It may sound a bit melodramatic, but we think the book is still worth a read because much of the jazz-infused plot is set in Kansas City, a place Story once called home. It was partly inspired by a local family of musicians whose son, a jazz sax player, disappeared for years on the streets of Chicago. Story returns at 7 p.m. Wednesday for an appearance at Unity Temple on the Plaza (707 West 47th Street) with Gigi Gossett, author of By Any Other Name. -- Annie Fischer
Green Houses
Check out the eco-maniacs.
SAT 10/9
Unfortunately, the proliferation of the Toyota Prius on our highways has a lot more to do with Kirsten Dunst trading in her Mercedes than with any significant popular appreciation for fuel efficiency. The Heartland Renewable Energy Society is probably grateful anyway, but the group also offers the Sustainable Homes Tour and Energy Fair for anyone interested in reaching beyond Hollywood trends and, like, saving the environment. And it looks way more entertaining than Wimbledon.
The free fair runs from 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Kansas City Discovery Center (4750 Troost). The homeowner workshops have cheeky titles such as I Wanna Be Lean and My House is Uncomfortable and My Bills Are High. Self-guided rural and urban tours run from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., or visitors can pay $10 for a bus tour that leaves at 1 p.m. For more information, call 816-531-7283. -- Julia Westhoff
Family Tradition
THU 10/7
Lonnie Vigil, born in the Nambé Pueblo of New Mexico, is a ceramist devoted to his art. He's also committed to preserving the passion of his ancestors, who have sculpted the same micaceous clay jars for hundreds of years. Supposedly the Dalai Lama and the Clintons own his pieces; check him out at 7 tonight at Epperson Auditorium (4415 Warwick). Call 816-802-3458 for more information. -- Fischer
