Explore family friendly events, theatres, galleries, concerts, nightlife, things to do, and more in the Greenville, SC and Upstate areas.

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Wednesday, October 30, 2024
In Conversation with Daniel C. Abel
Oct 30 @ 5:30 pm – 7:00 pm
The Gallery at M. Judson

Sharkpedia is an entertaining and enlightening celebration of sharks featuring close to 100 entries, based on the latest knowledge and enriched by original illustrations. Avoiding tired factoids, shark authority Daniel Abel gives new bite to essential information about sharks, including their adaptations as top predators, 450-million-year evolution, behavioral complexity, ecological importance, existential threats, and often sensationalized appearances in popular culture, from Jaws to Shark Week.

Saturday, November 2, 2024
Storytime on the Steps
Nov 2 @ 10:30 am – 11:30 am
M. Judson Booksellers

Bring your littles to the front steps of M. Judson for our bi-weekly story time! Enjoy some wonderful picture books read aloud to the crowd by our very own booksellers, and children will even get a sweet treat to go.

Sunday, November 3, 2024
Silent Reading Party
Nov 3 @ 3:00 pm – 6:00 pm
The Gallery at M. Judson

Enjoy 3 uninterrupted hours of silent reading in the M. Judson Gallery space. Your ticket includes snacks, beverages, and most importantly: peace and quiet.

Wednesday, November 6, 2024
Storytime on the Steps
Nov 6 @ 10:30 am – 11:30 am
M. Judson Booksellers

Bring your littles to the front steps of M. Judson for our bi-weekly story time! Enjoy some wonderful picture books read aloud to the crowd by our very own booksellers, and children will even get a sweet treat to go.

In Conversation with Susanna Ashton
Nov 6 @ 5:30 pm – 7:00 pm
M. Judson Booksellers

Join us for a free In Conversation event with Clemson professor Dr. Susanna Ashton to discuss her latest book, A Plausible Man, with fellow Clemson professor Dr. Rhondda Thomas.

A Plausible Man: The True Story of the Escaped Slave Who Inspired Uncle Tom’s Cabin unfolds as a historical detective story, as Susanna Ashton combs obscure records for evidence of John Andrew Jackson’s remarkable flight from slavery to freedom, his quest to liberate his enslaved family, and his emergence as an international advocate for abolition. This fresh and original work takes us through the Civil War, Reconstruction, and the restoration of white supremacy—where we last glimpse Jackson losing his freedom again on a Southern chain gang.

“A Plausible Man is a remarkable piece of historical sleuthing and often a riveting read. Ms. Ashton’s tale is enhanced by the inclusion of numerous photos of people and places important in Jackson’s life.” —Wall Street Journal

“A scholarly detective story about a man who would inspire a world-changing book.” —Kirkus Reviews

Susanna Ashton is a Professor of English at Clemson University. An expert on slavery and freedom narratives, she was a Du Bois fellow at Harvard’s Hutchins Center, a fellow with Yale’s Gilder Lehrman Center, and a Fulbright scholar.

Saturday, November 9, 2024
Storytime on the Steps
Nov 9 @ 10:30 am – 11:30 am
M. Judson Booksellers

Bring your littles to the front steps of M. Judson for our bi-weekly story time! Enjoy some wonderful picture books read aloud to the crowd by our very own booksellers, and children will even get a sweet treat to go.

Big Night Wine Dinner
Nov 9 @ 5:30 pm – 8:30 pm
M. Judson Booksellers

Celebrating publication of WHAT I ATE IN ONE YEAR (and related thoughts), by Stanley Tucci. Lifetimes ago, we watched the iconic indie food movie written and directed by Stanley Tucci, Big Night. It’s the story of two Italian brothers (played by Stanley Tucci and Tony Shalhoub), with a restaurant that serves traditional Italian food for a dubious 1960s New York public. Across the street, the guy who’s doing a side of meatballs with everything is killing it. (He’s also married to the stunning Isabella Rossellini.) The solution?

Word gets out that jazz singer Louis Prima is in town, and coming to the brother’s restaurant for a make-or-break dinner to end all dinners— a very big night.

And what a dinner it was. Starting with martinis, ending with a fistfight, with a great big timpano and dancing in the middle. We’ve thought about, loved, and recommended this movie for almost 30 years.

In celebration of Stanley Tucci’s new memoir, WHAT I ATE IN ONE YEAR, we’re recreating the meal from the film, course by loving course.

Join Chef Teryi Youngblood of Camilla Kitchen and Christina Barest of Naked Pasta for a very big night. Each dish will be paired with Italian wines from Mission Grape, and each ticket (or couple’s ticket) includes a copy of the book. Seats are very limited. Conga lines are optional.

Cocktail attire encouraged.

Individual ticket $165

Couples ticket (one book) $300

Monday, November 11, 2024
Lunch + Lit with Beatriz Williams, Lauren Willig, and Karen White
Nov 11 @ 12:00 pm – 1:30 pm
Soby's

Williams, Lauren Willig, and Karen White at Soby’s to celebrate the release of their book, The Author’s Guide to Murder! Your ticket includes entry to the event, a three course lunch, and a signed copy of the book.

Agatha Christie meets Murder, She Wrote in this witty locked room mystery by New York Times bestselling team of novelists: Beatriz Williams, Lauren Willig, and Karen White. There’s been a sensational murder at historic Castle Kinloch, a gothic fantasy of grey granite on a remote island in the Highlands of Scotland. Literary superstar Brett Saffron Presley has been found dead—under bizarre circumstances—in the castle tower’s book-lined study. Years ago, Presley purchased the castle as a showpiece for his brand and to lure paying guests with a taste for writerly glamour. Now it seems, the castle has done him in…or, possibly, one of the castle’s guests has. Detective Chief Inspector Euan McIntosh, a local with no love for this literary American show-off (or Americans in general), finds himself with the unenviable task of extracting statements from three American lady novelists. The prime suspects are Kat de Noir, a slinky, sexy erotica writer; Cassie Pringle, a Southern mom of six juggling multiple cozy mystery series; and Emma Endicott, a New England blue blood and author of critically acclaimed historical fiction. The women claim to be best friends writing a book together: a historical novel about the castle’s lurid past and its debauched laird, who himself ended up creatively murdered. But the authors’ stories about how they know Brett Saffron Presley don’t quite line up, and the detective is getting increasingly suspicious. Why did the authors really come to Castle Kinloch? Is the murder of the long-ago laird somehow connected with the playboy author’s unfortunate demise? And what really happened the night of the great Kinloch ceilidh, when Brett Saffron Presley skipped the folk dancing for a rendezvous with death? A crafty locked-room mystery, a pointed satire about the literary world, and a tale of unexpected friendship and romance—this novel has it all, as only three bestselling authors can tell it!

Beatriz Williams is the bestselling author of over a dozen novels, including The Beach at Summerly, Our Woman in Moscow, and The Summer Wives, as well as four other novels cowritten with Lauren Willig and Karen White. A native of Seattle, she graduated from Stanford University and earned an MBA in finance from Columbia University. She lives with her husband and four children near the Connecticut shore, where she divides her time between writing and laundry. Lauren Willig is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author. An alumna of Yale University, she has a graduate degree in history from Harvard and a J.D. from Harvard Law School. She lives in New York City. Karen White is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of twenty-five novels, including Dreams of Falling and The House on Prytania, as well as the Tradd Street mystery series. She currently writes what she refers to as “grit lit”—Southern women’s fiction. She is a graduate of the American School in London and has a BS in management from Tulane University. When not writing, she spends her time reading, singing, and avoiding cooking. She has two grown children and currently lives near Atlanta, Georgia, with her husband and two spoiled Havanese dogs.

Tuesday, November 12, 2024
Open Mic Night
Nov 12 @ 6:00 pm – 7:00 pm
M. Judson Booksellers

Calling all poets and authors! Hosted by the South Carolina Governor’s School, this monthly open mic night is a great way to showcase your latest writing project. Open to all, sign up at the event for a 5 minute timeslot!

Open Mic Night
Nov 12 @ 6:00 pm – 7:00 pm
M. Judson Booksellers

Calling all poets and authors! Hosted by the South Carolina Governor’s School, this monthly open mic night is a great way to showcase your latest writing project. Open to all, sign up at the event for a 5 minute timeslot!

Wednesday, November 13, 2024
Storytime on the Steps
Nov 13 @ 10:30 am – 11:30 am
M. Judson Booksellers

Bring your littles to the front steps of M. Judson for our bi-weekly story time! Enjoy some wonderful picture books read aloud to the crowd by our very own booksellers, and children will even get a sweet treat to go.

Literary Bingo
Nov 13 @ 5:30 pm – 7:00 pm
M. Judson Booksellers

It’s Bookish Game Night at M. Judson! Join us and our friends at the Greenville County Library for a night of Literary Bingo, complete with prizes. Look for this event once a month, for a regular dose of fun.

This is a free event.

Thursday, November 14, 2024
Teacher Happy Hour
Nov 14 @ 5:00 pm – 7:00 pm
M. Judson Booksellers

Calling all teachers for a special night out! With a teacher ID you’ll get a free glass of our house bubbles or beer and receive a 15% discount on any purchase! We’ll also be doing a few extra special giveaways because we love you and you deserve it.

*discount does not apply to events, book clubs, alcohol, or catering

Teacher Happy Hour
Nov 14 @ 5:00 pm – 7:00 pm
M. Judson Booksellers

Calling all teachers for a special night out! With a teacher ID you’ll get a free glass of our house bubbles or beer and receive a 15% discount on any purchase! We’ll also be doing a few extra special giveaways because we love you and you deserve it.

*discount does not apply to events, book clubs, alcohol, or catering

Saturday, November 16, 2024
Pop Up Author Elizabeth Sumner Wafler
Nov 16 @ 10:00 am – 12:00 pm
M. Judson Booksellers

Stop by M. Judson for a Saturday morning pop up featuring local author Elizabeth Sumner Waffler!

When Mamie Morrow, a fledgling Charleston journalist, is offered an assignment covering the Grand Bohemian Lodge in Greenville, South Carolina, at Christmastime, she jumps at the chance. Her grandfather recently passed away and left her a mysterious box of objects from the time she spent with him in New Mexico when she was three. Mamie has zero recollection of her time with her grandfather, but she now knows that he was Navajo—and as the majestic Grand Bohemian is filled with Native American art, she hopes being there will help her regain those memories.

Robert Fitzpatrick is an upstart photographer from South Boston. Through equal parts inspiration and perspiration, he’s managed to compile a stunning portfolio, and he’s just relocated to slower-paced Charleston for its lush beauty and creative community. He’s also looking for the one—a girl to whom he can give his whole heart forever. But Rob harbors family secrets of his own.

Rob is smitten with Mamie’s energy and pluck, but to Mamie, career comes first. As Christmas Day approaches, the two grapple with the complications that arise when dreams confront reality—and witness the Christmas magic that can happen when you put your faith in love.

Elizabeth Wafler is the author of five novels. She is a member of the Women’s Fiction Writers Association, where she served as Director of Craft Education for two years. Elizabeth can be found reading, working at her blue desk, poking through a bookstore with a luscious latte in hand, at a farmer’s market, taming her garden into submission, or enjoying a pretty cocktail on her screened porch. Elizabeth resides in Greenville, South Carolina with her husband and their rescue pup Georgette.

Storytime on the Steps
Nov 16 @ 10:30 am – 11:30 am
M. Judson Booksellers

Bring your littles to the front steps of M. Judson for our bi-weekly story time! Enjoy some wonderful picture books read aloud to the crowd by our very own booksellers, and children will even get a sweet treat to go.

Tuesday, November 19, 2024
Page Pairings
Nov 19 @ 7:30 pm – 9:00 pm
M. Judson Booksellers

Join us for our monthly wine tasting and meet romcom author Claire Gilmore with her new book, The Perfect Fit!

A hilarious and heartfelt rom-com about having it all, slowing down to see the big picture, and finding out that the person you least expect could be your perfect fit. Josephine Davis has spent her entire twenties building Revenant: a fashion brand headquartered in downtown Austin. When her biggest investor orders Josie to hire a consultant, the last person she expects to be working with is Will Grant – the twin brother of Josie’s ex best friend. Sure, Will and Josie may have shared one mistake of a kiss during senior spring break nine years ago, but they’ve never been friends. She remembers him as moody; he always thought of her as shallow. Romance isn’t on the table for either of them until they blink, and realize there’s a reason they can’t stay away from each other. But there’s Will’s sister to consider – whom Josie hasn’t spoken with since their falling out – not to mention, Will and Josie live seventeen hundred miles apart. And it’s not like she has time for a boyfriend anyway when she’s an overworked CEO. As Josie’s burnout looms while she falls deeper and harder for Will, she contends with the fact that eventually, she’ll have to make a choice: stay alone to be productive, or slow down to be in love.

Clare Gilmore lives in Charlotte, North Carolina with her fiancé and a rambunctious dog. She spends her moonlight hours cooking excessively elaborate meals and planning more vacations than she’ll ever be able to take.

Page Pairings
Nov 19 @ 7:30 pm – 9:00 pm
M. Judson Booksellers

Join us for our monthly wine tasting and meet romcom author Clare Gilmore with her new book, The Perfect Fit!

A hilarious and heartfelt rom-com about having it all, slowing down to see the big picture, and finding out that the person you least expect could be your perfect fit. Josephine Davis has spent her entire twenties building Revenant: a fashion brand headquartered in downtown Austin. When her biggest investor orders Josie to hire a consultant, the last person she expects to be working with is Will Grant – the twin brother of Josie’s ex best friend. Sure, Will and Josie may have shared one mistake of a kiss during senior spring break nine years ago, but they’ve never been friends. She remembers him as moody; he always thought of her as shallow. Romance isn’t on the table for either of them until they blink, and realize there’s a reason they can’t stay away from each other. But there’s Will’s sister to consider – whom Josie hasn’t spoken with since their falling out – not to mention, Will and Josie live seventeen hundred miles apart. And it’s not like she has time for a boyfriend anyway when she’s an overworked CEO. As Josie’s burnout looms while she falls deeper and harder for Will, she contends with the fact that eventually, she’ll have to make a choice: stay alone to be productive, or slow down to be in love.

Clare Gilmore lives in Charlotte, North Carolina with her fiancé and a rambunctious dog. She spends her moonlight hours cooking excessively elaborate meals and planning more vacations than she’ll ever be able to take.

Wednesday, November 20, 2024
Storytime on the Steps
Nov 20 @ 10:30 am – 11:30 am
M. Judson Booksellers

Bring your littles to the front steps of M. Judson for our bi-weekly story time! Enjoy some wonderful picture books read aloud to the crowd by our very own booksellers, and children will even get a sweet treat to go.

In Conversation with Fine Arts Center Students
Nov 20 @ 5:30 pm – 7:00 pm
M. Judson Booksellers

The Wander Reading Series, curated by students at the Fine Arts Center, strives to cultivate an atmosphere where teens of all backgrounds have the opportunity to express their words, wonders, and wanderings, brimming with anxious confidence.

The Fine Arts Center is the first fine arts high school in the state, preparing dedicated students for 21st-century careers through rigorous, pre-professional arts training in a dynamic, inclusive, collaborative learning community.