Guns and mix tapes, Steven Seagal and Iceland’s folkloric "hidden people," wilderness camp and The Godfather. You might wonder, what is the connection? Find out this Friday, when two pop-culture-savvy essayists will cover these and other topics with their characteristic humor, honesty, sass, and smarts.

David Rakoff, author of Fraud (Broadway Books, 2002, paperback), and Sarah Vowell, author of Take the Cannoli (Touchstone Books, 2001, paperback) and the upcoming Partly Cloudy Patriot (Simon & Schuster, September 2002), will take the stage at Northeastern University to read from their popular books, as well as share works in progress.

If you’re unfamiliar with their published works, the authors’ voices may sound awfully familiar. (Vowell’s signature deadpan — both on paper and on the air — is especially memorable.) Both Vowell and Rakoff contribute to cult favorite This American Life, hosted by public-radio heartthrob Ira Glass. Both also contribute to a variety of magazines — Rakoff to the New York Times Magazine, Outside, and Talk (R.I.P.); Vowell to Salon, Spin, Esquire, and the Village Voice.

Rakoff and Vowell share a knack for extracting meaning from popular culture and everyday experiences. They can wax wry or spin sincere on any number of topics, a versatility that has won them critical praise, spots on various bestsellers lists, and smirks on the faces of young urban ingénues across the country — and Canada, Rakoff's homeland.

Caught before tucking in for a disco nap in Portland, Oregon, Rakoff rehearses what madness the literary duo will bring to Boston. The writers, he says, will act as a "tag team," playing out different sensibilities as they alternate readings. "Sarah’s very much a deep thinker about American history. And I am shallow as a puddle," he says, defining himself as a "generalist dilettante with a short attention span."

He compares his upcoming performance to middle-school days, when, after having not done the reading, students might overcompensate by bringing in an over-the-top Foods of India spread for Show and Tell. "I’ve got a lot of mini éclairs to bake before the reading," he jokes. "It’s all about giving the people what they pay for." He adds, "I can set myself on fire ..."

The reading will end with a question-and-answer session, wherein the audience can hammer the authors with any and all questions. Rakoff says he has nothing to hide: "I am an open pamphlet."

David Rakoff and Sarah Vowell will read at Northeastern’s Blackman Theater, 346 Huntington Avenue, at 8 p.m., on Friday, May 3. Tickets are $15. Call (617) 373-2247 for more information.