This event takes place in person at Charis and on Crowdcast, Charis' virtual event platform. This event is free, but registration is required for virtual attendance.

Charis welcomes Lydia Mathis in conversation with Yemi Combahee in celebration of Desperate Bodies, a debut story collection excavating the desire, humor, and horror in the everyday lives of Black women and girls.

With a voice that vibrates on the page, Lydia Mathis' debut collection is set in the American South and her sharply drawn, authentic characters shine a light on what we're willing to do to ourselves and to others in service of our desires. The madness in the ordinary rules here: an overworked college safety officer is confronted by a bloody figure who walks into her office; a sex worker runs into a client en route to a parent-teacher conference; a teacher is plagued by a ghost determined to tidy her apartment.

Desperate Bodies depicts the fragility, strength, and unruliness of Black women and girls' bodies and the power in being honest about their desires. In unflinching prose, Mathis takes a frank and determined look at what it means to be subjected to imbalances of power through the perspectives of young girls and adult women. With surprising turns and a touch of the supernatural, these stories refuse to look away from the most honest, raw moments of womanhood.

Visceral and unyielding, Desperate Bodies is a thrillingly dark ride that introduces Lydia Mathis as a major new writer.

Lydia Mathis has an MFA in fiction from New York University. She is the recipient of A Public Space’s 2023 Editorial Fellowship and is currently an assistant editor at A Public Space. She has stories published in North American Review, Southeast Review, Torch Magazine, Stanchion, Five on the Fifth, and oranges journal.

Yemi Combahee (she/her) is a Black Lesbian feminist, reproductive justice organizer, and full-spectrum doula based in Atlanta, Georgia. Yemi is currently the Senior Manager of Campaigns at Black Feminist Future. Yemi also has a background in abortion clinic administration and intimate partner violence legal advocacy. She began her interest in liberation work as a Comparative Women’s Studies major at Spelman College where she began community organizing and engaging with Black feminist theory. Yemi's work, politic, and accountability to feminist community was also shaped by her time as a bookseller at Charis Books & More, the south's oldest independent feminist bookstore. Yemi remains rooted in care work through her full-spectrum doula practice, Freedom Births, where she supports folks through their reproductive journeys. When not organizing for a more just future, she's probably baking something delicious or reading in preparation for her next book club meeting.

The event is free and open to all people, but we encourage and appreciate a donation of $5-20 in support of the work of Charis Circle, our programming non-profit. Donate on Crowdcast or via our website: www.chariscircle.org/donate or in person at the event.

Charis Books is a fully wheelchair accessible space with on site van accessible parking, two ramps, and additional overflow accessible parking nearby. Additional accessibility information can be found on the Accessibility page of our website.

Please contact us at info@chariscircle.org or 404-524-0304 if you would like ASL interpretation at this event. If you would like to watch the event with live AI captions, you may do so by watching it in Google Chrome and enabling captions: Instructions here. If you have other accessibility needs or if you are someone who has skills in making digital events more accessible please don't hesitate to reach out to info@chariscircle.org.

Please read the in-person event guidelines below to be sure you can participate in the event.

All attendees must wear a face mask during the event.

We will begin seating people at 7:00 PM ET.

This event will be live-streamed via Crowdcast.

As a reminder: If you are not feeling well, please do not come to the event.

If you have any questions regarding these guidelines or to request specific accessibility accommodations, please contact info@charisbooksandmore.com or call the store at 404-524-0304.

By attending our event, whether in person or virtually, you agree to our Code of Conduct: Our event seeks to provide a harassment-free experience for everyone, regardless of gender, gender identity and expression, age, sexual orientation, disability, physical appearance, body size, race, ethnicity, religion (or lack thereof), class, or technology choices. We do not tolerate harassment in any form. Unsolicited sexual language and imagery are not appropriate. Anyone violating these rules will be expelled from this event and all future events at the discretion of the organizers. Please report all harassment to Charis staff immediately or email info@chariscircle.org.

Desperate Bodies: Lydia Mathis in conversation with Yemi Combahee