When bookstores vanish, so do their author appearances, a point that was sadly hammered home in 2006 when A Clean Well-Lighted Place for Books crapped out. City-bound authors, however, weren't out of luck, given that the Booksmith was ready and willing to add to its already stellar speaker series. The events at the independent store, which changed owners last year, are still under the firm hand of coordinator Tom Gladysz, who has organized more than 900 events over the past decade, drawing local authors, touring hotshots, and award winners — along with Daniel Handler in each of his various guises. Last year saw a bunch of big names, among them William Gibson, Greil Marcus, Jonathan Lethem, William T. Vollmann, China Miéville, and Chuck Palahniuk, along with legions of newcomers such as first-time novelist Keith Gessen, who parachuted into the shop at the end of April, two days after launching another weary hit on McSweeney's and Dave Eggers via The New York Times. Kudos, Booksmith, for welcoming even tools!