From Stars Hollow to Studio 8H, the screen is staging a visit to Naperville in more ways than one this autumn. But if television stars aren’t your forte, don’t fret. Familiar faces from TikTok and dust jackets are also due for a few local stops in coming months.
Through the fall, Anderson’s Bookshop has a packed calendar of opportunities for book-lovers, social media savants, TV buffs and everyone in between to meet the personalities behind their favorite pieces of media at a handful of local venues in and around Naperville.
Ginny Wehrli-Hemmeter, director of events and marketing for Anderson’s, says the store’s slate of author visits is shaping up to be a “big fall.”
“Whether you want to learn more about current events, hear from big names that you love or totally escape from reality, we have events that fall into all of those categories,” she said.
On Sept. 20, fans of the show “Gilmore Girls” will have the chance to see Kelly Bishop, Emily Gilmore herself, at Naperville’s Yellow Box Theater. Naperville is one of four stops Bishop is making as part of a small book tour this fall for her memoir, “The Third Gilmore Girl.”
Bishop’s memoir spans her six decades in show business, a storied career that not only includes her years as a Gilmore, but also time on Broadway — where Bishop earned a Tony Award — and a long list of other on-screen credits from “Dirty Dancing” to “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel.”
On Oct. 3, “Saturday Night Live” alum Kate McKinnon is coming to the Tivoli Theatre in Downers Grove to promote the release of her debut novel, “The Millicent Quibb School of Etiquette for Young Ladies of Mad Science.” McKinnon started working on the middle school-genre book, which was inspired by her own childhood, before she first appeared on SNL, Deadline reported in February.
More Top Picks Best Tinted Glasses For Photophobia
Next week on Sept. 4, Max Greenfield, best known for his roles as Schmidt in “New Girl” and Dave Johnson in “The Neighborhood,” is making an Anderson’s appearance at the Tivoli Theatre to celebrate the release of his book, “Good Night Thoughts.”
A few other September events are already fresh out of tickets.
Registration to attend the program with New York Times bestselling author Jodi Picoult — writer of “My Sister’s Keeper” and “Nineteen Minutes,” among others — on Sept. 8 at North Central College’s Pfeiffer Hall was sold out as of June, according to Jules Billings, events and school visits coordinator for Anderson’s. Picoult is promoting her newest book, “By Any Other Name.”
Tickets to see reality TV star and podcast host Stassi Schroeder at Pfeiffer Hall on Sept. 13 sold out in a matter of days, Billings said. Schroeder, who is best known as one of the original breakout stars of the Bravo series “Vanderpump Rules,” is visiting Naperville on a seven-stop tour celebrating her third book, “You Can’t Have it All.”
Didn’t snag a slot in time for Schroeder or Picoult? Anderson’s has more in store for the season.
On Sept. 12, “Big Little Lies” author Liane Moriarty will be signing copies of her newest book, “Here One Moment,” and answering audience questions at North Central College’s Wentz Concert Hall.
Author and TikTok personality Kyle Prue will be at Wentz on Sept. 21. Prue, who has 1.4 million followers on TikTok and 219,000 followers on Instagram, will be showcasing his book, “How to Piss Off Men,” with a presentation and audience Q&A as well as book signing and photo opportunities.
New York Times bestselling author George M. Johnson will be at Anderson’s downtown Naperville store on Sept. 25 to share a conversation with visual artist Charly Palmer as Johnson celebrates the release of their newest book “Flamboyants,” a set of essays about Black and Queer icons from 1920s Black America.
Johnson’s debut memoir, “All Boys Aren’t Blue,” was the second most challenged book in the United States in 2023, according to the American Library Association. In 2022, TIME Magazine named Johnson one of its “100 Next Most Influential People in the World” for the year.
Kwame Alexander, author of the Newbery Medal- and Coretta Scott King Award-winning middle grade novel “The Crossover,” is coming to Anderson’s in Naperville on Sept. 26. Alexander will be signing copies of his latest work, “Black Star.”
Next month, on Oct. 7, recipe developer and content creator Henry Laporte — better known as Salt Hank — is appearing at Stevenson Hall in North Central’s Wentz Science Center to speak and answer questions about his first cookbook, “Salt Hank: A Five Napkin Situation.”
A week later, on Oct. 16, kitten rescuer and animal advocate Hannah “Kitten Lady” Shaw and her husband Andrew Mattila, a professional animal photographer specializing in cats, will be making a visit to Anderson’s in Naperville to celebrate their book, “Cats of the World.”
More details, including time and ticket availability, for author visits can be found at https://www.andersonsbookshop.com/event.