October 2

FOR YOUR READING LIST

Dennis Lehane’s new book, a gangster novel set in Prohibition-era Boston, hits bookstores Tuesday. He begins his book tour the same day with a Brookline Booksmith reading at Coolidge Corner Theatre at 6 p.m. Tickets cost $5. 617-566-6660; brooklinebooksmith.com

October 3

GREAT DEBATES

Barack Obama and Mitt Romney square off in their first presidential debate on Wednesday. How well do you know general election presidential debates past?

TAKE OUR QUIZ. (Answers at bottom of column)

1. When were the first general election presidential debates in the United States?

a. 1860

b. 1956

c. 1960

d. 1976

2. Which candidate got a laugh when he said, “I am not going to exploit, for political purposes, my opponent’s youth and inexperience”?

a. John McCain

b. Ronald Reagan

c. Richard M. Nixon

d. George H.W. Bush

3. Who of the following never moderated a presidential debate?

a. Barbara Walters

b. Edwin Newman

c. Bernard Shaw

d. Walter Cronkite

October 4

SPOOKY SPECTACLE

New England’s Halloweeniest town — Salem — kicks off its seasonal festivities with the annual Haunted Happenings Grand Parade, from 6:30 to 8 p.m., starting at Shetland Park.hauntedhappenings.org

October 5-8

Allison Mowrer

STREET MUSIC

Some 35 activist street bands from near and far (Rome; Los Alamos, New Mexico; Boston; and many more) will play and parade in Somerville and Cambridge as part of the seventh annual HONK! festival. Most performances are free. honkfest.org

October 6

GREEN CONSCIENCE

Sustainable living, local food, and green products are in the spotlight at the South Shore Celebration at Marshfield Fairgrounds from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Turn in your unwanted cellphones, keyboards, hand-held games, and other small electronics at the on-site recycling center — you can offload larger items like TVs, too, for a fee. Festival tickets are $5 per person, $10 per family. Southshorecelebration.com

ANSWERS: 1. c /2. b/3. d