Gone with a Handsomer Man Combines Good Cooking & Good Southern Story Telling

Imagine coming home to find your husband-to-be gallivanting around the backyard semi-nude with not one, but two women. That's exactly the predicament Teeny Templeton finds herself in. No one could blame her for what happened next: an attack by peaches. Peaches were simply the closest weapon to her, hanging as they were on a nearby tree.

In a bout of ridiculousness, Teeny is arrested and faces criminal charges for assault, although, if you ask me, the only thing hurt on her good-for-nothing fiance Bing was his pride. Kicked out of her own home by a judge granting an order of protection (to keep Bing from being pelted by fruit again, one presumes), she turns to her Bing's aunt Dora. Unfortunately for Bing, Teeny has always been a favorite of Dora's. With her help, Teeny moves out of Bing's house and into a grand old mansion his family owns.

Things turn from bad to worse when Bing turns up dead. Teeny, of course, becomes suspect number one. After she runs into an old flame from back home in Georgia who just so happens to be a lawyer, Teeny fights the charges against her. Coop tries to help Teeny out of her mess, while maintaining a professional distance from their past.

In Michael Lee West's latest novel, Gone with a Handsomer Man, she returns to those things she does best:

• the south, Charleston in particular
• food, with Teeny's interest in (and almost obsession with) baking
• a gothic quality

West describes Charleston and its outlying islands with aplomb and grace. I adore a well-written southern novel, and Michael Lee West delivers once again in this latest effort. Teeny and cast are caricatures of southern characters, drawn with bold strokes on the page. Dora, especially, is the epitome of a fine southern lady, laced with bourbon and lined with steel. Both the old family mansion south of Broad and Coop's island cottage are dwellings worthy of their Charleston setting.

One of Michael Lee West's ongoing themes in her novels is food. She even wrote a memoir based on her hereditary food obsession, Consuming Passions. Food has factored into all of her books, but perhaps none so much as Gone with a Handsomer Man, in which Teeny bakes both for money and for sanity. In flashback scenes, Teeny also recalls childhood moments in which her mother whipped up poisonous recipes to deal with her own demons.

Both the setting and the baking-with-poison lend the novel a southern gothic quality. Michael Lee West novels are never sunshine and cupcakes; she inserts a healthy dose of real life, in this case via Teeny's dubious dealings with her mother and subsequent difficulties as an adult. Somehow cooking especially always has an underlying desperation and murderous quality in West's books. In She Flew the Coop, the main character lies in a coma "after drinking pop laced with rose poison," and in Mad Girls in Love, southern belle Bitsy attempts to kill  her husband with "a frozen slab of ribs that she purchased at the Piggly Wiggly."

Gone with a Handsomer Man is a satisfying addition to West's bevy of southern novels. The best news? When I met her at the Southern Festival of Books in October, West shared the news that a sequel starring Teeny will be published soon. I can't wait to find out what else is in store for Teeny after the surprise ending of this novel.

Michael Lee West is the author of five other novels and one recipe-laden memoir. To find out more about her, visit her website or her blog. You can also find her on Facebook and Twitter. West explains how her vision of Teeny came during a trip to the Low Country here. An excerpt of Gone with a Handsomer Man, as well as an array of Teeny's recipes can be found on  by clicking here. To connect with Teeny herself, visit The World According to Teeny, a great character blog full of recipes, sneak peeks, giveaways, and more.

Adding to My Southern Festival of Books Pile

I made yet another addition to my SFB pile tonight. Visiting Books-a-Million is always a catch-22 for me... I don't really need anything. And yet I do. I always browse the bargain books section carefully, because you just never know what gems you'll find on those shelves. Sometimes it holds much-hyped books that didn't quite pan out (Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum novels, numbers twelve through fifteen or so only, I'm looking at you). But often times you can find a real steal -- a great book that they simply over-ordered, or whose shelf life has somewhat passed.

Although there were several YA titles I almost bought, and a copy of Sarah Waters' The Little Stranger that's been on my to-read list FOREVER, I walked away with only one purchase: Marisa de los Santos's Belong to Me. I really enjoyed her first novel Love Walked In, but for some reason never read this second novel. Now she has released a third book, Falling Together, which is the reason she'll be attending the Southern Festival of Books this weekend.

I'm excited about diving into Belong to Me, because -- although I didn't realize it until tonight -- de los Santos revives her main characters from Love Walked In in this second novel. Readers once again return to the world that Cornelia and Clare inhabit, as Cornelia moves to the suburbs from downtown Philadelphia. Rumors have been flying around since the release of Love Walked In that Sarah Jessica Parker will produce and star in a film version. As of now, IMDB still lists it as "in development," which can mean nothing at all or that it's in process of being filmed. I suppose only time will tell. It does seem like the perfect role for Parker.

My excitement is building for this weekend's Southern Festival of Books (as if you couldn't tell by my weeks of posts about it)! I'm attending with my mom, my aunt, and a couple of my closest friends -- and fellow readers. We're staying in Nashville Friday night, planning some shopping, and definitely visiting my favorite Festival hotspot -- the Provence inside the Nashville Public Library.

Friday will also be Vanderbilt basketball's Memorial Madness, a night which "celebrat[es] the first official day of practice, [with] a meet-and-greet with both squads, special introductions, a short scrimmage along with a three-point and slam dunk contest." My guy has long been a Vandy fan, and this year we have season tickets to the men's basketball games. We may stick around on Saturday night, too, as Vandy's football team faces off against Georgia.

All in all, a weekend of fun -- and books, of course!

Countdown to Southern Festival of Books 2011: Less Than One Week!

As the school year goes on, I'm able to spend less and less time reading and -- therefore -- blogging. However, this Friday I'm taking a small break from teaching to attend the Southern Festival of Books, which I think is both a positive for me personally and professionally. Although many of the authors I meet or hear speak at SFB will not be authors my students and I will read this school year, the mere fact that I am going to meet authors and hear them speak about their books is important.

It will give me stories to tell my students about real writers making a living doing what they love. I also plan on going to some YA sessions, which will give me ideas about books to add to my classroom library. Above all, it will give me a jolt of inspiration as a reader and a book lover, as I feel like I've been in somewhat of a slump lately. For example, I had a fairly lazy Saturday and Sunday this week, but I haven't read a single page of a book. Not a single page! There have been times in my life when I would have jumped at the chance to consume a book -- perhaps even two! -- on a weekend like this one.

I have begun a new-ish reading tradition, that of listening to an audiobook each night before bed. Both the Audible app on my iPod touch and my iPod touch itself have sleep timers, meaning I can set it for twenty minutes and it will fade away at that point in the book, saving my place for next time. I listen pretty much every night until I fall asleep. Audible books are easy using the Audible app, and downloaded audiobooks from CDs (like Tom Perrotta's The Leftovers, which I finished listening to last week after winning it from nomadreader) are made user-friendly using iTunes on my iPod, then setting the iPod sleep timer.

In spite of my recent non-reading habits, I am excited about the Southern Festival of Books this coming weekend. For the first time ever, I am taking off work on Friday to attend the Festival on its first day. In the past, I've attended on the weekend days only. This year, authors Chris Bohjalian and River Jordan were both speaking on Friday only; I just couldn't let the opportunity pass to hear them speak.

In preparation for this year's SFB, I've done a little bit of "homework":

I listened to the audiobook version of Tom Perrotta's The Leftovers.

I read Michael Lee West's Gone With a Handsomer Man.

I ordered Chris Bohjalian's The Night Strangers and Charles Frazier's Nightwoods from Amazon (and now I'm hoping with fingers crossed that they arrive before Friday).

I had already read River Jordan's Praying for Strangers after receiving it from her publisher before its release in April.

I read Ann Patchett's State of Wonder over the summer.

And I decided against buying Erin Morgenstern's The Night Circus. I realize she's gotten rave reviews for her debut novel, and I plan to attend her session to learn more. But I downloaded a Kindle sample to try it (if you haven't been doing this and you have a Kindle or the Kindle app for another e-reader, you must start immediately), and I was largely unimpressed. The whole circus aspect does absolutely nothing to entice me to read it. In my experience, there have been many books whose premises did nothing for me, though. (Life of Pi anyone? Middlesex? Even The Help, for me.)

Because of all the positive buzz, I tried it. I really did. Those Kindle samples allow you to read enough to get into the book (in hopes you'll use one-click purchasing, I'm sure). A reader confession, though? I hate books written in present tense. I really can't stand them. No one ever speaks that way. Therefore, no story told orally is ever told that way. Present tense always sounds extraordinarily awkward to me, as though I'm reading the script for a poorly-made documentary or made-for-television crime re-enactment. ("She walks down the hall. She listens.") Long story short, I might enjoy the movie once its made, but I don't think The Night Circus is for me. Perhaps Morgenstern will change my mind when I hear her speak -- that has happened to me fairly frequently at SFB. 

A book I did purchase after downloading a Kindle sample of it was Charles Frazier's Nightwoods. And frankly, no one could be more surprised by this than me. I know people everywhere praised Frazier's Cold Mountain. I tried to read the novel on multiple occasions, and never got past the first fifty pages. I was bored to tears. I never watched the entire movie, although I know people felt it was marvelous, as well. I just wasn't interested. So I don't suppose you'd call me a Frazier fan. I appreciated his talent as a writer, I just didn't enjoy his stories.

But Nightwoods is a whole different ballgame. For one thing, its setting is more recent -- the 1960s instead of the 1860s. And for another, it is a story that grabs you from the get-go. Although I've only read the first few dozen pages, I can't wait to get my hands on the printed book to continue reading about main character Luce and her dead sister's twins. Luce takes the children in after her sister's death, moving them into the old abandoned lodge she is caretaker for in the Appalachian mountains. I have no idea where the story is taking me at this point, but I am eager to find out.

Needless to say, Frazier's session was added to my schedule for the Festival this weekend.

You can view the entire schedule for SFB here, as well as registering with Humanities Tennessee and creating your own personalized schedule, like I did. The Southern Festival of Books kicks off this Friday and runs through Sunday in downtown Nashville at Legislative Plaza.

Countdown to Southern Festival of Books 2011: Three Weeks -- Session Schedule & New Website!

2011 SFB Poster by Nashville artist Bryce McCloud

The Southern Festival of Books is only three weeks away, and just in time for attendees to take advantage of it, Festival organizers Humanities Tennessee revamped their website and added features that make it easy to plan your time at the Festival.

Specifically, they've added a feature that allows you to peruse the SFB schedule -- posted last week --  and create your own custom schedule. Festival goers simply register for a free account on the Humanities Tennessee website, then visit the schedule page and follow their directions:

Once you have [signed in], there will be an option called Attend Session. Simply click that button to the side of any session, and a personalized list of your preferred sessions will be created for you to view and to print. 

At the top of the sessions schedule is a button called My Sessions, which leads you to your personal schedule.

They have also made the online schedule interactive in other ways for the first time in the Festival's history, as users can also "click on the author name in a session to view that author’s bio, title, and website information" (via the website).

Both of these options are amazing additions for a type-A personality like mine. In the past, I have begun combing the author list months ahead of time, researching upcoming book releases and author websites in order to plan my own schedule for the Festival. Although the schedule would appear online in the weeks just before the Festival, I usually printed it, then also wrote all over my Festival program and schedule during SFB. There have without a doubt been sessions I missed, even with my meticulous planning.

This tool makes it nearly impossible, as even co-current sessions can be listed on your own session schedule. That way you can see exactly what's going on and choose according to which is most important.

Also great for nerdy bookworms like myself (and multiple-year Festival-goers), Humanities Tennessee has created an Archive feature which allows users to view schedules from all previous years of the Festival.

Friday seems to be a big day this year, although it's usually a day I largely forego because of work. This year I just may have to take one of my days off in order to attend, because I can't bear the thoughts of missing River Jordan, Stewart O'Nan, or Michael Lee West -- all of whom will appear on Friday only.

Additionally, as up-to-date technology seems to be the way things are going this year, Humanities Tennessee also announced this week that the first-ever SFB mobile app will be launched before the start of the Festival. According to their website, it "will allow users to navigate the Festival site, locate parking, and build personal schedules of authors and events." Utter awesomeness!

I'll be tweeting live from the Festival, I'm sure. So be forewarned if you follow me on Twitter! And which sessions will I be attending definitively? Here's a quick "must" list, although obviously others will be added:

Friday:

River Jordan (part of a panel on faith)

Michael Lee West (with Crazy in Alabama author Mark Childress)

Saturday:

Chris Bohjalian

Erin Morgenstern (author of the much-hyped upcoming debut novel The Night Circus)

Ann Patchett

Tom Perrotta

J.T. Ellison 

Sunday:

Clyde Edgerton

Countdown to Southern Festival of Books 2011: Four Weeks -- A Meditation on Time, Or: My, How the Time Does Pass Quickly (When You're Old)

My, how time does slip by. In only four weeks, SFB 2011 will be upon us -- which means in only three weeks I will be turning the big 3-0. Last weekend my childhood girlfriends and I, all of whom are also turning thirty, made a quick-as-lightening trip to the beach (a.k.a. "Turning 30 on 30a"). We celebrated by laying around on the beach by day, eating ourselves stuffed-to-the-gills-full of excellent southern seafood at night.

The pool view from our balcony

We stayed at the amazing Sanctuary by the Sea, which I couldn't recommend any higher. The condo was beautifully appointed, as were both pools, the common areas, and the boardwalk to the ocean. It was a stone's throw from all of the eateries and shops at Grayton Beach and Seaside, of which we took full advantage. We visited my favorite grocery store anywhere, hands down -- the Publix at Santa Rosa beach -- but we also ate in some of the area's best restaurants.

Our Bud & Alley's Attempt -- Menus! No Service.

Our first night we began at Bud & Alley's Roof Deck, but after some truly deplorable service (as in, we were largely ignored, then asked to "turn in" our menus without the waiter ever having asked for our orders), we made our way across Seaside's square to the Great Southern Cafe. This restaurant lived up to its name, being both "great" and "southern."

Grits a Ya Ya, photo from Flickr

Several of us indulged in their specialty, the "Grits à Ya Ya: A delectable Southern specialty of our smoked Gouda cheese grits smothered with a sauce of fresh cream, sautéed Gulf shrimp, spinach, portobello mushrooms, applewood-smoked bacon, garlic, and shallots" (from the restaurant's website). Yes, it's every bit as good as it sounds. We wrapped up the night listening to live music at Pandora's in Grayton Beach, a venue I was familiar with from a trip earlier this summer. Fun, all around.

Mandy & I at Hammerheads, circa 2006

The next night (after a hard day spent lounging in the sun once again), we made our way to Sandestin's Baytowne Wharf area.  It is a water-side mini-city created explicitly for tourists. I described it to a group member who hadn't been before as a kind of "Disneyland for grownups," which she agreed later was accurate. There are restaurants, nightlife, and shops on cobblestone streets that have never seen car tires, as they were created to be pedestrian-only. We tried to get into Hammerheads, which is located on the water and also features live music, but were turned away at the door (somewhat expected after our Bud & Alley's experience the night before).

Poppy's Crab Legs (& High-Fashion Bib)

The Hammerhead's host recommended that we go next door to the much-less-crowded Poppy's Seafood Factory (that link is to The Crazy Lobster, as the same people own Poppy's, but haven't created a website for it yet -- the food looks largely similar). At Poppy's we had excellent seafood, if somewhat sub-par service. The crab legs and steamed shrimp were some of the best I've ever eaten. And no one can mess up drawn butter, right? Suffice it to say, the meal was delicious.

We then made our way to the dueling piano bar Rum Runners, where we sang along to "Rocky Top," "Don't Stop Believing," and -- for my friend Caroline -- "Sweet Caroline." I couldn't have asked for a better group of girls to turn thirty with... Since growing older seems to be a necessary part of life. I still have three weeks at 29, though, and I'm holding on to every second of it!

One week after my birthday, I will be in Nashville for the Southern Festival of Books. All of that was a really long way to say: my, how times passes quickly! Southern Humanities will soon be posting the SFB schedule (usually within a week or two of the Festival). October 14-16 in downtown Nashville, on and around Legislative Plaza, it's the place to be this fall! I am very excited that several of my friends will be joining me for sessions that weekend. My aforementioned friend (and fellow English major) Caroline has been out of town for many SFBs in a row, but she will finally be in town for this year's Festival, and I couldn't be more excited.

Eating at Provence last October during SFB

In addition to visiting Festival sessions and eating at Provence's downtown library location, we have also ventured across the river to Nashville's Oktoberfest in historic Germantown. This year, the German festival kept its usual weekend (the actual weekend of my birthday), while SFB moved one weekend later. As Oktoberfest is also always fun, I may just have to make a trip to Nashville two weekends in a row!

I would be remiss if I did not mention that my friends also threw me an early bachelorette party at the beach, as well. When we arrived at the condo, they had decorated for me (see picture to the right).

And on our road trip down, we opened a series of gifts (one for each hour of the ride) from my fabulous friends Mindy and Mandy. One of them was a set of cups, personalized for each of us. Mine, as you can (kind of) see in this (very fuzzy -- in a car!) photo, says "Bride to Be." So cute.

In short, time flies quickly -- especially as an adult. Thirty came so slowly, yet so quickly. And so will the Southern Festival of Books. More on the Festival (and especially Michael Lee West's novel Gone With a Handsomer Man) next week!

Countdown to Southern Festival of Books 2011: Six Weeks -- Let's Talk Tom Perrotta

Tom Perrotta is an old-hand at the whole being-an-author thing. He's also no stranger to adapting those books for the big screen. His most recent novel, which was released last week, is making the jump not to film, but to the small screen. The Leftovers has been optioned by HBO and is in the process of being developed into a new series for the hit-producing cable channel.

After publishing a collection of short stories titled Bad Haircut: Stories of the Seventies in 1994, Perrotta published his first novel The Wishbones in 1997. He then sold the unpublished manuscript of his novel Election to Hollywood director and producer Alexander Payne.  

Election was published as a novel after the interest in it as a screenplay. Both the film and the novel were highly successful. The film, which starred Reese Witherspoon and Matthew Broderick as a student candidate and teacher, respectively, was nominated for both an Oscar and a Golden Globe award. Payne went on to make films such as About Shmidt, Sideways, and -- this year -- Cedar Rapids. Perrotta continued on a similarly successful literary career.

Perrotta published his third novel, Joe College, a couple of years after Election debuted to critical acclaim in both book and film genres.

It was followed by the wildly successful novel Little Children, which became Perrotta's second book-to-film adaptation success story. According to Wikipedia, Little Children was named on "numerous 'Best Books of 2004' lists—including those of The New York Times Book Review, Newsweek, National Public Radio, and People magazine." The novel was translated to film with Perrotta serving a pivotal role in its adaptation. The movie, starring Kate Winslett and Jennifer Connelly, was nominated for several Academy Awards, Golden Globes, and SAG awards. 
 

The Abstinence Teacher, Perrotta's fifth novel, was published in 2007. This novel was also optioned for film prior to its book release date. Initially, the directors of Little Miss Sunshine (one of my all-time favorite movies) were involved in translating the book to screen, but as of this year it was reported by IMDB that Lisa Cholodenko, director of last year's The Kids Are All Right has taken over as director.

Several years have passed between Perrotta novels, but his popularity seems to have grown rather than diminished. I began hearing buzz about his new novel The Leftovers many months ago, and quickly added it to my to-read list. I was fortunate enough to win an audio version of the novel from Carrie at her book blog nomadreader. Because of my previously-mentioned busy last few weeks (and the fact that I'm less than two hours from completing my current listen, Jennifer Egan's A Visit from the Goon Squad), I haven't yet started it. However, my plan is to definitely complete it prior to SFB in a little over a month!

Jacket Copy reported via Variety in early August that The Leftovers was being developed by HBO into a new series, and I nearly jumped for joy. HBO is known for making quality television, and literary adaptations seem to be their latest wins. True Blood (now in its fourth season) and Game of Thrones (which began filming season two in July) have been their most recent hits based on book series. No doubt The Leftovers will be a winner, as well.

Perrotta will be appearing at the Southern Festival of Books this fall in Nashville, Tennessee. The Festival runs from October 14-16 at Legislative Plaza. For more on Perrotta and The Leftovers, visit his website. The Leftovers has been reviewed by Stephen King in the New York Times, named as an Amazon Best Book of the Month for August 2011, and discussed on NPR's Fresh Air and Weekend Edition.

Countdown to Southern Festival of Books 2011: 8 Weeks -- Spotlight on Author Chris Bohjalian

Deciding on a topic for this week's SFB post was a no-brainer. On Friday, I got some amazing news via Twitter:

I won! For the second year in a row, I managed to snag one of the SFB Twitter contest prizes. This year, as you can see from the image above, I won by guessing author Chris Bohjalian. All week, @SoFestofBooks posted clues about the author.

First, a very general clue for Monday:

Bohjalian has long written for newspapers and magazines, which eventually evolved into a career as a novelist. According to his website, he and his wife moved to Vermont from New York City after a cab-napping (their cabbie decided to go on a joyride with them in tow) and subsequently getting caught in the cross-fire of a crack house raid. Once safely ensconced in a rural small town, Bohjalian "began chronicling life in [Lincoln, Vermont] in a wide variety of non-fiction magazine essays and in his weekly newspaper column."

Bohjalian has written a weekly column for the Burlington Free Press for more than fifteen years. You can read "Idyll Banter" on the newspaper's website. Many of the essays were published in a book of the same name.

Clue number two came on Tuesday:

Although you might initially think of Bohjalian's most famous novel Midwives, he actually had a previous novel that was made into a movie first. Past the Bleachers was indeed made into a Sandlot-like movie. I found the trailer on VideoDetective.com. MacGyver is in it!

Wednesday's clue was the kicker for me:

I knew that Bohjalian's Midwives was an Oprah's Book Club pick in 1998. If you've never read it, you really must. The novel was also made into a television movie, this time on Lifetime. Sissy Spacek starred in the film, a role for which she won both a Satellite and a SAG award. I guessed the answer, but they continue to post clues through Friday for the contest.

On Thursday:

You can view some of the international book covers on Bohjalian's website. These are always of great interest to me. I also find it interesting that rather than being translated, oftentimes the title is changed -- even in the English-speaking UK. The Millions did an interesting comparison of U.S. and U.K. book covers of recent popular titles back in February.

And finally, the easiest clue of all came on Friday:

Bohjalian's The Night Strangers will release the week before the Festival. So, yes. I will be trying to cram it in before the Festival begins. It's already been getting rave reviews from all over the place.

Chris Bohjalian is the author of fourteen novels. You can follow him on Twitter, on Facebook, or on his blog, which is also called Idyll Banter. He will be at the Southern Festival of Books in Nashville this October.

Countdown to Southern Festival of Books 2011: 9 Weeks -- Festival Funding

I read an article in the Nashville Scene last week about the Southern Festival of Books. But not the kind of news you'd expect:

Every year that it has staked out its tents on legislative plaza, since the first "Celebration of the Written Word" in 1989, the Southern Festival of Books has received assistance from the Metro Nashville Arts Commission. This year, however, the commission's books snapped shut.

The rationale charts a tortuous trail through the grants guidelines. But the bottom line is that the fest — a free event that draws people from all over the state and beyond to Nashville — will receive no support from its host city this year.

Scene reporter Christine Kreyling spoke with both Humanities Tennessee president Robert Meacham and MNAC executive director Jennifer Cole, who said that "'the guidelines clearly state that no organization is guaranteed funding from year to year, so past awards are irrelevant.'"

While this may be true, it's hard not to find fault with MNAC's refusal to grant funds for SFB. After all, the Festival -- which offers free admission -- draws thousands to the Nashville area, where Festival attendees rent hotel rooms and dine out at Nashville's restaurants.

Point being? Nashville undoubtedly receives revenue from the Festival. The Metro Nashville Arts Commission's choice to not support the Festival this year shows poor judgement and may have repercussions in years to come.

After all, while Legislative Plaza was being renovated several years ago, Humanities Tennessee successfully held the Festival in Memphis. President Meacham told Kreyling that during that two-year span, they "'of course didn't apply'" for the grant money. With the lack of support from the Nashville community, and prior success elsewhere, it's possible SFB could feasibly change cities.

I, for one, would hate to see that happen. SFB is one of the last literary arts strongholds that Nashville has to offer, after the closing of most of its independent bookstores and also of its Borders chain branch. Hopefully, next year will see a renewed commitment to the Festival and a return of MNAC grant funds. Until then, be sure to show your support and donate if you visit the Festival this year!

Also, Humanities Tennessee and Nashville's Yazoo Brewing Company will kick-off fundraising for the Festival with an event at Yazoo. Beer, Books, & Banter will take place on September 6th, with tickets $20 per person. Festival authors will be on hand for conversation, and the first 100 patrons will receive a commemorative glass. For more information, visit the Festival website.

Countdown to Southern Festival of Books 2011: 10 Weeks

Last year, I started talking about the Southern Festival of Books in mid-July. This year traveling and getting things ready for school have somewhat stifled my internet browsing time, so I'm a bit later getting started. However, never fear -- I will be discussing SFB on Mondays from now until the Festival begins in October.

The Southern Festival of Books is a three-day event that celebrates the written word, especially if the writing happens to have a southern flavor. The Festival takes place in Nashville at the Legislative Plaza. It is organized by Humanities Tennessee, a nonprofit focused on "studies of community history and cultural life and studies of language and literature" (via their website). Now in its 23rd year, I have faith that the Festival will be as good this year as ever before.

The SFB author line-up was announced in July and will be refined until the event occurs. I begin planning for it each year by looking at the initial list, then making my own list of authors that are must-see and another list of those that I'd like to research beforehand (new-to-me authors I haven't yet read but who I might enjoy hearing at the Festival).

Although some of my favorite southern authors are (sadly) missing, there are many fabulous authors I can't wait to see. Some highlights:

Chris Bohjalian is the author of the Oprah's Book Club selection Midwives, as well as many other fabulous novels. I reviewed his last book, Secrets of Eden, and found it to be one of his best works yet. The Night Strangers, a new novel from Bohjalian, will be released just before the Festival in October. It goes without saying that I can't wait to read it.

Mark Childress is the masterful storyteller behind the novel (then the movie) Crazy in Alabama. His newest novel, Georgia Bottoms, has been getting rave reviews (especially from one of my favorite authors and bloggers, Joshilyn Jackson). I haven't read it yet, but it is on the "must" list before this year's Festival.

Clyde Edgerton is always hilarious. I've seen him several times, and his sessions never fail to entertain. On top of that, he's pretty great as a writer. He is the author of Raney, Walking Across Egypt, and Lunch at the Piccadilly. His new novel The Night Train was released in July and has a YA feel to it.

J.T. Ellison writes mystery novels set in Nashville that star female homicide detective, Taylor Jackson. The seventh novel in the series, Where All the Dead Lie, will be released in September.

River Jordan is the author of several novels, but I first read her work in the nonfiction title Praying for Strangers. It was a joy to read Jordan's story of praying for strangers for one year, and my review reflected just how much I loved it. In addition to being an author, Jordan is also a radio personality, which means her sessions at the Festival will be especially enjoyable!

Erin Morgenstern is a new-to-me author, but one who has generated quite a buzz. Her debut novel The Night Circus will not be released until September, but it has already been compared to Harry Potter by USA Today. Word is that David Heyman, producer of all eight Potter movies, is interested in producing the big screen version of The Night Circus. Pretty high praise for a book that has yet to hit shelves -- I think I'll have to bite.

Stewart O'Nan is the author of several well-known titles (A Prayer for the Dying, Wish You Were Here, and The Good Wife, to name a few). The only O'Nan novel I've read was the short Last Night at the Lobster, which I enjoyed thoroughly. O'Nan recently published Emily, Alone, which has generated positive reviews.

Ann Patchett is the author of the great new novel State of Wonder (possibly the best of 2011). I heard her speak in June at the Nashville Public Library, and I won't miss another opportunity to hear her speak on any topic she chooses -- especially if she has more information about her upcoming indie bookstore in Nashville!

Tom Perrotta is one of my all-time favorite authors. I read his books before I started the blog, so I've never actually reviewed anything by him here. But I read all of his books in a matter of weeks after I discovered them. My favorite is probably Little Children -- although I loved both The Abstinence Teacher and Joe College, as well. Perrotta's newest novel has a supernatural twist (which I'm unsure about), but anything from him has to be good, right? The Leftovers will be released in September.

Back by popular demand is the SFB Twitter contest. Each week, they will be tweeting clues about a featured author. The first Twitter follower to guess the author's name correctly will win a Speed Pass -- an amazing thing that zooms you to the front of the line and allows you to meet your favorite author first (before all those dozens of people who leave the sessions early to get "good spots" in line). I won one last year and got to meet Dr. Bill Bass and Jon Jefferson, who co-write the Body Farm mystery series.

Look for more in-depth posts relating to all things SFB 2011 for the next couple of months (and then, of course, updates throughout the Festival).

Lastly, the Jeffrey Archer winners from last Monday's giveaway are:

• Meredith M.
• Donna V.
• Darcy O.
• Amy C. 
• Christine R.

Congratulations to all of you. Look for Archer's newest novel Only Time Will Tell in your mailbox via St. Martin's Press! I'm looking forward to reading it myself and reviewing it in time for its release on August 30.