Join us for an opportunity to meet home maintenance educator and LGBTQIA+ activist Mercury Stardust. Mercury will be signing books, so bring your copy or buy one from us!

A little bit of knowledge can go a long way toward making you feel more safe and in control of your own life! For too many people, the simple act of contacting a plumber or repair person can feel like a game of chance. As a transwoman and a professional maintenance technician, Mercury Stardust has discovered (the hard way) that we live in a world with much to fear. If you’ve ever felt panicked about opening your home to strangers in order to fix a maintenance issue, her new book, Safe and Sound: A Renter-Friendly Guide to Home Repair, is for you.

Mercury Stardust is a professional home maintenance technician, performer, and award-winning activist. Mercury credits her TikTok success to her experience teaching burlesque, where she learned to communicate and create a safe space for students who had frequently experienced trauma. She's been featured in stories by NBC, NPR, Buzzfeed, Newsweek, Washington Post, and Pink News. Her leadership within the trans community has led to collaborations with such brands as iFixit, Lowe’s, and the trans-healthcare company Point of Pride. Mercury lives in her home state of Wisconsin with her partner and two cats. She’s a world-renowned and internationally award-winning burlesque entertainer and ran Wisconsin’s only weekly burlesque show, Five Star Tease, for 5 years. Her work on and off the stage earned her Madison’s Trans Activist of the Year in 2021 from Madison’s Outreach, and she raised $2.3 million for trans healthcare in 2023 with Point of Pride.