1. Lesley Hazleton, author of After the Prophet, a book detailing the politics and personal rivalries behind the Sunni/Shia split in Islam, is hosting a reading-ish event tonight. It's the second in series of "Midnight Symposiums" at the fancy Sorrento Hotel on Madison, where attendees meet a local intellectual on the seventh floor and talk about whatever the local intellectual wants to talk about.

Hazleton wants to talk about America and "the roots of arrogance in ignorance." Judging by the subject of her book, it's a conversation she's qualified to lead.



Incidentally, PubliCola's already had a conversation with Lesley Hazleton, and the result was a tidal wave of an interview. If you have any doubts about whether this event would be worth attending, read this first .

PS: Tickets are fifty bucks, but that buys you a bowl of "hearty stew," a glass whiskey, and Hazleton's book (which, according to several inside sources, is one of the best books of the year),

2. There's a free "music jam and party" tonight at the Hidmo, an Eritrean restaurant on 20th and Jackson better known as a de facto Central District community center and hangout spot for Southside celebrities like Gabriel Teodros and Thee Satisfaction.

The party is centered on a conversation about the "state of African arts today" featuring two local choreographers and hip hop artist Dumi Maraire.

The event starts at 7:30, but apparently there's free food if you get there early enough. RSVP to [email protected].

3. There's another Literary Death Match tonight, at 9 pm at Re-Bar. This one features Stacey Levine, poet and author of the acclaimed Girl with Brown Fur and the lead singer of Chumbawamba, among others. BookNerd wrote about the last LDM here. If you're going, get there early—it's bound to be crowded.