Reconstruction Room @ Black Rock

Reconstruction Room, a twice-monthly reading series that features a different theme for each show and encourages audience participation, presents "The Best of the Really Really Small Presses," a celebration of the local poets and publishers who "make small, non-commercial artist's book sthe primary vehicle for their poetry." Featuring readings by Matthias Regan, Christopher Alexander, John Trowbridge and more. Free at 8pm, 3614 N. Damen Ave. Email recroom[at]recroomers[dot]com for more information.

Local Author Night @ Book Cellar

The Book Cellar welcomes yet another round of inspiring local writers. This month join the authors of Cat Women: Female Writers on their Feline Friends Margaret Littman, Judy Sutton Taylor and Leah Zeldes; Ben Tanzer, author of Lucky Man; Lynn Voedisch, author of Excited Light and A.W. Hill, author of The Last Days of Madame Rey. Don't miss this great chance to ask the authors questions and hear them discuss their works. Free at 7pm, 4736 N. Lincoln Ave. Call 773-293-2665 for more information.

Theater on the Lake: This Is Our Youth

The Chicago Park District presents Theater on the Lake, a summer-long revival of great theatrical productions from the last year or so. This week's production: This Is Our Youth, a production by Pinebox Theatre and AJ Not Alan Productions. The show plays at the Theater on the Lake theater (Fullerton Avenue at Lake Michigan) Wednesday through Sunday at 7:30 PM (6:30 PM Sunday nights). Tickets are $17.50 and can be purchased through the Theater on the Lake box office: (312) 742-7994. Also see the Website for a complete schedule of shows.

16 Bitch Pile-Up, Magic Is Kuntmaster, Burrow @ Enemy

Enemy (1550 N. Milwaukee Ave, 3rd Floor) presents a performance by San Franciscans (formerly of Columbus, OH) 16 Bitch Pile-Up, who offer a thick swirl of otherworldly drone sound. Chicagoans Magic is Kuntmaster and Burrow open. 9 p.m., $5 suggested donation, BYOB.

Looking East @ Millennium Park

The Grant Park Music Festival season at the Pritzker Pavilion continues with tonight's performance of music by Tan Dun, Busoni, and Narong Prangcharoen. 6:30 PM. Free. For more information, visit the website.

Michael Ondaatje @ AIC

The acclaimed novelist and author of The English Patient discusses his new novel in Fullerton Hall this evening at 6 PM. 112 S Michigan. Tickets are $10 to $15: call 312-575-8000 or visit the website for more information.

Riding Alone for Thousands of Miles @ Cultural Center

This 2005 Chinese feature about a Japanese father attempting to heal his estrangement from his terminally ill son, is part of Cinema/Chicago's International Summer Screening series. Free, 7:30 PM in the Claudia Cassidy Theater. 78 E. Washington Street. For more information, call 312-744-6630 or visit the website.

Apostle of Hustle, Bronze and The Bitter Tears @ Schubas

They've been playing Wednesday night "Practice Space" shows at Schubas all month, even while they've been crisscrossing the nation on their summer tour, but tonight's your next to last chance to catch Apostle of Hustle for a while in Chicago, and certainly a great chance to get up close and personal with them. The band, a side project for Broken Social Scene's
singer/songwriter Andrew Whiteman will also be joined tonight by Chicagoans Bronze who'll round out the night, and The Bitter Tears who'll open. $8 is all you need as long as you're 18+. Music starts at 9pm.

SELF Dishes Cooking Event @ The Chopping Block

The editors of SELF magazine's Self Dishes will be on hand to teach participants to prepare healthy meals. The event will feature a cooking demonstration, a three-course meal including wine and a gift bag. It runs from 6 to 9:30 pm at the Chopping Block's Merchandise Mart location. Tickets are $100 and registration is at tasteofdishes.com/events.php. Call 312-644-6360 for more information.

Green Cleaning Workshop

Business owners, property managers or others interested in learning how to maintain buildings in an environmentally friendly way are invited to attend a workshop on June 20 from 8 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. at the LEED Certified Mercy Lakefront Near North Apartments at 1244 N. Clybourn. A light breakfast and coffee will be served.

Topics include how green cleaning can improve your building and the environment, an inside scoop to how green cleaning is done and why using chemical free cleaning is important for regional health.

Free, but an RSVP requested.

There will be a building tour immediately following the workshop.