Where the Wild Writers Are: Maurice Sendak's poster for the Fifth Avenue book bash.

1. Metropolis Found Benefit Rub elbow patches with Frank McCourt, Mary Higgins Clark, Maurice Sendak, and Milton Glaser over cocktails and hors d’oeuvre in support of the festival’s special story compilation, Metropolis Found.
• 9/18 at 6pm, University Club, 1 W. 54 St., 866-468-7619

2. Lucy Grealy Memorial Symposium Spend a day parsing nonfiction and memoir at the New School with panelists like David Hajdu, Luc Sante, and Vivian Gornick—in memory of the late young memoirist.
• 9/19: "Memoir" at 2pm, "Writing" at 7pm, Tishman Auditorium, New School, 66 W. 12th St., 212-229-5611

3. Neil Gaiman The comix god, novelist, and children’s-book author discusses his return to graphic fiction—and to his groundbreaking Sandman series—with the new Endless Nights.
• 9/20 from 11am to 1pm, Equitable Center, 787 Seventh Ave., at 51st St., 866-468-7619, free

4. Steve Martin Hear a preview of Martin’s new novel, The Pleasure of My Company, and bask in the pleasure of proximity to the comic turned literary gadfly.
• 9/20 from 1:30am to 3pm, Equitable Center, 787 Seventh Ave., at 51st St., 866-468-7619, free

5. Literary Brunch No word on the entrées, but literary fare comes courtesy of crowd-pleasers like Louis Begley, Anita Diamant, E. Lynn Harris, Peggy Noonan, James Patterson, and the ever-inspiring Mitch Albom.
• 9/21 from 11am to 2pm, Waldorf-Astoria, 301 Park Ave., at 51st St., 888-NYT-1870, $150

Related:

• Archive: “Top Five”
• Articles by Boris Kachka
• Table of Contents: Sep 22, 2003 issue of New York | Subscribe!