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Fall's hot book talks: Hillary Clinton, Edward Snowden, a handful of beloved novelists

Also coming to Philly this fall: Ta-Nehisi Coates, Dan Rather, novelist-to-watch Claire Vaye Watkins.

Hillary Clinton at a BookExpo in June in Manhattan. She’s set to visit Philly in November for a talk on her new memoir, “What Happened.”
Hillary Clinton at a BookExpo in June in Manhattan. She’s set to visit Philly in November for a talk on her new memoir, “What Happened.”Read moreDennis Van Tine / Abaca Press

Every year it seems, Philly gets to be a bigger and bigger destination for writers. Among this fall's luminaries are Amy Tan, Hillary Clinton, Edward Snowden, Salman Rushdie, and Dan Rather, plus such local stars as Kathryn Watterson and James McBride. Get out, hear them, see them. And read them.

Edward Snowden (Sept. 11, Parkway Central Library). Former NSA contractor, whistle-blower, and strategic-sharer Snowden speaks via teleconference with Jeremy Scahill, journalist and cofounder of the online publication the Intercept. (215-567-4341, freelibrary.org)

Kathryn Watterson (Sept. 21, Penn Book Center). The accomplished writer and teacher tells a deeply felt and little-known true story in her new oral-history collaboration, I Hear My People Singing: Voices of African American Princeton. (215-222-7600, pennbookcenter.com)

Salman Rushdie and Claire Messud (Sept. 28, Parkway Central Library). Two distinguished authors read from their new books. His is The Golden House; hers is The Burning Girl. (215-567-4341, freelibrary.org)

James McBride (Oct. 11, Parkway Central Library). Local guy — and 2013 National Book Award winner for his novel The Good Lord Bird — comes to town with a fine collection of stories, Five-Carat Soul. (215-567-4341, freelibrary.org)

Amy Tan (Oct. 17, Parkway Central Library). This storyteller of mothers, daughters, and the Chinese experience in China and the United States looks back on her writing career in Where the Past Begins: A Writer's Memoir. (215-567-4341, freelibrary.org)

Bob Schieffer: Finding the Truth in Today's Deluge of News (Oct. 17,  National Constitution Center). The eminent journalist talks about his new book, Overload, and the changing role of media in today's political climate. (215-409-6600, constitutioncenter.org)

Carmen Machado and Jenny Zhang (Oct. 31, Writers House). Two prominent writers, each with a much-awaited new book, read from their work. (215-746-7636, writing.upenn.edu/wh)

Ta-Nehisi Coates (Nov. 2, Parkway Central Library). His 2015 book Between the World and Me thrust him into the center of the U.S. debate on race relations. His new book, We Were Eight Years in Power: An American Tragedy, laments the Trump triumph over the Obama legacy. (215-567-4341, freelibrary.org)

Dan Rather (Nov. 8, Parkway Central Library). In What Unites Us, the controversial longtime CBS anchor weighs in on the deep cultural crevasse in the United States and reminds us of what we have in common. (215-567-4341, freelibrary.org)

Emily Wilson and Bridget Murnaghan (Nov. 13, Penn Book Center). Two classics scholars at Penn discuss Wilson's brand-new translation of Homer's Odyssey. (215-222-7600, pennbookcenter.com)

Claire Vaye Watkins (Nov. 15, Bryn Mawr College). Watkins' Gold Fame Citrus put her on many lists of best new U.S. novelists. Come hear why. (610-526-5210, brynmawr.edu/reading-series)

Hillary Clinton (Nov. 30, Academy of Music). Philly is one of about a dozen U.S. cities on the defeated presidential candidate's speaking tour for her forthcoming memoir, What Happened. The 2,900-seat venue is apt to sell out fast. (215-893-1999, kimmelcenter.org)

Jed Perl (Dec. 5, Parkway Central Library). Alexander Calder, local kid, became the greatest U.S. sculptor of the 20th century. Perl's book Calder: The Conquest of Time: The Early Years: 1898-1940 takes us through his remarkable first 42 years. (215-567-4341, freelibrary.org)