Arts & Culture

Gimme Five

The 5 Ursula K. Le Guin Books You Need to Read, According to Her Son

While curating an exhibition of her life and work, Theo Downes-Le Guin shares his favorite books by Portland’s greatest author, a.k.a. his mom.

10/14/2025 By Matthew Trueherz

things to do

Tom Toro and Dracula Both Come to Town

Also: Louise Bourgeois and Isabelle Albuquerque at the Lumber Room.

10/09/2025 By Matthew Trueherz

Interview

Portland’s New Yorker Cartoonist on the Important Kind of Jokes

In a new book, Tom Toro collects 15 years of work for the magazine. Here, he talks about the role of cartoons in the present.

10/08/2025 By Matthew Trueherz

bookshelf

The Ursula K. Le Guin Cat Book You’ve Been Waiting For

A new collection gathers the late author’s poetry, sketches, and correspondence about her beloved feline companions.

10/08/2025 By Alex Frane

things to do

A Posthumous Book from Geek Love Author Katherine Dunn

Also: Demetri Martin, and other events in town this week.

10/02/2025 By Matthew Trueherz

Halloween

Visit These Portland Haunted Houses For Halloween Pregaming

Haunted manors, zombie graveyards, and spooky drive-ins to get you in the most frightful of moods.

10/02/2025 By Portland Monthly Staff

theatergoing

Portland Center Stage Opens Its Community-Focused 2025–26 Season

The theater company fundraised millions to stay afloat. Loaded with Pulitzer winners and a Little Women adaptation, its current season looks to pay forward the love.

09/30/2025 By Isabel Lemus Kristensen

Spooky Scary

Inside Oregon’s Largest Haunted Attraction

Oaks Park’s ScareGrounds began as a COVID-safe drive-thru fright fest. Now, it’s a Halloween season destination.

09/29/2025 By Brooke Jackson-Glidden

Time Warp

50 Years of Rocky Horror at the Clinton Street Theater

Portland’s favorite single-screen theater hosts the longest continuously running movie of any theater, anywhere.

09/26/2025 By Matthew Trueherz Photography by Michael Raines

things to do

Cinema 21 Celebrates 100 Years

Also: Judy Collins, and other events in town this week.

09/25/2025 By Matthew Trueherz

things to do

Disney’s The Lion King Returns to the Keller

Also: Andrew Bird, and other events in town this week.

09/18/2025 By Matthew Trueherz

Bookshelf

A Novel of an Anarchist Nursing Home Run by 1970s Punks

Leni Zumas’s Wolf Bells is a spirited, hilarious, and tender study of intergenerational living.

09/15/2025 By Matthew Trueherz

things to do

What Sets Sleater-Kinney Apart

Also: AIDS Walk Northwest, and other events in town this week.

09/11/2025 By Matthew Trueherz

Activism

With Slashed Budgets, AIDS Walk Is as Relevant as Ever

As cuts to HIV prevention and care programs loom, Cascade AIDS Project leans into its 40th annual waterfront march.

09/11/2025 By Isabel Lemus Kristensen

Big Brains

Your Ultimate Portland Bar Trivia Guide

Where to get your brain workout (almost) every night of the week.

09/09/2025 By Margaret Seiler

Dead Air

Musicians Loved PCC’s Sonic Arts Program. The College Killed It Anyway.

As enrollment dwindles and federal decisions loom, community colleges are axing programs to cut costs.

09/08/2025 By Karly Quadros

Movies

In Twinless, Dylan O’Brien Finds Himself in Portland, Twice

Director James Sweeney’s twisty new film casts the Maze Runner star as twin brothers, one dead and the other grieving his loss.

09/02/2025 By Chase Hutchinson

things to do

The Power of Queer Portraiture

Also: Jordan Klepper, and other shows in town this week.

08/28/2025 By Matthew Trueherz

Get Out

What to Do in Oregon in September

Dahlias are in bloom, Crater Lake goes car-free, the Pendleton Round-Up kicks off, and Oktoberfest has us raising our steins.

08/27/2025 By Portland Monthly Staff

Movies

Night Always Comes Is a Netflix Caricature of Portland

Even Vanessa Kirby can’t save the thin adaptation of Willy Vlautin’s novel. Julia Fox is great in it, though.

08/22/2025 By Matthew Trueherz