Playhouse Village Association

Pasadena Heritage: Explore Historic Architecture in the Playhouse Village
2026-05-31 10:00 - 11:30 (America/Los_Angeles) | Pasadena Heritage, The Blinn House 160 N Oakland Ave, Pasadena, 91101, United States
The Pasadena Playhouse Historic District includes approximately 34 buildings that tell the story of Pasadena’s eastward growth in the 1920s and 1930s, as the city shifted from its agricultural roots into a center of tourism, culture, and design. This period of development brought a mix of architectural styles that still define the district today, most notably Art Deco, Spanish Colonial Revival, and Mediterranean Revival.
This walking tour takes a closer look at how these styles came together during a moment of real growth and change in Pasadena. Along the way, we’ll stop at landmarks like the Scottish Rite Cathedral, the United Artists Theatre, and the Warner Building, along with other buildings that reflect the energy and optimism of the period.
Join Pasadena Heritage as they explore how architecture and development shaped this district, looking at both the original vision for the area and how it continues to evolve today.

Pasadena Playhouse: Mexodus
2026-06-01 20:00 | Pasadena Playhouse, 39 S. El Molino Avenue, Pasadena, CA, 91101, United States
Mexodus – the New York Times Critic’s Pick new musical created and performed by Brian Quijada and Nygel D. Robinson – comes straight from New York to the Playhouse stage this summer. This electrifying experience explores a hidden chapter of the Underground Railroad – one that moved south, by crossing the Rio Grande toward liberation in Mexico. This groundbreaking musical amplifies the story of a freedom seeker and an unlikely ally as they forge a remarkable bond that transcends borders. It’s history remixed. It’s a ride you won’t want to miss.

Vroman's Bookstore: Jennifer Keishin Armstrong discusses & signs Parks and Rec
2026-06-02 19:00 | Vroman’s Bookstore, 695 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, CA, 91101, United States
From the New York Times bestselling author of Seinfeldia, the definitive story of the creation and legacy of Parks and Recreation, with exclusive interview content from its cast, crew, and creators, as well as an introduction by Nick Offerman
More than fifteen years after Parks and Recreation premiered, it has become a streaming and pop culture staple. It’s beloved for its jokes, characters, and expressions–the show even created a now widely observed holiday, Galentine’s Day. How did it all happen and how did the show transform from a ratings disappointment into a cult classic? Pop culture historian Jennifer Keishin Armstrong reveals all this and more in the definitive history of the show, which is as full of humor, optimism, and heart as Parks and Recreation itself.
Through new and exclusive interviews, as well as deep insight and smart and entertaining pop culture analysis, Armstrong tells the story of how Parks and Recreation came to be: how it grew from The Office’s success and Obama-inspired optimism, how producers assembled one of TV’s most lovable casts but barely survived a mediocre first season, how the show found its voice by getting more political and more romantic, and how it became a cultural force despite middling ratings during its network run, going on to become a television savior of the Trump era and a modern classic.
Lovingly told and deeply researched, Parks and Rec is the ultimate history of the show that taught us what’s important in life: friends, waffles, and work.

Wolhaus: Crochet Foundations - For Beginners
2026-06-05 11:30 - 13:30 | Wollhaus Artisan Yarn & Tools, 696 E. Colorado Blvd. Suite 2, Pasadena, CA, 91101, United States
Always wanted to learn to crochet? Need a refresher? In this class, you will learn the skills required to get you started or continue on your crochet journey. No previous experience required!

Vroman's Bookstore: Dr. Darby Saxbe, in conversation with Ken Bensinger, discusses & signs DAD BRAIN
2026-06-05 19:00 | Vroman’s Bookstore, 695 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, CA, 91101, United States
When we talk about the transformative experience of birth and child-rearing, we almost always focus on mothers. While biomedical research oversamples men, the opposite is true when it comes to research on birth and parenting. In the past few decades, studies have proliferated on how women’s bodies and brains change as they begin their families. Headlines and movie plotlines revolve around overworked moms—often accompanied by the image of inept dads muddling through a diaper change. The antiquated, but persistent, implication is that moms are “natural” parents, instinctive and nurturing, and dads are better left to the boardroom and golf course. With DAD BRAIN: The New Science of Fatherhood and How It Shapes Men’s Lives (Flatiron; June 9, 2026), psychologist and researcher Darby Saxbe leverages 15 years of studying fathers to do a deep dive into the science behind fatherhood—and what she finds will upend the way we think about men as parents.
Inspired in part by her own hands-on, solo father, Saxbe started asking important questions: What if men are natural parents, too? Does having a baby change men’s bodies and minds? What happens when fathers engage in child-rearing tasks? Saxbe shares hot-off-the-presses findings from her own laboratory studies, from neuroimaging scans and hormone samples to father-child interactions. In writing DAD BRAIN, she interviewed dozens of first-time fathers and traveled the world to connect with other scientists doing groundbreaking work. Full of fascinating stories and insights, DAD BRAIN showcases the science and culture of fatherhood and celebrates dads who are leaning into parenting.

The Mixx: Live Anniversary Tribute to Depeche Mode 101 Concert in Pasadena
2026-06-05 20:00 - 23:30 | The Mixx, 443 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, CA, 91101, United States
The Mixx Pasadena invites guests to experience one of the best live tributes to Depeche Mode’s iconic 101 Concert. LA’s favorite Depeche Mode tribute band, ULTRA MODE, recreates the legendary performance in its entirety live on stage for a special evening of music and nostalgia. Guests can also enjoy rare backstage footage and live music video mixxes displayed across the largest high-definition LED wall in town, alongside sounds by DJ Jack Tames. Get ready to dance the night away to the soundtrack of a generation.

Vroman's Bookstore: Pasadena Conservatory of Music presents Musical Storytime: This Is a Moment by Micah Player
2026-06-06 11:30 | Vroman’s Bookstore, 695 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, CA, 91101, United States
The Pasadena Conservatory of Music will be putting on a special musical storytime with the featured book: This Is a Moment by Micah Player. Caregivers and children aged 3-9 will enjoy a story, creative movement, and a mini-concert!

Vroman's Bookstore: Merrill Joan Gerber discusses & signs Someone Should Know This Story: Selected Stories
2026-06-06 16:00 | Vroman’s Bookstore, 695 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, CA, 91101, United States
“‘Someone Should Know This Story’ is both the name of this book and the wish of my heart,” writes Merrill Joan Gerber in the introduction to this retrospective collection of twenty-five stories written over a period of four decades, many of which won awards and appeared in widely read periodicals such as The New Yorker, The Atlantic, Redbook, and Mademoiselle.
Gerber takes her teacher Andrew Lytle’s advice to “follow the thread back into the labyrinth” of the heart and its secrets. Finding its starting place with the crises of everyday family life-its conflicts, betrayals, confinements, and its devastating losses-she and her characters constantly reencounter themselves and the persistent yearning to “convey to others what we are” with grace and breathtaking honesty.

Boston Court: ¡Sí Se Puede!
2026-06-07 11:00 - 14:00 | Boston Court Pasadena, 70 N. Mentor Ave., Pasadena, CA, 91206, United States
Follow trailblazing activist, Dolores Huerta, on her journey to improve conditions for farm workers. From co-founding the United Farmworkers to boycotts, marches, and high-stakes negotiations–her unwavering commitment to justice changed the course of history. Through a blend of movement, music, and actos inspired by El Teatro Campesino, experience the powerful transformation that happens when we come together to demand change.

Vroman's Bookstore: Matt Haig, in conversation with Lian Dolan, discusses The Midnight Train
2026-06-07 16:00 | Pasadena Presbyterian Church, 585 East Colorado Boulevard, Pasadena , CA, 91101, United States
When your life flashes before your eyes, where would you stop?
No one can change the past, but the Midnight Train can take you there.
The chance to re-live the moments that meant most.
To see what kind of person you really were.
For Wilbur his best days were with Maggie, the love of his life. On his honeymoon in Venice.
Before he gave it all away.
He wishes he could go back and live differently. But to do so risks everything . . .
A magical, time-travelling love story, from the world of The Midnight Library.
Bio:
Matt Haig is the #1 New York Times-bestselling author of the novels The Midnight Library, The Life Impossible, and How to Stop Time, along with four other novels, the acclaimed memoirs Reasons to Stay Alive and Notes on a Nervous Planet, and several award-winning children’s books. His work has been published in fifty territories across the world.
This is a ticketed event at Pasadena Presbyterian Church. Tickets include one entry and one copy of The Midnight Train to be handed out at check-in.

JAZZ IN THE PARK
2026-06-07 18:00 - 20:00 | Playhouse Village Park, 701 Union St, Pasadena, CA, 91101, United States
Jazz in the Park in Partnership with Playhouse Village Foundation and Arash Danialifar! Enjoy a free concert series under the stars at Playhouse Village Park on Sundays, June & July at 6PM-8PM.

Vroman's Bookstore: Lisa See discusses & signs Daughters of the Sun and Moon
2026-06-09 19:00 | Pasadena Presbyterian Church, 585 East Colorado Boulevard, Pasadena , CA, 91101, United States
Beloved New York Times bestselling author Lisa See draws on the vibrancy and turmoil of post-Civil War Los Angeles to tell the story of three Chinese women who managed to survive and, eventually, thrive, despite all odds.
In 1870, three Chinese women arrived in the small, dusty, and violent pueblo of Los Angeles. Dove, the bound-footed daughter of an imperial scholar, is entrancing and innocent. These characteristics should bring her great rewards, beginning with her arranged marriage to a much older merchant. Petal, the big-footed daughter of peasants, has grown up hungry and with dirt between her toes. In a moment of desperation, Petal’s father sells her to buy money for rice seed, and she is loaded onto a ship to the Gold Mountain–America–where she is once again sold. Moon is married to a doctor of traditional Chinese medicine. She is educated, speaks fluent English, and has been endowed with a face of great beauty, yet her failed footbinding as a child has left her with a limp that lessens her value in the eyes of many.
Each woman has her own desires. Dove wants to love and be loved, Petal desires freedom, and Moon seeks justice. Together they face a larger society that wishes them not one ounce of goodwill. Anti-Chinese sentiment is strong in Los Angeles, and this eventually leads to the Night of Horrors, during which all three women are challenged in ways they could not have imagined. Brought together by hardship and heartbreak, they must use their bravery, endurance, and ability to “eat bitterness” to discover their voices, find freedom, and connect through solace and friendship. Together, they are daughters of the sun and moon.

Vroman's Bookstore: James Ellroy discusses & signs Red Sheet
2026-06-10 19:00 | Vroman’s Bookstore, 695 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, CA, 91101, United States
It’s late October 1962. The Cuban Missile Crisis has just concluded. The Russkies blinked and pulled their ICBMs out of Cuba. Attorney General Robert Kennedy fears reprisals from seething commies. He orders a red probe and puts the LAPD on the job.
Freddy Otash is injudiciously named the lead investigating officer. He’s a stone-cold criminal with police sanction and a harrowing dope habit. He homes in on a red-front trade union. There’s a murder on Halloween night. It may link to ex-VP and current gubernatorial candidate Richard Nixon and two commie snuffs from eight years back. Freddy’s overworked and overamped. He’s running the probe, and Bob Haldeman and John Ehrlichman—Tricky Dick Nixon’s head goons—have hired him to keep Nixon away from the smear-minded press.
L.A. is coming unglued. Ex-cop/lawyer Tom Bradley is running for a city council seat and pushing the Rumford Fair Housing Act. Playboy kingpin Hugh Hefner is along for the ride, out to exploit racial tension and peddle untold copies of his smut rag.
Red Sheet is James Ellroy’s most crazed kamikaze run and a daring, subversive work of fiction.

Vroman's Bookstore: Summer Reading Program Kick-Off
2026-06-11 11:00 | Vroman’s Bookstore, 695 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, CA, 91101, United States
Dragons, Duels, and Dazzling Reads is a free Summer Reading Program for young readers in grades Pre-K-12. Join the Vroman’s Children’s Department on an adventure-filled journey, designed to encourage a love of books amongst the youngest of readers, with events and prizes (and dragons) along the way!
To participate:
1. Stop by the Children’s Department to sign up and pick up a free reading log. Keep track of the books you have read throughout the summer–challenge yourself by reading ten or more!
2. Attend at least one in-store event—our summer event list is below.
3. Turn in your reading log on or after August 6th to claim your rewards!
READING EVENTS
Vroman’s Bookstore regularly offers author events for children’s books and young adult novels. Please check our website — or monthly e-newsletter — for upcoming author readings and signings: https://vromansbookstore.com/events/calendar

Thursday, June 11th at 11 am: Summer Reading Kickoff
Join us on Thursday, June 11th, at 11am in the Vroman’s courtyard for the kickoff to our Summer Reading Program! We will have crafts and a special performance from the Society for Creative Anachronism. Children will be invited to create their own cardboard swords and shields as they embark on their Summer Reading journey.
The Society for Creative Anachronism (SCA) is a non-profit organization dedicated to the study and recreation of pre-seventeenth-century culture and practices. We will be joined by members of the Southern California branch. For more information about their events—including sword fighting classes- visit sca-caid.org.
This event will take place outside on the Vroman’s paseo.

Vroman's Bookstore: Shay Kauwe, in conversation with Keala Kendall, discusses & signs The Killing Spell
2026-06-11 19:00
In this spellbinding fantasy debut set in a future where language magic reigns, a young Hawaiian woman must solve a murder to clear her name.
Kea Petrova is dealing with more than her fair share of trouble.
At just twenty-five years old, she’s the youngest of five Hawaiian clan leaders living on the Homestead in outer Los Angeles. Nearly 200 years ago, when a catastrophic flood submerged the Hawaiian islands and unleashed magic into the world, these clans forged a treaty with the city, establishing a new Hawaiian homeland. But that treaty is about to expire.
Kea struggles to keep her small clan afloat, scraping together rent each month through odd jobs and selling her own crafted Hawaiian language spells. While her talent for language magic is her saving grace, she feels like a shadow of those who came before her. Just when she thinks things can’t get any more complicated, the murder of Angelo Reyes–LA’s most prominent Filipino activist–turns her world upside-down.
Angelo was killed by a death spell–something that, due to the properties of each school of language magic, can only exist in Hawaiian. With independent spellsmithing being technically illegal, Kea quickly becomes the prime suspect, known for her spellwork on the Homestead. To clear her name, she must unravel the mystery behind Angelo’s murder and confront LA’s most powerful (and dangerous) players, each wielding their own type of magic. The clock is ticking–can Kea save herself, her clan, and the Homestead before it’s too late?

Vroman's Bookstore: Laura Lekkos discusses & signs All the Little Ways
2026-06-12 19:00 | Vroman’s Bookstore, 695 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, CA, 91101, United States
In the vein of Pineapple Street and Such a Fun Age, a smart, heartfelt debut novel about two expecting mothers navigating motherhood, family life, and female friendship, whose bond is threatened by a shocking revelation.
Victoria and Liz barely breathe the same air, but they collide headfirst when they meet in a group for expectant mothers and find common ground against all odds.
Victoria, forty-three, is confident, poised, and powerful, on the fast track to major career success in finance. Having kids is not in the plan. She had avoided love for decades–and hadn’t been too keen on female friendship either–when she fell for Ace, a dashing man twenty years her senior.
Liz, thirty-two, lives a fairly unstable life, trying to make her situationship work and navigate a job on a vile reality dating show. She’s desperately wanted to experience motherhood for her entire life, but anxiety and insecurity have landed her with a laundry list of failed romances. It’s an accident–ish–when she gets pregnant with her emotionally elusive boyfriend Preston’s baby just shy of a year into dating.
When Liz and Victoria meet in a parenting class, they both feel out of place amongst these pregnant women who seem to have it all figured out. They roll their eyes at the classic sign-off peppering the new mommy group chat: TIA (thanks in advance!). Alienated from these other women and due within a week of each other, Victoria and Liz’s bond becomes a lifeline as they navigate their pregnancies and relationships. They grapple with impending motherhood together and lean on each other to navigate important decisions about family, career, and love. It’s the first successful female friendship in Victoria’s life and the first time Liz has felt so connected to an older, wiser confidante. Maybe, just maybe, it will all be okay.
But as they grow more secure in their futures with each other’s support, the friends confront a shocking turn of events that will change the course of both their lives. Victoria and Liz then must reckon with their relationships, their impending journeys of motherhood, and the strength of their own bond in this unforgettable work of women’s fiction.

Vroman's Bookstore: C.L. Max Nikias discusses & signs American Trojan
2026-06-13 15:00 | Vroman’s Bookstore, 695 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, CA, 91101, United States
American Trojan is the captivating story of a refugee who lost everything and then rebuilt it all, an immigrant who defied the odds and achieved the American Dream; a visionary technologist who transformed the University of Southern California into one of the nation’s most prestigious private research universities.
At a time when many universities have succumbed to ideology over truth, under Nikias’s leadership, USC retained its academic integrity in the face of high-stakes negotiations, high-rolling donors, and the profound challenges of modern leadership.
Hailing from a humble village on the island of Cyprus, Nikias steeped in thousands of years of history as he grew up. But when the Turkish invasion of 1974 destroyed everything his family had built, he came to America to see what the Land of Opportunity had to offer.
Upon completion of his graduate engineering studies, he embarked on an academic career that established him as a pioneer in digital signal analysis, lead him to collaborate on military projects with the U.S. Navy, and eventually led him to USC, which would forever alter the trajectory of his career and life.
Against this dramatic backdrop, American Trojan offers candid insights into how Nikias’ bold vision transformed USC into one of America’s most elite universities. More than a personal story, it is a blueprint for leadership, offering insights into how Nikias and his team strategized to meet formidable challenges to USC.
An urgent examination of higher education’s current crisis, American Trojan provides a roadmap for renewal, offering specific recommendations for how universities can reclaim their true mission of transmitting knowledge and cultivating young minds.

Vroman's Bookstoer: Reyna Grande discusses & signs Migrant Heart: Essay About Things I Can’t Forget
2026-06-15 19:00 | Vroman’s Bookstore, 695 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, CA, 91101, United States
An ambitious memoir in essays by beloved bestselling author Reyna Grande that illuminates the hidden cost of the American Dream and the complex journey of healing that follows survival.
What is the true power of stories? Can they heal the jagged edges of a traumatic childhood? Is the cost of telling the story worth the price of the cure?
Reyna Grande has spent her career capturing the raw reality of life across borders. In this intricate and deeply intimate memoir-in-essays, the author of the landmark memoirs The Distance Between Us and A Dream Called Home again turns her gaze inward to explore the scars left by migration and the ongoing work of stitching herself back together.
With her signature blend of sophistication and raw honesty, Grande interrogates how living between two nations, two languages, and two identities has shaped the woman, mother, and writer she has become. Moving from the legacy of violence in her hometown of Iguala, Mexico, to a bittersweet family vacation in Europe spent reconciling her own impoverished past with her children’s world of abundance, she uncovers startling truths about the nature of survival.
Whether being racially profiled in the Arizona borderlands or finding unexpected wisdom from the slugs in her garden, Grande unflinchingly asks: How do we bridge the gap between who we were and who we have become? How do we turn pain into power? When memory threatens to define us, how can we use story to heal while still honoring our boundaries?
Migrant Heart is a powerful testament to Grande’s role as a storyteller and cultural witness. It expands our understanding of life in the United States and the complex people who cross and live within its borders. It is an essential read for the seekers, the dreamers, and anyone who believes in the enduring, transformative power of finding one’s voice.

Vroman's Bookstore: CJ Leede & Kyle Kouri, in conversation with Chuck Tingle & Liz Kerin, discuss & sign Headlights & The Problem Drinker
2026-06-16 19:00 | Vroman’s Bookstore, 695 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, CA, 91101, United States
Special Agent Daniel Stansfield is ready for a change. Burnt out and defeated by the job, it’s his last day with the FBI. But before he can turn in his badge, he’s summoned back to Denver, the city he ran from four years ago, with a chilling message: it’s happening again.
Seemingly innocent people are waking up on the side of the highway, with no memory of how they got there, wearing the skin of victims they’ve allegedly never met. And they each share one haunting detail: a strand of a stranger’s hair is tied around their tongue.
Now Daniel is pulled back into the gruesome cycle, and every clue leads him deeper into the shadows of his own past. He will have to confront the ghosts of his traumatic childhood and face what’s been hunting him all along— before he and the people he loves become the next victims.
About The Problem Drinker
His girlfriend is horror famous, his own writing and acting is floundering, and he is drinking to make sense of it all.
Kyle Kouri’s debut non-fiction collection is full of ‘whiskey courage’ staring at the abyss of family, writing rejection, relationships, and his own drinking. From hijinks at AWP to hustling in the movie business, Kouri bridges the gap in drama between indie and horror.
At turns hilarious and heartbreaking, The Problem Drinker is the story of an artist living with another artist, yearning to move the needle in his career, amidst a sea of personal tragedies and comedies. If F. Scott Fitzgerald had one foot in the 2020s horror scene, that’s the spirit of Kouri’s caustic and big-hearted, lush and refreshingly candid debut.

Shannon Algeo, discusses & signs The Power in Your Hands: Liberate Yourself from Attachment to Technology
2026-06-16 19:00 | Vroman’s Bookstore, 695 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, CA, 91101, United States
“A moving and inspiring book about the most important topic facing all of us.” –Johann Hari, author of New York Times bestselling book Stolen Focus
Who will you become when you put down your phone and pick up your life?
The average smartphone user spends the equivalent of 61 to 80 days per year on their device. Smartphones have become the fifth limb of the human body as they move with us from the bathroom to the waiting room to the kitchen sink to the bed. But we aren’t just physically attached to our phones; we’re emotionally attached as well.
New research reveals how individuals with insecure attachment styles (anxious or avoidant) are more likely to develop a problematic or compulsive relationship with their smartphone. But all of us–regardless of our attachment style–are turning to our phones more and more to soothe and distract us, which numbs our empathy, diminishes the quality of our relationships, and drains the part of our brain required for creative focus. The more time we spend on our screens, the less time we spend engaging in our life with our own two hands. The good news is that we can course-correct by reclaiming the embodied and ensouled wisdom that our recent ancestors knew well. But digital detoxes are not enough. We need both personal and collective action to recover from the tsunami of digital distraction we now face.
In The Power in Your Hands, psychotherapist and meditation teacher Shannon Algeo invites readers to reckon with their attachment to technology through understanding the connections between compulsive smartphone behavior and their unique attachment style in relationships. He guides readers on a journey of reconnection to their inner child’s needs for artistry, self-expression, and real human relationships. Through psychologically supported “rituals of remembering”, readers will rewire their neuropsychology and reclaim their creativity so they can move from the despair of digitization to the fulfillment of re-humanization.
While we must address this problem collectively, only you can reckon with the underlying human needs, desires, fears, and insecurities that keep you reaching for a phone that would sooner have you scroll into oblivion than connect with your soul. Your attention, relationships, and desires are yours. The power is in your hands.

Vroman's Bookstore: Kerri Schlottman, discusses & signs Daytime Moon
2026-06-17 19:00 | Vroman’s Bookstore, 695 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, CA, 91101, United States
Isa has a gift. Premonitions, intuitive insight, a knack for tarot. But she is adrift.
Years ago, she ran away from one coast to the other and never looked back, but when her brother Cole unexpectedly shows up on her stoop, she’s convinced that it’s time to go home. Back in the California desert, Isa is swept up in her former life of late-night drag races by the Salton Sea, beers with the locals, and haunting reminders of the twin sister she lost and the mother she never got to meet.
When Dane, the man who raised them, becomes terminally ill, Isa is forced to confront everything she ran away from. In a posthumous letter, his revelations ignite her fearless internal drive. Traveling up and down California highways, through desert and forest, roaring coastline and border towns, Isa will follow the signs so delicately woven into the fabric of her life – a name, a constellation, a painting, a gleam of recognition on the water’s surface. If she can piece them together, she just might reunite the shattered remains of her beloved family.
Artfully narrated, Schlottman’s novel is an unforgettable journey through hidden stories, the depths of women’s secrets, the shimmering fluidity of memory, and the magic of transmutation.

Vroman's Bookstore: Vroman's Summer Reading Program: Sophia Sings Sendak
2026-06-18 11:00 | Vroman’s Bookstore, 695 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, CA, 91101, United States
Join Sophia, a professional musician from the band Cash & Skye and a Card & Gift Clerk at Vroman’s Bookstore, in a morning of song, dance, and storytelling! Enjoy Maurice Sendak classics such as Chicken Soup with Rice, Pierre: A Cautionary Tale in Five Chapters, and more.

Vroman's Bookstore: Joan Lunden discusses & signs Joan: Life Beyond the Script
2026-06-18 19:00 | Vroman’s Bookstore, 695 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, CA, 91101, United States
In this fearless and inspiring memoir, trailblazing journalist Joan Lunden pulls back the curtain on the defining moments that shaped her extraordinary life–from breaking barriers on national television to reshaping motherhood, survivorship, and aging on her own terms.
Since bursting onto the national morning news scene in 1980 as cohost of Good Morning America, Joan Lunden has been a catalyst for revolutionary societal changes. She didn’t just report the headlines; she made headlines for shattering the mold in a news industry dominated by older white men and rewrote the rules entirely. In a bold move that challenged workplace norms, Joan was one of the first to bring her newborn daughter to work so she could continue breastfeeding, showing the world that she could be a dedicated mom and a top-tier journalist at the same time.
In her 50s, after raising three grown daughters from her previous marriage, Joan and her husband, Jeff Konigsberg, welcomed two sets of twins via surrogate, proving women can embrace motherhood at any age.
Then, in her 60s, Joan discovered she had breast cancer. She bravely went public with her diagnosis, chronicling her journey and fearlessly posing bald on the cover of PEOPLE. Standing in her truth, she became an advocate for women to be better informed about the disease. She even lobbied Washington to require mammogram testing results be made available to all women, especially those with dense breast tissue. Her valiant efforts enabled early cancer detection and surely helped save countless lives.
During the later-life care of her mother, Glady, Joan advocated again–this time for senior citizens. She testified before Congress to expand the Family and Medical Leave Act to include senior care, imploring that caregiving isn’t just something we do at the start of life– it happens at the end, as well.
At every turn, Joan has been willing to step out of her comfort zone while reinventing herself and the environment around her. JOAN: Life Beyond the Script shares the extraordinary transitions this journalist, television host, author, and advocate has undergone and how she has influenced our life transitions as well. By deeply reflecting on the most pivotal moments in her life and career, accepting the times when she faltered as much as when she was sure of herself, Lunden encourages us all to be open to change and the profound transformations it brings.

Vroman's Bookstore: Daniel Brewer and Paul Paolilli read from & sign Pondering: A Story in Cinquains
2026-06-20 11:00 | Vroman’s Bookstore, 695 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, CA, 91101, United States
This lyrically written and gorgeously illustrated ode to ponds is crafted in a uniquely American poetic form called American cinquain.
In this glorious celebration of nature, three girls walk an old trail in search of a hidden pond, marveling at treasures they discover along the way–darting dragonflies, croaking bullfrogs, fluttering sycamore leaves, and more. Written in a unique poetic form called American cinquain, the story seamlessly weaves together an invitation to readers to immerse themselves in nature, while also bringing attention to this endangered ecosystem. The info-packed pages at the end of the book include an overview of the pond ecosystem and the current threat to it, as well as an exploration of the cinquain form.

SCCM: Storytime with Kitty Caterpillar
2026-06-20 11:00 - 12:00 | Southern California Children’s Museum, 459 E. Colorado Blvd, Pasadena, CA, 91011, United States
Meet the creators of Kitty Caterpillar, a one-of-a-kind creature who’s part kitty-cat, part caterpillar and 100% irresistible. Join authors Annabeth Bondor-Stone and Connor White for an interactive, laugh-out-loud story time exploring their charming new picture book that celebrates curiosity, friendship and the great outdoors.

Vroman's Bookstore: ; Tom Lin discusses & signs Babylon, South Dakota
2026-06-20 15:00 | Vroman’s Bookstore, 695 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, CA, 91101, United States
From the author of the Carnegie Medal in Fiction winner The Thousand Crimes of Ming Tsu comes a tantalizing, American West saga about a Chinese American family trying to survive on their Dakota farm as a powerful, mysterious, and morally dubious military secret shapes their lives.
“Lin’s gossamer prose is patient and full of wonders.”– Ed Park, author of Same Bed Different Dreams and An Oral History of Atlantis
When Saul Keng Hsiu and his wife, Mei Lee, move from China to the United States to take possession of a 160-acre homestead bequeathed to them by a distant relative, all they have are the possessions on their back, some hidden gold, and a pocketful of chrysanthemum seeds. After a rocky start and a long, harsh winter, the couple find themselves successfully raising chrysanthemums and livestock, and soon after, a daughter, Mara.
But when representatives from the US Army Corps of Engineers buy an acre of the Hsiu’s farmland and begin building a missile silo, the inexplicable starts to occur: Mara can commune with the animals on the farm, Mei develops a hidden talent for augury, and the chrysanthemums become impervious to everything. When the Hsius learn that the project on their farm is an effort to make America’s nuclear deterrent invulnerable, they see firsthand the long arm of power and empire.
In the years and generations that follow, increasingly impacted by the silo and its residue, the Hsius experience strange, wondrous, and tragic events on their farm. An ambitious epic and an ode to the beauty and glory of our connection to the natural world, Babylon, South Dakota, upends the idea of “strangers in a strange land” to become a classic American story. It is a daring novel about how choices reverberate across generations and asks us what we owe to one another.

Third@First: Christoph Bull, Organ
2026-06-20 16:00 - 17:00 | First United Methodist Church, 500 E. Colorado Blvd., Pasadena, CA, 91101, United States
World-renowned organist Christoph Bull will play an eclectic program ranging from the classics to new works to the cinematic. Performance painter Norton Wisdom, will interpret the music through painting in real time.

Archetype Yoga: Sapphic Soiree 2026
2026-06-20 18:30 - 20:30 | Archetypa Yoga, 638 e colorado ave, pasadena, CA, 91101, United States
An evening dedicated to meet and mingle with your local Queer community to celebrate Pride in style.

Overview
Celebrate Pride this year in Pasadena and get to know your local queer community. Bring a friend or meet new ones. Lez Pasadena is taking over Archetype Yoga, located in Pasadena’s Playhouse Village overlooking the iconic Colorado Blvd.
Sapphic Soiree is an inclusive event to meet new people and socialize. Created to bring people together in a casual, low-stakes environment with a guided itinerary of activities designed to keep the conversations flowing and the evening going! This event is age-inclusive. Join us for an evening of speed ‘friend’ dating, games, small bites, and more!
🏳️‍🌈 Sapphic Soiree- Saturday, June 20th| 6:30-8:30 PM | Doors open at 6:15pm

Boston Court Pasadena: Sidney Jacobs: Civil Soul
2026-06-20 20:00 | Boston Court Pasadena, 70 N. Mentor Ave., Pasadena, CA, 91206, United States
Boston Court Pasadena presents Sidney Jacobs presents Civil Soul–a journey through jazz and the protest music of the ’70s, working with a stunning array of jazz legends in a celebration of this influential music and movement of the time.

Archetype Yoga: Sapphic Soiree
2026-06-21 18:30 - 20:30 | Archetypa Yoga, 638 e colorado ave, pasadena, CA, 91101, United States
Celebrate Pride this year in Pasadena and get to know your local queer community. Bring a friend or meet new ones. Lez Pasadena is taking over Archetype Yoga, located in Pasadena’s Playhouse Village overlooking the iconic Colorado Blvd.
Sapphic Soiree is an inclusive event to meet new people, network, and socialize. Created to bring people together in a casual, low-stakes environment with a guided itinerary of activities designed to keep the conversations flowing and the evening going! This event is age-inclusive. Join us for an evening of speed ‘friend’ dating, games, small bites, and more! Bring a business card if you have one!
🏳️‍🌈 Sapphic Soiree- Saturday, June 21| 6:30-8:30 PM | Doors open at 6:15pm
👯‍♀️ Sapphic Bingo
🎲 Games
👥 Networking opportunities. Bring a business Card!
🥂 Drinks and small bites | Sapphic Soiree is a non-profit event; there’s a suggested donation of $25-$35, which covers the costs of food and drink.
Sapphic Soirée is brought to life by queer women entrepreneurs and community leaders in Pasadena, united in their passion to create a visible, welcoming space for queer folks in our city. If you would like to contact Lez Pasadena to volunteer, please message us on Instagram or email lezpasadena@gmail.com
Meet your hosts:
👯‍♀️ LezPasadena – We are a non-profit organization, and all event donation proceeds go directly toward covering the upfront costs of current events and supporting the creation of future community-driven programming. We’re just getting started with exciting events designed to bring the Sapphic community together. Our space warmly welcomes trans and non-binary individuals. Follow Us @LezPasadena
🧘‍♀️ Archetype Yoga: An inclusive community for movement offering weekly yoga classes, workshops, and private lessons for adults of all ages and stages. @archetypeyoga
🔊Mia Design Group: Here to help you with your home technology. We collaborate closely with homeowners, general contractors, and architects to customize solutions for your home entertainment systems that are both stylish and functional. @miadesigngroup
⚽️ Pasadena Rising FC: We are a Pasadena-based beginner-friendly pick-up soccer league for Women, nonbinary, trans & GNC. Move with an inclusive group, make new friends, and join us on Sundays and Wednesdays. @pasadenarisingfc
