The Legacies of John Updike and David Foster Wallace
Borough Hall Courtroom, 209 Joralemon St., Brooklyn Heights, Brooklyn; 10 a.m.
Discussing the impact of the literary giants, who both died this year, will be Time book critic Lev Grossman, Salon book critic Laura Miller, and David Lipsky, who should have particularly good DFW insights — he penned one of the two giant Foster Wallace profiles, for Rolling Stone, and is now writing an unconventional biography based on a series of conversations he had with the author during the Infinite Jest book tour.
Poetry, Pop, and Hip-Hop
St. Francis Auditorium, 180 Remsen St., Brooklyn Heights, Brooklyn; 12 p.m.
The posi-rap emcee Lupe Fiasco, best known for hits such as “Superstar” and “Kick Push,” joins a grab-bag panel with Sonic Youth icon Thurston Moore and poets Tracie Morris and Matthew Zapruder, moderated by music journalist Touré.
Rasskazy: New Fiction from a New Russia
International Stage at Borough Hall Plaza, 209 Joralemon St., Brooklyn Heights, Brooklyn; 1 p.m.
Former Gawker writer Emily Gould will interview Dmitry Danilov, a contributor to Tin House’s Russian fiction anthology Rasskazy, about new Russian lit, while fellow Razzkazy contributors — including Dale Peck, Anya Ulinich, and Vadim Yarmolinets — read.
Obsessive Fun
Main Stage at Borough Hall Plaza, 209 Joralemon St., Brooklyn Heights, Brooklyn; 4 p.m.
A panel featuring four different authors with four different obsessions: Rabbi Simcha Weinstein, author of Shtick Shift: Jewish Humor in the 21st Century; gamer Ethan Gilsdorf (Fantasy Freaks and Gaming Geeks); karaoke enthusiast (and New York contributor) Brian Raftery (Don’t Stop Believin’); and comedian Eddie Sarfaty (Mental).
Happy Ending Reading Series
Main Stage at Borough Hall Plaza, 209 Joralemon St., Brooklyn Heights, Brooklyn; 5 p.m.
Amanda Stern brings her long-running series to the BBF with some of the day’s biggest names: essayist and exhibitionist Jonathan Ames and comedian David Cross, whose humor collection I Drink For a Reason came out in August.