Orkin's photograph, "Member of the Wedding: 1950: Ethel Waters, Carson McCullers, and Julie Harris," the final talk in the American Pictures Distinguished Lecture Series, on Saturday, May 10, at 4:30 p.m. This series, sponsored by Washington College, the National Portrait Gallery and the Smithsonian American Art Museum, will be held in the Nan Tucker McEvoy Auditorium, Reynolds Center for American Art & Portraiture (which serves both museums), Eighth & F Sts. NW. Free tickets are available starting at 3:30 p.m.; doors open at 4 p.m. For details, visit http://www.reynoldscenter.org.

The 2007 report from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) on the state of reading in the United States, To Read or Not to Read: A Question of National Consequence, will be discussed by Sunil Iyengar, director of the NEA office that compiled the report, on Thursday, May 8, at noon, at the Library of Congress, James Madison Building, Pickford Theater. Summaries of the report will be made available; call 202-707-5221 for details.

Turning the Page, a nonprofit group dedicated to supporting public schools in the District, is holding its seventh annual fundraiser, the Carpe Librum used book sale, at The Shops at 2000 Penn, 2000 Pennsylvania Ave. NW. The sale, which opened on April 11, runs, seven days a week, through Friday, May 16. Hours are Monday to Friday, 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.; Saturday, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.; Sunday, noon to 5 p.m. For further details, visit http://www.turningthepage.org.