Xochitl Gonzalez  with Jodi-Ann Burey — 'Last Night in Brooklyn'

Third Place Books is an independent bookstore with three locations in Seattle, Washington. We offer new and used books, a community focus, and a legendary author events program! Follow us on social media @thirdplacebooks orsign up for our email newsletterfor updates!

Third Place Books

"The Brooklyn story I've been waiting for, replete with all the glamor, stakes, and capital D drama of a modern Great Gatsby." —Coco Mellors

Third Place Books welcomes Xochitl Gonzalez, author of Olga Dies Dreaming and Anita de Monte Laughs Last, for a conversation about her new book, <a href="https://www.thirdplacebooks.com/book/9781250372031" title="https://www.thirdplacebooks.com/book/9781250372031" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">Last Night in Brooklyn</a>: an ingenious turn-of-the-millennium answer to Gatsby examining gentrification, place, and the persistent phantasm of the American dream. Writer and critic Jodi-Ann Burey joins in conversation."Last Night in Brooklyn is a stunning achievement: The Great Gatsby reimagined for Black and brown Brooklyn, elegantly evocative and chattily profound. It is at once an exploration into the cost of ambition, a loving portrait of the people and places we are always on the verge of losing, and a fitting elegy for what is already gone." —Rachel Khong, author of Real AmericansThis event is free and open to the public. For important updates, RSVP is highly recommended in advance. This event will include a public signing and time for audience Q&amp;A. Sustain our author series by purchasing a copy of the featured book!<a href="https://www.eventbrite.com/support/articles/en_US/Troubleshooting/how-to-troubleshoot-problems-registering-for-an-event?lg=en_US" title="https://www.eventbrite.com/support/articles/en_US/Troubleshooting/how-to-troubleshoot-problems-registering-for-an-event?lg=en_US">Having trouble registering? See Eventbrite's troubleshooting FAQ here</a>. <h3>Tickets:</h3>This event is free to attend. Registration is required in advance. <h3>About Last Night in Brooklyn. . .</h3>NAMED A MOST ANTICIPATED BOOK OF 2026 BY TIME, OPRAH DAILY, USA TODAY, PEOPLE, ELECTRIC LIT, HARPER'S BAZAAR, LITHUB, BOOK RIOT, PUBLISHER'S WEEKLY, TOWN &amp; COUNTRY, SHE READS, LIBRARY JOURNAL, AND MORE!New York Times bestselling author Xochitl Gonzalez delivers a captivating story about a young woman whose life becomes ensnared in her glamorous neighbor’s secret pastSPRING, 2007At twenty-six, Alicia Canales Forten feels smothered by her future. She’s in a long-distance relationship, living at home with her mother’s beliefs, saving up for her wedding to a future doctor. But after Alicia ventures out one night in the neighborhood of Fort Greene, Brooklyn, she finds herself lured by the siren song of youth and possibility that the striving crowd of creatives holds, and moves in.No one embodies this milieu more than La Garza, a larger-than-life, up-and-coming fashion designer whose epic house parties fuel neighborhood lore. La Garza’s life, observed by Alicia from her apartment across the street, seems to hold the allure and fearlessness Alicia has never dared to imagine for herself.But when Alicia’s wealthy banker cousin moves to the neighborhood, she finds herself increasingly drawn into both his and La Garza’s precarious lives.Against the backdrop of a potentially life-changing presidential election and a looming once-in-a-generation fiscal crisis, Last Night in Brooklyn explores the dark compromise of the American Dream for people of color living, unknowingly, in the twilight of a cultural moment. It is a story about everything money can buy—and the destruction of what it can’t. Xochitl Gonzalez is the New York Times bestselling author of Anita de Monte Laughs Last, a Reese's Book Club Pick longlisted for the Aspen Words Literary Prize, and the award-winning Olga Dies Dreaming, named a Best of 2022 by The New York Times, TIME, Kirkus, Washington Post, and NPR. Gonzalez is a staff writer for The Atlantic and was recognized as a 2023 Pulitzer Prize finalist in Commentary. A native Brooklynite and proud public school graduate, Gonzalez holds a BA from Brown University and an MFA from the Iowa Writers’ Workshop. Jodi-Ann Burey is a writer, critic and sought-after speaker on race, culture and health equity. Her essays appear in various arts, business and literary publications. Her writing has been supported by VONA, Hambidge, VCCA and the Vermont Studio Center. Jodi-Ann created the prose and poetry salon, Lit Lounge: The People’s Art and co-founded Black Women Write Seattle. She is the author of <a href="https://www.thirdplacebooks.com/book/9781250882868" title="https://www.thirdplacebooks.com/book/9781250882868" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">Authentic: The Myth of Bringing your Full Self to Work</a>. Jodi-Ann was born in Jamaica, lives in Seattle, WA, and will always call Queens, NY home. <h3>About Third Place Books</h3>Founded in 1998 in Lake Forest Park, Washington, Third Place Books is dedicated to the creation of a community around books and the ideas inside them. With locations in Lake Forest Park and Seattle's Ravenna and Seward Park neighborhoods, Third Place Books is proud to serve the entire Seattle metro area. Learn more about their event series at <a href="https://www.thirdplacebooks.com/events" title="https://www.thirdplacebooks.com/events" target="_blank" data-msys-clicktrack="0" rel="nofollow noopener noreferrer">thirdplacebooks.com/events</a>

Our {communityGuidelinesLink} describe the sort of content we prohibit on Eventbrite. If you suspect an event may be in violation, you can report it to us so we can investigate.

To report other categories of prohibited or illegal content, submit {link}

Xochitl Gonzalez with Jodi-Ann Burey — 'Last Night in Brooklyn'

More events from Third Place Books

Discover more events from Third Place Books, from Arts to other experiences you might love.

Still looking for the right event?

Explore all events in Lake Forest Park and filter by date, category, and more to find the perfect fit.

Xochitl Gonzalez with Jodi-Ann Burey — 'Last Night in Brooklyn'

More events from Third Place Books

Discover more events from Third Place Books, from Arts to other experiences you might love.

More Arts events

Browse more Arts events with different dates, prices, and formats to find your next great experience.

Still looking for the right event?

Explore all events in Lake Forest Park and filter by date, category, and more to find the perfect fit.