On Wednesday, July 13th, the fine Williamsburg bookstore Book Thug Nation hosted a Vol.1 event featuring Katarína Hybenová, Christian TeBordo, Seth Fried, and Adam Novy.

Katarína Hybenová read a story exploring family history in post-Soviet Russia, exploring memories of Slovakia and discussing ways to make Communist-era architecture more pleasing to the eye.

Christian TeBordo explained the concept behind his Ulterior Motives tour with Adam Novy, then followed that up with a story written in the form of a pitch letter. Moby-Dick and…one other notable work of literature were invoked.

Seth Fried read a pair of stories from his collection The Great Frustration. With an eye towards obscure creatures and surreal takes on urban life, Stephen Millhauser and Ben Katchor might well serve as points of reference.

Adam Novy closed out the night with a short reading from The Avian Gospels; he also threw in a recommendation for Klaus Theweleit’s Male Fantasies (located on a nearby shelf), an examination of fascist gangs (and the art they made) in Weimar Germany.