LEWISTON — Three established novelists, James Hannaham, Jessica Anthony and Paul LaFarge, will read from their works in March and April at Bates College.

The readings, part of Bates’ Language Arts Live series, are open to the public at no cost.

 Hannaham, author of “God Says No,” will read from and discusses his work at 7:30 p.m., Thursday, March 4. “God Says No” follows gay African-American protagonist Gary Gray in his return to his home state of Florida as he struggles to define his identity.

Hannaham’s short stories have appeared in “The Literary Review,” “Open City” and other journals. A recipient of fellowships from the MacDowell Colony and Blue Mountain Center, Hannaham teaches creative writing at Pratt Institute.

Anthony, Bates alumna, will read from her work at 7:30 p.m., Thursday, March 18. Her debut novel, “The Convalescent,” was selected as an Editor’s Choice by the San Francisco Chronicle and appears on the American Library Association’s 2010 Notable Book List of Outstanding Fiction.

“The Convalescent” focuses on Rovar Pfliegman, a Hungarian meat seller in Virginia who lives in his portable meat-selling shop: a bus. Integrating the stories of his Hungarian ancestors into Pfliegman’s own, the tale brings together past and present.

Anthony’s stories have appeared in anthologies such as “Best New American Voices” and “McSweeney’s New American Writing.” A member of the Bates class of 1996, she is a lecturer in English at the college.

 LaFarge, a writer and critic, will discuss his work at 4:15 p.m., Monday, April 5. LaFarge is the author of “The Facts of Winter,” “Haussman, or the Distinction” and “The Artist of the Missing.”

 A recipient of grants from the Guggenheim Foundation and the Macdowell Colony, LaFarge is the 2005 winner of the Bard College Fiction Prize and winner of the California Book Award for “The Artist of the Missing.” He has taught creative writing at Wesleyan and Columbia.

“The Facts of Winter” and “Haussman” place LaFarge on the perimeter of the tale, purporting that he acts as a mere translator for obscure French writer and minimalist “Paul Poissel.” In an interview with the Brooklyn Daily Eagle, LaFarge said that Poissel “came into strange existence a long time ago. I don’t remember exactly how. But I thought, ‘God, it would be great to invent a minor French poet!'”

The readings will be in Skelton Lounge, Chase Hall, 56 Campus Ave. For more information, e-mail [email protected].