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CONTACT:
Jill Hendrix
Fiction Addiction
864-675-0540
info@fiction-addiction.com
http://www.fiction-addiction.com
Book Your Lunch with Bestselling Southern Author Mary Alice Monroe
 Greenville, SC, May 30, 2013 - Book Your Lunch with bestselling Southern author Mary Alice Monroe on Thursday, June 27th, from 12-2 pm at Thornblade Club in Greer. Tickets are $45 ticket: one person, one book / $70 ticket: two people, one book* and must be purchased in advance at http://www.bookyourlunch.com or by calling Fiction Addiction at 864-675-0540.
Three sisters reunite on Sullivan's Island off the coast of South Carolina after years of separation in The Summer Girls (Gallery Books, paperback, $16.00, on sale 6/25/13). This heartwarming novel is the first in a new trilogy from New York Times bestselling Southern author Mary Alice Monroe.
*Please note that the ticket price for this event includes one paperback copy of The Summer Girls, which can be picked up at Fiction Addiction after June 25th, or it can be brought to the event for you.
Eighty-year-old Marietta Muir is a dowager of Charleston society who has retired to her historic summer home on Sullivan's Island. At the onset of summer, Marietta -- "Mamaw" -- seeks to gather her three granddaughters -- Carson, Eudora, and Harper -- with the intent to reunite them after years apart. Monroe explores the depths and complexities of sisterhood, friendship and the power of forgiveness. The Summer Girls is a perfect beach read and anyone who "enjoys such fine southern voices as Pat Conroy will add the talented Monroe to their list of favorites" (Booklist).
Like Elin Hilderbrand's New York Times bestseller Silver Girl and Mary Alice's own beloved novel The Beach House, this new series centers around complicated yet heartwarming female friendships and the power of forgiveness, and it is set against a charming summertime island backdrop.
 Mary Alice Monroe claims much of her creative spark came from her large and very close family. Growing up, she and her nine brothers and sisters wrote and performed in their own plays and musicals. Her teachers recognized her talent and encouraged her to write. She first pursued nonfiction and studied journalism. Later, she was the assistant to the General Editor for Encyclopedia Britannica and worked with world famous artists, authors, composers, and scientists as EB III was developed.
After an extended trip to Japan with her husband, Mary Alice studied Asian culture in earnest. She was awarded a fellowship and earned her master's degree in Asian Studies and became bilingual in Japanese. Later, she helped establish a government-funded English as a Second Language program for Southeast Asian refugees. Working with immigrants and helping them integrate into American society, Mary Alice co-authored and English-language survival text.
Not until years later did fate intervene. When her doctor confined her to bed for the final months of her pregnancy, Mary Alice's husband handed her a yellow notepad and pencil and urged her to write the novel she had always dreamed about. Knowing she might never again have that gift of time, she wrote and wrote. "I gave birth to a baby and a book," says the author.
More than a dozen books later, Mary Alice has found her voice in fiction. Although known for her intimate portrayals of women's lives, her writing has gained added purpose and depth with her move to the Lowcountry. An active environmentalist, she draws themes for her novels from nature and the parallels with human nature, thus drawing attention to various endangered species and the human connection to the natural world.
Mary Alice is involved with several environmental groups and is on the board of the South Carolina Aquarium. Her work with these groups provided the inspiration for her novels The Beach House, Skyward, Sweetgrass, Swimming Lessons, her children's book Turtle Summer, Time Is a River, Last Light Over Carolina, The Butterfly's Daughter, and Beach House Memories.
If you cannot make the event, you can reserve a personalized copy of any of Ms. Monroe's books by contacting Fiction Addiction in advance at 864-675-0540 or at info@fiction-addiction.com.
ABOUT FICTION ADDICTIONFiction Addiction is a local, woman-owned, independent bookstore established in 2001. The store carries a mixture of new and used fiction and nonfiction, including children's books, as well as gift items. We have recently moved to a new location at 1175 Woods Crossing Road (in the shopping center with Five Guys and Fried Green Tomatoes). For more information, visit our website at http://www.fiction-addiction.com or call us at 864-675-0540.
 ABOUT BOOK YOUR LUNCHThe Book Your Lunch author event program was launched in September 2009, and is a new way to bring authors and readers together -- right here in Greenville. This luncheon series provides the ultimate food for thought with a wide range of authors -- from mystery writers, to award-winning regional novelists to nonfiction and cookbook authors. Jill Hendrix, the owner of Fiction Addiction, founded the event program and is responsible for booking the authors. For more information about Book Your Lunch, please visit our website at http://www.bookyourlunch.com.
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