As I mentioned last week, this weekend is so stuffed full of book events — oddly enough, most of them on Thursday — that this post covers only the next three days. Highlights are Bizarro, Ben Ratliff, Chip Kidd, Opium’s Literary Death Match, and the final SF in SF event for the year. Get all the details after the jump.

There are no fewer than seven free events to choose from on Thursday, November 13:

• Stacey’s Books, 12:30 PM. You know that cartoon Bizarro? Well, the cartoonist’s name is Dan Piraro, and it seems he’s got a new collection out featuring nothing but pirate cartoons. Arrr!
• Main Library, 6 PM. Anjuelle Floyd appears in the Latino/Hispanic Community Meeting Room (that’s downstairs). Her book, Keeper of Secrets, is a collection of short stories described thus: “The elegant, accomplished African-American protagonists are transformed by witnessing a near stabbing in a restaurant one evening. Their personal translations of the incident propel them toward deeper connections, unifying the characters in their search for self-definition and the meaning of their lives.”
• Also at Main Library but in Koret Auditorium, at 6:30, New York Times music critic Ben Ratliff will discuss his new book, The Jazz Ear, with Bay Area vocalist Carla Kihlstedt.
• 111 Minna Gallery, also at 6 PM. Last Gasp is hosting a special reading and book signing event with none other than the world-famous book designer and author, Chip Kidd. His new book, BAT-MANGA!, is all about the secret history of Batman in Japan.
• Dalva (3121 16th Street) is hosting Poetry Mission at 7 PM, featuring a lineup of three poets.
• Books Inc. in the Castro, 7:30 PM. Sports journalist Bill Konigsberg reads from his novel Out of the Pocket.
• Books Inc. at Laurel Village, 7:00 PM. Frances Dinkelspiel presents her book, Towers of Gold: How one Jewish immigrant named Isais Hellman created California. Kemble Scott writes of her book: “So much of California’s history runs straight through Frances Dinkelspiel’s family’s living room. Her great, great grandfather Isaias Hellman forged the future of this state in so many ways that it’s likely you personally were impacted today. How so? Hellman is responsible for banking (Wells Fargo), oil, electricity, education and wine. The story of how Hellman went from being a penniless transplant to one of the richest and most influence men of his time is full of intrigue – essential reading for those who love history as a great story.”

On Friday the 14th, there’s one free event and one cheap event:

Saturday the 15th is apparently Sci-Fi day: