Carrie McLaren's “consumer culture” zine-turned-blog Stay Free! is now a book, and co-author Jason Torchinsky reads from and signs said book, Ad Nauseam: A Survivor's Guide to American Consumer Culture. The collection of essays warns of the deceptive delights of advertising, of the sirenlike lure of expert marketing, often irresistible even to those who claim immunity (you know you want a ShamWow). The authors and contributors lay bare the industry's subliminal secrets in essays titled “The Psychology of Advertising: We're All Apes,” “I'm With the Brand: The Consumer as Fan,” and, my personal favorite, “Buyer Beware: How Do Supermarket Shoppers React When You Place Foreign Objects in Their Baskets?”

Sat., Aug. 8, 5 p.m., 2009

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