Miami Free Times: Harry Potter for Grown-ups, Gringo Nightmares, and Literary Art

The history of pill-pushing is at Advertising for Health.

​Miami's $15 cocktails are hard to swallow. Here's a list of six free things to do this week so you can leave your ATM card sheathed in your wallet.

Monday: Think naïve Harry Potter could use a dose of the real world? Tonight, at Books & Books, hear author Lev Grossman read from his book The Magicians about moody wizards doing E who struggle with depression.

Tuesday: May is Museum Month in Miami. (Say that ten times fast.) That means tourists get 2-for-1 admission into select museums and residents with a membership to one museum get into the rest for free. This Tuesday, use your free pass to see the Wolfsonian's new "Advertising for Health" exhibit. [UPDATE: Summer hours are now in affect so head to the Wolfsonian anytime from Wednesday to Sunday.]

Wednesday: Dueling pianos, burgeoning poets, and spoken word artists come together for the second annual Piano Slam at Arsht. Tickets are free.

You may think you're living your own gringo nightmare when you can't land a job 'cause you don't speak Spanish, but author Eric Volz lived the real deal. While visiting Nicaragua, he was wrongfully imprisoned for the murder of his Nicaraguan girlfriend. Hear more from his account Gringo Nightmare on Wednesday at Books & Books.

Thursday: A whole bunch of exhibits opened this Saturday for the Art Walk. If you missed out, come experience "How to Read a Book" at Wynwood's Locust Projects, where contemporary artists interpret works of fiction. Admission is always free and the gallery opens at noon.

Friday: Free before 11 p.m., the Vagabond will host local bands Modernage and People from Venus this Friday night. Here's Modernage's new video for "Creatures." Anyone else think they sound like The National?



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