This week’s literary events

Ida B. Wells-Barnett Distinguished Lecture Series: Angela Y. Davis, “The Meaning of Freedom and Other Difficult Dialogues” 6 p.m., Sept. 17, lecture and signing, Spelman College, Sisters Chapel, 350 Spelman Lane, S.W., Atlanta, 404-6813643, www.spelman.edu

With work centered on political and social freedom, renowned activist, author and professor Davis will help contextualize the unique political issues of women in a lecture on the theme “More than a Vote: Women’s Struggle for Full Citizenship.” libraryfoundation.org.

Rawlings, born and raised in Sandersville, has written five thrillers, including the “Matt Rutherford” series, set in small-town Georgia. Atlanta Press Club Newsmaker Luncheon: Vince Dooley. 11:15 a.m. Sept. 20. Talk, Q&A, signing. $30. The Commerce Club, Ninety One Peachtree Tower, 191 Peachtree Street, 49th Floor, Atlanta. 404-721-1465, www.clubcorp.com/Clubs/ Commerce-Club-Atlanta. 7 p.m., Fri. Sept. 21, talk and signing, tickets available at A Cappella Books, 208 Haralson Ave., or at acappellabooks.com, $29 for one, $40 for two (includes signed copy of book), Carter Presidential Library & Museum Theater, 441 Freedom Parkway, Atlanta, 404-865-7100, www. jimmycarterlibrary.gov/

Diaz, who won the Pulitzer Prize for his novel“The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao” in 2008, offers a collection of nine stories that capture the many faces of love — obsessive, illicit, fading, maternal. Lakesia D. Johnson, “Iconic: Decoding Images of the Revolutionary Black Woman.” 7 p.m. Sept. 20. Talk and signing. Free. Auburn Avenue Research Library, 101 Auburn Ave. N.E., Atlanta. 404-730-4001, www.afpls.org/aarl.

Johnson will discuss (via Skype) the ways black women have taken control of their own imaging despite negative media characterizations. The 20th Annual Georgia Fine and Collectible Book Fair. 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sept. 22 and 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sept. 23. $5, children 12 and younger free. Cobb County Civic Center, 548 S. Marietta Parkway, Marietta. www.gaba.net. This book lover’s extravaganza includes 30,000 books and ephemera, free appraisals, and a seminar on book collecting. An African American Man of Letters: The Intellectual Legacy of Scholar and Poet Keith E. Baird. 4 p.m. Sept. 22. Talk and signing. Free. Auburn Avenue Research Library, 101 Auburn Ave. N.E., Atlanta. 404-730-4001, www.afpls.org/aarl.

Baird’s daughter, Diana Baird N’Diaye, the folklife curator and cultural heritage specialist at the Smithsonian, will facilitate this community conversation.