It’s a big week at Red Balloon Bookshop, 891 Grand Ave., St. Paul, with high-profile authors visiting to talk about their new books.

At 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, May 8, the store welcomes Samira Ahmed celebrating her new young adult novel “This Book Won’t Burn,” in conversation with Minnesota author and teacher Sharon Gibney. Ahmed is the bestselling author of “Love, Hate & Other Filters” and “Internment.” She was born in Bomba and has lived in New York, Chicago and Kauai. Her new social-suspense novel is about book banning, activists and standing up for what you believe. Publishers Weekly starred review said: “(Ahmed) employs high stakes, increasing tensions, romantic near-misses and adult hypocrisy to powerful effect.” Gibney is an award-winning author of anthologies, essays and picture books. Ahmed and Gibney will be joined by two guest teen readers for a conversation about book bans and freedom to read. Free, but registration is required for this program. Go to redballoonbookshop.com.

Moving along to 4 p.m. Saturday, May 11, Abby Cooper and Lisa Fipps introduce their new middle-grade novels. Cooper’s “True Colors” is about a town where everyone agrees to think positively but one girl whose emotions manifest as colors can’t hide her true feelings. Fipps’ “And Then, Boom!” is a novel in verse by the author of the American Library Association’s Youth Awards Printz Honor-winning “Starfish,” featuring a poverty-stricken boy who rides out all the storms life keeps throwing at him. Cooper, a former school librarian and educator who lives in Minnesota, is the author of three middle-grade novels, “Friend or Fiction,” “Sticks & Stones,” and “Bubbles,” all of which incorporate a speculative element into a contemporary setting. Fipps, who lives in Indiana, is a former journalist and former director of marketing for a public library. Free, but registration is helpful to the store staff. Go to the store’s website.