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Books In Babeland Offers “I Loved My Cellmate” And Other Tales Of Love And Desire On November 5

Books In Babeland Offers “I Loved My Cellmate” And Other Tales Of Love And Desire On November 5
Babeland Brooklyn
Photo by Park Slope Stoop

How would you like to go to an event that includes stories that explore sexuality read by talented and funny writers and performers, while enjoying cocktails and perhaps receive a free gift?

If so, the Books in Babeland Series is perfect for you. The literary series is returning to Babeland (462 Bergen Street, between 5th and Flatbush Avenues) after being started in 2014 by Louise Crawford. Crawford continues to be the curator of the series.

On Thursday, November 5, comedian, writer, and filmmaker Katie Halper will host “I Loved My Cellmate” & Other Tales of Love and Desire. In addition to Halper, Athos Cakiades, Karen Ritter, and Gabe Arana will be reading from their work.

Sexuality will be the overarching theme — and one of the exciting parts of the series is how textured and diverse writings can be when exploring the subject.

While some of these subjects may be considered “taboo” to mainstream culture, the series parallels the idea behind Babeland — a store that provides a comfortable and welcoming space to shop for personal sexual toys, videos, books, and other accessories.

Katie Halper
Katie Halper (courtesy of Katie Halper)

Comedian, writer, and filmmaker Katie Halper will be pulling double duty on Thursday as both host and performer/reader.

When we asked Halper about what she’ll be performing, she explained that her work is “sometimes understated, often political, and feminist.” Halper has written a lot on these subjects, as she is a blogger for Salon, The Nation, Jezebel, among others.

The titles of the readings she will be performing are rather intriguing. They include “How To Get Out Of A Hookup When The Guy Is Already In Your Apartment,” “Orgasm Free Casual Sex: We Cum So Far Yet So Infrequently,” and “10 Lessons About Love and Marriage We Learned About Charles Manson.”

Athos Cakiades
Athos Cakiades. (courtesy of Athos Cakiades)

Writer, actor, and comedian Athos Cakiades will be reading from “I Loved my Cellmate,” which he has been in the process of developing for some time. It’s about a personal experience that happened when he spent 10 months in a federal prison for conspiracy to commit mail fraud. It was a situation fraught with complications — both from the legal perspective as well as the time he spent behind bars. “I’ve been sitting on this story for awhile,” says Cakiades. “It’s hard for me to come to terms with what happened.”

Cakiades is looking forward to the opportunity to perform this in front of an audience. “Reading a text out loud is a wonderful way to edit. I didn’t realize that until I had to start doing readings — it’s a wonderful tool to apply to your work.”

In addition to Halper and Cakiades, Karen Ritter and Gabe Arana will be reading select works as well.

Ritter currently divides her time between two novels, The Other Ingrid Bergman and The Rabbi’s Assistant. Her humor pieces have been published in The Morning News and The Big Jewel.

Arana is a senior media editor at Huffington Post. He’s also the recipient of the National Lesbian and Gay Journalist Association’s 2014 award for feature writing and was nominated for a GLAAD Media Award for his feature on the Proposition 8 case in California in 2010.

The Books in Babeland Rundown: “I Loved My Cellmate” & Other Tales of Love and Desire, hosted by Katie Halper
Where: Babeland, 462 Bergen Street, between 5th and Flatbush Avenues
When: Thursday, November 5 at 7:00pm
Admission: Free, but reservations can be made here. Arrive early, because the first ten guests will receive a free gift.