Kingsport Public Library Hosts Author Series Featuring Bestselling YA Authors
Kingsport Public Library and Elizabethton Public Library are partnering with Humanities Tennessee on a virtual event featuring bestselling authors Sharon Cameron and Ruta Sepetys on Tuesday, April 27 at 7 p.m.
The event is part of an online author speaker series in partnership with the Tennessee State Library and Archives. The series will feature an author event each month in 2021, in partnership with a different library in the state.
All events are free and will be streamed on Facebook Live via the pages of the partner library and of chapter16.org, the literary website of Humanities Tennessee.
“As we wait for the return of safe, in-person events, we are delighted to partner with libraries across Tennessee on this new series,” said Serenity Gerbman, director of literature and language programs at Humanities Tennessee. “Our libraries continue to serve their communities with a variety of creative, innovative programming for families and readers of all ages.”
“The library is thrilled to offer our community a chance to meet Sharon Cameron and Ruta Septys,” said Bridgette Johnson, Teen Librarian at Kingsport Public Library. “They write immersive, fast-paced historical fiction that appeals to history and non-history lovers of all ages. Their characters are so real to life you can’t help but feel what they feel and root for them.”
Sharon Cameron is the author of the New York Times bestselling novel “The Light in Hidden Places,” which was a Reese Witherspoon Book Club pick. Her debut novel The Dark Unwinding was awarded the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators’ Sue Alexander Award for Most Promising New Work and the SCBWI Crystal Kite Award, and was named a YALSA Best Fiction for Young Adults selection. Sharon is also the author of its sequel, A Spark Unseen; Rook, which was selected as an Indiebound Indie Next List Top Ten selection, a YALSA Best Fiction for Young Adults selection, and a Parents’ Choice gold medalist; and The Forgetting, a #1 New York Times bestseller and an Indie Next Pick of the List selection, and its companion novel, The Knowing. She lives with her family in Nashville, Tennessee.
Ruta Sepetys is an internationally acclaimed, #1 New York Times bestselling author of historical fiction published in over 60 countries and 40 languages. Sepetys is considered a “crossover” novelist, as her books are read by both teens and adults worldwide. Her novels Between Shades of Gray, Out of the Easy, and Salt to the Sea have won or been shortlisted for more than 40 book prizes, and are included on more than 60 state award lists. Between Shades of Gray was adapted into the film Ashes in the Snow, and her other novels are currently in development for TV and film. Winner of the Carnegie Medal, Ruta is passionate about the power of history and literature to foster global awareness and connectivity. She has presented to NATO, to the European Parliament, in the United States Capitol, and at embassies worldwide. Ruta was born and raised in Michigan and now lives with her family in Nashville, Tennessee.
Humanities Tennessee is a non-profit organization that fosters community and civility in Tennessee through engaging programs that examine and reflect upon ideas, stories, history, arts and culture. To receive updates about this series and other literary events, subscribe to the weekly newsletter of literary website Chapter 16 at chapter16.org or visit humtn.org.
For more information about this and other programs at the Kingsport Public Library visit kingsportlibrary.org