Miranda Mellis presents "Crocosmia" in conversation w/ Alicia Puglionesi

Schedule

Wed Nov 12 2025 at 07:00 pm to 08:30 pm

UTC-05:00

Location

3128 Greenmount Avenue, Baltimore, MD, United States, Maryland 21218 | Baltimore, MD

A revelatory novel (or parable) of art, adventure, and a radical politics, set in a world on the precipice.
A philosophical fable, CROCOSMIA centers on Maya as she recollects the "great turning"—a moment of radical social and ecological change effected by her mother, Jane's, art. As Maya recalls her upbringing--from a commune run by anarchist nuns to a time of rural isolation before her mother's disappearance—Mellis's prose gorgeously conjures a life defined by revolutionary thought and action and the interplay and tension between family life and political commitment. At once a fantasy, a handbook to political thought, and a work of eco-fiction, this lush novel meditates on how, in a world on the precipice, dreams of communal care can bloom.
Miranda Mellis is the author of DEMYSTIFICATIONS (2021); THE INSTEAD (2016); THE SPOKES (2012); NONE OF THIS IS REAL (2012); and THE REVISIONIST (2007). Her stories, poems, and essays have appeared in various publications including Harper’s, The Believer, BOMB, The New York Times, and elsewhere. She has been an artist-in-residence at the Headlands Center for the Arts, the Vermont Studio Center, and Millay Colony. She received the John Hawkes Prize in Fiction, the Michael S. Harper Praxis Prize, and a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities. She grew up in San Francisco and now lives in Olympia, Washington.
Alicia Puglionesi is a lecturer in the Medicine, Science, and the Humanities program at JHU. She holds a PhD in the History of Science, Technology, and Medicine, and is the author of two books, COMMON PHANTOMS (2020) and IN WHOSE RUINS (2022), that concern relationships between spiritual belief and scientific knowledge. She teaches on health politics, the political economy of care, and health and science in popular literary genres.
Free or advanced book-purchase RSVP! https://withfriends.co/event/26756766/miranda_mellis_presents_crocosmia_in_conversation_w_alicia_puglionesi

Where is it happening?

3128 Greenmount Avenue, Baltimore, MD, United States, Maryland 21218
Icon
Know what’s Happening Next — before everyone else does.
Red Emma's Bookstore Coffeehouse

Host or Publisher Red Emma's Bookstore Coffeehouse

Ask AI if this event suits you:

Discover More Events in Baltimore

Max Lawton with Will Evans and Jeanne-Marie Jackson: SCHATTENFROH
Wed, 12 Nov at 05:00 pm Max Lawton with Will Evans and Jeanne-Marie Jackson: SCHATTENFROH

Bird in Hand Coffee & Books

ART LITERARY-ART
33 1\/3: PJ Harvey's Rid Of Me
Wed, 12 Nov at 05:30 pm 33 1/3: PJ Harvey's Rid Of Me

Atomic Books

MEETUPS
State Champs Stateside Super Sometimes at Ottobar at Ottobar
Wed, 12 Nov at 06:30 pm State Champs Stateside Super Sometimes at Ottobar at Ottobar

Ottobar

CONTESTS TRIPS-ADVENTURES
Put the Anna-Bal in Baltimore
Wed, 12 Nov at 06:45 pm Put the Anna-Bal in Baltimore

VFW Hampden Post 3065 & Auxiliary

WORKSHOPS
The Phantom of the Opera (Touring)
Wed, 12 Nov at 07:30 pm The Phantom of the Opera (Touring)

Hippodrome Theatre at the France-Merrick Performing Arts Center

State Champs
Wed, 12 Nov at 11:30 pm State Champs

Ottobar

CONTESTS TRIPS-ADVENTURES
Wed, 12 Nov at 11:30 pm Parking State Champs

Ottobar

TRIPS-ADVENTURES
Agency MVA ID Day
Thu, 13 Nov at 09:00 am Agency MVA ID Day

101 W 23rd St, Baltimore, MD, United States, Maryland 21218

Baltimore Silent Book Club
Thu, 11 Jan at 06:30 pm Baltimore Silent Book Club

Old Major

MEETUPS
Kay White Drew: "Stress Test"
Sat, 25 Oct at 02:00 pm Kay White Drew: "Stress Test"

Enoch Pratt Library - Light Street Branch

ART LITERARY-ART
Life on The Fifth Floor Book Signing - Baltimore
Sat, 25 Oct at 04:00 pm Life on The Fifth Floor Book Signing - Baltimore

Kneads Bakeshop & Café

ART LITERARY-ART
Persuasion - Pre-Show Soiree
Sat, 25 Oct at 07:15 pm Persuasion - Pre-Show Soiree

7 S. Calvert Street, Baltimore, MD, United States, Maryland 21202

ART THEATRE
Brunch & Books: Sistas Who Slay! - Book Club Meetup
Sun, 26 Oct at 11:00 am Brunch & Books: Sistas Who Slay! - Book Club Meetup

Papillons Cocoon

MEETUPS BRUNCH
Humanities in the Village, ft. Gisela Heffes & Lysley Tenorio: CROCODILES..
Mon, 27 Oct at 06:30 pm Humanities in the Village, ft. Gisela Heffes & Lysley Tenorio: CROCODILES..

Bird in Hand Coffee & Books

ART LITERARY-ART
Jaquira Diaz: "This Is the Only Kingdom"
Tue, 28 Oct at 07:00 pm Jaquira Diaz: "This Is the Only Kingdom"

Enoch Pratt Free Library

ART LITERARY-ART
Twilight (2008)
Wed, 29 Oct at 06:00 pm Twilight (2008)

727 W 40th St, Baltimore, MD, United States, Maryland 21211

Eric Foner: "Our Fragile Freedoms"
Wed, 29 Oct at 07:00 pm Eric Foner: "Our Fragile Freedoms"

Enoch Pratt Free Library

ART SPORTS
But Make It Books October Book Club
Wed, 29 Oct at 07:00 pm But Make It Books October Book Club

The Wine Collective

Greedy Reads Book Club: "Maggie; or, A Man and a Woman Walk Into a Bar"
Wed, 29 Oct at 07:00 pm Greedy Reads Book Club: "Maggie; or, A Man and a Woman Walk Into a Bar"

Greedy Reads Remington

WORKSHOPS COMEDY
Enoch Pratt Library Photo Book meet-up
Thu, 30 Oct at 05:30 pm Enoch Pratt Library Photo Book meet-up

Enoch Pratt Free Library

ART FINE-ARTS

What's Happening Next in Baltimore?

Discover Baltimore Events