Charleston Library Society

Inside the New York Times Book Review With Pamela Paul & Dwight Garner
2020-10-15 18:00 - 19:00 (America/New_York) | SC
Zoom in on Thursday, October 15th, at 6 pm for a much-anticipated conversation between the Editor of the New York Times Book Review, Pamela Paul, and long-standing Times book critic—previous Review editor—Dwight Garner. Not only is the Times Book Review beloved by our members, the Book Review podcast has become a new perennial favorite as well!
Although Pamela Paul’s notable interviews have the incredible power to inspire reading, her work as editor drives this power to print. Working with lauded critics like Dwight Garner is only part of the job. Paul and Garner exist in a layer of the book world that so many of us wish to see and experience for ourselves. Join us as Dwight Garner interviews Pamela Paul live on Zoom and see for yourself what it is like inside the New York Times Book Review.
This event is free and open to the public, but requires an RSVP. To RSVP, fill out the form at the bottom of this page! All responders will receive the Zoom link and password on the day of the event to the email they provide.
ABOUT PAMELA:
Pamela Paul is the editor of the Book Review and oversees all books coverage at The Times. She is the author of six books, “My Life with Bob: Flawed Heroine Keeps Book of Books, Plot Ensues,” “By the Book,” “Parenting, Inc.,” “Pornified,” “The Starter Marriage and the Future of Matrimony” and most recently, “How to Raise a Reader,” co-written with Maria Russo. She is also the host of the weekly Book Review podcast.
Before joining The New York Times, she was a contributor to Time magazine and The Economist, and her work has appeared in The Atlantic, The Washington Post, Slate and Vogue. She wrote the Studied column for Sunday Styles and has written for the Times Magazine, Education Life, Sunday Review and Arts & Leisure.
To pre-order Pamela’s upcoming children’s book, Rectangle Time, click here!
ABOUT DWIGHT:
Dwight Garner is a book critic for The New York Times. He was also, for many years, an editor for the Book Review. His essays and criticism have also appeared in The New Republic, Harper’s, Slate and elsewhere.
To pre-order Dwight’s upcoming book, GARNER’S QUOTATIONS: A Modern Miscellany, click here!

Speaker Series: David O. Stewart
2020-10-22 18:00 - 19:00
The Library Society is happy to welcome the return of history & historical fiction writer, David O. Stewart for a topical & unique Zoom lecture. Stewart will focus on his historical mystery novels in this digital format event. In particular he will discuss the The Paris Deception which centers itself and its protagonists around the 1919 Paris Peace Conference and the 1919 Pandemic. Through this lecture we will learn about our nation’s and the world’s response to one of the last major pandemics. Topical and interesting, with a good measure of mystery, this event will certainly entertain all.
This event is free and open to the public, but requires an RSVP. To RSVP, fill out the form at the bottom of this page! All responders will receive the Zoom link and password on the day of the event to the email they provide.
TO PURCHASE A COPY OF DAVID’S BOOK, CLICK HERE.
ABOUT DAVID:
After many years as a trial and appellate lawyer, David O. Stewart became a bestselling writer of history and historical fiction. His histories have explored the writing of the Constitution, the gifts of James Madison, the outrageous western expedition and treason trial of the mysterious Aaron Burr, and the impeachment trial of President Andrew Johnson. His histories have won the Washington Writing Award for best book of the year, the History Prize of the Society of the Cincinnati, and the William H. Prescott Award of the National Society of Colonial Dames of America.
His first novel, The Lincoln Deception, about the John Wilkes Booth Conspiracy, was called the best historical novel of 2013 by Bloomberg View. Sequels include The Paris Deception, set at the Paris Peace Conference in 1919, and The Babe Ruth Deception, which follows the Babe’s first two years with the Yankees.

Speaker Series: Ace Atkins & Lisa Unger
2020-10-29 18:00 - 19:00
Mystery & Thriller readers rejoice! CLS is welcoming two powerhouse authors, Ace Atkins and Lisa Unger, to discuss their two most recent captivating novels through a Zoom conversation. Atkins will highlight The Revelators, the 10th installment in his hit Quinn Colson series, which just this summer got a green-light from HBO to develop a television series, and Unger to discuss her October 2020 release, Confessions on the 7:45. These two authors are not only talented in their craft, they are friends who know how to thrill all their readers. Join us for this gripping Zoom conversation about two books that will keep you on the edge of your seat! To RSVP, fill out the RSVP form at the bottom of this page.
To order their books, click here.
ABOUT THE REVELATORS:
In this gripping new crime novel from the New York Times-bestselling author, Quinn Colson is about to find out whether his quest for justice can coexist with his loyalty to the law…
Shot up and left for dead, Sheriff Quinn Colson has revenge on his mind. With the help of his new wife Maggie, rehabilitation, and sheer force of will, he’s walking again, eager to resume his work as a southern lawman and track down those responsible for his attempted murder. But someone is standing in his way: an interim sheriff, appointed by the newly elected Governor Vardaman, the man who Quinn knows ordered his murder. Vardaman sits at the top of the state’s power structure – both legal and criminal – and little does he know Quinn is still alive. And coming for him.
Quinn will enlist the help of his most trusted friends, including federal agent Jon Holliday, U.S. Marshal Lillie Virgil, and Donnie Varner, a childhood buddy now working for the Feds as an informant. Since Quinn’s been gone, the criminal element in north Mississippi has flourished, with queen-pin Fannie Hathcock enjoying unbridled freedom. As an ice storm bears down on north Mississippi and Memphis, and Tibbehah County is isolated from the outside world, the killers will return to finish the job.
But this time, Quinn Colson and company will be waiting, ready to bust apart a criminal empire running on a rigged system for far too long. This is the battle of Jericho, the epic showdown that’s been years in the making. In the end, the war will end – for better or worse.
ABOUT CONFESSIONS ON THE 7:45:
From master of suspense Lisa Unger comes a riveting thriller about a chance encounter that unravels a stunning web of lies and deceit.
Be careful to whom you tell your darkest secrets…
Selena 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 gripping thriller about the delicate facades we create around our lives.

An Evening with David Rubenstein
2020-11-05 18:00 - 19:00
The Charleston Library Society is excited to welcome back David M. Rubenstein to discuss his recent best-seller, How to Lead: Wisdom from the World’s Greatest CEOs, Founders, and Game Changers. Thanks to the innovation of Zoom, Mr. Rubenstein will be in conversation with John Huey, former Editor-In-Chief of Time, Inc. At a time when leadership is in great demand, Rubenstein will give us glimpses into the interviews he conducted with legends across all fields. To purchase tickets, click here.
Special Thanks to our Event Sponsors:
Jerrold & Ann Mitchell
Ken & Anne Tidwell
Bud & Lesa Watts
The Darla Moore School of Business
Southern Land Company, LLC
Ticket Packages:
Socially-Distanced, VIP In-Person reception and Zoom Viewing Ticket: $150
– A limited number of patrons will be able to socially-distance in the Main Reading Room to listen and watch the Zoom conversation on the big screen. These patrons will all have the opportunity to directly ask Rubenstein a question during the exclusive Q&A period. All VIP ticket purchasers will receive a signed copy of “How to Lead”.
Zoom and Signed Book Package: $45
– Purchasers of this package will receive access to the Zoom conversation and will also receive a signed copy of “How to Lead”.
Zoom Access: $10
– Purchasers will receive access to the Zoom conversation through a link provided by CLS.
ABOUT THE BOOK:
The essential leadership playbook. Learn the principles and guiding philosophies of Bill Gates, Jeff Bezos, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Warren Buffett, Oprah Winfrey, and many others through illuminating conversations about their remarkable lives and careers.
For the past five years, David M. Rubenstein, author of The American Story, visionary cofounder of The Carlyle Group, and host of The David Rubenstein Show, has spoken with the worlds highest performing leaders about who they are and how they became successful. How to Lead distills these revealing conversations into an indispensable leadership guidebook.
Gain advice and wisdom from CEOs, presidents, founders, and master performers from the worlds of finance (Warren Buffett, Jamie Dimon, Christine Lagarde, Ken Griffin), tech (Jeff Bezos, Bill Gates, Eric Schmidt, Tim Cook), entertainment (Oprah Winfrey, Lorne Michaels, Renee Fleming, Yo-Yo Ma), sports (Jack Nicklaus, Adam Silver, Coach K, Phil Knight), government (President Bill Clinton, President George W. Bush, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Nancy Pelosi), and many others.
-Jeff Bezos harnesses the power of wandering, discovering that his best decisions have been made with heart and intuition, rather than analysis.
-Richard Branson never goes into a venture looking to make a profit. He aims to make the best in field.
-Phil Knight views Nike as a marketing company whose product is its most important marketing tool.
-Marillyn Hewson, who grew up in a fatherless home with four siblings in Kansas, quickly learned the importance of self-reliance and the value of a dollar.
How to Lead shares the extraordinary stories of these pioneering agents of change. Discover how each luminary got started and how they handle decision making, failure, innovation, change, and crisis. Learn from their decades of experience as pioneers in their field. No two leaders are the same.
ABOUT DAVID:
David M. Rubenstein is the author of The American Story and cofounder and co-executive chairman of The Carlyle Group, one of the worlds largest and most successful private equity firms. Rubenstein is Chairman of the Boards of Trustees of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, and the Council on Foreign Relations. He is an original signer of The Giving Pledge and a recipient of the Carnegie Medal of Philanthropy and the MoMAs David Rockefeller Award, among other philanthropic awards. The host of The David Rubenstein Show on Bloomberg TV and PBS, he lives in the Washington, DC area.
ABOUT JOHN:
John Huey is an American journalist and publishing executive who served as the editor-in-chief of Time Inc., at the time the largest magazine publisher in the United States, overseeing more than 150 titles, including Time, People, Fortune, Sports Illustrated, Entertainment Weekly and InStyle.

Speaker Series: Wright Thompson & Ace Atkins In Conversation with Julian Van Winkle III
2020-11-17 18:00 - 19:00
Calling all bourbon drinkers! Join the Charleston Library Society in conversation with Julian Van Winkle, Wright Thompson, and Ace Atkins as they discuss Wright’s book, Pappyland: A Story of Family, Fine Bourbon, and the Things That Last. This fascinating story focuses on how Julian Van Winkle III, the caretaker of the most coveted cult Kentucky Bourbon whiskey in the world, fought to protect his family’s heritage and preserve the taste of his forebears, in a world where authenticity, like his product, is in very short supply.
Wright Thompson was the mastermind in piecing together this extraordinary testimony on the challenge of living up to your legacy and the rewards that come from knowing and honoring your people and your craft. Thompson’s friend & returning author, Ace Atkins, will add another layer of Southern storytelling to the event, and this amazing trio is sure to create a lively conversation for everyone to enjoy!
This event is free, but an RSVP is required, and you will receive your Zoom invitation email the day of the event. If you pre-order or purchase a copy of Pappyland through Buxton Books, you will be entered in our giveaway of a bottle of Pappy Van Winkle Family Reserve.
Click this link to pre-order or purchase your copy: https://buxton-books.square.site/product/pappyland-a-story-of-family-find-bourbon-and-the-things-that-last/3201?cs=true
ABOUT THE BOOK:
As a journalist said of Pappy Van Winkle, “You could call it bourbon, or you could call it a $5,000 bottle of liquified, barrel-aged unobtanium.” Julian Van Winkle, the third-generation head of his family’s business, is now thought of as something like the Buddha of Bourbon – Booze Yoda, as Wright Thompson calls him. He is swarmed wherever he goes, and people stand in long lines to get him to sign their bottles of Pappy Van Winkle Family Reserve, the whiskey he created to honor his grandfather, the founder of the family concern. A bottle of the 23-year-old Pappy starts at $3000 on the internet. As Julian is the first to say, things have gone completely nuts.

Forty years ago, Julian would have laughed in astonishment if you’d told him what lay ahead. He’d just stepped in to try to save the business after his father had died, partly of heartbreak, having been forced to sell the old distillery in a brutal downturn in the market for whiskey. Julian’s grandfather had presided over a magical kingdom of craft and connoisseurship, a genteel outfit whose family ethos generated good will throughout Kentucky and far beyond. There’s always a certain amount of romance to the marketing of spirits, but Pappy’s mission statement captured something real: “We make fine bourbon – at a profit if we can, at a loss if we must, but always fine bourbon.” But now the business had hit the wilderness years, and Julian could only hang on for dear life, stubbornly committed to preserving his namesake’s legacy or going down with the ship.Then something like a miracle happened: it turned out that hundreds of very special barrels of whiskey from the Van Winkle family distillery had been saved by the multinational conglomerate that bought it. With no idea what they had, they offered to sell it to Julian, who scrambled to beg and borrow the funds. Now he could bottle a whiskey whose taste captured his family’s legacy. The result would immediately be hailed as the greatest whiskey in the world – and would soon be the hardest to find.But now, those old barrels were used up, and Julian Van Winkle faced the challenge of his lifetime: how to preserve the taste of Pappy, the taste of his family’s heritage, in a new age? The amazing Wright Thompson was invited to be his wingman as he set about to try. The result is an extraordinary testimony to the challenge of living up to your legacy and the rewards that come from knowing and honoring your people and your craft. Wright learned those lessons from Julian as they applied to the honest work of making a great bourbon whiskey in Kentucky, but he couldn’t help applying them to his own craft, writing, and his upbringing in Mississippi, as he and his wife contemplated the birth of their first child. May we all be lucky enough to find some of ourselves, as Wright Thompson did, in Julian Van Winkle, and in Pappyland.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Wright Thompson is a senior writer for ESPN.com and ESPN The Magazine. He formerly worked at The Kansas City Star and Times-Picayune in New Orleans. Thompson’s topics have covered a wide range of sports issues, from football, basketball, and baseball, to car racing, sports history, Father’s Day, and bullfighting. He lives in Oxford, Mississippi with his family.

ABOUT JULIAN:
Julian P. Van Winkle, III is the third generation Van Winkle to produce bourbon whiskey in Kentucky. He joined his father, Julian, Jr., in 1977. At that time, Old Rip Van Winkle produced only two labels of their wheated bourbon whiskey. They were a 10-year 90 and 107 proof Old Rip Van Winkle.Since then Julian has added 12-year, 15-year, 20-year and 23-year bourbon labels to the Van Winkle selection of premium bourbon whiskeys. He has also added a 13-year premium rye whiskey to the whiskey portfolio. All of these whiskeys have received ratings in the 90’s by the Beverage Tasting Institute in Chicago, with the 20-year, “Pappy Van Winkle’s Family
Reserve” receiving a 99 rating.
Julian operated the company by himself since his father’s death in 1981. However, he was joined by his son Preston in June of 2001, the fourth generation Van Winkle to venture into the whiskey business. Then in 2002, Julian and Buffalo Trace Distillery became partners where Buffalo Trace distills, ages and bottles all the Van Winkle whiskeys.
In January of 2009, Julian was honored to be nominated as a Fellow at the Southern Foodways Alliance annual fundraiser at Blackberry Farm in Walland, Tennessee. Next January, at the same fundraising event, he will be inducted as a new member into the Fellowship of Southern Farmers, Artisans and Chefs. This is a tremendous honor as the group members are some of the most talented people around.
In March of 2009 & 2010, Julian was nominated for a James Beard award under the category of Outstanding Wine & Spirits Professional. The James Beard awards are the Oscars of the Food & Beverage world. The award in
2009 was won by Dale DeGroff, one of the world’s best mycologists. The 2010 award was won by John Shafer, one of Napa’s best wine makers. In May of 2011, Julian was won the prestigious Wine & Spirits Professional award and was at the Lincoln Center in New York City to receive his award. He was the first Kentuckian to receive a James Beard award. Whisky Magazine has honored Julian Van Winkle III with its highest accolade, inducting him into its Hall of Fame. Julian was recognized at the 2017 Whisky Magazine Awards America presentation held in New York on Feb. 28. He is one of only 39 to be awarded this honor.

ABOUT ACE:
New York Times Bestselling author Ace Atkins has been nominated for every major award in crime fiction, including the Edgar three times, twice for novels about former U.S. Army Ranger Quinn Colson. He has written nine books in the Colson series and continued Robert B. Parker’s iconic Spenser character after Parker’s death in 2010, adding seven best-selling novels in that series. A former newspaper reporter and SEC football player, Ace also writes essays and investigative pieces for several national magazines including Time, Outside and Garden & Gun. He lives in Oxford, Mississippi with his family, where he’s friend to many dogs and several bartenders.

Speaker Series: John Birdsall featuring Chef Mike Lata
2020-11-19 18:00 - 19:00
The Charleston Library Society welcomes author John Birdsall to discuss his most recent book, The Man Who Ate Too Much: The Life of James Beard. Dubbed the Dean of American Cookery, James Beard (1903-1985) was widely credited in the second half of the twentieth century as the founder of a national cuisine. Before it was published in 1972, one of his greatest books, James Beard’s American Cookery, had the working title Everything James Beard Knows About Cooking.
For a couple of generations following World War II, Beard was American food—his prodigious frame and charming, charismatic manner seemed to embody the cuisine of a large and diverse nation. But what exactly was James Beard’s American cooking? What are its roots? The traditions that nurture it? Whose cooking does it celebrate and whose does it ignore—even erase? How does the South figure in Beard’s reckoning of the nation’s food? In this talk, John Birdsall will describe the history of American cooking in the twentieth century, and the ways James Beard—notorious for bending the truth, who’d become famous in part for his skill at inventing myths about himself—invented American food.
Towards the end of the program, Birdsall will be joined by Charleston’s own Beard-award winning chef Mike Lata to conduct a Q&A session. This event is free, but an RSVP is required. After submitting your RSVP, you will receive your Zoom invitation email on the day of the event.
To purchase a copy of Birdsall’s The Man Who Ate Too Much click here: https://buxton-books.square.site/product/the-man-who-ate-too-much-the-life-of-james-beard/3202?cs=true
ABOUT THE BOOK:
The definitive biography of America’s best-known and least-understood food personality, and the modern culinary landscape he shaped.
In the first portrait of James Beard in twenty-five years, John Birdsall accomplishes what no prior telling of Beard’s life and work has done: He looks beyond the public image of the “Dean of American Cookery” to give voice to the gourmet’s complex, queer life and, in the process, illuminates the history of American food in the twentieth century. At a time when stuffy French restaurants and soulless Continental cuisine prevailed, Beard invented something strange and new: the notion of an American cuisine.
Informed by previously overlooked correspondence, years of archival research, and a close reading of everything Beard wrote, this majestic biography traces the emergence of personality in American food while reckoning with the outwardly gregarious Beard’s own need for love and connection, arguing that Beard turned an unapologetic pursuit of pleasure into a new model for food authors and experts.
Born in Portland, Oregon, in 1903, Beard would journey from the pristine Pacific Coast to New York’s Greenwich Village by way of gay undergrounds in London and Paris of the 1920s. The failed actor–turned–Manhattan canapé hawker–turned–author and cooking teacher was the jovial bachelor uncle presiding over America’s kitchens for nearly four decades. In the 1940s he hosted one of the first television cooking shows, and by flouting the rules of publishing would end up crafting some of the most expressive cookbooks of the twentieth century, with recipes and stories that laid the groundwork for how we cook and eat today.
In stirring, novelistic detail, The Man Who Ate Too Much brings to life a towering figure, a man who still represents the best in eating and yet has never been fully understood—until now. This is biography of the highest order, a book about the rise of America’s food written by the celebrated writer who fills in Beard’s life with the color and meaning earlier generations were afraid to examine.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
John Birdsall is a two-time James Beard Award–winning author, a former food critic, and longtime restaurant cook. He is the coauthor of a cookbook, Hawker Fare, with James Syhabout. He lives in Tucson.

Speaker Series: Jeffrey Jackson In Conversation with Emily Yellin
2020-12-03 18:00 - 19:00
Please join the Charleston Library Society in welcoming author Jeffrey H. Jackson & New York Times contributor Emily Yellin for a conversation on Jackson’s recent book, Paper Bullets: Two Artists Who Risked Their Lives to Defy the Nazis. Paper Bullets is the first book to tell the history of an audacious anti-Nazi campaign undertaken by an unlikely pair: two French women, Lucy Schwob and Suzanne Malherbe (artist names Claude Cahun & Marcel Moore), who drew on their skills as Parisian avant-garde artists to write and distribute “paper bullets”—wicked insults against Hitler, calls to rebel, and subversive fictional dialogues designed to demoralize Nazi troops occupying their adopted home on the British Channel Island of Jersey. Paper Bullets is a compelling World War II story that has not been told before, about the galvanizing power of art, and of resistance.
This event is free, but an RSVP is required. To RSVP, fill out the RSVP form at the bottom of the page. You will receive your Zoom invitation email on the day of the event.
To purchase a copy of Paper Bullets, click here: https://buxton-books.square.site/product/paper-bullets/3203?cs=true
ABOUT THE BOOK:
“A Nazi resistance story like none you’ve ever heard or read.” —Hampton Sides, author of Ghost Soldiers and On Desperate Ground

“Every page is gripping, and the amount of new research is nothing short of mind-boggling. A brilliant book for the ages!” —Douglas Brinkley, author of American Moonshot
Longlisted for the Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Nonfiction
Paper Bullets is the first book to tell the history of an audacious anti-Nazi campaign undertaken by an unlikely pair: two French women, Lucy Schwob and Suzanne Malherbe, who drew on their skills as Parisian avant-garde artists to write and distribute “paper bullets”—wicked insults against Hitler, calls to rebel, and subversive fictional dialogues designed to demoralize Nazi troops occupying their adopted home on the British Channel Island of Jersey. Devising their own PSYOPS campaign, they slipped their notes into soldier’s pockets or tucked them inside newsstand magazines.
Hunted by the secret field police, Lucy and Suzanne were finally betrayed in 1944, when the Germans imprisoned them, and tried them in a court martial, sentencing them to death for their actions. Ultimately they survived, but even in jail, they continued to fight the Nazis by reaching out to other prisoners and spreading a message of hope.
Better remembered today by their artist names, Claude Cahun and Marcel Moore, the couple’s actions were even more courageous because of who they were: lesbian partners known for cross-dressing and creating the kind of gender-bending work that the Nazis would come to call “degenerate art.” In addition, Lucy was half Jewish, and they had communist affiliations in Paris, where they attended political rallies with Surrealists and socialized with artists like Gertrude Stein.
Paper Bullets is a compelling World War II story that has not been told before, about the galvanizing power of art, and of resistance.

ABOUT JEFFREY:

Jeffrey H. Jackson is Professor of History at Rhodes College in Memphis, Tennessee. An expert on European history and culture, he is the author of Paris Under Water: How the City of Light Survived the Great Flood of 1910 and Making Jazz French: Music and Modern Life in Interwar Paris. He has appeared in documentary films and helped develop “Harlem in Montmartre: A Paris Jazz Story” for PBS’s Great Performances .

ABOUT EMILY:
Emily Yellin is a reporter, author and producer, who is currently leading a multimedia journalism project called Striking Voices, centered around in-depth video interviews with some of the Memphis sanitation workers who went on strike in 1968, and their wives, sons and daughters. Emily is a longtime contributor to The New York Times, mostly writing about the South, race and women’s issues. She has also written for Time, The Washington Post, The International Herald Tribune, Newsweek, Smithsonian Magazine, and other publications. She is the author of two books: Your Call Is (Not That) Important to Us (Simon & Schuster, 2009) and Our Mothers’ War (Simon & Schuster 2004) She has lived in New York City, Chicago, Los Angeles, and London, but now lives in Memphis, with her two dogs named Layla and Gus.

Speaker Series: John Grisham in Conversation with Cassandra King
2020-12-08 18:00 - 19:00
The Charleston Library Society is honored to welcome best-selling author, John Grisham, to be in conversation with author, and friend of the Library, Cassandra King for this Zoom hybrid event. The two talented authors will discuss the dynamic process of writing best-selling novels in addition to focusing on Grisham’s most recent release, A Time For Mercy.
This hybrid style event will allow for 40 VIP In-Person Package patrons to enjoy the event on “the big screen” from the Library Society’s Main Reading Room, socially-distanced and with snack boxes and wine, while everyone else will watch from home. In addition, all purchasers of the VIP In-Person Package will have the opportunity to ask Grisham or King a question during the live Q&A period and will receive a signed copy of A Time For Mercy.
The Library Society is grateful for the Anonymous sponsoring of this incredible event.
Ticket Packages:
Zoom Access: $15
Zoom Access with a Signed copy of “A Time For Mercy”: $45
In-Person VIP Viewing Ticket with a Signed copy of “A Time For Mercy”: $75
For tickets: Click here
About A Time For Mercy:
Clanton, Mississippi. 1990. Jake Brigance finds himself embroiled in a deeply divisive trial when the court appoints him attorney for Drew Gamble, a timid sixteen-year-old boy accused of murdering a local deputy. Many in Clanton want a swift trial and the death penalty, but Brigance digs in and discovers that there is more to the story than meets the eye. Jake’s fierce commitment to saving Drew from the gas chamber puts his career, his financial security, and the safety of his family on the line.
In what may be the most personal and accomplished legal thriller of John Grisham’s storied career, we deepen our acquaintance with the iconic Southern town of Clanton and the vivid cast of characters that so many readers know and cherish. The result is a richly rewarding novel that is both timely and timeless, full of wit, drama, and—most of all—heart.
Bursting with all the courthouse scheming, small-town intrigue, and stunning plot twists that have become the hallmarks of the master of the legal thriller, A Time for Mercy is John Grisham’s most powerful courtroom drama yet.
There is a time to kill and a time for justice. Now comes A Time for Mercy.

273rd Annual Meeting
2021-01-19 17:00 - 18:30
The Charleston Library Society will virtually celebrate its 273rd Annual Meeting in 2021! Mark your calendars for this special virtual event and RSVP today. CLS will be celebrating the narrative of uncovering the hidden Library Society by hosting a discussion with Antiquarian Bookseller and Author, Stuart Bennett, CLS Head Librarian, Laura Mina, Special Collections Librarian, Lisa Hayes, and Director of the Bindery and Rare Books Conservator, James Davis! For any questions, please email dreutter@charlestonlibrarysociety.org
An RSVP is required to receive the Zoom link and password for this historic event. To RSVP, fill out the form at the bottom of this page. All responders should expect a link and password on the afternoon of the event.

Zoom Speaker Series: Susan Meissner in Conversation with CJ Lotz
2021-02-18 18:00 - 19:00
Join us in welcoming bestselling author Susan Meissner and Garden & Gun senior editor, C.J. Lotz as they discuss Meissner’s newest book, The Nature Of Fragile Things on Zoom. Meissner demonstrates an extraordinary talent for capturing pivotal moments in history that not only make for emotional, page-turning stories, but also deepen our understanding of the world. Her latest book, The Nature Of Fragile Things, comes as our planet faces dramatic natural disasters resulting from climate change, and the West Coast awaits the “Big One”—its next high-impact earthquake along the San Andreas Fault.
The Nature Of Fragile Things is the tale of one young woman whose life is forever changed by the Great San Francisco Earthquake of 1906—one of the deadliest and most devastating quakes in the history of the United States. The heroine’s fate becomes deeply entwined with two women she meets, and who help her rebuild from the ground up in the earthquake’s aftermath.
This event is free, but an RSVP is required. To RSVP, call (843) 723-9912 or fill out the form at the bottom of this page. Respondents will receive Zoom link and passwords on the afternoon of the event.
To purchase a copy of the book, click on the link below!
https://buxton-books.square.site/product/the-nature-of-fragile-things-by-susan-meissner/3395?cs=true&cst=custom

Zoom Speaker Series: A Conversation with Martha Teichner & Mo Rocca
2021-02-23 18:00 - 19:00
A memoir of love and loss, of being in the right place at the right time, and of the mysterious ways a beloved pet can bring people together, from CBS Sunday Morning News correspondent and multi-Emmy-Award-winner, Martha Teichner. Ms. Teichner will be joined by fellow CBS Sunday Morning News correspondent and author, Mo Rocca, to discuss her new memoir, When Harry Met Minnie: A True Story of Love and Friendship, in what is sure to be an entertaining and moving evening.
In short order, When Harry Met Minnie: A True Story of Love and Friendship goes like this: boy dog meets girl dog, the fairy tale part of this story. But there is so much more to this book. After Martha agrees to meet Harry and his owner Carol, what begins as a transaction involving a dog becomes a deep and meaningful friendship between two women with complicated lives and a love of Bull Terriers in common. Through the heartbreak and grief of Carol’s illness, the bond that develops changes Martha’s life, Carol’s life, Minnie’s life, Harry’s life; it changes Carol’s death as well. In this touching narrative, Martha considers the ways our stories are shaped by the people we meet, and the profound love we can find by opening our hearts to unexpected encounters.
This event is free, but an RSVP is required. To RSVP, call 843-723-9912 or fill out the RSVP form at the bottom of this page. Respondents will receive Zoom links and passwords on the afternoon of the event.
To purchase a signed copy of When Harry Met Minnie, click on the link below.
https://buxton-books.square.site/product/when-harry-met-minnie/3432?cs=true&cst=custom
To purchase a signed copy of Mo’s most recent book, Mobituaries, click on the link below.
https://buxton-books.square.site/product/mobituaries-great-lives-worth-reliving/3442?cs=true&cst=custom

Zoom Speaker Series – Music Edition: Richard Bell
2021-03-04 18:00 - 19:00
Zoom Speaker Series – Music Edition: “Hamilton: How the Musical Remixes History” Lecture by Richard Bell
Thursday, March 4 at 6:00 PM
America has Hamilton-mania! With Disney+ now streaming the show, everyone’s talking about Lin-Manuel Miranda’s Tony-winning musical. Its crafty lyrics, hip-hop tunes, and big, bold story have even rejuvenated interest in the real lives and true histories that Hamilton: the Musical puts center stage. In this talk, which is aimed at people who know the soundtrack or who’ve seen the show, University of Maryland historian Dr. Richard Bell explores this musical phenomenon to reveal what its success tells us about the marriage of history and show-business. We’ll learn what this amazing musical gets right and gets wrong about Alexander Hamilton, the American Revolution, the birth of the United States, and about why all that matters. We will examine some of the choices Hamilton’s creators made to simplify, dramatize, and humanize the complicated events and stories on which the show is based. We will also talk about Hamilton’s cultural impact: what does its runaway success reveal about the stories we tell each other about who we are and about the nation we made?
About Richard:
Richard Bell is Professor of History at the University of Maryland and author of the new book Stolen: Five Free Boys Kidnapped into Slavery and their Astonishing Odyssey Home which was shortlisted for the 2020 George Washington Prize and the 2020 Harriet Tubman Prize. He has held major research fellowships at Yale, Cambridge, and the Library of Congress and is the recipient of the National Endowment of the Humanities Public Scholar award. He serves as a Trustee of the Maryland Center for History and Culture, as an elected member of the Colonial Society of Massachusetts, and as a fellow of the Royal Historical Society.
This event is free, but an RSVP is required. To RSVP, call (843)723-9912 or fill out the form at the bottom of this page. All respondents will receive their Zoom link and password on the afternoon of the event.

CLS & CCPL Present: Zoom Speaker Series – Eden Royce
2021-03-09 12:00 - 13:30
The Charleston Library Society and the Charleston County Public Library proudly present a conversation with Lowcountry author Eden Royce as she celebrates the publication of her debut young adult novel, Root Magic. Royce will discuss the Gullah-Geechee folklore and culture in her work, the dynamics of southerness in fiction, and will show us a glimpse into the Big 5 publishing world as a writer. Ms. Royce will be in conversation with CCPL Teen System Coordinator, Darcy Coover, as she Zooms in from the UK for this family-friendly virtual event.
This event is free and open to the public, but requires an RSVP. To RSVP, fill out the form at the bottom of this page or call 843-723-9912.
To submit a question to ask Eden during the event please click here!
To order a copy of Root Magic, click here!
ABOUT THE BOOK:
Debut author Eden Royce arrives with a wondrous story of love, bravery, friendship, and family, filled to the brim with magic great and small.
It’s 1963, and things are changing for Jezebel Turner. Her beloved grandmother has just passed away. The local police deputy won’t stop harassing her family. With school integration arriving in South Carolina, Jez and her twin brother, Jay, are about to begin the school year with a bunch of new kids. But the biggest change comes when Jez and Jay turn eleven— and their uncle, Doc, tells them he’s going to train them in rootwork.
Jez and Jay have always been fascinated by the African American folk magic that has been the legacy of their family for generations—especially the curious potions and powders Doc and Gran would make for the people on their island. But Jez soon finds out that her family’s true power goes far beyond small charms and elixirs…and not a moment too soon. Because when evil both natural and supernatural comes to show itself in town, it’s going to take every bit of the magic she has inside her to see her through.
ABOUT EDEN:
Eden Royce is from Charleston, South Carolina, and is a member of the Gullah Geechee nation. Her short stories have appeared in various print and online publications, including Fiyah, and she is the recipient of the Speculative Literature Foundation’s Diverse Worlds grant. Root Magic is her first book. Eden now lives in England with her husband and cat. You can find her online at www.edenroyce.com.
ABOUT DARCY:
Darcy Coover came from a background in education and student services before earning her MLIS in 2011 and coming to work at Charleston County Public Library. She served as the Assistant Manager of Young Adult Services until joining CCPL’s Department of Community Engagement in 2019 as Teen System Coordinator. She is a senior apprentice with Taiko Charleston, runs agility with her dog Kira, and collects cool-looking rocks.

Buxton Book Presents: Patti Callahan
2021-03-11 18:00 - 19:00
Buxton Books and The Charleston Library Society is excited to welcome author, Patti Callahan, for her newest book Surviving Savannah on Thursday, March 11 from 6-7 PM. The virtual event will be broadcasted from CLS and Patti Callahan Henry will be joined by Polly Buxton and in conversation with local author Erik Colonius. To RSVP to this event, please email monica@buxtonbooks.com or call 843-723-1670
Each guest who RSVPs to the event will receive a ticket with the name of a real passenger on the Pulaski. After the event, you’ll receive an email to find out if your name perished or survived and how.
Virtual Event Ticket FREE. RSVP by emailing Monica@BuxtonBooks.com
Virtual Event Ticket + Book $25 Purchase your book here (your receipt is your confirmation for the event)
Purchase a copy of Surviving Savannah with Buxton Books and receive a bookplate signed copy and a leather luggage tag created by Patti Henry!
(Please Note: If you would like Patti Henry to personally sign your copy of the book instead of a bookplate, please note that in your order. Personally signed books will be shipped or ready for pick up after the 3/11 event.)
The email address you provide when purchasing is the email address that the Zoom link and password will be sent to. The Zoom link and password will be sent by 3 PM on the day of the event.
For questions, please email Monica@BuxtonBooks.com or call the bookstore at 843-723-1670.

About the Book:
It was called “The Titanic of the South.” The luxury steamship sank in 1838 with Savannah’s elite on board; through time, their fates were forgotten—until the wreck was found, and now their story is finally being told in this breathtaking novel from the New York Times bestselling author of Becoming Mrs. Lewis.
When Savannah history professor Everly Winthrop is asked to guest-curate a new museum collection focusing on artifacts recovered from the steamship Pulaski, she’s shocked. The ship sank after a boiler explosion in 1838, and the wreckage was just discovered, 180 years later. Everly can’t resist the opportunity to try to solve some of the mysteries and myths surrounding the devastating night of its sinking.
Everly’s research leads her to the astounding history of a family of eleven who boarded the Pulaski together, and the extraordinary stories of two women from this family: a known survivor, Augusta Longstreet, and her niece, Lilly Forsyth, who was never found, along with her child. These aristocratic women were part of Savannah’s society, but when the ship exploded, each was faced with difficult and heartbreaking decisions.
This is a moving and powerful exploration of what women will do to endure in the face of tragedy, the role fate plays, and the myriad ways we survive the surviving.

Zoom Speaker Series: Dwight McInvaill, Caroline Palmer, and Anne Tinker
2021-03-16 18:00 - 19:00
Join authors Dwight McInvaill, Caroline Palmer and Anne Tinker as they discuss their newly-released book about one of Charleston’s most acclaimed artists, Alice: Alice Ravenel Huger Smith, Charleston Renaissance Artist. To RSVP to this free event, fill out the form below.
Alice is the story of a pioneering artist whose beautiful watercolors captured the mystical spirit of the Lowcountry’s coast, marshes, and woodlands. A leader of the Charleston Renaissance of the 1920s-1930s, she helped spark Charleston’s historic preservation movement and propel the city into an important destination for tourism. Alice is a personal account of the artist’s life and work that draws on unpublished papers, letters, and interviews, told from the perspective of Dwight McInvaill, a close family friend, and her family—Anne Tinker (Alice’s great-niece) and Caroline Palmer (Alice’s great-great-niece). The beautifully illustrated hardcover volume includes over 200 paintings, prints, sketches, and photographs, many shared for the first time.
This talk will explore the influences that shaped Alice’s iconic style and reveal some of the personal relationships which inspired her throughout her life.
To purchase a copy of the book, click here.
About the Authors:
Dwight McInvaill directs the Georgetown County Library. An award-winning librarian and researcher, he has given many lectures on Alice Smith, a mentor and friend to his parents. Caroline Palmer, Alice’s great-great-niece, is a communications, marketing, and human resources professional. Anne Gaud Tinker, Alice’s great-niece, is a retired international public health specialist.

Buxton Books Presents – Zoom Speaker Series: Bill Thompson
2021-03-25 18:00 - 19:00
Buxton Books is honored to host author Bill Thompson for his book Why Travel: A Way of Being, A Way of Seeing on Thursday, March 25th at 6:00pm.
In Why Travel? A Way of Being, A Way of Seeing, Thompson writes about one subject as a way of exploring a multitude of others. With 40 years’ experience as an insatiable world wanderer and travel writer, he guides readers in discovering new ways of seeing themselves, as travelers, individuals, and world citizens, buttressing his approach with personal experience, practical advice, arresting anecdotes and real-world stories.
Why Travel? differs from many a travel book in that its approach won’t be obsolete in six months’ time. It offers readers valuable direction, a renewed sense of wonder, and inspiration for their own explorations, domestic and international, urban and in nature.
RSVP by visiting this link.
*You will receive the Zoom link and password via the email address you RSVP with by 12:00pm the day of the event. If you do not receive an email by 4:00pm, please call Buxton Books at 843-723-1670.
To purchase a SIGNED copy of Why Travel? A Way of Being, A Way of Seeing, please visit this link.

Zoom Speaker Series: Stephanie Dray
2021-04-01 18:00 - 19:00
The Charleston Library Society and Buxton Books are excited to host New York Times bestselling author Stephanie Dray for her new novel, The Women of Chateau Lafayette. This is a free event held virtually on April 1st at 6:00pm. The Women of Chateau Lafayette is an epic saga based on the true story of an extraordinary castle in the heart of France and the remarkable women bound by its legacy. To RSVP to this event, email monica@buxtonbooks.com or call Buxton Books at 843-723-1670.
Stephanie Dray will be in conversation with Buxton Books owner, with French connections herself, Polly Buxton.
NOTICE: Zoom event links and passwords are always distributed on the day of the event to the email you RSVP with in the form below. The email that will be sending the link and password will be dreutter@charlestonlibrarysociety.org. If you have any questions, please call 843-723-9912
About the Book:
An epic saga from New York Times bestselling author Stephanie Dray based on the true story of an extraordinary castle in the heart of France and the remarkable women bound by its legacy.

Most castles are protected by men. This one by women.

A founding mother…
1774. Gently-bred noblewoman Adrienne Lafayette becomes her husband, the Marquis de Lafayette’s political partner in the fight for American independence. But when their idealism sparks revolution in France and the guillotine threatens everything she holds dear, Adrienne must renounce the complicated man she loves, or risk her life for a legacy that will inspire generations to come.

A daring visionary…
1914. Glittering New York socialite Beatrice Chanler is a force of nature, daunted by nothing—not her humble beginnings, her crumbling marriage, or the outbreak of war. But after witnessing the devastation in France firsthand, Beatrice takes on the challenge of a lifetime: convincing America to fight for what’s right.

A reluctant resistor…
1940. French school-teacher and aspiring artist Marthe Simone has an orphan’s self-reliance and wants nothing to do with war. But as the realities of Nazi occupation transform her life in the isolated castle where she came of age, she makes a discovery that calls into question who she is, and more importantly, who she is willing to become.Intricately woven and powerfully told, The Women of Chateau Lafayette is a sweeping novel about duty and hope, love and courage, and the strength we take from those who came before us.

To pre-purchase a book-plated signed copy of the book, please visit this link.

Zoom Speaker Series: Will Cleveland & Tate Nation (12:30pm)
2021-04-08 12:30 - 13:30
Enjoy a virtual family-friendly event perfect for all ages looking to learn about the presidents of the United States of America! With its latest edition, fresh off the press, Yo, Millard Fillmore is BACK! The Library Society is excited to host Will Cleveland and Tate Nation for not one but TWO fun conversations on Thursday, April 8th at 12:30pm and 6:00pm! To RSVP, fill out the RSVP at the bottom of this page or call 843-723-9912.
NOTICE: Zoom event links and passwords are always distributed on the day of the event to the email you RSVP with in the form below. The email that will be sending the link and password will be dreutter@charlestonlibrarysociety.org. If you have any questions, please call 843-723-9912
About the Book:
Newly updated to include our newest President! Celebrating 30 years of fun learning for all with full color illustrations!
Here’s a fast, easy way to learn all the Presidents of the United States (forever) in less than 20 minutes! In no time at all, you will be able to remember the names of all 45 presidents – in chronological order. Crazy cartoons and comic-book style captions create a nonsense tale that will make it impossible for you to forget the presidents.
You’ll also learn lots of kid-friendly facts about each president and his term of office, some historical and hysterical highlights, and plenty of presidential puns.
Ray guns for Reagan. Nicks on for Nixon. Fill more for Fillmore. Oh, Baaah, Ma for Obama. With five Quick Quizzes and What You Need to Know if You Want to be President, you’ll soon be an authority on the highest office in the land – and having a lot of fun at the same time.
To purchase your copy of Yo, Millard Fillmore, click here!

Zoom Speaker Series: Will Cleveland & Tate Nation (6:00pm)
2021-04-08 18:00 - 19:00

Zoom Speaker Series: Karen Tumulty in Conversation with John Huey
2021-04-22 18:00 - 19:00
Join the Charleston Library Society as we virtually welcome political columnist for The Washington Post, Karen Tumulty as she discusses her new biography, The Triumph of Nancy Reagan with former Editor-In-Chief of Time, Inc., John Huey. To RSVP to this free event, fill out the RSVP form at the bottom of this page or call 843-723-9912.
NOTICE: Zoom event links and passwords are always distributed on the day of the event to the email you RSVP with in the form below. The email that will be sending the link and password will be dreutter@charlestonlibrarysociety.org. If you have any questions, please call 843-723-9912
About the Book:
The definitive biography of the fiercely vigilant and politically astute First Lady who shaped one of the most consequential presidencies of the 20th century: Nancy Reagan.
The made-in-Hollywood marriage of Ronald and Nancy Reagan is more than a love story—it’s the partnership that made him president. Of the pair, Nancy was the one with the sharper instincts about people, the superior radar for trouble, and the keen sense of how to secure his place in history. The only person in the world to whom Ronald Reagan felt truly close, Nancy understood how to foster his strengths and compensate for his weaknesses. Neither timid nor apologetic about wielding her power, Nancy Reagan made herself a place in history.
But that confidence took years to develop. Nancy’s traumatic early childhood instilled in her a lifelong anxiety and a craving for security. Born into a broken marriage, she spent seven years yearning for the absent mother who abandoned her to pursue an acting career. When she met Ronnie, who had a difficult upbringing of his own, the two fractured halves became whole. And as Ronnie turned from acting to politics, she did too, helping build the scaffolding of his rise and cultivating the wealthy and powerful figures who would help pave his way. Not only was Nancy crucial in shaping Ronald’s White House team and in softening her husband’s rhetoric, she became an unseen force pushing her husband toward what she saw as his grandest purpose—to shake his image as a warmonger and leave behind a more peaceful world.
This book explores the multifaceted character of Nancy Reagan and reveals new details surrounding the tumultuous presidency. The Washington Post columnist Karen Tumulty spent four years interviewing the people who knew this couple best and draws on overlooked archives, letters, memoirs, and White House records, compiling the most extensive biography of Nancy Reagan yet. From the AIDS epidemic to tensions with the Soviets and the war on drugs, this book shows how Nancy Reagan became one of the most influential First Ladies of the century.
To purchase your copy of Tumulty’s book, The Triumph of Nancy Reagan, click here.

Zoom Speaker Series: Bob Gillespie & Tommy Braswell
2021-04-29 18:00 - 19:00
Calling all golfers! CLS welcomes two incredibly experienced sportswriters from the golf world, Bob Gillespie & Tommy Braswell, as they discuss their new book, South Carolina Golf. This well-researched book enlightens us of ins and outs of the history of match play in the Palmetto State. To RSVP, fill out the RSVP form at the bottom of this page or call 843-723-9912.
NOTICE: Zoom event links and passwords are always distributed on the day of the event to the email you RSVP with in the form below. The email that will be sending the link and password will be dreutter@charlestonlibrarysociety.org. If you have any questions, please call 843-723-9912
To purchase a signed copy of Gillespie & Braswell’s book, click here.
About the Book:
For nearly three hundred years, South Carolina has played a vital role in American golf. The first golf clubs in America came from Scotland to Charleston in 1739. Myrtle Beach is sometimes called the “Golf Capital of the World,” with more than eighty golf courses. The Country Club of Charleston produced World Golf Hall of Fame members Henry Picard and Beth Daniel. The 1991 Ryder Cup matches, the “War by the Shore,” took place at Kiawah Island’s Ocean Course, also the site of the 2012 and 2021 PGA Championships. Hilton Head’s Harbour Town Golf Links has hosted the PGA Tour’s RBC Heritage for more than fifty years. Bob Gillespie and Tommy Braswell detail the history of the game in the Palmetto State.
About the Authors:
Bob Gillespie was a senior sportswriter, columnist and golf writer for The State newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, from 1979 to 2010. He won The State’s Ambrose E. Gonzales Award for distinguished journalism in 1988, was Associated Press Sports Editors’ national runner-up in features (2001) and explanatory stories (2009) and was named the Herman Helms Excellence in Media Award winner by the South Carolina Athletic Hall of Fame in 2019. He and his wife, Jane, live in Columbia.
Tommy Braswell has written about golf in North and South Carolina since the mid-1970s, covering everything from local golf events and personalities to Ryder Cups, PGA Championships, the Masters, the Heritage and numerous LPGA events held in the Palmetto State. In addition to covering golf for the Charleston Post and Courier since 1982, he also has written for national golf publications, including Golfweek and Golf World.

Zoom Speaker Series: Garry Trudeau in Conversation with John Avlon
2021-05-06 18:00 - 19:00
CLS welcomes Pulitzer Prize-winning cartoonist and creator of “Doonesbury”, Garry Trudeau to be in conversation with journalist, John Avlon to celebrate Dbury@50: The Complete Digital Doonesbury!

The Library Society digitally welcomes the most consequential political cartoonist of our time, Garry Trudeau. Honoring a half century of his renowned comic strip, Doonesbury, Trudeau will be in conversation with American journalist and CNN anchor, John Avlon. The duo will cover all topics to properly celebrate Dbury@50: The Complete Digital Doonesbury, a limited edition compilation of all Trudeau’s works.
Tickets to the virtual conversation are $5 for CLS members and $10 for nonmembers. All ticket purchasers will receive an email from dreutter@charlestonlibrarysociety.org on the afternoon of the event with the Zoom links and password. If you do not receive an email by 4:00pm, please call 843-723-9912.
To buy your tickets, click here!

To buy your copy of Trudeau’s Dbury@50, click here!

About the Book:
“Trudeau’s creation has evolved into a sprawling masterwork.” — The New York Times
The ultimate Doonesbury package celebrating a half-century of G.B. Trudeau’s celebrated comic strip. This limited-edition deluxe set includes:

A USB flash drive with all 50 years of Doonesbury comics, including 26 years of Sunday comics available for the first time in digital format. Includes a searchable calendar archive, character biographies, and a week-by-week description of the strip’s contents.
The Dbury@50 User’s Guide, a 224-page wire-bound book taking readers through each year of the strip’s storied history, with historical trivia, milestone strips, featured storylines and characters, and much more.
A commemorative 16″ x 20″ poster featuring a grid with new sketches of all the strip’s characters.

Note: The USB flash drive is intended for laptop and desktop computers running on MacOS (10.10 or later) and Windows (7 or later) only and is NOT compatible with smartphones, tablets, or most Chromebooks.

Zoom Speaker Series: Zibby Owens in Conversation with Paula McLain
2021-05-12 18:00 - 19:00
Help us virtually welcome award-winning podcaster Zibby Owens of Moms Don’t Have Time To Read Books on a journey filled with food, exercise, sex, books, and more! Owens will be in conversation with best-selling author and friend, Paula McLain! The two will cover all topics of Owens’ recent book, Moms Don’t Have Time To: A Quarantine Anthology. To RSVP, to this entertaining conversation, fill out the RSVP form at the bottom of this page or call 843-723-9912.
NOTICE: Zoom event links and passwords are always distributed on the day of the event to the email you RSVP with in the form below. The email that will be sending the link and password will be dreutter@charlestonlibrarysociety.org. If you have any questions, please call 843-723-9912
To purchase a copy of Moms Don’t Have Time To: A Quarantine Anthology, click here!
To purchase a copy of Paula’s most recent best-seller, When the Stars Go Dark, click here!
About the Book:
It’s impossible to ignore how life has changed since COVID-19 spread across the world. People from all over quarantined and did their best to keep on going during the pandemic. Zibby Owens, host of the award-winning podcast Moms Don’t Have Time to Read Books and a mother of four herself, wanted to do something to help people carry on and to give them something to focus on other than the horrors of their news feeds. So she launched an online magazine called We Found Time.
Authors who had been on her podcast wrote original, brilliant essays for busy readers. Zibby organized these profound pieces into themes inspired by five things moms don’t have time to do: eat, read, work out, breathe, and have sex. Now compiled as an anthology named Moms Don’t Have Time To, these beautiful, original essays by dozens of bestselling and acclaimed authors speak to the ever-increasing demands on our time, especially during the quarantine, in a unique, literary way.
Actress Evangeline Lilly writes about the importance and impact of film. Bestselling author Rene Denfeld focuses on her relationship with food after growing up homeless. Screenwriter and author Lea Carpenter and Suzanne Falter, author, speaker, and podcast host, focus on loss. New York Times bestselling authors Chris Bohjalian and Gretchen Rubin write about the importance of reading. Others write about working out, love and sex, eating and cooking, and more. Join Zibby on her journey through the winding road of quarantine and perhaps you, too, will find time.
About Zibby & Paula:
ZIBBY OWENS is the creator and host of award-winning podcast Moms Don’t Have Time to ReadBooks. Zibby, named “NYC’s Most Powerful Bookfluencer” by New York Magazine’s Vulture, conducts warm, inquisitive conversations with authors as wide-ranging as Alicia Keys and Lena Dunham to Delia Owens and Brit Bennett, making her show a top literary podcast as selected by Oprah.com two years in a row.
Before the pandemic, Zibby ran a literary salon, hosted her own book fairs, and was a frequent bookstore event moderator. During the quarantine, Zibby hosted a daily Instagram Live author talk show “Z-IGTV,” a weekly live show with her husband “KZ Time,” launched an online magazine called We Found Time, and started Zibby’s Virtual Book Club.
Zibby is a regular contributor to Good MorningAmerica online and the Washington Post, and has contributed to Real Simple, Parents, Marie Claire, Redbook, and many other publications. She has appeared on CBS This Morning, the BBC, NPR’s AllThings Considered, Good Day LA, and local new outlets.
PAULA MCLAIN is the author of the the New York Times bestselling novels The Paris Wife, Circling the Sun, and Love and Ruin. Now she introduces When the Stars Go Dark, an atmospheric tale of intertwined destinies and heart-wrenching suspense. McLain was born in Fresno, California in 1965. After being abandoned by both parents, she and her two sisters became wards of the California Court System, moving in and out of various foster homes for the next fourteen years. When she aged out of the system, she supported herself by working as a nurses aid in a convalescent hospital, a pizza delivery girl, an auto-plant worker, a cocktail waitress–before discovering she could (and very much wanted to) write. She received her MFA in poetry from the University of Michigan in 1996, and is the author of two collections of poetry, a memoir, Like Family: Growing Up in Other People’s Houses, and the debut novel, A Ticket to Ride. Her writing has appeared in The New York Times, O: the Oprah Magazine, Good Housekeeping, Real Simple, Huffington Post, the Guardian and elsewhere.

Zoom CLS Book Club: A Swim in a Pond in the Rain
2021-05-19 11:00 - 12:00
Spring has sprung and the CLS Book Club is back! Join us for a lively book discussion on George Saunders’ newest bestselling work, A Swim in a Pond in the Rain on the afternoon of Wednesday, May 19th at 11:00am. The selected work brings the reader into the world of writing & short stories and how they relate to our lives and world today. A master writer is the perfect catalyst for dynamic and fun conversations. A Swim in a Pond in the Rain is a deep exploration not just of how great writing works but of how the mind itself works while reading, and of how the reading and writing of stories make genuine connection possible. To RSVP to this free event, fill out the RSVP form at the bottom of this page or call 843-723-9912.
NOTICE: Zoom event links and passwords are always distributed on the day of the event to the email you RSVP with in the form below. The email that will be sending the link and password will be dreutter@charlestonlibrarysociety.org. If you have any questions, please call 843-723-9912
ABOUT THE BOOK:
For the last twenty years, George Saunders has been teaching a class on the Russian short story to his MFA students at Syracuse University. In A Swim in a Pond in the Rain, he shares a version of that class with us, offering some of what he and his students have discovered together over the years. Paired with iconic short stories by Chekhov, Turgenev, Tolstoy, and Gogol, the seven essays in this book are intended for anyone interested in how fiction works and why it’s more relevant than ever in these turbulent times.
In his introduction, Saunders writes, “We’re going to enter seven fastidiously constructed scale models of the world, made for a specific purpose that our time maybe doesn’t fully endorse but that these writers accepted implicitly as the aim of art—namely, to ask the big questions, questions like, How are we supposed to be living down here? What were we put here to accomplish? What should we value? What is truth, anyway, and how might we recognize it?” He approaches the stories technically yet accessibly, and through them explains how narrative functions; why we stay immersed in a story and why we resist it; and the bedrock virtues a writer must foster. The process of writing, Saunders reminds us, is a technical craft, but also a way of training oneself to see the world with new openness and curiosity.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
George Saunders is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of ten books, including Lincoln in the Bardo, which won the Man Booker Prize; Congratulations, by the way; Tenth of December, a finalist for the National Book Award; The Braindead Megaphone; and the critically acclaimed short story collections CivilWarLand in Bad Decline, Pastoralia, and In Persuasion Nation. He teaches in the creative writing program at Syracuse University.

SOLD OUT! – Book Launch Celebration & Reception: Italians in the Lowcountry
2021-05-27 18:00 - 19:00
This event has SOLD OUT! But, don’t fret! We will be hosting a Zoom presentation on June 3rd that you can RSVP for by clicking here!
Join CLS, Buxton Books, and the Dante Alighieri Society of Charleston as we celebrate the release of Italians in the Lowcountry. “Sunny Italy’s Charleston Colony.
The evening will include a discussion by Eugene Massamillo about Italy, Dante Alighieri, and the continued cultural presented and importance of Italians in Charleston. Author Christina Butler will present a brief illustrated overview of the recently released book, highlighting the themes covered, how the book came to be, and providing a summary of the Italian experience in early Charleston. The evening will include a viewing of Italian rare prints from the CLS special collections, live piano performances, and Italian wine and light snacks.
This limited-capacity event will be followed by a Zoom Speaker Series on Thursday, June 3rd that will go more in-depth into the book and the narratives within.
All attendees will be required to wear masks for the entirety of the event excluding when persons are actively drinking or eating. This event has a maximum capacity of 60, so RSVP ASAP to get to enjoy this celebratory book launch event!
To purchase your signed copy of Italians in the Lowcountry, click here.
ABOUT THE BOOK:
Since its early days, Charleston, a 350-year-old port city in South Carolina, has had an important contingent of Italian residents who made artistic, cultural, and economic contributions much larger than their numbers. Especially in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, the city was home to a small but diverse Italian population who worked hard in their chosen new city, and some of whom founded and operated integral businesses. Others toiled in phosphate mines and on farms in Charleston County. In the city, Italians worked as tradesmen and laborers, and operated successful restaurants, taverns, wholesale groceries, and fruit shops. A lucky few, like the Sottile and Chicco families, rose to the upper echelons of Charleston society in the quintessential American dream. In the twenty first century, recently arrived Italians continue to enhance the city’s cultural and artistic life.
Italians in Charleston utilizes historic documentation, images, and interviews to add the important and diverse stories and experiences of Charleston’s Italians and Italian Americans to the city’s historical narrative. It chronicles the Italian experience in from the colonial era to the present, with biographical sketches of noteworthy Italians, discussion of ethnic communities and businesses throughout the city’s history, and the contributions and the current Italian community in the greater Charleston area in the present. A preface from Cristiano Musillo, Consul General of Italy in Miami, and a section on the Spoleto Festival featuring interviews from former Mayor Joseph P. Riley and General Director Nigel Redden, highlight the important cultural contributions that continue today.

Zoom Speaker Series: Julia Cooke in Conversation with Catherine Grace Katz
2021-06-01 18:00 - 19:00
Join us as we virtually welcome Julia Cooke & Catherine Grace Katz as they converse about Cooke’s new book of narrative history, Come Fly The World: The Jet Age Story of the Women of Pan Am, on the remarkable unseen role women flight attendants of the 60s and 70s played on the world stage. The book reveals the largely hidden role played by international airline stewardesses, as they were then known, in the Vietnam War, while positing them as a cross between a diplomat, an adrenaline junkie, and a third-wave feminist. The two authors will also cover topics about women performing public diplomacy in unofficial roles across history. To RSVP, fill out the RSVP form at the bottom of this page or call 843-723-9912.
NOTICE: Zoom event links and passwords are always distributed on the day of the event to the email you RSVP with in the form below. The email that will be sending the link and password will be dreutter@charlestonlibrarysociety.org. If you have any questions, please call 843-723-9912
To purchase your signed copy of Julia’s Come Fly The World: The Jet Age Story of the Women of Pan Am, click here.
To purchase your signed copy of Catherine’s The Daughters of Yalta, click here.
Come Fly the World: The Jet-Age Story of the Women of Pan Am.
In Mad-Men-era of commercial flight, Pan Am Airways attracted the kind of young woman who wanted out, and wanted up. As Kirkus Reviews raved in a starred review, this “limber, well-researched … account of Pan Am World Airways in its glory days is smoothly interwoven with the engagingly complex stories of several longtime flight attendants … An entertaining, insightful look into a gritty and glamorous era in air travel.”
Required to have a college education, speak two languages, and possess the political savvy of a Foreign Service officer, a jet-age stewardess serving on iconic Pan Am between 1966 and 1975 also had to be the right height (between 5’3″ and 5’9″), the right weight (between 105 and 140 pounds), and the right age (under twenty-six years old at the time of hire). Julia Cooke’s intimate storytelling weaves together the real-life stories of a memorable cast of characters, from small-town girl Lynne Totten, a science major who decided life in a lab was not for her, to Hazel Bowie, one of the relatively few Black stewardesses of the era, as they embraced the liberation of their new jet-set life. Cooke brings to light the story of Pan Am stewardesses’ role in the Vietnam War, as the airline added runs from Saigon to Hong Kong for planeloads of weary young soldiers straight from the battlefields, and as it played an astonishing part in Operation Babylift—the dramatic evacuation of two thousand children from Saigon.
Julia Cooke’s father worked for Pan Am until she was nine, and her interest in writing this book was further sparked when in recent years, as she says, “I met two vibrant ex-stewardesses, and eventually others, women in their late seventies who seemed to have lived life elbow deep in adventure.” Cooke wanted to know “How did these sophisticated, smart women acquire the attitudes that so impressed me, and why have they been denied credit for their very real contributions to the freedom to roam enjoyed by women of younger generations like me?” These answers and more are all found in Come Fly the World…
ABOUT JULIA & CATHERINE:
JULIA COOKE is a journalist and travel writer whose features and personal essays have been published in Time, Smithsonian, Condé Nast Traveler, and Saveur. She is the author of The Other Side of Paradise: Life in the New Cuba. The daughter of a former Pan Am executive, Cooke grew up in the Pan Am “family,” a still-strong network across the globe. She lives in Vermont.
CATHERINE GRACE KATZ is a writer and historian from Chicago. She graduated from Harvard in 2013 with a BA in History and received her MPhil in Modern European History from Christ’s College, University of Cambridge in 2014, where she wrote her dissertation on the origins of modern counterintelligence practices. After graduating, Catherine worked in finance in New York City before a very fortuitous visit to the book store in the lobby of her office in Manhattan led her to return to history and writing. She is currently pursuing her JD at Harvard Law School. The Daughters of Yalta is her first book.

Zoom Speaker Series: Italians in the Lowcountry
2021-06-03 18:00 - 19:00
Please join author Christina Butler for a virtual book talk on Italians in the Lowcountry: Sunny Italy’s Charleston Colony. The illustrated discussion will include glimpses from chapters in the book, addressing Italians in the Lowcountry from the colonial era, through the antebellum period and Reconstruction, and into the twentieth century and beyond. In addition, the conversation will highlight the importance of Italian cultural and architectural influence in the city past and present. Butler will share excerpts from more in-depth book interviews with former mayor Joe Riley, Spoleto Festival USA Executive Director Nigel Redden, Italian Americans like the Sottile’s whose ancestors started many thriving businesses, and Italians who have recently moved to the Lowcountry and continue to enhance the city’s cultural, academic, and commercial life today. Time will also be allotted for discussion and Q and A following the presentation.
To RSVP to this virtual event, fill out the RSVP form at the bottom of this page or call 843-723-9912.
NOTICE: Zoom event links and passwords are always distributed on the day of the event to the email you RSVP with in the form below. The email that will be sending the link and password will be dreutter@charlestonlibrarysociety.org. If you have any questions, please call 843-723-9912
To purchase your signed copy of Italians in the Lowcountry, click here.
ABOUT THE BOOK:
Since its early days, Charleston, a 350-year-old port city in South Carolina, has had an important contingent of Italian residents who made artistic, cultural, and economic contributions much larger than their numbers. Especially in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, the city was home to a small but diverse Italian population who worked hard in their chosen new city, and some of whom founded and operated integral businesses. Others toiled in phosphate mines and on farms in Charleston County. In the city, Italians worked as tradesmen and laborers, and operated successful restaurants, taverns, wholesale groceries, and fruit shops. A lucky few, like the Sottile and Chicco families, rose to the upper echelons of Charleston society in the quintessential American dream. In the twenty first century, recently arrived Italians continue to enhance the city’s cultural and artistic life.
Italians in Charleston utilizes historic documentation, images, and interviews to add the important and diverse stories and experiences of Charleston’s Italians and Italian Americans to the city’s historical narrative. It chronicles the Italian experience in from the colonial era to the present, with biographical sketches of noteworthy Italians, discussion of ethnic communities and businesses throughout the city’s history, and the contributions and the current Italian community in the greater Charleston area in the present. A preface from Cristiano Musillo, Consul General of Italy in Miami, and a section on the Spoleto Festival featuring interviews from former Mayor Joseph P. Riley and General Director Nigel Redden, highlight the important cultural contributions that continue today.

Zoom Book Launch with Alex Michaelides with Will Cathcart
2021-06-24 16:00 - 17:00
Join the Charleston Library Society as we virtually welcome Alex Michaelides to celebrate the release of his second novel, “The Maidens” Tickets to this Zoom conversation are $35 and include a signed copy of THE MAIDENS shipped to you!
To purchase tickets, click here.

The Charleston Library Society virtually welcomes best-selling author Alex Michaelides to celebrate the release of his second novel, The Maidens the week after its release. This Zoom conversation will cover all aspects of Alex’s work process and the excitement behind this highly-anticipated thriller. Alex will be in conversation with Charlestonian journalist & editor, Will Cathcart during this thrilling event.
Tickets are $35 for a signed book package with Zoom access. All ticket purchasers will receive an email from dreutter@charlestonlibrarysociety.org on the afternoon of the event with the Zoom links and password. If you do not receive an email by 3:00pm, please call 843-723-9912.

About THE MAIDENS:
From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Silent Patient comes a spellbinding tale of psychological suspense, weaving together Greek mythology, murder, and obsession, that further cements “Michaelides as a major player in the field” (Publishers Weekly).
Edward Fosca is a murderer. Of this Mariana is certain. But Fosca is untouchable. A handsome and charismatic Greek tragedy professor at Cambridge University, Fosca is adored by staff and students alike—particularly by the members of a secret society of female students known as The Maidens.
Mariana Andros is a brilliant but troubled group therapist who becomes fixated on The Maidens when one member, a friend of Mariana’s niece Zoe, is found murdered in Cambridge.
Mariana, who was once herself a student at the university, quickly suspects that behind the idyllic beauty of the spires and turrets, and beneath the ancient traditions, lies something sinister. And she becomes convinced that, despite his alibi, Edward Fosca is guilty of the murder. But why would the professor target one of his students? And why does he keep returning to the rites of Persephone, the maiden, and her journey to the underworld?
When another body is found, Mariana’s obsession with proving Fosca’s guilt spirals out of control, threatening to destroy her credibility as well as her closest relationships. But Mariana is determined to stop this killer, even if it costs her everything—including her own life.
ABOUT ALEX:
Alex Michaelides was born and raised in Cyprus. He has a MA in English Literature from Trinity College, Cambridge University, and a MA in Screenwriting from the American Film Institute in Los Angeles. The Silent Patient was his first novel. It spent over a year on the New York Times bestseller list and sold in a record-breaking 49 countries. He lives in London.
ABOUT WILL:
Will Cathcart is a journalist and editor based in Tbilisi, Georgia, covering geopolitics and culture for The Daily Beast, CNN, Foreign Policy, Garden & Gun, Literary Hub, and others. He is a former media advisor to the president of Georgia. Will was a production consultant for Anthony Bourdain’s Parts Unknown, a local producer for National Geographic’s Drugs, Inc., and a local producer for ITV’s On Assignment. His work has been featured in POLITICO’s Playbook, Quartz Weekend Brief “Five things that made us smarter,” and The Intelligencer: Journal of U.S. Intelligence Studies. Will was born in Charleston, SC.

Zoom Speaker Series: Marie Benedict & Victoria Christopher Murray
2021-07-19 18:00 - 19:00
CLS & Buxton Books virtually welcome best-selling authors Marie Benedict & Victoria Christopher Murray to discuss the release of their new historical fiction, The Personal Librarian. This novel tells the remarkable story of J. P. Morgan’s personal librarian, Belle da Costa Greene, the Black American woman who was forced to hide her true identity and pass as white to leave a lasting legacy that enriched our nation.
This event is free and open to the public, but requires an RSVP. To RSVP, fill out the form at the bottom of this page.
NOTICE: Zoom event links and passwords are always distributed on the day of the event to the email you RSVP with in the form below. The email that will be sending the link and password will be dreutter@charlestonlibrarysociety.org. If you have any questions, please call 843-723-9912
To purchase your signed copy of The Personal Librarian, click here.
About the Book:
In her twenties, Belle da Costa Greene is hired by J. P. Morgan to curate a collection of rare manuscripts, books, and artwork for his newly built Pierpont Morgan Library. Belle becomes a fixture on the New York society scene and one of the most powerful people in the art and book world, known for her impeccable taste and shrewd negotiating for critical works as she helps build a world-class collection.
But Belle has a secret, one she must protect at all costs. She was born not Belle da Costa Greene but Belle Marion Greener. She is the daughter of Richard Greener, the first Black graduate of Harvard and a well-known advocate for equality. Belle’s complexion isn’t dark because of her alleged Portuguese heritage that lets her pass as white–her complexion is dark because she is African American.

The Personal Librarian tells the story of an extraordinary woman, famous for her intellect, style, and wit, and shares the lengths to which she must go–for the protection of her family and her legacy–to preserve her carefully crafted white identity in the racist world in which she lives.
About the Authors:
Marie Benedict is a lawyer with more than ten years’ experience as a litigator. A graduate of Boston College and the Boston University School of Law, she is the New York Times and USAToday bestselling author of The Only Woman in the Room, The Mystery of Mrs. Christie, Carnegie’s Maid, The Other Einstein, and Lady Clementine. All have been translated into multiple languages. She lives in Pittsburgh with her family.

Victoria Christopher Murray is an acclaimed author with more than one million books in print. She has written more than twenty novels, including Stand Your Ground, a NAACP Image Award Winner for Outstanding Fiction and a Library Journal Best Book of the Year. She holds an MBA from the NYU Stern School of Business.

Zoom Speaker Series: Martin Walker
2021-08-04 12:30 - 13:30
The Charleston Library Society and Buxton Books are thrilled to virtually host best-selling author Martin Walker to celebrate The Coldest Case, the latest release in his hit detective series, Bruno, Chief of Police. Walker will be zooming in from France to tell us all about this thrilling new addition to the beloved series. This Zoom is free and open to the public, but requires an RSVP to attend. To RSVP, fill out the form at the bottom of this page.

NOTICE: Zoom event links and passwords are always distributed on the day of the event to the email you RSVP with in the form below. The email that will be sending the link and password will be dreutter@charlestonlibrarysociety.org. If you have any questions, please call 843-723-9912

ABOUT THE BOOK:
An anonymous skull, an unsolved murder, sinister rumors from the Cold War era of espionage–Bruno’s investigation into a long-standing cold case finds him caught between an enigmatic winegrower and a menacing Communist organization from the past.
After attending an exhibit on the facial reconstruction of ancient skulls, Bruno wonders if this technology might provide an invaluable clue to a thirty-year-old cold case. But learning the identity of the murder victim is only the beginning.
The investigation quickly turns thorny and leads Bruno to a reclusive vintner, Henri Bazaine, whose education at a vocational school in a formerly Communist region has raised some eyebrows. An inquiry into the defunct school turns up shadowy reports of possible connections and funding from the Stasi, the repressive police agency of the former East Germany. The scrutiny on Henri intensifies once Bruno discovers that he was declared dead thirty years ago and has been living under an assumed name ever since.
The strange case is further complicated as Parisian bureaucrats get involved, hinting that essential diplomatic relations might be at stake. And to make matters even worse, the Dordogne is suffering from an intense summer drought that is sparking fires across the region. But as always, Bruno will keep a cool head through it all–and, bien sûr, takes time to enjoy a sumptuous Périgordian meal!
About the Martin:
MARTIN WALKER, after a long career of working in international journalism and for think tanks, now gardens, cooks, explores vineyards, writes, travels, and has never been more busy. He divides his time between Washington, D.C., and the Dordogne.
