BEGIN:VCALENDAR VERSION:2.0 PRODID:-//Main Street Reads - ECPv6.15.20//NONSGML v1.0//EN CALSCALE:GREGORIAN METHOD:PUBLISH X-ORIGINAL-URL:https://mainstreetreads.com X-WR-CALDESC:Events for Main Street Reads REFRESH-INTERVAL;VALUE=DURATION:PT1H X-Robots-Tag:noindex X-PUBLISHED-TTL:PT1H BEGIN:VTIMEZONE TZID:America/New_York BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:-0500 TZOFFSETTO:-0400 TZNAME:EDT DTSTART:20190310T070000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:-0400 TZOFFSETTO:-0500 TZNAME:EST DTSTART:20191103T060000 END:STANDARD BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:-0500 TZOFFSETTO:-0400 TZNAME:EDT DTSTART:20200308T070000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:-0400 TZOFFSETTO:-0500 TZNAME:EST DTSTART:20201101T060000 END:STANDARD BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:-0500 TZOFFSETTO:-0400 TZNAME:EDT DTSTART:20210314T070000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:-0400 TZOFFSETTO:-0500 TZNAME:EST DTSTART:20211107T060000 END:STANDARD BEGIN:DAYLIGHT TZOFFSETFROM:-0500 TZOFFSETTO:-0400 TZNAME:EDT DTSTART:20220313T070000 END:DAYLIGHT BEGIN:STANDARD TZOFFSETFROM:-0400 TZOFFSETTO:-0500 TZNAME:EST DTSTART:20221106T060000 END:STANDARD END:VTIMEZONE BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20210114T190000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20210114T200000 DTSTAMP:20260410T010114 CREATED:20210110T065119Z LAST-MODIFIED:20210403T144203Z UID:3968-1610650800-1610654400@mainstreetreads.com SUMMARY:Reader Meet Writer: Wilmington's Lie with David Zucchino DESCRIPTION:Email us for your personal link to attend this event FREE! \nFrom Pulitzer Prize-winner David Zucchino comes a searing account of the Wilmington riot and coup of 1898\, an extraordinary event unknown to most Americans. \nBy the 1890s\, Wilmington was North Carolina’s largest city and a shining example of a mixed-race community. It was a bustling port city with a burgeoning African American middle class and a Fusionist government of Republicans and Populists that included black aldermen\, police officers and magistrates. There were successful black-owned businesses and an African American newspaper\, The Record. But across the state—and the South—white supremacist Democrats were working to reverse the advances made by former slaves and their progeny. \nIn 1898\, in response to a speech calling for white men to rise to the defense of Southern womanhood against the supposed threat of black predators\, Alexander Manly\, the outspoken young Record editor\, wrote that some relationships between black men and white women were consensual. His editorial ignited outrage across the South\, with calls to lynch Manly. \nBut North Carolina’s white supremacist Democrats had a different strategy. They were plotting to take back the state legislature in November “by the ballot or bullet or both\,” and then use the Manly editorial to trigger a “race riot” to overthrow Wilmington’s multi-racial government. Led by prominent citizens including Josephus Daniels\, publisher of the state’s largest newspaper\, and former Confederate Colonel Alfred Moore Waddell\, white supremacists rolled out a carefully orchestrated campaign that included raucous rallies\, race-baiting editorials and newspaper cartoons\, and sensational\, fabricated news stories. \nWith intimidation and violence\, the Democrats suppressed the black vote and stuffed ballot boxes (or threw them out)\, to win control of the state legislature on November eighth. Two days later\, more than 2\,000 heavily armed Red Shirts swarmed through Wilmington\, torching the Record office\, terrorizing women and children\, and shooting at least sixty black men dead in the streets. The rioters forced city officials to resign at gunpoint and replaced them with mob leaders. Prominent blacks—and sympathetic whites—were banished. Hundreds of terrified black families took refuge in surrounding swamps and forests. \nThis brutal insurrection is a rare instance of a violent overthrow of an elected government in the U.S. It halted gains made by blacks and restored racism as official government policy\, cementing white rule for another half century. It was not a “race riot\,” as the events of November 1898 came to be known\, but rather a racially motivated rebellion launched by white supremacists. \nIn Wilmington’s Lie\, Pulitzer Prize-winner David Zucchino uses contemporary newspaper accounts\, diaries\, letters and official communications to create a gripping and compelling narrative that weaves together individual stories of hate and fear and brutality. This is a dramatic and definitive account of a remarkable but forgotten chapter of American history. \nDavid Zucchino is a contributing writer for The New York Times. He has covered wars and civil conflicts in more than three dozen countries. Zucchino was awarded a Pulitzer Prize for his dispatches from apartheid South Africa and is a four-time Pulitzer Prize finalist for his reporting from Iraq\, Lebanon\, Africa\, and inner-city Philadelphia. He is the author of Thunder Run and Myth of the Welfare Queen. URL:https://mainstreetreads.com/event/reader-meet-writer-wilmingtons-lie-with-david-zucchino/ LOCATION:Main Street Reads\, 115 S. Main St.\, Summerville\, SC\, 29483\, United States CATEGORIES:Book Discussion,Reader Meet Writer,Virtual Author Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://mainstreetreads.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/Screen-Shot-2021-01-10-at-1.50.51-AM.png ORGANIZER;CN="Main Street Reads":MAILTO:shari@writerswin.com END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20210112T170000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20210112T180000 DTSTAMP:20260410T010114 CREATED:20210110T064300Z LAST-MODIFIED:20210403T144215Z UID:3963-1610470800-1610474400@mainstreetreads.com SUMMARY:Reader Meet Writer: The Uncollected Stories of Allan Gurganus DESCRIPTION:Email us for your personal link to attend this event FREE! \nOne of “the best writers of our time” (Ann Patchett) offers this hilarious yet haunting cycle of stories—all previously uncollected. \nSince the explosive publication of Oldest Living Confederate Widow Tells All\, Allan Gurganus has dazzled readers as “the most technically gifted and morally responsive writer of his generation” (John Cheever). He has been praised as “one of America’s preeminent novelists\, our prime conductor of electric sentences” (William Giraldi). Above all\, Allan Gurganus is a seriously funny writer\, an expert at evoking humor\, especially in our troubled times. \nNow he offers nine classic tales—never before between covers. They attest to his mastery of the short story and the growing depth of his genius.? Offering characters antic and tragic\, Gurganus charts the human condition—masked and unmasked—as we live it now. “Once upon a time” collides with the everyday. We meet a mortician whose dedication to his departed clients exceeds all legal limits. We encounter a seaside couple fighting to save their family dog from Maine’s fierce undertow. A virginal seventy-eight-year-old grammar school librarian has her sole erotic experience with a polyamorous snake farmer. A vicious tornado sends twin boys aloft\, leaving only one of them alive. And\, in an eerily prescient story\, cholera strikes a rural village in 1849 and citizens come to blame their doomed young doctor who saved hundreds. \nThese meticulously crafted parables recall William Faulkner’s scope and Flannery O’Connor’s corrosive wit. Imbuing each story with charged drama\, Gurganus\, a sublime ventriloquist\, again proves himself among our funniest writers and our wisest. \nAllan Gurganus is widely translated\, a Guggenheim Fellow\, and a member of the American Academy of Arts and Letters. Adaptations of his fiction have earned four Emmys\, and his stories have been appearing in The New Yorker since 1974. He lives in a small town in North Carolina. URL:https://mainstreetreads.com/event/reader-meet-writer-the-uncollected-stories-of-allan-gurganus/ LOCATION:Main Street Reads\, 115 S. Main St.\, Summerville\, SC\, 29483\, United States CATEGORIES:Book Discussion,Reader Meet Writer,Reading,Virtual Author Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://mainstreetreads.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/Screen-Shot-2021-01-10-at-1.42.31-AM.png ORGANIZER;CN="Main Street Reads":MAILTO:shari@writerswin.com END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20210107T190000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20210107T200000 DTSTAMP:20260410T010114 CREATED:20210101T155700Z LAST-MODIFIED:20210403T144231Z UID:3899-1610046000-1610049600@mainstreetreads.com SUMMARY:Reader Meet Writer: The Wife Upstairs with Rachel Hawkins DESCRIPTION:You don’t need to be a scholar of Brontë to appreciate this “compulsive\, irresistible retelling of Jane Eyre with a modern\, noir twist” (Samantha Downing) perfect for fans of Jessica Knoll\, B.A. Paris\, and Bravo TV. “Eddie” Rochester is the handsome\, charming widower living in a gated community of McMansions called Thornfield Estates; Jane is the new dog-walker from the wrong side of the tracks; and Mrs. Rochester is a self-made millionaire and creator of a Southern lifestyle company à la Draper James. \nWith delicious suspense\, incisive wit\, and a fresh\, feminist sensibility\, The Wife Upstairs flips the script on a timeless tale of forbidden romance\, ill-advised attraction\, and a wife who just won’t stay buried. In this vivid reimagining of one of literature’s most twisted love triangles\, which Mrs. Rochester will get her happy ending? \nRACHEL HAWKINS is the New York Times bestselling author of multiple books for young readers\, and her work has been translated in over a dozen countries. She studied gender and sexuality in Victorian literature at Auburn University and currently lives in Alabama. The Wife Upstairs is her first adult novel. URL:https://mainstreetreads.com/event/reader-meet-writer-the-wife-upstairs-with-rachel-hawkins/ CATEGORIES:Book Discussion,Reader Meet Writer,Virtual Author Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://mainstreetreads.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/Screen-Shot-2021-01-03-at-12.59.59-PM.png END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20201215T190000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20201215T200000 DTSTAMP:20260410T010114 CREATED:20201206T063725Z LAST-MODIFIED:20210403T144527Z UID:3837-1608058800-1608062400@mainstreetreads.com SUMMARY:Ruthie Landis FREE Virtual Workshop DESCRIPTION:Imagine that your life is a hit play\, one that you produce and direct\, a show where you get to pick all the parts\, from your leading role to the bit players. You get to choose the sets\, the lighting\, the costumes\, and even who gets a front row seat\, right up to the final curtain call. \nIn fact\, you don’t need to imagine it because your life is exactly that: a long-running adventure created for your life’s stage by you! \nBest selling author Ruthie Landis weaves her decades of experience in the theatre and as a psychotherapist\, teacher and coach\, with insightful personality concepts found in the Enneagram used by actors and successful “players” the world over\, to guide you through your own hero’s journey – your life’s calling. \nWhether you’re in “pre-production” or wanting to make sure your final bow will invite a standing ovation\, Acting Lessons for Living will engage you\, change you\, and support you in playing the scenes of your own life with crystal clear intention\, full presence\, and a finale that will knock your socks off. \nWe’re pleased to invite you to a free “Acting Lessons for Living” workshop with Ruthie on Tuesday\, December 15th! Time will be allowed after the talk for Q&A. \nJoin Zoom Meeting\nhttps://us02web.zoom.us/j/83295969914?pwd=bGh2VjFRTUhvSm0zNkVCZlZRV2VPZz09 \nMeeting ID: 832 9596 9914\nPasscode: 870406 \nAnd on Saturday\, December 19th\, Ruthie will be here LIVE to answer questions and sign her books\, including Acting Lessons for Living\, the new companion Guided Journal\, and her Beyond the Bookclub! You won’t want to miss this special event\, just in time for the holidays and before you begin setting those New Year’s goals. \n  URL:https://mainstreetreads.com/event/ruthie-landis-free-virtual-workshop/ LOCATION:Main Street Reads\, 115 S. Main St.\, Summerville\, SC\, 29483\, United States CATEGORIES:Book Discussion,Reader Meet Writer,Virtual Author Event,Workshop ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://mainstreetreads.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/Ruthie-Virtual-Workshop.png ORGANIZER;CN="Main Street Reads":MAILTO:shari@writerswin.com END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20201203T190000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20201203T200000 DTSTAMP:20260410T010114 CREATED:20201116T015618Z LAST-MODIFIED:20210403T144553Z UID:3733-1607022000-1607025600@mainstreetreads.com SUMMARY:Reader Meet Writer: Ingram presents #BlackVoices Sponsored by HarperCollins! DESCRIPTION:CLICK HERE register for this special event\, including these authors and books: \nAn electrifying first novel from a riveting new voice in American fiction (George Saunders): A young woman returns to her childhood home in the American South and uncovers secrets about her father’s life and death \nBillie James’ inheritance isn’t much: a little money and a shack in the Mississippi Delta. The house once belonged to her father\, a renowned black poet who died unexpectedly when Billie was four years old. Though Billie was there when the accident happened\, she has no memory of that day–and she hasn’t been back to the South since. \nThirty years later\, Billie returns but her father’s home is unnervingly secluded: her only neighbors are the McGees\, the family whose history has been entangled with hers since the days of slavery. As Billie encounters the locals\, she hears a strange rumor: that she herself went missing on the day her father died. As the mystery intensifies\, she finds out that this forgotten piece of her past could put her in danger. \nInventive\, gritty\, and openhearted\, The Gone Dead is an astonishing debut novel about race\, justice\, and memory that lays bare the long-concealed wounds of a family and a country. —Publishers Weekly \n\nIn the tradition of Notorious RBG\, a lively\, beautifully designed\, full-color illustrated celebration of the life\, wisdom\, wit\, legacy\, and fearless style of iconic American Congresswoman Maxine Waters. \n“Let me just say this: I’m a strong black woman\, and I cannot be intimidated. I cannot be undermined. I cannot be thought to be afraid of Bill O’Reilly or anyone.”–Maxine Waters \nTo millions nationwide\, Congresswoman Maxine Waters is a hero of the resistance and an icon\, serving eye rolls\, withering looks\, and sharp retorts to any who dare waste her time on nonsense. But behind the Auntie Maxine meme is a seasoned public servant and she’s not here to play. Throughout her forty years in public service and eighty years on earth\, U.S. Representative for California’s 43rd district has been a role model\, a crusader for justice\, a game-changer\, a trailblazer\, and an advocate for the marginalized who has long defied her critics\, including her most vocal detractor\, Donald J. Trump. And she’s just getting started. \nFrom her anti-apartheid work and support of affirmative action to her passionate opposition to the Iraq War and calls to hold Trump to account\, you can count on Auntie Maxine to speak truth to power and do it with grace and\, sometimes\, sass. As ranking member of the House Financial Services Committee and one of the most powerful black women in America\, she is the strong\, ethical voice the country has always needed\, especially right now. \nReclaiming Her Time pays tribute to all things Maxine Waters\, from growing up in St. Louis “too skinny” and “too black\,” to taking on Wall Street during the financial crisis and coming out on top in her legendary showdowns with Trump and his cronies. Featuring inspiring highlights from her personal life and political career\, beloved memes\, and testimonies from her many friends and fans\, Reclaiming Her Time is a funny\, warm\, and admiring portrait of a champion who refuses to stay silent in the face of corruption and injustice; a powerful woman who is an inspiration to us all. \n\n“There was no greater friend to the poor\, to the lost\, to the left out\, and to the left behind. If you want to understand this great man\, read his historic\, important book and learn the lessons and values from his ‘moral voice crying in the wilderness’ on behalf of our American democracy.” –Rep. John Lewis (D-GA) \nKnown for his poise\, intellect\, and influence until his death in October 2019\, Elijah Cummings was one of the most respected figures in contemporary politics\, a politician who held fast to his beliefs but was not afraid to reach across the aisle in the name of friendship and progress. Since his earliest days in government through his time as a representative and chairman of the House Oversight and Reform Committee\, he proved his abilities as a politician who could operate at the highest levels of democracy\, serving the people of Baltimore and illustrating the importance of working with the underdog. \nYet in his final years of life\, Cummings recognized that democracy was the underdog. We’re Better Than This draws from Cummings’s own life to show the formative moments that prepared him for the disturbing first years of the Trump presidency and spurred him to hold the administration accountable for their actions. Weaving together the urgent drama of modern-day politics and character-defining stories from his past\, Cummings offers a never-before-told perspective on how his personal history\, coming of age in South Baltimore\, laid the foundation of a life spent fighting for justice. He goes behind the scenes with the House Democratic leadership\, offering an eye-opening chronicle of the grim realities of holding the Trump administration to account. Detailing this moment of unprecedented obstructionism by both the president and Republicans\, Cummings presents a vital defense of how government oversight defines our collective trust\, examining the dangerous precedent for both parties that exists if the executive branch remains above public scrutiny. \nPart memoir\, part call to action\, We’re Better Than This is the story of our modern-day democracy and the threats that we all must face together\, as well as a retrospective on the life and career of one of our country’s most inspirational politicians. As we approach another test of our democracy\, the next race for the White House\, We’re Better Than This reminds people that in this country we don’t elect kings\, and we cannot afford four more years of this false one. \n\n“The Kindest Lie is a deep dive into how we define family\, what it means to be a mother\, what secrets we owe to those we love\, and what it means to grow up Black. This beautifully crafted debut will keep you asking these questions and more.” –Jodi Picoult\, New York Times bestselling author of The Book of Two Ways \nThe Kindest Lie examines the heartbreaking divide between Black and white communities and plumbs the emotional depths of the struggles faced by ordinary Americans in the wake of the financial crisis\, perfectly capturing the profound racial injustices and class inequalities roiling society. \nA promise could betray you. \nIt’s 2008\, and the inauguration of President Barack Obama ushers in a new kind of hope. In Chicago\, Ruth Tuttle\, an Ivy-League educated Black engineer\, is married to a kind and successful man. He’s eager to start a family\, but Ruth is uncertain. She has never gotten over the baby she gave birth to–and was forced to leave behind–when she was a teenager. She had promised her family she’d never look back\, but Ruth knows that to move forward\, she must make peace with the past. \nReturning home\, Ruth discovers the Indiana factory town of her youth is plagued by unemployment\, racism\, and despair. As she begins digging into the past\, she unexpectedly befriends Midnight\, a young white boy who is also adrift and looking for connection. Just as Ruth is about to uncover a burning secret her family desperately wants to keep hidden\, a traumatic incident strains the town’s already searing racial tensions\, sending Ruth and Midnight on a collision course that could upend both their lives. \nThe Kindest Lie examines the heartbreaking divide between Black and white communities and plumbs the emotional depths of the struggles faced by ordinary Americans in the wake of the financial crisis. Capturing the profound racial injustices and class inequalities roiling society\, Nancy Johnson’s debut novel offers an unflinching view of motherhood in contemporary America and the never-ending quest to achieve the American Dream. URL:https://mainstreetreads.com/event/reader-meet-writer-ingram-presents-blackvoices-sponsored-by-harpercollins/ CATEGORIES:Reader Meet Writer,Virtual Author Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://mainstreetreads.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/BlackVoices_12-3-scaled.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20201112T190000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20201112T200000 DTSTAMP:20260410T010114 CREATED:20201023T202944Z LAST-MODIFIED:20201110T131257Z UID:3622-1605207600-1605211200@mainstreetreads.com SUMMARY:Reader Meet Writer: Embrace Your Southern\, Sugar with Julia Fowler DESCRIPTION:Join us Thursday\, November 12th for some giggles with Julia Fowler\, celebrating the release of Embrace Your Southern\, Sugar!\n \nMore irresistible stories and sayings from the creator of YouTube’s Southern Women Channel. \nMs. Julia Fowler is back\, and this time she’s goin’ to talk her lipstick off about even more things Southern. If you’re not from the South\, we hope to learn ya a thing or two that you can tote back into your own culture. If you are from the South\, then you’re ’bout to be happier than a mule in a pickle patch: Julia’s laugh-out-loud essays cover the dadblame weather\, your obsession with football\, your Southern fried palate\, comin’ and goin’\, your health\, and bein’ country\, all complemented by a list of sayings you will only ever hear in the South. Julia says to embrace it all\, as there is nothing purdier than authenticity: Embrace Your Southern\, Sugar! \nJulia Fowler is the creator and actor of the Southern Women Channel\, a popular YouTube channel that celebrates Southern sayings\, humor\, and stories. After her first video went viral\, her work has been featured in major national media\, from CMT to The Today Show. Julia was born and raised in Gaffney\, South Carolina\, and now resides in Venice Beach\, California. \nTo register and join the Zoom call\, visit this link: \nhttps://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_x5WcXWU1RzSsitEaiwHEhA URL:https://mainstreetreads.com/event/reader-meet-writer-embrace-your-southern-sugar-with-julia-fowler/ LOCATION:Main Street Reads\, 115 S. Main St.\, Summerville\, SC\, 29483\, United States CATEGORIES:Book Discussion,Reader Meet Writer,Reading,Virtual Author Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://mainstreetreads.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/Julia-Fowler-Embrace-Your-Southern-Sugar.png ORGANIZER;CN="Main Street Reads":MAILTO:shari@writerswin.com END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20201027T190000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20201027T200000 DTSTAMP:20260410T010114 CREATED:20201023T200433Z LAST-MODIFIED:20201023T201045Z UID:3613-1603825200-1603828800@mainstreetreads.com SUMMARY:Reader Meet Writer: Out! With Actors Miles McKenna and Emily Hampshire DESCRIPTION:Join activist and actor Miles McKenna in conversation with actor Emily Hampshire\, (Stevie Budd on Schitt’s Creek) to discuss Miles’s new book\, Out!\, the ultimate coming-out survival guide. \nActivist Miles McKenna came out on his YouTube channel in 2017\, documenting his transition to help other teens navigate their identities and take charge of their own coming-out stories. From that wisdom comes Out!\, the ultimate coming-out survival guide. Find validation\, inspiration\, and support for your questions big and small—whether you’re exploring your identity or seeking to understand the experience of an awesome queer person in your life. \nMiles McKenna is an actor and social media icon known for his comedic voice and LGBTQ+ advice and activism. He was recently awarded the Shorty Award for Best LGBTQ+ Account of 2017\, headlined two nationwide tours that covered a total of 35 shows\, and has creatively collaborated with companies like Google\, HBO\, ATT\, and Lyft. Find out more on his YouTube channel\, MilesChronicles\, or on Instagram at @themilesmckenna. \nMontreal native Emily Hampshire can be seen starring in two critically acclaimed and vastly different television series at the same time. Hampshire portrays fan favorite ’Stevie Budd’ in the Emmy Award-winning Schitt’s Creek\, opposite Eugene Levy and Catherine O’Hara. In addition\, she plays ‘Jennifer Goines’ in Syfy/Hulu’s 12 Monkeys. \nTo register and join the Zoom call\, visit this link: \nhttps://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_9nCng2J8QeiQzkKfELwQTA URL:https://mainstreetreads.com/event/reader-meet-writer-out-with-actors-miles-mckenna-and-emily-hampshire/ CATEGORIES:Book Discussion,Celebration,Reader Meet Writer,Reading,Virtual Author Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://mainstreetreads.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/Out_EventGraphic_SIBA.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20201015T190000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20201015T200000 DTSTAMP:20260410T010114 CREATED:20201004T045457Z LAST-MODIFIED:20201004T045457Z UID:3369-1602788400-1602792000@mainstreetreads.com SUMMARY:Reader Meet Writer: Better Boys\, Better Men with Andrew Reiner DESCRIPTION:Join us for this Zoom discussion on Thursday\, October 15 from 7-8 pm! Email mainstreetreads@gmail.com for your event link and password: \nIn Better Boys\, Better Men\, cultural critic and New York Times contributor Andrew Reiner argues that men today are working on an outdated model of masculinity\, which prevents them in moments of distress and vulnerability from marshalling the courage\, strength\, and resiliency—the very characteristics we regularly champion in men—they need to thrive in a world vastly different from the ones their fathers and grandfathers grew up in. According to Reiner\, this outdated model of manhood can have devastating effects on the entire culture and\, especially boys and men\, from falling behind in the classroom and rising male unemployment rates to increased levels of depression and disturbing upticks in violence on a mass scale. \nReiner interviews boys and men of all ages\, educators\, counselors\, therapists\, and physicians throughout the United States to better understand what factors are preventing the country’s boys and men from developing the emotional resiliency they need. He also introduces readers to the boys and men at the vanguard of a new masculinity that empowers them to find and express the full range of their humanity. Urgent and necessary\, Better Boys\, Better Men will change the way we talk about boys and men in America today. \nAndrew Reiner is a professor at Towson University\, where he offers the seminar “The Changing Face of Masculinity.” He has written on masculinity and men’s issues for the New York Times\, the Washington Post Magazine\, and Italy’s la Republica . His work has been featured on NPR\, the Canadian Broadcasting Company\, and in Men’s Health\, Forbes\, and The Guardian. He speaks about masculinity regularly at schools and conferences around the world.\n \n  URL:https://mainstreetreads.com/event/reader-meet-writer-better-boys-better-men-with-andrew-reiner/ LOCATION:Main Street Reads\, 115 S. Main St.\, Summerville\, SC\, 29483\, United States CATEGORIES:Book Discussion,Reader Meet Writer,Reading,Virtual Author Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://mainstreetreads.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/Andrew-Reiner-Better-Boys-Better-Men-.png ORGANIZER;CN="Main Street Reads":MAILTO:shari@writerswin.com END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20201001T190000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20201001T200000 DTSTAMP:20260410T010114 CREATED:20201001T052704Z LAST-MODIFIED:20201001T052704Z UID:3351-1601578800-1601582400@mainstreetreads.com SUMMARY:Reader Meet Writer: Confessions on the 7:45 with Lisa Unger (Virtual Event) DESCRIPTION:Come join us via Zoom (email for link and password) on Thursday October 1 at 7 pm for a discussion with author Lisa Unger about CONFESSIONS ON THE 7:45! \nSelena Murphy is commuting home from her job in the city when the train stalls out on the tracks. She strikes up a conversation with a beautiful stranger in the next seat\, and their connection is fast and easy. The woman introduces herself as Martha and confesses that she’s been stuck in an affair with her boss. Selena\, in turn\, confesses that she suspects her husband is sleeping with the nanny. When the train arrives at Selena’s station\, the two women part ways\, presumably never to meet again. But days later\, Selena’s nanny disappears. Soon Selena finds her once-perfect life upended. As she is pulled into the mystery of the missing nanny\, and as the fractures in her marriage grow deeper\, Selena begins to wonder\, who was Martha really? But she is hardly prepared for what she’ll discover. Expertly plotted and reminiscent of the timeless classic Strangers on a Train\, Confessions on the 7:45 is a stunning web of lies and deceit\, and a gripping thriller about the delicate facades we create around our lives. \nLisa Unger is the New York Times and internationally bestselling author of eighteen novels\, including Confessions on the 7:45. With millions of readers worldwide and books published in twenty-six languages\, Unger is widely regarded as a master of suspense. Her critically acclaimed books have been voted “Best of the Year” or top picks by the Today show\, Good Morning America\, Entertainment Weekly\, Amazon\, IndieBound and others. Her essays have appeared in The New York Times\, Wall Street Journal\, NPR\, and Travel+Leisure. She lives on the west coast of Florida with her family. URL:https://mainstreetreads.com/event/reader-meet-writer-confessions-on-the-745-with-lisa-unger-virtual-event/ LOCATION:Main Street Reads\, 115 S. Main St.\, Summerville\, SC\, 29483\, United States CATEGORIES:Book Discussion,Reader Meet Writer,Virtual Author Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://mainstreetreads.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/Lisa-Unger-Confessions.png ORGANIZER;CN="Main Street Reads":MAILTO:shari@writerswin.com END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20200929T170000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20200929T180000 DTSTAMP:20260410T010114 CREATED:20200829T163601Z LAST-MODIFIED:20200829T163625Z UID:3114-1601398800-1601402400@mainstreetreads.com SUMMARY:Reader Meet Writer: Down Along with That Devil’s Bones with Connor Town O'Neill DESCRIPTION:Join us Tuesday\, September 29\, 2020 from 5-6 pm for a great conversation with Connor Town O’Neill\, author of In Down Along with That Devil’s Bones. You must email us at mainstreetreads@gmail.com for your link and password to attend. This event is FREE to our readers!\n \nJournalist Connor Towne O’Neill takes a deep dive into American history\, exposing the still-raging battles over monuments dedicated to one of the most notorious Confederate generals\, Nathan Bedford Forrest. Through the lens of these conflicts\, O’Neill examines the legacy of white supremacy in America\, in a sobering and fascinating work sure to resonate with readers of Tony Horwitz\, Timothy B. Tyson\, and Robin DiAngelo. \nWhen O’Neill first moved to Alabama\, as a white Northerner\, he felt somewhat removed from the racism Confederate monuments represented. Then one day in Selma\, he stumbled across a group of citizens protecting a monument to Forrest\, the officer who became the first Grand Wizard of the Ku Klux Klan and whom William Tecumseh Sherman referred to as “that devil.” O’Neill sets off to visit other disputed memorials to Forrest across the South\, talking with men and women who believe they are protecting their heritage\, and those who have a different view of the man’s poisonous history. \nO’Neill’s reporting and thoughtful\, deeply personal analysis make it clear that white supremacy is not a regional affliction but is in fact coded into the DNA of the entire country. Down Along with That Devil’s Bones presents an important and eye-opening account of how we got from Appomattox to Charlottesville\, and where\, if we can truly understand and transcend our past\, we could be headed next. \nConnor Towne O’Neill’s writing has appeared in New York magazine\, Vulture\, Slate\, RBMA\, and the Village Voice\, and he works as a producer on the NPR podcast White Lies. Originally from Lancaster\, Pennsylvania\, he lives in Auburn\, Alabama\, where he teaches at Auburn University and with the Alabama Prison Arts + Education Project. This is his first book. URL:https://mainstreetreads.com/event/reader-meet-writer-down-along-with-that-devils-bones-with-connor-town-oneill/ LOCATION:Main Street Reads\, 115 S. Main St.\, Summerville\, SC\, 29483\, United States CATEGORIES:Book Discussion,Reader Meet Writer,Virtual Author Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://mainstreetreads.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/Down-with-Connor-towne-ONeill.png ORGANIZER;CN="Main Street Reads":MAILTO:shari@writerswin.com END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20200924T200000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20200924T210000 DTSTAMP:20260410T010114 CREATED:20200919T202740Z LAST-MODIFIED:20200920T142656Z UID:3267-1600977600-1600981200@mainstreetreads.com SUMMARY:Author LAUNCH Party! Temple of Eternity by R. Scott Boyer DESCRIPTION:The Pulpwood Academy and Main Street Reads are hosting a big author LAUNCH PARTY on September 24\, 2020\, the launch date for R. Scott Boyer’s new release\, Temple of Eternity – a stellar sequel to Bobby Ether and the Jade Academy. \n\n\n\nThe event takes place at 8 pm EST (immediately following the Pulpwood Queens meeting at 6:30 pm) – and will feature Scott in discussion with the Pulpwood Queen\, Kathy Murphy\, as well as Shari Stauch of Main Street Reads. \n\n\n\nGet a first look at the book trailers AND get a free gift for your book club just for attending! \n\n\n\nPlease use the following link and password to attend! The event will also be simulcast on Facebook Live and posted to YouTube. \n\n\n\nMeeting ID: 821 4257 7684 Passcode: 092420 Join Zoom Meeting https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82142577684?pwd=Vk5mOU5xWWZySkVRUjlCQXdzdHRtdz09 \n\nScott’s books are available at the store as well as through our online ordering HERE. \n\n\n\nDeep in the rain forests of Guatemala\, an ancient Mayan temple holds a mythical secret. The legendary Fountain of Youth lies within\, but not all myths are fairy tales. The temple ruins have been seized by the Core\, a sinister cult determined to unlock the mysteries of immortality. \n\n\n\nWhen their captured friends are spotted near the temple\, Bobby and his cousin Jinx must journey into the dark heart of the jungle to save them. Harnessing their extraordinary abilities\, the boys will undertake an epic quest to fulfill a centuries-old prophecy. \n\n\n\nCut off from their allies\, Bobby and Jinx combat supernatural barriers\, raging rivers\, and deadly beasts. They’ll face savage natives\, vengeful ghosts\, and ruthless mercenaries who can conjure a person’s darkest fears. Past and present will collide\, with the power of eternity on the line. Can Bobby fulfill the prophecy and lay the temple’s spirits to rest? If not\, Bobby and his friends may become permanent inhabitants of the Temple of Eternity. \nNote: Temple of Eternity will be the YA Bookclub choice for October – don’t miss it! URL:https://mainstreetreads.com/event/author-launch-party-the-temple-of-eternity-by-r-scott-boyer/ LOCATION:Main Street Reads\, 115 S. Main St.\, Summerville\, SC\, 29483\, United States CATEGORIES:Book Club,Book Discussion,Celebration,Reader Meet Writer,Virtual Author Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://mainstreetreads.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Scott-boyer-launch-party-Temple-of-Eternity.png END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20200924T183000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20200924T200000 DTSTAMP:20260410T010114 CREATED:20190618T173441Z LAST-MODIFIED:20200920T142529Z UID:932-1600972200-1600977600@mainstreetreads.com SUMMARY:Pulpwood Queens Book Club at Main Street Reads DESCRIPTION:The PQ bookclub meets on the 4th Tuesday of each month at 6:30 p.m. On September 24th we’re discussing Dragonfly by Leila Meacham!\n \nJoin us live in the store at 6:30 OR via Zoom. ALL ARE WELCOME!  \n\nAt the height of WWII\, five idealistic young Americans receive a mysterious letter from the OSS\, asking them if they are willing to fight for their country. The men and women from very different backgrounds–a Texan athlete with German roots\, an upper-crust son of a French mother and a wealthy businessman\, a dirt-poor Midwestern fly fisherman\, an orphaned fashion designer\, and a ravishingly beautiful female fencer from Princeton — all answer the call of duty\, but each for a secret reason of his or her own. They bond immediately\, in a group code-named DRAGONFLY. \nSoon after their training\, they are dropped behind enemy lines and take up their false identities\, isolated from one another except for a secret drop-box\, but in close contact with the powerful Nazi elite who have Paris under siege. \nThus begins a dramatic and riveting cat-and-mouse game\, as the young Americans seek to stay under the radar until a fatal misstep leads to the capture and the firing-squad execution of one of their team. But…is everything as it seems\, or is this one more elaborate act of spycraft? \n\nThe book is available at the book club discount price at Main Street Reads! Prefer to order the book online? Use our easy link! https://bookshop.org/shop/mainstreetreads \nLeila Meacham is a writer and former teacher who lives in San Antonio\, Texas. She is the author of the bestselling novels Roses\, Somerset and Tumbleweeds. URL:https://mainstreetreads.com/event/pulpwood-queens-book-club-at-main-street-reads/ LOCATION:Main Street Reads\, 115 S. Main St.\, Summerville\, SC\, 29483\, United States CATEGORIES:Book Club,Book Discussion,Reader Meet Writer,Reading,Virtual Author Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://mainstreetreads.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/Pulpwood-Queens-Bookclub.png ORGANIZER;CN="Main Street Reads":MAILTO:shari@writerswin.com END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20200917T190000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20200917T200000 DTSTAMP:20260410T010114 CREATED:20200829T162520Z LAST-MODIFIED:20200829T162628Z UID:3109-1600369200-1600372800@mainstreetreads.com SUMMARY:Reader Meet Writer: Prejudential: Black America and the Presidents Margaret Kimberley (Virtual Event) DESCRIPTION:Meet author Margaret Kimberley with a frank discussion about her work\, Prejudential: Black America and the Presidents. Email us at mainstreetreads@gmail.com for your link and password! \n“Margaret Kimberley gives us an intellectual gem of prophetic fire about all the U.S. presidents and their deep roots in the vicious legacy of white supremacy and predatory capitalism. Such truths seem more than most Americans can bear\, though we ignore her words at our own peril!” \n~ Cornel West\, author of Race Matters \nPrejudential is a concise\, authoritative exploration of America’s relationship with race and black Americans through the lens of the presidents who are elected to represent and govern all of its people. Throughout the history of the United States\, numerous presidents have been remembered as slaveholders\, bigots and inciters of racial violence\, but were others generally regarded as more sympathetic to the plight and interests of black Americans—such as Lincoln\, FDR and Clinton—really much better? And what of all the presidents whose interactions with and impacts on the lives of black America are hardly considered at all? Over the course of 45 chapters—one for each president—Kimberley examines the condition of black America through the attitudes and actions of the highest elected official in the country. This is not meant to be a definitive examination of the topic but rather an informative and engaging guide that illustrates the merits and especially the shortcomings of even those presidents considered more progressive than their contemporaries on race issues. By casting sunlight on an aspect of American history that is largely overlooked\, Prejudential aims to increase awareness in a manner that will facilitate discussion and understanding. \nMargaret Kimberley is a New York-based writer and activist for peace and justice issues. Dr. Cornel West has called her “one the few great truth tellers who\, along with Glen Ford\, Adolph Reed\, Jr. and Bruce Dixon\, preserved her integrity during the Obama years.” She has been an Editor and Senior Columnist for Black Agenda Report since its inception in 2006. Her work has appeared in the Dallas Morning News\, Consortium News\, American Herald Tribune and CounterPunch. She is a contributor to the anthology\, In Defense of Julian Assange. She is a graduate of Williams College and lives in New York City. URL:https://mainstreetreads.com/event/reader-meet-writer-prejudential-black-america-and-the-presidents-margaret-kimberley-virtual-event/ LOCATION:Main Street Reads\, 115 S. Main St.\, Summerville\, SC\, 29483\, United States CATEGORIES:Book Discussion,Reader Meet Writer,Virtual Author Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://mainstreetreads.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/Prejudential-with-Margaret-Kimberly.png END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20200915T150000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20200915T160000 DTSTAMP:20260410T010114 CREATED:20200824T054321Z LAST-MODIFIED:20200824T054321Z UID:3056-1600182000-1600185600@mainstreetreads.com SUMMARY:Reader Meet Writer: Set My Heart to Five with Simon Stephenson (Virtual Event) DESCRIPTION:Join us September 15th from 3-4 p.m. for an enlightening conversation with Simon Stephenson about his new release\, Set My Heart to Five. Remember to email mainstreetreads@gmail.com for the event link and password to attend! \nFor fans of Fredrik Backman and Gail Honeyman\, a delightfully entertaining\, deceptively poignant debut novel about a human-like bot named Jared\, whose emotional awakening leads him on an unforgettable quest for connection\, belonging and possibly even true love. \nJared works as a dentist in small town Michigan. His life is totally normal\, except for one thing. He is a bot\, engineered with human DNA to look and act like a real person. \nOne day at a screening of classic movie\, Jared feels a strange sensation around his eyes. Everyone knows that bots can’t feel emotions\, but as the theater lights come on\, Jared could swear he’s crying. Confused\, he decides to watch more old movies to figure out what’s happening. The process leads to an emotional awakening that upends his existence. Jared\, it turns out\, can feel. \nOvercome with a full range of emotions\, and facing an imminent reset\, Jared heads west\, determined to forge real connections. He yearns to find his mother\, the programmer who created him. He dreams of writing a screenplay that will change the world. Along the way he might even fall in love. But a bot with feelings is a dangerous proposition\, and Jared’s new life could come to an end before it truly begins. \nDelightfully entertaining and deceptively moving\, Set My Heart to Five is a profound exploration of what makes us human\, and a love letter to outsiders everywhere. \nSimon Stephenson previously wrote Let Not the Waves of the Sea (John Murray)\, a memoir about the loss of his brother in the Indian ocean tsunami. It won Best First Book at the Scottish Book Awards\, was a Book of the Week on BBC Radio 4\, and a Daily Telegraph Book of the Year. Since then he has been dividing his time between the UK and LA\, where he works as a screenwriter\, most recently at Pixar Animation Studios. URL:https://mainstreetreads.com/event/reader-meet-writer-set-my-heart-to-five-with-simon-stephenson-virtual-event/ LOCATION:Main Street Reads\, 115 S. Main St.\, Summerville\, SC\, 29483\, United States CATEGORIES:Book Discussion,Reader Meet Writer,Virtual Author Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://mainstreetreads.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/Set-My-Heart-to-Five-with-Simon-Stephenson.png ORGANIZER;CN="Main Street Reads":MAILTO:shari@writerswin.com END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20200912T103000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20200912T163000 DTSTAMP:20260410T010114 CREATED:20200903T181701Z LAST-MODIFIED:20200903T181838Z UID:3144-1599906600-1599928200@mainstreetreads.com SUMMARY:4th Annual Lowcountry Book Club Convention (Free Virtual Event!) DESCRIPTION:Technical College of the Lowcountry (partial) \n\nThe nonprofit Pat Conroy Literary Center will host the 4th annual Lowcountry Book Club Convention as a live-streamed event on Saturday\, September 12—featuring New York Times best-selling novelists Grady Hendrix (The Southern Book Club’s Guide to Slaying Vampires) and Wiley Cash (The Last Ballad); actress\, counselor\, and author Ruthie Landis (Beyond the Book Club); and a trio of authors selected by Wiley Cash’s Open Canon Book Club: Lori Horvitz (The Girls of Unusually)\, Silas House (Southernmost)\, and Crystal Hana Kim (If You Leave Me). \nThe Lowcountry Book Club Convention is presented in partnership with NeverMore Books and SCETV Lowcountry\, and made possible by the generous support of the Pulpwood Queens Books Club\, the largest book club in the US. \nBroadcast from the SCETV Lowcountry studio in Beaufort\, the live-streamed video of the Lowcountry Book Club Convention will be freely available on the Pat Conroy Literary Center’s Facebook page with the recorded videos posted afterwards to the Conroy Center’s YouTube channel. Limited in-person attendance for this event is now sold out. \nWebsite: Facebook Event Page \n \nSCHEDULE OF EVENTS \n10:30 to Noon: Ruthie Landis\, author of Beyond the Book Club: We Are the Books We Must Read\, will lead an interactive workshop for our in-person and online participants to help enrich their reading experiences as members of a literary community. Landis’s workshop will also incorporate a discussion of Pat Conroy’s 1972 teaching memoir The Water Is Wide. \nNoon to 1:00 p.m.: Lunch break\, catered by Debbi Covington for our in-studio audience. (No live-streaming at this time.) \n1:00 to 2:30 p.m.: New York Times best-selling novelist and winner of the 2019 Pat Conroy Legacy Award Wiley Cash will discuss his innovative Open Canon Book Club in conversation with a trio of writers selected for the Open Canon (participating remotely): memoirist Lori Horvitz (The Girls of Unusually) and novelists Silas House (Southernmost) and Crystal Hana Kim (If You Leave Me). \n3:00 to 4:00 p.m.: New York Times best-selling horror writer Grady Hendrix will discuss his new novel The Southern Book Club’s Guide to Slaying Vampires\, inspired by his mother’s long-running book club in Mt. Pleasant\, South Carolina\, where he was raised. (Hendrix will be presenting remotely.) \nBooks by the presenters will be available through the Beaufort-based independent bookstore NeverMore Books (www.nevermorebooks.com). \nABOUT OUR PRESENTERS\nWinner of the 2019 Pat Conroy Legacy Award of the Southern Independent Booksellers Alliance\, Wiley Cash is the New York Times bestselling author of three novels\, most recently The Last Ballad. He has led dozens of writing workshops around the country\, including for the Pat Conroy Literary Center. Cash currently serves as writer-in-residence at the University of North Carolina-Asheville. In September 2018\, he launched the Open Canon Book Club to highlight the voices and contributions of a diverse group of writers and foster greater understanding and empathy through their portrayals of the American experience. www.wileycash.com/opencanon \nRaised in Mt. Pleasant\, South Carolina\, novelist and screenwriter Grady Hendrix is the author of The Southern Book Club’s Guide to Slaying Vampires. He is also the Bram Stoker Award-winning author of Paperbacks from Hell\, and the Shirley Jackson and Locus Award nominated author of Horrorstör\, My Best Friend’s Exorcism\, and We Sold Our Souls. His writing has also been featured in Playboy\, the Village Voice\, and Variety. www.gradyhendrix.com \n  \nLori Horvitz is the author of the memoir The Girls from Unusually (winner of the 2016 IPPY Award for Autobiography/Memoir and the 2015 USA Best Book Award for Gay & Lesbian Nonfiction\, and a finalist for the 2015 IndieFab Book of the Year Award for Autobiography & Memoir). Her writing has appeared in a variety of journals and anthologies including South Dakota Review\, Southeast Review\, Hotel Amerika\, and Chattahoochee Review. A professor of literature and language at UNC Asheville\, Horvitz also directs the Women\, Gender and Sexuality Studies Program. www.lorihorvitz.com \nSilas House is the author of five novels\, most recently Southernmost (winner of the 2019 Judy Gaines Young Award and the 2019 Weatherford Award for Fiction\, and a finalist for the Willie Morris Award for Southern Fiction and the Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Fiction). His book for middle-grade readers\, Same Sun Here\, was a finalist for the E. B. White Read-Aloud award. A frequent contributor to the New York Times and a former commentator for NPR’s All Things Considered\, House is a member of the Fellowship of Southern Writers. www.silas-house.com \nCrystal Hana Kim’s debut novel If You Leave Me was named a best book of 2018 by the Washington Post\, Booklist\, Literary Hub\, Cosmopolitan\, and others. It was also longlisted for the Center for Fiction Novel Prize. Kim was a 2017 PEN America Dau Short Story Prize winner and her work has been published in Guernica\, Elle Magazine\, Paris Review\, and elsewhere. She is a Teach For America alum and has taught elementary school\, high school\, and collegiate writing. She currently teaches at Columbia University and is a contributing editor at Apogee Journal. www.crystalhanakim.com \nAward-winning workshop designer\, body-centered psychotherapist and coach\, writer\, teacher\, actress\, and director Ruthie Landis has been designing powerful and interactive group experiences for over thirty years. Among the many disciplines she practices\, she is a master of the Enneagram\, and uses its wisdom in nearly every aspect of her creative\, professional\, and personal life. She is the author of Beyond the Book Club: We Are the Books We Must Read and Acting Lessons for Life: Play the Scenes of Your Life with Intention\, Presence\, and Pure Potential. www.ruthienergy.com URL:https://mainstreetreads.com/event/4th-annual-lowcountry-book-club-convention-free-virtual-event/ CATEGORIES:Book Club,Book Discussion,Reader Meet Writer,Virtual Author Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://mainstreetreads.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Sep12_2020_LowcountryBookconventionBanner_800_450.jpg END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20200910T190000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20200910T200000 DTSTAMP:20260410T010114 CREATED:20200824T050455Z LAST-MODIFIED:20200824T050455Z UID:3051-1599764400-1599768000@mainstreetreads.com SUMMARY:Reader Meet Writer: Liar's Circus with Carl Hoffman (Virtual Event) DESCRIPTION:Join us Thu Sep 10th from 7:00 pm – 8:00 pm for an engaging chat with Carl Hoffman about Liar’s Circus! Don’t forget to email us at mainstreetreads@gmail.com for your event link and password to attend: \nFear and Loathing on the Campaign Trail meets Strangers in Their Own Land in this work of daring and immersive contemporary anthropology: Carl Hoffman\, who has written about the most dangerous and remote corners of the world\, journeys deep inside Donald Trump’s rallies\, seeking to understand the strange and powerful tribe that forms the president’s base. \nThis book proceeds from the premise that Donald J. Trump’s rallies are a singular and defining force—a kind of Rosetta stone to understanding the Age of Trump. Yet while much remarked upon\, the rallies are\, in fact\, little examined\, with the focus almost always on Trump’s latest outrageous statement. But who are the tens of thousands of people who fill America’s stadiums and arenas? What do they see in Trump? And what curious alchemy—between president and adoring crowd—happens there that might explain Trump’s rise? \nTo those on the Left\, the rallies are a Black Mass of American politics at which Trump plays high priest\, recklessly summoning the darkest forces within the nation. To the MAGA faithful\, the rallies are a form of pilgrimage\, a joyous ceremony that like all rituals binds people together and makes them feel a part of something bigger than themselves. Both sides would acknowledge that this traveling roadshow (the Wall Street Journal reports there have been more than 550 ticketed campaign events since 2015) is the pressurized\, combustible core of Trump’s political power\, a meeting of the faithful where Trump is unshackled and his rhetoric reaches its most extreme\, with downstream consequences for the rest of the nation. \nTo date\, no reporter has sought to understand the rallies as a sociological phenomenon examined from the bottom up. In 2019\, Carl Hoffman began to do just this and embedded himself in the Trump rallies. He has stood in line for days with crowds of supporters; he has traveled across the country from Minnesota to Texas to Mississippi interviewing hundreds of attendees and immersing himself in their culture. A former contributing editor to National Geographic Traveler\, Hoffman has traveled to 80 countries on assignment; he has written about cannibals in New Guinea\, Mumbai’s railways (the deadliest in the world)\, and the indigenous tribes of Borneo. Now he trains his unique eye on his own country. \nPublishing in the heart of the 2020 election cycle\, here is a fresh and notable take on Trump and the America he has built\, from one of our most talented journalists. \nCarl Hoffman is a former contributing editor to National Geographic Traveler and Wired. He is the author of the New York Times bestseller Savage Harvest\, which was a New York Times editors’ choice and one of the Washington Post‘s 50 notable works of nonfiction for 2014; The Last Wild Men of Borneo\, an Edgar Award nominee and finalist for the Banff Mountain Book Awards and the SATW Lowell Thomas Travel Journalism Competition; and The Lunatic Express. He lives in Washington\, D.C. \n  URL:https://mainstreetreads.com/event/reader-meet-writer-liars-circus-with-carl-hoffman-virtual-event/ LOCATION:Main Street Reads\, 115 S. Main St.\, Summerville\, SC\, 29483\, United States CATEGORIES:Book Discussion,Reader Meet Writer,Virtual Author Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://mainstreetreads.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/Liars-Circus-with-Carl-Hoffman.png ORGANIZER;CN="Main Street Reads":MAILTO:shari@writerswin.com END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20200909T210000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20200909T220000 DTSTAMP:20260410T010114 CREATED:20200830T021929Z LAST-MODIFIED:20200910T004259Z UID:3130-1599685200-1599688800@mainstreetreads.com SUMMARY:“Wine and Words” Author Carol Van Den Hende in Conversation with Main Street Reads (Virtual Event) DESCRIPTION:So here’s an uber-cool event! Author and friend of Main Street Reads’ Carol Van Den Hende’s new book releases on October 1st and as an early winner of the American Fiction award\, Goodbye Orchid is already predicted to be a bestseller. So\, on Wednesday\, September 9th we’re going to pour a glass of wine and toast this important work LIVE on Zoom (simulcast on Facebook Live) with Carol\, in conversation with fellow author and screenwriter Meredith Stack\, whose current project is Cannes Film Fest bound! Scroll down for login link and password… \n\n\n\nRising from ashes is hard. Giving up the one you love is harder. \n\n\n\n\n\n\nThirty-two-year-old Phoenix Walker is an entrepreneur who has built an agency with a heart almost as big as his own. To add to his good fortune\, he’s falling for Orchid Paige\, the beautiful half-Asian marketer who’s collaborated with him on a winning military campaign. They’ve grown close after months working and traveling together. She’s even divulged the trauma in her past that makes her panic over images of injured vets. He’s trying not to cross their professional boundary. Their relationship is at a precipice. Until an accident changes him forever. \nNow\, he’s faced with the hardest decision of his life: Does he burden the woman whose traumatic childhood makes him feel protective of her? Or does true love mean leaving her without explaining why? \nFor fans of ME BEFORE YOU and THE FAULT IN OUR STARS\, GOODBYE\, ORCHID asks…what choice does a wounded hero have when loving his woman means breaking his own heart? \nCarol Van Den Hende is an author and American Fiction Award winner who pens stories of resilience and hope. She’s also a speaker\, strategist\, and serves on nonprofit boards. One secret to her good fortune? Her humorous husband\, fun-loving twins\, and rescue cat\, who prove that love really does conquer all. NOTE: This debut novel by Carol Van Den Hende is inspired by and researched with combat-wounded veterans. A portion of the earnings benefits military personnel and other non-profits. \nHere are the Zoom link and password details:\nhttps://us02web.zoom.us/j/81155277763?pwd=ME9SR3hudzdCQ29zM241MFdHVHJXUT09\nMeeting ID: 811 5527 7763\nPasscode: 518149 \nBring the wine\, we’ll bring the party! URL:https://mainstreetreads.com/event/wine-and-words-author-carol-van-den-hende-in-conversation-with-meredith-stack-virtual-event/ LOCATION:Main Street Reads\, 115 S. Main St.\, Summerville\, SC\, 29483\, United States CATEGORIES:Book Discussion,Celebration,Reader Meet Writer,Reading,Virtual Author Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://mainstreetreads.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/award-page-1.png ORGANIZER;CN="Main Street Reads":MAILTO:shari@writerswin.com END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20200908T150000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20200908T160000 DTSTAMP:20260410T010114 CREATED:20200824T043753Z LAST-MODIFIED:20200902T174625Z UID:3045-1599577200-1599580800@mainstreetreads.com SUMMARY:Reader Meet Writer: Outlawed with Anna North + Girlhood with Melissa Febos (Postponed) DESCRIPTION:NOTE: The publisher for the Anna North/Melissa Febos event next week just notified us that they have to reschedule for early 2021… We’re keeping the event up in the system pending rescheduling but this event will NOT take place on September 8th. We apologize for the inconvenience. \nJoin us for two great book discussions on Tuesday\, September 8th\, 3-4 p.m. Don’t forget to email mainstreetreads@gmail.com for your event link and password! \n \nOUTLAWED\nBloomsbury | January 26\, 2021 | 9781635575422 \nThe Crucible meets True Grit in this riveting adventure story of a fugitive girl\, a mysterious gang of robbers\, and their dangerous mission to transform the Wild West. \nIn the year of our Lord 1894\, I became an outlaw. \nThe day of her wedding\, 17-year-old Ada’s life looks good; she loves her husband\, and she loves working as an apprentice to her mother\, a respected midwife. But after a year of marriage and no pregnancy\, in a town where barren women are routinely hanged as witches\, her survival depends on leaving behind everything she knows. \nShe joins up with the notorious Hole in the Wall Gang\, a band of outlaws led by a preacher-turned-robber known to all as the Kid. Charismatic\, grandiose\, and mercurial\, the Kid is determined to create a safe haven for outcast women. But to make this dream a reality\, the Gang hatches a treacherous plan that may get them all killed. And Ada must decide whether she’s willing to risk her life for the possibility of a new kind of future for them all. \nFeaturing an irresistibly no-nonsense\, courageous\, and determined heroine\, Outlawed dusts off the myth of the old West and reignites the glimmering promise of the frontier with an entirely new set of feminist stakes. Anna North has crafted a pulse-racing\, page-turning saga about the search for hope in the wake of death\, and for truth in a climate of small-mindedness and fear. \nAnna North is a graduate of the Iowa Writers’ Workshop and the author of two previous novels\, America Pacifica and The Life and Death of Sophie Stark\, which received a Lambda Literary Award in 2016. She has been a writer and editor at Jezebel\, BuzzFeed\, Salon\, and the New York Times\, and she is now a senior reporter at Vox. She grew up in Los Angeles and lives in Brooklyn. \nGIRLHOOD\nBloomsbury | March 30\, 2021 | 9781635572520 \nFor readers of Maggie Nelson and Leslie Jamison\, a poignant\, universal story of the forces that shape girls and of a world where women are rarely free to define themselves. \nIn her dazzling new book\, critically acclaimed author Melissa Febos examines the narratives women are told about what it means to be a girl and the realities of growing up female in a world that prioritizes the feelings\, perceptions\, and power of men at girls’ expense. \nFebos was eleven when her body began to change\, and almost overnight\, the way people spoke to\, looked at\, and treated her changed with it. As she grew\, she defined herself based on these perceptions and by the romantic relationships she threw herself into headlong. But in her thirties\, Febos began to question the stories she’d been told about herself and the habits and defenses she’d developed over years of trying to meet others’ expectations. The values she and so many other women had learned in girlhood did not prioritize their personal safety\, happiness\, or freedom\, and she set out to reframe those values and beliefs. \nBlending investigative reporting\, memoir\, and scholarship\, Febos charts how she and others like her have reimagined relationships and made room for the anger\, hurt\, and grief women have long been taught to deny. \nFierce and breathtaking\, written with Febos’ characteristic lyricism and searing insights\, Girlhood is an anthem for women\, a powerful exploration of the forces that seek to confine them\, and a searing study of the transitions into and away from girlhood on a lifelong journey of discovery. \nMelissa Febos is the author of Whip Smart and Abandon Me\, a Lambda Literary Award finalist and Publishing Triangle Award finalist. Her essays have appeared in Tin House\, The Believer\, The New York Times\, and elsewhere. Febos is the inaugural winner of the Jeanne Córdova Prize for Lesbian/Queer Nonfiction from Lambda Literary and serves on the directorial board of VIDA: Women in Literary Arts. She is an associate professor of creative writing at Monmouth University and lives in Brooklyn. URL:https://mainstreetreads.com/event/reader-meet-writer-outlawed-with-anna-north-girlhood-with-melissa-febos-virtual-event/ LOCATION:Main Street Reads\, 115 S. Main St.\, Summerville\, SC\, 29483\, United States CATEGORIES:Book Discussion,Reader Meet Writer,Virtual Author Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://mainstreetreads.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/Outlawed-with-Anna-North-Girlhood-with-Melissa-Febos.png ORGANIZER;CN="Main Street Reads":MAILTO:shari@writerswin.com END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20200903T190000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20200903T200000 DTSTAMP:20260410T010114 CREATED:20200824T042151Z LAST-MODIFIED:20200824T042151Z UID:3040-1599159600-1599163200@mainstreetreads.com SUMMARY:Reader Meet Writer: Everything Sad is Untrue with Daniel Nayeri (Virtual Event) DESCRIPTION:Join us Thursday\, September 3rd from 7-8 pm for an exciting discussion about EVERYTHING SAD IS UNTRUE by Daniel Nayeri! \n\n“A modern epic.”—Kirkus Reviews\, starred review\n “A distinctive voice. A rare treasure of a book.” —Publishers Weekly\, starred review\n “A story that soars. Readers will be transported.”—The Bulletin\, starred review\n\nAt the front of a middle school classroom in Oklahoma\, a boy named Khosrou (whom everyone calls “Daniel”) stands\, trying to tell a story. His story. But no one believes a word he says. To them he is a dark-skinned\, hairy-armed boy with a big butt whose lunch smells funny; who makes things up and talks about poop too much. \nBut Khosrou’s stories\, stretching back years\, and decades\, and centuries\, are beautiful\, and terrifying\, from the moment his family fled Iran in the middle of the night with the secret police moments behind them\, back to the sad\, cement refugee camps of Italy.and further back to the fields near the river Aras\, where rain-soaked flowers bled red like the yolk of sunset burst over everything\, and further back still to the Jasmine-scented city of Isfahan. \nWe bounce between a school bus of kids armed with paper clip missiles and spitballs to the heroines and heroes of Khosrou’s family’s past\, who ate pastries that made people weep and cry “Akh\, Tamar!” and touched carpets woven with precious gems. \nLike Scheherazade in a hostile classroom\, Daniel weaves a tale to save his own life: to stake his claim to the truth. And it is (a true story). \nIt is Daniel’s. \nDaniel Nayeri is the publisher of Odd Dot\, an imprint of Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group\, where he oversees a team of designers\, editors\, and inventors creating joyful books for curious minds. Daniel was born in Iran and spent several years as a refugee before immigrating to Oklahoma at age eight with his family. He is the author of several books for young readers\, including Straw House\, Wood House\, Brick House Blow: Four Novellas and Everything Sad Is Untrue (a true story). He is a former professional pastry chef\, and if he’s not writing or baking\, he’s likely playing board games\, or riding motorcycles. He lives with his family in New Jersey. URL:https://mainstreetreads.com/event/reader-meet-writer-everything-sad-is-untrue-with-daniel-nayeri-virtual-event/ LOCATION:Main Street Reads\, 115 S. Main St.\, Summerville\, SC\, 29483\, United States CATEGORIES:Book Discussion,Reader Meet Writer,Virtual Author Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://mainstreetreads.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/Everything-Sad-is-Untrue-with-Daniel-Nayeri.png ORGANIZER;CN="Main Street Reads":MAILTO:shari@writerswin.com END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20200827T190000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20200827T200000 DTSTAMP:20260410T010114 CREATED:20200730T031153Z LAST-MODIFIED:20200730T031226Z UID:2940-1598554800-1598558400@mainstreetreads.com SUMMARY:Reader Meet Writer: The Good Luck Stone with Heather Bell Adams DESCRIPTION:Join us on Thursday\, Aug 27th from 7:00 pm – 8:00 pm for an entertaining discussion of Heather Bell Adams’ newly released novel\, The Good Luck Stone. Email us at mainstreetreads@gmail.com for your confirmation link and password to attend. The book is available from us or click the link in the title to grab it from our Bookshop warehouse! \n\n\n\nHer desperate decision during World War II changed everything. Now\, 70 years later\, her secret is unraveling. \nAt ninety years old\, Audrey Thorpe still lives in a historic mansion on palm-tree-lined Victory Drive\, determined to retain her independence. But when her health begins to fade\, her family hires a part-time caregiver\, Laurel. The two women seem to bond-until Audrey disappears. Unbeknownst to Laurel\, Audrey has harbored a secret for 70 years\, since her time as a nurse in the South Pacific during World War II. \nAs the story moves between the verdant jungles of the war-torn Philippines and the glitter of modern-day Savannah\, Georgia\, friendships new and old are tested. Along the way\, Audrey grapples with one of life’s heart-wrenching truths: You can only outrun your secrets for so long. \nHeather Bell Adams is the author of the novels\, Maranatha Road (West Virginia University Press 2017) and The Good Luck Stone (Haywire Books 2020). Maranatha Road won the gold medal for the Southeast region in the Independent Publisher Book Awards and was named to Deep South Magazine‘s Fall/Winter Reading List. The Good Luck Stone\, which won the Grassic Short Novel Prize\, appears on Deep South Magazine’s Summer Reading List and Most Anticipated Small Press Novel Lists for The Big Other and BuzzFeed. \nHeather’s short fiction\, which has won the Carrie McCray Memorial Literary Award and James Still Fiction Prize\, appears in The Thomas Wolfe Review\, Atticus Review\, The Petigru Review\, Pisgah Review\, Pembroke Magazine\, Broad River Review\, and other journals. \nHeather is originally from Hendersonville\, North Carolina and now lives in Raleigh where she works as a lawyer. A nationally-recognized scholar on the works of Ron Rash\, she also volunteers on the Raleigh Review fiction staff. URL:https://mainstreetreads.com/event/reader-meet-writer-the-good-luck-stone-with-heather-bell-adams/ LOCATION:Main Street Reads\, 115 S. Main St.\, Summerville\, SC\, 29483\, United States CATEGORIES:Book Discussion,Reader Meet Writer,Virtual Author Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://mainstreetreads.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/Reader-Meet-Writer-Heather-Bell-Adams.png ORGANIZER;CN="Main Street Reads":MAILTO:shari@writerswin.com END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20200820T190000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20200820T200000 DTSTAMP:20260410T010114 CREATED:20200812T174934Z LAST-MODIFIED:20200820T212425Z UID:2982-1597950000-1597953600@mainstreetreads.com SUMMARY:Meet Grandparenting Experts and Authors at a Virtual 3rd Thursday Special Event! DESCRIPTION:Join us for a special Third Thursday event virtually\, with California authors and grandparenting/mindfulness experts Pam Siegel to talk about how we can\, as parents and especially grandparents\, support the kiddos during this back-to-school time. \nWhether attending live or virtual classes\, whether you’re able to get together with family in person or online\, Pam and Leslie offer up useful tips on how to get and keep connected! \nTheir book\, Grandparenting: Renew\, Relive\, Rejoice\, is available from Main Street Reads or our bookshop warehouse. It’s a super colorful\, easy to navigate book filled with 52 ways to mindfully connect and grow with your grandchildren. \nLearn more at their insightful website and bring your questions to the meeting – link details below! \nJoin Zoom Meeting: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85613056099?pwd=eU1kS25NdWZjM0xpREk0RW82eVdTZz09\nMeeting ID: 856 1305 6099\nPasscode: 202020 \nPam Siegel\n\nPam Siegel MPH\, MFT is a licensed marriage family therapist in private practice in West Los Angeles. She has a master’s in health education from UCLA and an additional master’s in counseling from California State University\, Northridge. She is a certified mindfulness therapist and implements meditation and other mindfulness tools to help her clients with a variety of issues. For over twelve years\, Pam has led a weekly mindfulness support group. She is actively involved in the mindfulness and yoga community and has her own daily practice and website\, www.pamsiegel.com. \nLeslie Zinberg\n\nLeslie Zinberg has a BS in elementary education from the University of Texas at Austin\, and has co-written two successful parenting books\, The Pink and Blue Baby Pages\, written in 1995\, and The Pink and Blue Toddler Pages\, written in 1999. Both books were featured in national publicity campaigns\, with appearances on the Today Show\, QVC\, and local television and radio segments across the country. Leslie is the cofounder of the grandparent website\, www.grandparentslink.com. URL:https://mainstreetreads.com/event/meet-grandparenting-experts-and-authors-at-a-virtual-3rd-thursday-special-event/ CATEGORIES:Book Discussion,Reader Meet Writer,Reading,Third Thursday,Virtual Author Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://mainstreetreads.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/Pam-and-Leslie-at-MSR.png END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20200820T190000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20200820T200000 DTSTAMP:20260410T010114 CREATED:20200730T025650Z LAST-MODIFIED:20200730T025650Z UID:2935-1597950000-1597953600@mainstreetreads.com SUMMARY:Reader Meet Writer: Early Departures with Justin A. Reynolds DESCRIPTION:Join us on Thursday\, August 20th from 7:00 pm – 8:00 pm for an enlightening discussion with Justin A. Reynolds about his novel\, Early Departures. Email us at mainstreetreads@gmail.com for your link and password to attend\, and books can be ordered from us for pickup in store or click the title link above to grab from our Bookshop warehouse! \n\n\n\nJustin A. Reynolds\, author of Opposite of Always\, delivers another smart\, funny\, and powerful stand-alone YA contemporary novel\, with a speculative twist in which Jamal’s best friend is brought back to life after a freak accident…but they only have a short time together before he will die again. Jamal’s best friend\, Q\, doesn’t know he’s about to die…again. He also doesn’t know that Jamal tried to save his life\, rescuing him from drowning only to watch Q die later in the hospital. Even more complicated\, Jamal and Q haven’t been best friends in two years—not since Jamal’s parents died in a car accident\, leaving him and his sister to carry on without them. Grief swallowed Jamal whole\, and he blamed Q for causing the accident. \nBut what if Jamal could have a second chance? An impossible chance that would grant him the opportunity to say goodbye to his best friend? A new health-care technology allows Q to be reanimated—brought back to life like the old Q again. But there’s a catch: Q will only reanimate for a short time before he dies…forever. \nJamal is determined to make things right with Q\, but grief is hard to shake. And he can’t tell Q why he’s suddenly trying to be friends with him again. Because Q has no idea that he died\, and Q’s mom is not about to let anyone ruin the miracle by telling him. How can Jamal fix his friendship with Q if he can’t tell him the truth? \nJustin A. Reynolds has always wanted to be a writer. Opposite of Always\, his debut novel\, was an Indies Introduce selection and a School Library Journal Best Book\, has been translated into seventeen languages\, and is being developed for film with Paramount Players. He lives in northeast Ohio with his family. You can find him at www.justinareynolds.com. URL:https://mainstreetreads.com/event/reader-meet-writer-early-departures-with-justin-a-reynolds/ LOCATION:Main Street Reads\, 115 S. Main St.\, Summerville\, SC\, 29483\, United States CATEGORIES:Book Discussion,Reader Meet Writer,Virtual Author Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://mainstreetreads.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/Reader-Meet-Writer-with-Justin-A-Reynolds.png ORGANIZER;CN="Main Street Reads":MAILTO:shari@writerswin.com END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20200818T150000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20200818T160000 DTSTAMP:20260410T010114 CREATED:20200730T024203Z LAST-MODIFIED:20200730T024203Z UID:2930-1597762800-1597766400@mainstreetreads.com SUMMARY:Reader Meet Writer: How to Argue With a Racist w/ Adam Rutherford DESCRIPTION:Join us Tuesday\, Aug 18th\, from 3:00 pm – 4:00 pm for a candid chat with Adam Rutherford and his important work\, How to Argue with a Racist. Email us at mainstreetreads@gmail.com for the link and password to this event. Books can be ordered for pickup in store or click the link in the title above to grab from our warehouse bookshop!\n \n\n\n\nRacist pseudoscience is on the rise—fueling hatred\, feeding nationalism\, and seeping into our discourse on everything from sports to intelligence. Even the well-intentioned repeat stereotypes based on “science\,” because cutting-edge genetics are hard to grasp—and all too easy to distort. Paradoxically\, misconceptions are multiplying amid today’s unprecedented surge of research on human genetics. We’ve never had a clearer picture of who we are and where we come from\, and the science\, when accurately understood\, is a powerful and definitive ally against racism. But not nearly enough of these findings have made their way into the casual conversations we have about race. \nThis penetrating guide shows us how being a responsible and enlightened citizen on the matter of race today requires us to know what modern genetics actually can and can’t tell us about human difference. Racial categories still vexing our societies do not align with observable genetic differences—and those differences are\, in fact\, so minute that they serve as evidence of our commonality. \nAdam Rutherford is a geneticist\, science writer\, and broadcaster. He studied genetics at University College London\, and during his PhD on the developing eye\, he was part of a team that identified the first known genetic cause of a form of childhood blindness. As well as writing for the science pages of The Guardian\, he has written and presented many award-winning series and programs for the BBC\, including the flagship weekly Radio 4 program Inside Science\, The Cell for BBC Four\, and Playing God (on the rise of synthetic biology) for the leading science series Horizon. He is also the author of How to Argue With a Racist\, an incisive guide to what modern genetics can and can’t tell us about human difference; The Book of Humans\, a new evolutionary history that explores the profound paradox of the “human animal”; A Brief History of Everyone Who Ever Lived\, finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award in nonfiction; and Creation\, on the origin of life and synthetic biology\, which was short-listed for the Wellcome Book Prize. URL:https://mainstreetreads.com/event/reader-meet-writer-how-to-argue-with-a-racist-w-adam-rutherford/ LOCATION:Main Street Reads\, 115 S. Main St.\, Summerville\, SC\, 29483\, United States CATEGORIES:Book Discussion,Reader Meet Writer,Virtual Author Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://mainstreetreads.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/Reader-meet-writer-Adam-Rutherford.png ORGANIZER;CN="Main Street Reads":MAILTO:shari@writerswin.com END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20200813T190000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20200813T200000 DTSTAMP:20260410T010114 CREATED:20200729T220244Z LAST-MODIFIED:20200729T220244Z UID:2923-1597345200-1597348800@mainstreetreads.com SUMMARY:The Yellow House with Sarah M. Broom in Conversation with Imani Perry DESCRIPTION:Join us Thursday August 13th from 7:00 pm – 8:00 pm for a discussion about The Yellow House by Sarah M. Broom! Make sure to email us for your confirming link and event password!\n\n\nTHE YELLOW HOUSE: Winner of the 2019 National Book Award in Nonfiction \nA brilliant\, haunting\, and unforgettable memoir from a stunning new talent about the inexorable pull of home and family\, set in a shotgun house in New Orleans East. \nIn 1961\, Sarah M. Broom’s mother Ivory Mae bought a shotgun house in the then-promising neighborhood of New Orleans East and built her world inside of it. It was the height of the Space Race and the neighborhood was home to a major NASA plant—the postwar optimism seemed assured. Widowed\, Ivory Mae remarried Sarah’s father Simon Broom; their combined family would eventually number twelve children. But after Simon died\, six months after Sarah’s birth\, the Yellow House would become Ivory Mae’s thirteenth and most unruly child. \nA book of great ambition\, Sarah M. Broom’s The Yellow House tells a hundred years of her family and their relationship to home in a neglected area of one of America’s most mythologized cities. This is the story of a mother’s struggle against a house’s entropy\, and that of a prodigal daughter who left home only to reckon with the pull that home exerts\, even after the Yellow House was wiped off the map after Hurricane Katrina. The Yellow House expands the map of New Orleans to include the stories of its lesser known natives\, guided deftly by one of its native daughters\, to demonstrate how enduring drives of clan\, pride\, and familial love resist and defy erasure. Located in the gap between the “Big Easy” of tourist guides and the New Orleans in which Broom was raised\, The Yellow House is a brilliant memoir of place\, class\, race\, the seeping rot of inequality\, and the internalized shame that often follows. It is a transformative\, deeply moving story from an unparalleled new voice of startling clarity\, authority\, and power. \nWinner of the 2019 National Book Award in Nonfiction\, Sarah M. Broom has also published her work in The New Yorker\, The New York Times Magazine\, The Oxford American\, and O\, The Oprah Magazine\, among others. A native New Orleanian\, she earned her Masters in Journalism from the University of California\, Berkeley. She has been awarded a Whiting Foundation Creative Nonfiction Grant\, and fellowships at Djerassi Resident Artists Program and The MacDowell Colony. She lives in Harlem. \nImani Perry is the Hughes-Rogers Professor of African American Studies at Princeton University and a faculty associate with the Programs in Law and Public Affairs\, Gender and Sexuality Studies and Jazz Studies. She is the author of 6 books\, including Looking for Lorraine: The Radiant and Radical Life of Lorraine Hansberry\, which received the Pen Bograd-Weld Award for Biography\, The Phi Beta Kappa Christian Gauss Award for outstanding work in literary scholarship\, the Lambda Literary Award for LGBTQ Nonfiction and the Shilts-Grahn Award for nonfiction from the Publishing Triangle. Looking for Lorraine was also named a 2018 notable book by the New York Times\, and an a honor book by the Black Caucus of the American Library Association. It was a finalist for the African American Intellectual History Society Paul Murray Book Prize. Her book May We Forever Stand: A History of the Black National Anthem\, winner of the 2019 American Studies Association John Hope Franklin Book Award for the best book in American Studies\, the Hurston Wright Award for Nonfiction\, and finalist for an NAACP Image Award in Nonfiction. Her most recent book is: Breathe: A Letter to My Sons (Beacon Press\, 2019) which was a finalist for the 2020 Chautauqua Prize and a finalist for the NAACP Image Award for Excellence in Nonfiction. URL:https://mainstreetreads.com/event/the-yellow-house-with-sarah-m-broom-in-conversation-with-imani-perry/ LOCATION:Main Street Reads\, 115 S. Main St.\, Summerville\, SC\, 29483\, United States CATEGORIES:Book Discussion,Reader Meet Writer,Virtual Author Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://mainstreetreads.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/Reader-meet-writer-with-sarah-broom.png ORGANIZER;CN="Main Street Reads":MAILTO:shari@writerswin.com END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20200811T170000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20200811T180000 DTSTAMP:20260410T010114 CREATED:20200729T214727Z LAST-MODIFIED:20200729T214816Z UID:2917-1597165200-1597168800@mainstreetreads.com SUMMARY:Reader Meet Writer: Rules for Being Dead w/ Kim Powers in Conversation w/ Louis Bayard DESCRIPTION:Join us Tuesday Aug 11th from 5:00 pm – 6:00 pm for a conversation with author Kim Powers about the August 4th release of the Rules for Being Dead. Email or message us to get your confirming link and password to attend free\, and don’t forget to order a book from us for pickup in the store or at the link to the book on Bookshop\, our warehouse site!\n \n\n\n\nIt’s the late 1960s in McKinney\, Texas. At the downtown theater and the local drive-in\, movies—James Bond\, My Fair Lady\, Alfie\, and Doctor Zhivago—feed the dreams and obsessions of ten-year-old Clarke who loves Audrey\, Elvis\, his family\, and the handsome boy in the projector booth. Then Clarke loses his beloved mother. And no one will tell him how she died. No one will tell her either. She is floating above the trees and movie screens of McKinney\, trapped between life and death\, searching for a glimpse of her final moments on this earth. The shattering answer haunts Rules for Being Dead\, Kim Powers’ darkly humorous and incredibly moving novel. An unlikely love child of Mark Childress’ Crazy in Alabama and Alice Sebold’s The Lovely Bones\, this book pays homage to the movies of the 1960s and vividly conjures the machinations of small-town Texas with a wicked sense of humor and an unexpected tenderness. Native Texan Kim Powers brings a steady hand to all proceedings\, including a ghostly mother\, an evil stepmother\, a clueless father\, and a full cast of misfits–all orchestrated within a lively plot which is anything but predictable. \nKim Powers is a two-time Emmy winner and author of the novels Dig Two Graves and Capote in Kansas\, as well as the critically acclaimed memoir The History of Swimming\, a Barnes & Noble Discover Book and Lambda Literary Award finalist for Best Memoir of the Year. He also wrote the screenplay for the festival-favorite indie film Finding North and the new play Sidekicked\, a “one broad comedy” about Vivian Vance. Powers is the Senior Writer for ABC’s 20/20\, part of the team that has received an unprecedented three consecutive Edward R. Murrow Awards. A native Texan\, he received an MFA from the Yale School of Drama. In 2007\, he was selected by Out Magazine for the influential “Out 100” list. He lives in Manhattan and Asbury Park\, NJ. \nIn the words of the New York Times\, Louis Bayard “reinvigorates historical fiction\,” rendering the past “as if he’d witnessed it firsthand.” His acclaimed historical novels include national bestseller Courting Mr. Lincoln\, Roosevelt’s Beast\, The School of Night\, The Black Tower\, The Pale Blue Eye and Mr. Timothy\, as well as the highly praised young-adult novel\, Lucky Strikes. A New York Times Notable author\, he has been nominated for both the Edgar and Dagger awards\, and his story\, “Banana Triangle Six\,” was chosen for The Best American Mystery Stories 2018. His reviews and articles have appeared in the New York Times\, the Washington Post\, the Los Angeles Times and Salon. An instructor at George Washington University\, he is a board member for the PEN Faulkner Foundation and the author of the popular Downton Abbey recaps for the New York Times. URL:https://mainstreetreads.com/event/reader-meet-writer-rules-for-being-dead-w-kim-powers-in-conversation-w-louis-bayard/ LOCATION:Main Street Reads\, 115 S. Main St.\, Summerville\, SC\, 29483\, United States CATEGORIES:Book Discussion,Reader Meet Writer,Virtual Author Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://mainstreetreads.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/reader-meet-writer-kim-powers.png ORGANIZER;CN="Main Street Reads":MAILTO:shari@writerswin.com END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20200806T190000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20200806T200000 DTSTAMP:20260410T010114 CREATED:20200729T210438Z LAST-MODIFIED:20200729T210641Z UID:2904-1596740400-1596744000@mainstreetreads.com SUMMARY:Reader Meet Writer: Some Go Home - Odie Lindsey in Conversation with Chanelle Benz DESCRIPTION:Join us Thu Aug 6th 7:00 pm – 8:00 pm for an enchanting conversation about Some Go Home by Odie Lindsey. Email us for your event link and the password\, delivered to you on the day of the event: \nSome Go Home is a searing debut novel following three generations fractured by murder in fictional Pitchlynn\, Mississippi that complicates notions of race\, class\, history\, and identity. \n\n\n\nColleen—an Iraq war veteran turned Mississippi homemaker—must reckon with a decades-old murder that has haunted her community\, her family\, and herself. When pregnancy brings her buried trauma to the surface\, Colleen works hard to keep her deployment behind her. Her husband\, Derby\, is in turn preoccupied with the long-overdue retrial of his father\, Hare Hobbs\, for a Civil Rights-era murder. Central to Some Go Home is the town’s showpiece\, antebellum estate. More monument than manor\, it is both the scene of the murder and the proposed jewel of gentrified Pitchlynn. For Colleen and the others\, all of whom seek healing\, the estate comes to embody various paths to redemption—whether razed\, restored to a perceived greatness\, or stripped of all recognition. As the trial draws near\, questions of Hare’s guilt only magnify these tensions of class and race\, tied always to the land and who can call it their own. \nInformed by his work editing the Mississippi Encyclopedia\, Lindsey’s prose is insightful and wonderfully detailed\, steeped in the same cultural history the characters are forced to confront in the book. Part literary saga and part cultural provocation\, Some Go Home is a richly textured\, explosive depiction of both the American South and our larger cultural legacy. \nOdie Lindsey is the author of We Come to Our Senses: Stories. He received an NEA-funded fellowship for veterans\, holds an MFA from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago\, and is writer-in-residence at Vanderbilt University in Nashville\, Tennessee. \nChanelle Benz has published work inGuernica\, Granta.com\,The New York Times\,Electric Literature\,The American Reader\,Fence\, and is the recipient of an O. Henry Prize. Her story collectionThe Man Who Shot Out My Eye Is Deadwas published in 2017 by Ecco/HarperCollins. It was named a Best Book of 2017 byThe San Francisco Chronicleand one ofElectric Literature‘s 15 Best Short Story Collections of 2017. It was also shortlisted for the 2018 Saroyan Prize and longlisted for the 2018 PEN/Robert Bingham Prize for Debut Fiction and the 2017 Story Prize. Her novelThe Gone Deadwas published by Ecco/HarperCollins in 2019 and was aNew York Times Book ReviewEditor’s Choice and a Tonight Show Summer Reads Finalist. It was longlisted for the 2020 PEN/Hemingway Award for Debut Novel and longlisted for the 2019 Center for Fiction First Novel Prize. It was also named a best new book of the summer byO\, The Oprah Magazine\,Time\,Southern Living\, andNylon. She lives in Memphis where she teaches at Rhodes College. URL:https://mainstreetreads.com/event/reader-meet-writer-some-go-home-odie-lindsey-in-conversation-with-chanelle-benz/ LOCATION:Main Street Reads\, 115 S. Main St.\, Summerville\, SC\, 29483\, United States CATEGORIES:Book Discussion,Reader Meet Writer,Virtual Author Event ORGANIZER;CN="Main Street Reads":MAILTO:shari@writerswin.com END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20200730T190000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20200730T200000 DTSTAMP:20260410T010114 CREATED:20200703T060334Z LAST-MODIFIED:20200703T060735Z UID:2805-1596135600-1596139200@mainstreetreads.com SUMMARY:Reader Meet Writer: Lara Prescott and The Secrets We Kept DESCRIPTION:Wrapping up July will be a special talk with Lara Prescott about the new hit release of The Secrets We Kept\, a Reese Witherspoon Book Club Pick! \nLara Prescott Thursday\, JULY 30 / 7:00 PM\nLara Prescott received her MFA from the Michener Center for Writers at the University of Texas\, Austin. She was previously an animal protection advocate and a political campaign operative. Her stories have appeared in The Southern Review\, The Hudson Review\, Crazyhorse\, Day One\, and Tin House Flash Fridays. She won the 2016 Crazyhorse Fiction Prize for the first chapter of The Secrets We Kept. She lives in Austin\, Texas. \nThe Secrets We Kept\nPaperback: Vintage | June 30\, 2020 | 9780525566106 \nA thrilling tale of secretaries turned spies\, of love and duty\, and of sacrifice–inspired by the real-life CIA plot to infiltrate the hearts and minds of Soviet Russia with the greatest love story of the twentieth century: Doctor Zhivago. \nAt the height of the Cold War\, two secretaries are pulled out of the typing pool at the CIA and given the assignment of a lifetime. Their mission: to smuggle Doctor Zhivago out of the USSR\, where no one dare publish it\, and help Pasternak’s magnum opus make its way into print around the world. Glamorous Sally Forrester is a seasoned spy who has honed her gift for deceit all over the world–using her magnetism and charm to pry secrets out of powerful men. Irina is a novice and\, under Sally’s tutelage\, quickly learns how to blend in\, make drops\, and invisibly ferry classified documents. \nThe Secrets We Kept combines a legendary literary love story–the decades-long affair between Pasternak and his mistress and muse\, Olga Ivinskaya\, who inspired Zhivago‘s heroine\, Lara–with a narrative about two women empowered to lead lives of extraordinary intrigue and risk. From Pasternak’s country estate outside Moscow to the brutalities of the Gulag\, from Washington\, DC\, to Paris and Milan\, The Secrets We Kept captures a watershed moment in the history of literature–told with soaring emotional intensity and captivating historical detail. And at the center of this unforgettable debut is the powerful belief that a piece of art can change the world. URL:https://mainstreetreads.com/event/reader-meet-writer-secrets-we-kept/ LOCATION:Main Street Reads\, 115 S. Main St.\, Summerville\, SC\, 29483\, United States CATEGORIES:Book Discussion,Reader Meet Writer,Virtual Author Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://mainstreetreads.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/Reader-Meet-Writer-Lara-Prescott.png ORGANIZER;CN="Main Street Reads":MAILTO:shari@writerswin.com END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20200728T170000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20200728T180000 DTSTAMP:20260410T010114 CREATED:20200703T054609Z LAST-MODIFIED:20200703T054609Z UID:2800-1595955600-1595959200@mainstreetreads.com SUMMARY:Reader Meet Writer: SA Crosby's Blacktop Wasteland (Virtual Event) DESCRIPTION:S. A. Cosby Tuesday\, July 28 / 5:00 PM\nJoin us Tuesday for a fascinating virtual talk with Shawn A. Cosby from Southeastern Virginia\, now residing in Gloucester\, Virginia. His short fiction has appeared in numerous anthologies and magazines. His short story “The Grass Beneath My Feet” won the Anthony Award for best short story in 2019. He is also the author of My Darkest Prayer and Brotherhood of the Blade. His writing is influenced by his experience as a bouncer\, construction worker\, retail manager and for six hours a mascot for a major fast food chain inside the world’s hottest costume. When he isn’t crafting tales of murder and mayhem he assists the dedicated staff at J.K. Redmind Funeral home as a mortician’s assistant. He is an avid hiker and is also known as one hell of a chess player. \nBlacktop Wasteland\nFlatiron Books | July 14\, 2020 | 9781250252685 \n“The gritty\, brutal narrative is complemented by the author’s sublime use of sensory description and regional imagery. In addition\, the epic\, jaw-dropping chase sequences that figure prominently are reason alone to read this pedal-to-the-metal but profoundly sorrowful novel. Cosby is definitely a writer to watch.\n–Publishers Weekly \n“We’re in Elmore Leonard land… Bug’s got a conscience not typical of the thriller genre\, but other than that\, this novel recalls almost perfectly the classic heist thriller in the vein of Richard Stark’s “Parker” novels. It’ll go like hot cakes.”\n–Library Journal\, starred review \nCosby never misses a note in this high-energy read\, from Bug’s under-the-hood wizardry to the actual driving to the sensitive character building\, which gives depth to the entire cast\, including Bug’s hapless yet treacherous associates. A superb work of crime fiction\, uncompromisingly noir but deeply human\, too\, much like Lou Berney’s November Road.\n– ALA Booklist\, starred review \nBeauregard Montage knows how to fix any car—but that would be selling him short. He knows how to make an ordinary American car something that flies\, something that\, under his hands on the wheel\, can take its driver places. He came to that knowledge through heritage\, love and the lure of dangerous getaways. But he is in a town that has no call for those skills. \nHe’s got a repair shop that is floundering\, a wife and two sons\, a daughter from an earlier time\, and the car he inherited from his father\, a Plymouth Duster. Late at night\, when he races the car ten miles out from the fairgrounds in the back road illegal races\, he feels most like himself. He feels reconnected to the part of him that has no part in this other life he knows he needs to live for the people he loves. It’s always there though\, just below the surface\, that desire for one more getaway drive\, one more adrenaline-boosting race against the cops. URL:https://mainstreetreads.com/event/reader-meet-writer-sa-crosbys-blacktop-wasteland-virtual-event/ LOCATION:Main Street Reads\, 115 S. Main St.\, Summerville\, SC\, 29483\, United States CATEGORIES:Book Discussion,Reader Meet Writer,Virtual Author Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://mainstreetreads.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/SA-Cosby-Blacktop-Wasteland.png ORGANIZER;CN="Main Street Reads":MAILTO:shari@writerswin.com END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTART;TZID=America/New_York:20200723T190000 DTEND;TZID=America/New_York:20200723T200000 DTSTAMP:20260410T010114 CREATED:20200702T061028Z LAST-MODIFIED:20200702T061028Z UID:2786-1595530800-1595534400@mainstreetreads.com SUMMARY:Reader Meet Writer: Jill McCorkle's Hieroglyphics (Virtual Event) DESCRIPTION:Jill McCorkle Thursday\, July 23 / 7:00 PM Reader Meet Writer\nJill McCorkle’s first two novels were released simultaneously when she was just out of college\, and the New York Times called her “a born novelist.” Since then\, she has published six novels and four collections of short stories\, and her work has appeared in Best American Short Stories several times\, as well as The Norton Anthology of Short Fiction. Five of her books have been New York Times Notable books\, and her most recent novel\, Life After Life\, was a New York Times bestseller. She has received the New England Booksellers Award\, the John Dos Passos Prize for Excellence in Literature\, and the North Carolina Award for Literature. She has written for the New York Times Book Review\, the Washington Post\, the Boston Globe\, Garden & Gun\, the Atlantic\, and other publications. She was a Briggs-Copeland Lecturer in Fiction at Harvard\, where she also chaired the department of creative writing. She is currently a faculty member of the Bennington College Writing Seminars and is affiliated with the MFA program at North Carolina State University. \nHieroglyphics\nA mesmerizing novel about the burden of secrets carried across generations. Lil and Frank married young\, launched into courtship when they bonded over how they both—suddenly\, tragically— lost a parent when they were children. Over time\, their marriage grew and strengthened\, with each still wishing for so much more understanding of the parents they’d lost prematurely. \nNow\, after many years in Boston\, they’ve retired to North Carolina. There\, Lil\, determined to leave a history for their children\, sifts through letters and notes and diary entries— perhaps revealing more secrets than Frank wants their children to know. Meanwhile\, Frank has become obsessed with what might have been left behind at the house he lived in as a boy on the outskirts of town\, where a young single mother\, Shelley\, is just trying to raise her son with some sense of normalcy. Frank’s repeated visits to Shelley’s house begin to trigger memories of her own family\, memories that she’d hoped to keep buried. Because\, after all\, not all parents are ones you wish to remember. \nHieroglyphics reveals the difficulty of ever really knowing the intentions and dreams and secrets of the people who raised you. In her deeply layered and masterful novel\, Jill McCorkle deconstructs and reconstructs what it means to be a father or a mother\, and what it means to be a child piecing together the world around us\, a child learning to make sense of the hieroglyphics of history and memory. URL:https://mainstreetreads.com/event/reader-meet-writer-jill-mccorkles-hieroglyphics-virtual-event/ LOCATION:Main Street Reads\, 115 S. Main St.\, Summerville\, SC\, 29483\, United States CATEGORIES:Book Discussion,Reader Meet Writer,Virtual Author Event ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/png:https://mainstreetreads.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/07/Jill-McCorkle-and-Hieroglyphics.png ORGANIZER;CN="Main Street Reads":MAILTO:shari@writerswin.com END:VEVENT END:VCALENDAR