MONDAY
When it comes to examining the state of contemporary theatre, Robert Brustein has few peers. Expect a stimulating discussion when Brustein comes to the J to offer his viewpoint on how the post-9/11 years have played out on stage — issues he takes on in Millennial Stages: Essays and Reviews 2001—2005. District of Columbia Jewish Community Center, 1529 16th St. NW., at 7:30 p.m. $8.

Also, from the McSweeney’s camp of writers come Kevin Moffet and Chris Adrian, whose books — Permanent Visitors and The Children’s Hospital transport the recognizable to unfamiliar terrains. Olsson’s Books & Records, 1307 19th St. NW., at 7 p.m.

TUESDAY

Last year when we recommended you head over to the Warehouse to enjoy a reading from Little Gray Books Lectures host and The Area of My Expertise author John Hodgman, we unleashed such a fury of excitement that even we couldn’t get in to the see the show. And that was before he was asked to join the Daily Show as their “resident expert” and became the ubiquitous “PC Guy” in those adorable Mac commercials. So you’ll forgive us if we failed to alert you to this show before the advanced tickets sold out, as of last night. We’ve already got ours, and frankly that’s all we really care about at this point. Regular F.W. Thomas Performances host Adam Mazmanian will be standing down for the evening to make way for tongue-in-cheek singer-songwriter Jonathan Coulton, Get Your War On creator David Rees, and of course, John Hodgman. Things kick off at 7 p.m., tickets are $15 and include a free copy of The Areas of My Expertise. If you still want to try to go, try calling (202) 783-3933 to see how many extra seats they think they might have before the show, get there really, really early, and consider bringing Hodgman a bottle of whiskey as a bribe.

Or, if you are prepared to learn that your entire spiritual belief system was founded on lies and has evolved into a cosmic joke, head over to Politics and Prose for a discussion on The God Delusion with author Richard Dawkins. 5015 Connecticut Ave. NW., at 7 p.m.

WEDNESDAY

All year long, you’ve lugged her massive tome about medieval relics, twisty family history and Vlad the Impaler around in your backpack. Now you’ll have the chance to present The Historian’s author, Elizabeth Kostova, with your chiropractor bills. Olsson’s Books and Records, 418 7th St. NW., at 7 p.m.