Events
Free Author Monthly Event Series
Free Author Monthly Events sponsored by Libraries for Kids, Int’l
Location: The Roasting Room, 1297 May River Rd, Bluffton, SC (2nd floor above Corner Perk)
Time: 10:30-11:30 AM, followed by an optional Dutch Treat lunch with the author.
Libraries for Kids Int’l sponsors the free talks, but there is a suggested donation of $5 to the sponsor. Books will be available for sale and signing.
Reservations are required because seating is limited. Call or text Tamela Maxim at 843-683-4100 or email at tamela.maxim@libraries4kids.org to reserve a spot or with any questions.
June 16, 2025, Author Kacey Kowars will discuss his book Chasing the Queen’s Gambit: A Literary Biography of Walter Tevis
Kacey Kowars’s fascination with Walter Tevis's life began in the early 1980s. He was featured in the 2021 PBS documentary “Walter Tevis: A Writer’s Gambit.” He hosted The Kacey Kowars Show and received the 2022 Doug Marlette Lifetime Achievement for “A lifetime spent promoting authors, books, and literacy.” He interviewed over 100 authors, including Sandra Brown, David Baldacci, Harlan Koben, James Wood, Jennifer Haigh, Michael Connelly, Ted Dekker, Scott Turow, Alice Hoffman, Sidney Sheldon, and Jeannette Walls
July 21, 2025, Author Brenda Sutton Rose will discuss her book Dogwood Blues.
Brenda’s poetry, essays, and short stories have appeared in Flycatcher Magazine, Mobius: Journal of Social Change, Montucky Review, Muddy River Poetry Review, Dead Mule School of Southern Literature, Ginosko Literary Magazine, and numerous other online and print journals. She is the author of Dogwood Blues, a novel that earned her a reputation as a writer of Southern fiction with a focus on the changing South and small-town life. Brenda was nominated for a Georgia Author of the Year Award in 2015, a Pushcart Prize in Fiction in 2018, and a Pushcart Prize in Fiction in 2023. She is currently working on her second novel.
Brenda leads writing workshops and speaks at book clubs and related events. Her email is brenda@brendasuttonrose.com.
Free Author Monthly Event Series
Free Author Monthly Events sponsored by Libraries for Kids, Int’l
Location: The Roasting Room, 1297 May River Rd, Bluffton, SC (2nd floor above Corner Perk)
Time: 10:30-11:30 AM, followed by an optional Dutch Treat lunch with the author.
Libraries for Kids Int’l sponsors the free talks, but there is a suggested donation of $5 to the sponsor. Books will be available for sale and signing.
Reservations are required because seating is limited. Call or text Tamela Maxim at 843-683-4100 or email at tamela.maxim@libraries4kids.org to reserve a spot or with any questions.
July 21, 2025, Author Brenda Sutton Rose will discuss her book Dogwood Blues.
Brenda’s poetry, essays, and short stories have appeared in Flycatcher Magazine, Mobius: Journal of Social Change, Montucky Review, Muddy River Poetry Review, Dead Mule School of Southern Literature, Ginosko Literary Magazine, and numerous other online and print journals. She is the author of Dogwood Blues, a novel that earned her a reputation as a writer of Southern fiction with a focus on the changing South and small-town life. Brenda was nominated for a Georgia Author of the Year Award in 2015, a Pushcart Prize in Fiction in 2018, and a Pushcart Prize in Fiction in 2023. She is currently working on her second novel.
Brenda leads writing workshops and speaks at book clubs and related events. Her email is brenda@brendasuttonrose.com.
Free Author Monthly Event Series
Free Author Monthly Events sponsored by Libraries for Kids, Int’l
Location: The Roasting Room, 1297 May River Rd, Bluffton, SC (2nd floor above Corner Perk)
Time: 10:30-11:30 AM, followed by an optional Dutch Treat lunch with the author.
Libraries for Kids Int’l sponsors the free talks, but there is a suggested donation of $5 to the sponsor. Books will be available for sale and signing.
Reservations are required because seating is limited. Call or text Tamela Maxim at 843-683-4100 or email at tamela.maxim@libraries4kids.org to reserve a spot or with any questions.
August 18, 2025, Author Mark O'Neill will discuss his book To Catch a Spy.
Mark O'Neill's debut novel, To Catch a Spy, is the official sequel to To Catch a Thief. Before turning to writing, Mark was a toy designer, a newspaper columnist, a marketing executive, and, most recently, a private investigator. You can follow Mark’s writing journey on X and Instagram at @JohnRobieIsBack or visit his website, www.tocatchathief.com. He lives with his wife in Bluffton, South Carolina, where he has fun writing his next To Catch a Thief novel.
To Catch a Spy is the estate-approved sequel to the novel To Catch a Thief by David Dodge and the 1955 Academy Award-winning film by Alfred Hitchcock. Book Summary: It's been a year since John Robie, notorious Riviera jewel thief, proved his innocence by catching a copycat burglar. And it's been a year since John has seen Francie Stevens, the alluring socialite. Now Francie is returning to the Riviera for its first-ever Fashion Week as a model for a top French designer, and John plans on rekindling their romance. But there's a problem. While helping a friend, John chases down a mysterious courier, whose ruthless associates now want John dead. To make matters worse, when Francie arrives, she has a boyfriend in tow, and tells John that she wants nothing to do with him. John has to figure out why he's a hunted man, and why Francie is acting suspiciously. Digging deeper, he discovers a spy ring with evil intent. As John works unofficially to gather evidence, a question begins to haunt him―could Francie Stevens be a spy? With his enemies closing in, John turns to his cat burglar skills to try to save his life and expose the traitors. To survive, he has to catch the spies before they catch―and kill―a retired thief!
Free Author Monthly Event Series
Free Author Monthly Events sponsored by Libraries for Kids, Int’l
Location: The Roasting Room, 1297 May River Rd, Bluffton, SC (2nd floor above Corner Perk)
Time: 10:30-11:30 AM, followed by an optional Dutch Treat lunch with the author.
Libraries for Kids Int’l sponsors the free talks, but there is a suggested donation of $5 to the sponsor. Books will be available for sale and signing.
Reservations are required because seating is limited. Call or text Tamela Maxim at 843-683-4100 or email at tamela.maxim@libraries4kids.org to reserve a spot or with any questions.
September 15, 2025, Author Pat Branning will discuss her subscription offering, The Diary of Southern Lifestyle Author Pat Branning, which has 7,000+ subscribers. Pat is the best-selling author of seven southern cookbooks and the past editor-in-chief of a regional magazine. She has been a journalist for over 50+ years, starting with her days at WSB Atlanta, where she did daily radio shows.
Pat Branning is a journalism graduate from the University of Georgia. She served as Women's Editor for WSB Radio, Atlanta, where she became the woman's voice for the South through her daily radio programs. Later, she became the assistant to media mogul Ted Turner before his CNN days. Once married, Pat accompanied her husband to Beaufort, SC. Many of her stories are from those early days in Beaufort and the memorable meals she shared with friends who entertained in the antebellum dining rooms along Beaufort’s waterfront and across the sea islands. Pat is a prolific writer of books, periodicals, and magazine stories, including the original Islander Magazine of Hilton Head, The Local Palate, Deep South Magazine, Charleston Style and Design, and local newspapers and publications. She became editor of her own magazine, Shrimp, Collards, and Grits, a well-loved publication that, until it closed because of the COVID-19 pandemic, could be found in upscale grocery stores and bookstores across the South. Thankfully, her wonderful writing continues with The Diary of Southern Lifestyle Author Pat Branning on Substack, which means that Pat and her fans can get to know each other better than ever before.
Free Author Monthly Event Series
Free Author Monthly Events sponsored by Libraries for Kids, Int’l
Location: The Roasting Room, 1297 May River Rd, Bluffton, SC (2nd floor above Corner Perk)
Time: 10:30-11:30 AM, followed by an optional Dutch Treat lunch with the author.
Libraries for Kids Int’l sponsors the free talks, but there is a suggested donation of $5 to the sponsor. Books will be available for sale and signing.
Reservations are required because seating is limited. Call or text Tamela Maxim at 843-683-4100 or email at tamela.maxim@libraries4kids.org to reserve a spot or with any questions.
October 20, 2025, Author Scott Gould will discuss his book Peace Like a River.
Scott Gould is the author of six books, including Things That Crash, Things That Fly, which won a 2022 Memoir Prize. His other honors include a Next Generation Indie Book Award, and IPPY Award for fiction, the Larry Brown Short Story Award, and the SC Arts Commission Artist Fellowship in Prose. His work has appeared in several publications, including Kenyon Review, Black Warrior Review, Pangyrus, Crazyhorse, Pithead Chapel, Garden & Gun, and New Stories from the South. He lives in Sans Souci, South Carolina, and teaches at the SC Governor's School for the Arts and Humanities.
About the Book: Peace Like a River weaves a lyrical and heartwarming tale of fathers, son, and grandfathers, and the intricate bonds that define them. Sixty-something Elwin McClennon returns to his hometown in the Lowcountry of South Carolina - and the dying father he fled fifteen years before. Accompanied by his son, Thom, Elwin embarks on a journey to reconcile with his father.
Free Author Monthly Event Series
Free Author Monthly Events sponsored by Libraries for Kids, Int’l
Location: The Roasting Room, 1297 May River Rd, Bluffton, SC (2nd floor above Corner Perk)
Time: 10:30-11:30 AM, followed by an optional Dutch Treat lunch with the author.
Libraries for Kids Int’l sponsors the free talks, but there is a suggested donation of $5 to the sponsor. Books will be available for sale and signing.
Reservations are required because seating is limited. Call or text Tamela Maxim at 843-683-4100 or email at tamela.maxim@libraries4kids.org to reserve a spot or with any questions.
November 17, 2025, Authors Lynn and Cele Seldon will discuss their latest book, 100 Things to Do in the South Carolina Lowcountry Before You Die.
Seldon Ink is Lynn and Cele Seldon's travel journalist team. They have spent more than thirty years covering their passion for travel.
About Lynn: After an overseas stint in the military and getting bitten by the travel bug, Lynn developed a flair for bringing his travels to life in words and pictures.
About Cele: After a corporate marketing career, Cele found a second love of writing and sharing her travels and escapades.
Free Author Monthly Event Series
Free Author Monthly Events sponsored by Libraries for Kids, Int’l
Location: The Roasting Room, 1297 May River Rd, Bluffton, SC (2nd floor above Corner Perk)
Time: 10:30-11:30 AM, followed by an optional Dutch Treat lunch with the author.
Libraries for Kids Int’l sponsors the free talks, but there is a suggested donation of $5 to the sponsor. Books will be available for sale and signing.
Reservations are required because seating is limited. Call or text Tamela Maxim at 843-683-4100 or email at tamela.maxim@libraries4kids.org to reserve a spot or with any questions.
December 15, 2025, Author Annelore Harrell will discuss her book Et Cetera Y’all, Volume 2
“Step into the enchanting world of Annelore Harrell and the coastal Lowcountry I love so dearly. With twenty-four years of remarkable newspaper columns, this collection is a treasure chest of insight, immersive experiences, and wisdom. From past to present, Annelore Harrell brings us on a journey to meet the forgotten heroes, see the locales of her experience, and encounter the allure of southern hospitality. A captivating storyteller with a keen and wise eye, Annelore Harrell’s prose transports us to the soul of the south.” Patti Callahan Henry
Free Author Monthly Event Series
Free Author Monthly Events sponsored by Libraries for Kids, Int’l
Location: The Roasting Room, 1297 May River Rd, Bluffton, SC (2nd floor above Corner Perk)
Time: 10:30-11:30 AM, followed by an optional Dutch Treat lunch with the author.
Libraries for Kids Int’l sponsors the free talks, but there is a suggested donation of $5 to the sponsor. Books will be available for sale and signing.
Reservations are required because seating is limited. Call or text Tamela Maxim at 843-683-4100 or email at tamela.maxim@libraries4kids.org to reserve a spot or with any questions.
January 19, 2026, Author Mary Martha Greene will discuss her book The Cheese Biscuit Queen Tells All: Southern Recipes, Sweet Remembrances, and a Little Rambunctious Behavior.
Some Southern cooks keep their prized family recipes under lock and key, but not Mary Martha Greene. Why? She says few things can truly be kept secret in the South, and recipes, like cheese biscuits, are meant to be shared. That's why she's the "Cheese Biscuit Queen."
In The Cheese Biscuit Queen Tells All, Greene, a South Carolinian and former lobbyist, pairs tried-and-true recipes for dishes like country ham scones, Frogmore stew dip, shrimp and corn pie, and lemon pound cake with stories from her corner of the South. The book opens with the famous cheese biscuit recipe, complete with family secrets, and the pages that follow brim with fabulous characters, antic-filled anecdotes, and recipes.
Free Author Monthly Event Series
Free Author Monthly Events sponsored by Libraries for Kids, Int’l
Location: The Roasting Room, 1297 May River Rd, Bluffton, SC (2nd floor above Corner Perk)
Time: 10:30-11:30 AM, followed by an optional Dutch Treat lunch with the author.
Libraries for Kids Int’l sponsors the free talks, but there is a suggested donation of $5 to the sponsor. Books will be available for sale and signing.
Reservations are required because seating is limited. Call or text Tamela Maxim at 843-683-4100 or email at tamela.maxim@libraries4kids.org to reserve a spot or with any questions.
February 16, 2026, Author Laura Elizabeth will discuss her books All is Now Lost and A Special Kind of Heartachefrom her Island Mysteries series.
Laura Elizabeth enjoys a well-established career in business and a rich family life that, many years ago, took her to Daufuskie Island for the first time. Following her years of family experiences on the island, Laura imagined Mongin Island as the home for her new cozy series, The Island Mysteries.
About the Book, All is Now Lost: Carr Jepson is starting a new chapter in her life as she finds an empty storefront as the answer to her dream of creating a gathering spot for selling books, serving tea, and celebrating the island's beauty through her photography. All goes well until a photographic outing to a remote corner of the island with her friend Barb.
About the Book,A Special Kind of Heartache: Carr Jepson, Mongin Island's amateur sleuth, and her friends are beginning to prepare for cooler days and fewer tourists. But things change quickly with the arrival of a girls' trip vacationing at the cozy Rosemont Inn.
Good Vibes and Great Prizes ~ Enter Raffle NOW!!
Story
Incredible things are happening this year after our "Night Under the African Stars Event!
Roy is currently in Africa, setting the foundation to expand into east African countries. Laura recently got back from a trip to Minnesota, meeting the Ambassador of Kenya to the United States and securing FOUR shipping containers of books!
Our impact is not stopping there, we have big goals to ship MORE containers before the end of the year!
100% of your support with this raffle directly funds our program.
PS - SAVE THE DATE!
Our 5th Annual Charity Event is April 25, 2026
Free Author Monthly Event Series
Free Author Monthly Events sponsored by Libraries for Kids, Int’l
Location: The Roasting Room, 1297 May River Rd, Bluffton, SC (2nd floor above Corner Perk)
Time: 10:30-11:30 AM, followed by an optional Dutch Treat lunch with the author.
Libraries for Kids Int’l sponsors the free talks, but there is a suggested donation of $5 to the sponsor. Books will be available for sale and signing.
Reservations are required because seating is limited. Call or text Tamela Maxim at 843-683-4100 or email at tamela.maxim@libraries4kids.org to reserve a spot or with any questions.
May 9, 2025, Author Estelle Ford-Williamson will discuss her book Rising Fawn.
Estelle Ford-Williamson is a former UPI reporter, now writing literary, historical and non-fiction books. Nominated for top fiction prizes in Georgia, awarded Poets and Writers, Inc. grants for workshops and readings in Atlanta and New York State, and awarded Resident Fellowships twice at the Hambidge Center in Rabun Gap, GA. She has been praised for descriptions of the natural world, sharply drawn characters, and deep research skills. Published in "The Louisville Review," snreview.com, and "Short Story America Vol. 6" (2018), among many newspapers. She has designed and conducted creative writing and “Writing Your Story” workshops for young people who are timing out of foster care and for memoir writers at a senior center. She co-founded Wells for Hope, Inc. following the publication of "Seed of South Sudan: Memoir of a ‘Lost Boy’ Refugee," co-written with Majok Marier. The non-profit has built water wells in four villages in South Sudan, improving the lives of women and children especially.
Free Author Monthly Event Series
Free Author Monthly Events sponsored by Libraries for Kids, Int’l
Location: The Roasting Room, 1297 May River Rd, Bluffton, SC (2nd floor above Corner Perk)
Time: 10:30-11:30 AM, followed by an optional Dutch Treat lunch with the author.
Libraries for Kids Int’l sponsors the free talks, but there is a suggested donation of $5 to the sponsor. Books will be available for sale and signing.
Reservations are required because seating is limited. Call or text Tamela Maxim at 843-683-4100 or email at tamela.maxim@libraries4kids.org to reserve a spot or with any questions.
April 21, 2025, Author Tom Poland will discuss his bookSouth Carolina Reflections: A Photographic Journey, Photographs by Robert C. Clark, Text by Tom Poland, Foreword by Mary Alice Monroe.
Tom Poland is the author of fourteen books and more than 2,000 magazine features and columns. He writes about the South, its people, culture, land, natural wealth, and beautiful detritus—ruins and abandoned places. He travels back roads looking for forgotten places, captivating people, and vestiges of bygone times. Much of that work finds its way into books, columns, essays, and features. The television episode By The River by Tom Poland & Robert Clark won a Bronze Telly Award in the Television – Nature/Wildlife category.
Governor Henry McMaster awarded Tom Poland the prestigious South Carolina Order of the Palmetto in 2018. He has written fourteen books, covering topics related to Southern culture, history, and landscapes.
2025, March South Carolina Reflections: A Photographic Journey, photographs by Robert C. Clark, Text by Tom Poland, foreword by Mary Alice Monroe
2020, November The Last Sunday Drive: Vanishing Traditions in Georgia and the Carolinas
2018, April South Carolina Country Roads: Of Train Depots, Filling Stations & Other Vanishing Charms
2015, November Georgialina: A Southland as We Knew It
2014, December Reflections of South Carolina, Volume 2
2014, August Classic Carolina Road Trips from Columbia: Historic Destinations & Natural Wonders
2013, Transforming South Carolina’s Destiny, SC Technical College System
2013, State of the Heart, an anthology with the contribution “For The Birds,” USC Press
2012, August Save the Last Dance for Me: A Love Story of the Shag and the Society of Stranders
2007, March Forbidden Island: An Island Called Sapelo
1999, October Reflections of South Carolina, Volume 1
1994 South Carolina, A Timeless Journey, Foreword by William W. Starr, USC Press
1989 South Carolina, The Natural Heritage, Foreword by James Dickey, USC Press
Free Author Monthly Event Series
Free Author Monthly Events sponsored by Libraries for Kids, Int’l
Location: The Roasting Room, 1297 May River Rd, Bluffton, SC (2nd floor above Corner Perk)
Time: 10:30-11:30 AM, followed by an optional Dutch Treat lunch with the author.
Libraries for Kids Int’l sponsors the free talks, but there is a suggested donation of $5 to the sponsor. Books will be available for sale and signing.
Reservations are required because seating is limited. Call or text Tamela Maxim at 843-683-4100 or email at tamela.maxim@libraries4kids.org to reserve a spot or with any questions.
March 10, 2025, Author Tara Lynn Masih will discuss her book My Real Name is Hanna. Tara Lynn Masih is a National Jewish Book Award Finalist and winner of the Julia Ward Howe Award for Young Readers for her debut novel My Real Name Is Hanna. Her anthologies include The Rose Metal Press Field Guide to Writing Flash Fiction and The Chalk Circle: Intercultural Prizewinning Essays. How We Disappear: Novella & Stories, her latest collection, won a 2022 Florida Book Award, and she’s published multiple chapbooks with the Feral Press archived in universities such as Yale and NYU. She founded the Intercultural Essay Prize in 2006 and The Best Small Fictions series in 2015.
Masih received a finalist fiction grant from the Massachusetts Cultural Council, an Inspirational Woman in Literature Award from AITL Media, and several national book awards, including an IBPA Benjamin Franklin Award, for her work as an editor.
Free Author Monthly Event Series
Free Author Monthly Events sponsored by Libraries for Kids, Int’l
Location: The Roasting Room, 1297 May River Rd, Bluffton, SC (2nd floor above Corner Perk)
Time: 10:30-11:30 AM, followed by an optional Dutch Treat lunch with the author.
Libraries for Kids Int’l sponsors the free talks, but there is a suggested donation of $5 to the sponsor. Books will be available for sale and signing.
Reservations are required because seating is limited. Call or text Tamela Maxim at 843-683-4100 or email at tamela.maxim@libraries4kids.org to reserve a spot or with any questions.
February 17, 2025, Author Bill Borg and Illustrator Mira Scott will discuss their book, Myrtle the Loggerhead Turtle.
Review by Todd Ballantine: "Myrtle the Loggerhead Turtle is an archetypal story of the lifecycle of a loggerhead sea turtle and her epic plight to survive and thrive. The melodic refrain on each page is a lyrical reminder that nature is rooting for Myrtle's return home. This engaging story draws the reader deeper into the drama of one of the most miraculous migrations on earth. Mira Scott's art is brilliant and expressive. In the tradition of award-winning children's books, her paintings will keep readers coming back over and over to visit with all of the characters."
Based on the story of a real-life super turtle, Myrtle the Loggerhead Turtle reimagines the beginning, the magic of a protecting mermaid, the danger of a shark and barracuda, and the yearning to return to Hilton Head Island for a very special job.
A percentage of every book sale goes to Sea Turtle Patrol, Hilton Head Island.
Free Author Monthly Event Series
Free Author Monthly Events sponsored by Libraries for Kids, International
ARTHUR V. MARTIN, PH.D. will discuss From Jellybeansto a Nobel Prize Nomination
To view information about the author or about the book, click the “View Event” button below.
Location: The Roasting Room, 1297 May River Rd, Bluffton, SC (2nd floor above Corner Perk)
Time: 10:30-11:30 AM, followed by an optional Dutch Treat lunch with the author.
The talks are sponsored by Libraries for Kids, International, and are free, but there is a suggested donation of $5 to the sponsor. Books will be available for sale and signing.
Reservations are required because seating is limited. Call or text Tamela Maxim at 843-683-4100, or email at tamela.maxim@libraries4kids.org to reserve a spot or with any questions.
Free Author Monthly Event Series
Free Author Monthly Events sponsored by Libraries for Kids, Int’l
Location: The Roasting Room, 1297 May River Rd, Bluffton, SC (2nd floor above Corner Perk)
Time: 10:30-11:30 AM, followed by an optional Dutch Treat lunch with the author.
Libraries for Kids Int’l sponsors the free talks, but there is a suggested donation of $5 to the sponsor. Books will be available for sale and signing.
Reservations are required because seating is limited. Call or text Tamela Maxim at 843-683-4100 or email at tamela.maxim@libraries4kids.org to reserve a spot or with any questions.
December 2, 2024, Author Annelore Harrell, discussed her book Et Cetera Y'all, Volume 1.
Et Cetera Y’all, Volume 1, is a collection of Annelore Harrell’s newspaper columns.
NYT bestselling author Patti Callahan Henry describes Annelore’s writing:
“Step into the enchanting world of Annelore Harrell and the coastal Lowcountry I love so dearly. With twenty-four years of remarkable newspaper columns, this collection is a treasure chest of insight, immersive experiences, and wisdom. From past to present, Annelore Harrell brings us on a journey to meet the forgotten heroes, see the locales of her experience, and encounter the allure of southern hospitality. A captivating storyteller with a keen and wise eye, Annelore Harrell’s prose transports us to the soul of the south.” www.anneloreharrell.com
Grill & Chill: Ignite Literacy in a Raffle for Rural Schools
Get ready to fire up your holiday season with our exclusive Grill & Chill Raffle! This holiday season, we invite you to join our Grill & Chill Raffle, where you have the chance to win a stunning grill worth $1,200. $15 for one entry or TRIPLE your chances for just $45. You could bring home this centerpiece for your holiday gatherings, all while supporting a meaningful cause. Each ticket purchased helps us move our mission forward to establish libraries in rural primary schools, ensuring that every child has the opportunity to discover the magic of reading. We are approaching 10,000 libraries created of our short term of 20,000 libraries. We have many books still to fund, ship, and deliver! With only 500 total entries available and delivery within 1-2 hours from Bluffton, SC, this is a wonderful chance to make a difference and possibly surprise a loved one with a gift that keeps on giving. (Contact books@libraries4kids.org for delivery options if you live outside this range and would like to participate in the raffle.) Let’s come together to celebrate community, connection, and literacy this holiday season! Imagine the laughter of friends and family gathered around a sizzling grill, the aroma of delicious food filling the air as you create unforgettable memories, all while knowing your contributions are changing our world one book at a time.
✨ A Night Under the African Stars ✨
In September 2018, I, Roy Austin embarked on a transformative five-week safari across several captivating countries in East Africa, driven by a deep yearning to witness the majestic wildlife in their natural habitat before it was too late. Initially, the itinerary's emphasis on cultural experiences left me feeling uneasy. Truthfully, I was skeptical about visiting homes, schools, villages, and the communities of bushmen. My heart was set on the animals, and if enduring these cultural encounters was the price to pay, so be it.
The animals, indeed, were nothing short of magnificent. We were graced by the presence of over 100 lions, vast herds of elephants, and the powerful cape buffalo. We marveled at the beauty of zebras, wildebeests, warthogs, rhinos, hippos, giraffes, baboons, an array of antelopes, and a dazzling variety of birds that danced through the sky. The true highlights of my journey were the elusive leopard and the swift cheetah, each encounter leaving an indelible mark on my heart.
Yet, in a twist I never anticipated, my encounters with the resilient and vibrant people of Africa became some of the most cherished moments of my trip. Visiting their homes, bustling markets, sacred churches, and spirited schools revealed a warmth, intelligence, creativity, and resourcefulness that truly inspired me. Their happiness was infectious, and I found myself captivated by their stories and spirit.
One particularly poignant visit was to the Amboseli Primary and Secondary School nestled in Amboseli National Park, Kenya. In this rural landscape, the government does not construct school buildings; instead, the duty falls on communities to either build them or raise the necessary funds. This school stands adjacent to a Maasai tribe that has courageously transformed their way of life to prioritize education for their children. Traditionally nomadic herders, the Maasai now establish semi-permanent settlements near the school, a testament to their unwavering commitment to education.
This shift, however, comes with challenges. The warriors now take their herds further afield in search of grazing land, sometimes for weeks at a time, exposing them to greater risks from predators. Yet, the importance of education reigns supreme in their hearts, compelling them to adapt.
When we inquired about a library at the school, the teacher’s response was filled with a mixture of hope and longing. With a gleam in her eye and a radiant smile, she simply replied, “No, but we’d LOVE ONE!” It was in that moment that I realized the power of dreams and the relentless pursuit of knowledge, even in the face of adversity.
As we launch our campaign, we can proudly say we have established 8,576 libraries in rural primary schools, a container is due to arrive early September in Kenya, and the container is soon to be on the water with over 50,000 books inside! Without your support, this impact would not be so big!! We can’t wait to update you as these containers get delivered and see you at our 4th annual charity fundraiser!
Our promise to our donors, that 100% of your donation fund our program (unless you state otherwise) is alive and well AND….. Libraries for Kids, Int’l is working hard to make an even bigger impact in 2025!
Please join us at our fundraiser as we take you to Africa to show you a book through the eye’s of a child.
Free Author Monthly Event Series
Free Author Monthly Events sponsored by Libraries for Kids, Int’l
Location: The Roasting Room, 1297 May River Rd, Bluffton, SC (2nd floor above Corner Perk)
Time: 10:30-11:30 AM, followed by an optional Dutch Treat lunch with the author.
Libraries for Kids Int’l sponsors the free talks, but there is a suggested donation of $5 to the sponsor. Books will be available for sale and signing.
Reservations are required because seating is limited. Call or text Tamela Maxim at 843-683-4100 or email at tamela.maxim@libraries4kids.org to reserve a spot or with any questions.
October 21, 2024, Author Martha B. Boone, MD discussed her book Mother Charity.
Dr. Martha Boone is one of the first one hundred women board-certified in urology. After 23 years of education, she practiced academic urology for five years and private practice for twenty-four. She was named TOP DOC in urology in Atlanta for over a decade. Her first novel The Big Free fictionalizes her first six months at Charity Hospital in New Orleans. Her current book, The Unfettered Urologist, is nonfiction and explains the pearls of wisdom she never had time to include in a short office visit. Her third book, Mother Charity, is the sequel to The Big Free. Dr. Boone retired to write full-time and travel with her husband. www.marthaboone.com
Free Author Monthly Event Series
Free Author Monthly Events sponsored by Libraries for Kids, Int’l
Location: The Roasting Room, 1297 May River Rd, Bluffton, SC (2nd floor above Corner Perk)
Time: 10:30-11:30 AM, followed by an optional Dutch Treat lunch with the author.
Libraries for Kids Int’l sponsors the free talks, but there is a suggested donation of $5 to the sponsor. Books will be available for sale and signing.
Reservations are required because seating is limited. Call or text Tamela Maxim at 843-683-4100 or email at tamela.maxim@libraries4kids.org to reserve a spot or with any questions.
September 16, 2024, Author Mike Raymond discussed his book The Bluffton Christmas Shoppe.
Mike has been writing in one capacity or another for over thirty years. As a business operations consultant to Fortune 1000 companies, his work product was technical reports delivered to the executive level. Mike also designed, authored, and taught courses on proprietary products and programs at the corporate level. After moving to Bluffton in 2002, he began a new national home builder development manager career. Mike was hired by Morris Communications to write a weekly opinion column - commentary on national politics - which was published over seven years in multiple Lowcountry newspapers. The Bluffton Christmas Shoppe is his second book. www.blufftonchristmasshoppe.com
Free Author Monthly Event Series
Free Author Monthly Events sponsored by Libraries for Kids, Int’l
Location: The Roasting Room, 1297 May River Rd, Bluffton, SC (2nd floor above Corner Perk)
Time: 10:30-11:30 AM, followed by an optional Dutch Treat lunch with the author.
Libraries for Kids Int’l sponsors the free talks, but there is a suggested donation of $5 to the sponsor. Books will be available for sale and signing.
Reservations are required because seating is limited. Call or text Tamela Maxim at 843-683-4100 or email at tamela.maxim@libraries4kids.org to reserve a spot or with any questions.
August 19, 2024, Author Millie West discussed her book The Sun Seeker.
Author, aviatrix, adventurer—Millie is a licensed pilot and one of the FIRST female pilots hired with UPS. Her love for adventure has taken her between the clouds and into the woods. She and her husband are avid hunters and hikers and live near Columbia, SC.
A South Carolina history buff, Millie has spent countless hours exploring the rich historical vestiges of her home state. Her love of the South's fascinating, complex, and compelling history is expressed in her writing.
The Sun Seeker is the third novel in the Southern Redemption Series. Reconnecting with Marcel Renaud in Europe, Jeff joins a secretive team of military contractors who protect and save innocent people from terrorists and kidnappers. Assigned to North Africa and the Middle East, Jeff begins to pay back old debts. While Jeff attempts to put down roots in Southern France, his first cousin, Cooper, has not given up his relentless search for Jeff’s whereabouts. Cooper has made a vow to return Jeff to the United States to stand trial for the murder of his wife, Elise Heath. www.milliewestauthor.com
Free Author Monthly Event Series
Free Author Monthly Events sponsored by Libraries for Kids, Int’l
Location: The Roasting Room, 1297 May River Rd, Bluffton, SC (2nd floor above Corner Perk)
Time: 10:30-11:30 AM, followed by an optional Dutch Treat lunch with the author.
Libraries for Kids Int’l sponsors the free talks, but there is a suggested donation of $5 to the sponsor. Books will be available for sale and signing.
Reservations are required because seating is limited. Call or text Tamela Maxim at 843-683-4100 or email at tamela.maxim@libraries4kids.org to reserve a spot or with any questions.
July 22, 2024, Author Capt. Woody Collins discussed his book Where Have all the Shrimp Boats Gone: A Hundred-Year History of the Shrimping Industry in the South Carolina Lowcountry.
Capt. Woody Collins is one of the hundreds of watermen who plied our waters to make a living. No one can tell the story of this work like the men who lived it, and with input from many of his fishing cohorts, Capt. Woody gives us an authentic and readable book.
Capt. Woody’s description of his book:
“My book tells the story of how the shrimping industry started and offers my conclusions about how we got to the present day. The book was published in 2020 and offers 300 photos over 300 pages as a visual reference to the past. In 1980, the shrimping industry peaked in the Lowcountry, and we had 1500 boats licensed to shrimp. The decline in boats after that was drastic, with 750 boats in 1985, 350 boats in 1990, and then down to 150 boats by 1995.” www.shrimpboatsgone.com
Free Author Monthly Event Series
Free Author Monthly Events sponsored by Libraries for Kids, Int’l
Location: The Roasting Room, 1297 May River Rd, Bluffton, SC (2nd floor above Corner Perk)
Time: 10:30-11:30 AM, followed by an optional Dutch Treat lunch with the author.
Libraries for Kids Int’l sponsors the free talks, but there is a suggested donation of $5 to the sponsor. Books will be available for sale and signing.
Reservations are required because seating is limited. Call or text Tamela Maxim at 843-683-4100 or email at tamela.maxim@libraries4kids.org to reserve a spot or with any questions.
June 17, 2024, Author Robert Perrault discussed his book The Disney Riddles.
Robert was born and raised in New Hampshire. After graduating from Boston College, he went to law school and has been a practicing attorney for over twenty years.
He is an avid golfer and enjoys playing guitar. He has written and recorded hundreds of songs and, most recently, was the frontman for his band, Rob & The Bank. You can find his music on any streaming platform. He is an avid reader of mysteries and thrillers.
He has lived in Hilton Head with his wife, Claudine, for over 21 years.
About Disney Riddles: FBI Special Agent Lacie Webb steps onto Main Street with a mission beyond the ordinary: to solve a series of cryptic puzzles that lead to Walt Disney's disappearance. www.robthenovel.com
Free Author Monthly Event Series
Free Author Monthly Events sponsored by Libraries for Kids, Int’l
Location: The Roasting Room, 1297 May River Rd, Bluffton, SC (2nd floor above Corner Perk)
Time: 10:30-11:30 AM, followed by an optional Dutch Treat lunch with the author.
Libraries for Kids Int’l sponsors the free talks, but there is a suggested donation of $5 to the sponsor. Books will be available for sale and signing.
Reservations are required because seating is limited. Call or text Tamela Maxim at 843-683-4100 or email at tamela.maxim@libraries4kids.org to reserve a spot or with any questions.
May 17, 2024, Author Robert Gwaltney discussed his book The Cicada Tree.
Winner of the 2023 Georgia Author of the Year for first novel, Robert Gwaltney, a graduate of Florida State University, lives and works in Atlanta. He is the Vice President of East Seals, North Georgia, Inc. Gwaltney was first inspired to be an author in the third grade. Upon meeting an author who visited his school, he describes that encounter as life-changing. He decided that if his classmate’s mother, Brenda Graham of Cairo, Georgia, could write a novel, a boy like him could do it too.
The Cicada Tree is a Southern Gothic novel set in the summer of 1956. A brood of cicadas descends upon Providence, Georgia, a natural event with supernatural repercussions, unhinging the life of Analeise Newell, an eleven-year-old piano prodigy. Amidst this emergence, dark obsessions are stirred, uncanny gifts provoked, and secrets unearthed.
Free Author Monthly Event Series
Free Author Monthly Events sponsored by Libraries for Kids, Int’l
Location: The Roasting Room, 1297 May River Rd, Bluffton, SC (2nd floor above Corner Perk)
Time: 10:30-11:30 AM, followed by an optional Dutch Treat lunch with the author.
Libraries for Kids Int’l sponsors the free talks, but there is a suggested donation of $5 to the sponsor. Books will be available for sale and signing.
Reservations are required because seating is limited. Call or text Tamela Maxim at 843-683-4100 or email at tamela.maxim@libraries4kids.org to reserve a spot or with any questions.
April 1, 2024, Author Bren McClain discussed her book One Good Mama Bone.
Bren McClain has won a long list of writing awards, including the SC Fiction Project award, which she won twice, and the Gold Medal for Best Novel-in-Progress in the William Faulkner Creative Writing Competition for One Good Mama Bone, which was published on Valentine’s Day in 2017 by the late Pat Conroy’s Story Book Press. She was born and raised in Anderson, SC, on a 72-acre beef cattle and grain farm.
Set in early 1950s rural South Carolina, One Good Mama Bone chronicles Sarah Creamer’s quest to find her “mama bone,” after she is left to care for a boy who is not her own but is from an affair between her husband and her best friend. When her husband drinks himself to death, Sarah must find a way for her and her son to survive. Sarah’s biggest fear is that her mother’s words were a prophesy, “You ain’t got you one good mama bone in you, girl.” www.brenmcclain.com
Free Author Monthly Event Series
Free Author Monthly Events sponsored by Libraries for Kids, Int’l
Location: The Roasting Room, 1297 May River Rd, Bluffton, SC (2nd floor above Corner Perk)
Time: 10:30-11:30 AM, followed by an optional Dutch Treat lunch with the author.
Libraries for Kids Int’l sponsors the free talks, but there is a suggested donation of $5 to the sponsor. Books will be available for sale and signing.
Reservations are required because seating is limited. Call or text Tamela Maxim at 843-683-4100 or email at tamela.maxim@libraries4kids.org to reserve a spot or with any questions.
March 4, 2024, Author Melanie Sue Bowles discussed her book Liberty Biscuit.
Her first foray into fiction, Liberty Biscuit, earned the Feathered Quill Book Award 2023 for Animal/ Children’s Young Adult. Melanie’s other three titles are non-fiction stories inspired by the rescue horses and other animals living at the sanctuary she operates: The Horses of Proud Spirit, Hoof Prints: More Stories from Proud Spirit, and The Dogs of Proud Spirit.
Liberty Biscuit was written for middle grade, but it also earned praise from adults. This book is set on a rural peach farm near Savannah, Georgia. There we meet quirky young Kip who desperately wants a horse to ease her loneliness, but her father rejects the idea. Like any strong-willed, open-hearted young girl, Kip doesn’t let that stop her. She finds a pitiful donkey and the two launch into a journey of personal healing and growth. www.horsesofproudspirit.org
Free Author Monthly Event Series
Free Author Monthly Events sponsored by Libraries for Kids, Int’l
Location: The Roasting Room, 1297 May River Rd, Bluffton, SC (2nd floor above Corner Perk)
Time: 10:30-11:30 AM, followed by an optional Dutch Treat lunch with the author.
Libraries for Kids Int’l sponsors the free talks, but there is a suggested donation of $5 to the sponsor. Books will be available for sale and signing.
Reservations are required because seating is limited. Call or text Tamela Maxim at 843-683-4100 or email at tamela.maxim@libraries4kids.org to reserve a spot or with any questions.
February 26, 2024, Author Coach Roy Austin discussed his book The Alligator Business Solution – Small Business Competitive Advantage.
In 2007, Roy Austin founded Rockwell Business Solutions, LLC (RBS), to provide coaching, mentoring, and seminars for small businesses. Roy is a coach, not a consultant. Consultants tell you what to do; coaches teach you how to do it! The Alligator Business Solution – Small Business Competitive Advantage is a small business user manual that covers all primary business functions an owner must manage.
Roy is also the founder and president of Libraries for Kids, International, a nonprofit that has sent over 1 million books to children in rural East Africa in less than 6 years. www.libraries4kids.org
Free Author Monthly Event Series
Free Author Monthly Events sponsored by Libraries for Kids, Int’l
Location: The Roasting Room, 1297 May River Rd, Bluffton, SC (2nd floor above Corner Perk)
Time: 10:30-11:30 AM, followed by an optional Dutch Treat lunch with the author.
Libraries for Kids Int’l sponsors the free talks, but there is a suggested donation of $5 to the sponsor. Books will be available for sale and signing.
Reservations are required because seating is limited. Call or text Tamela Maxim at 843-683-4100 or email at tamela.maxim@libraries4kids.org to reserve a spot or with any questions.
January 15, 2024, Author Cassandra King Conroy discussed her book Tell Me a Story: My Life with Pat Conroy.
Cassandra King Conroy is the award-winning author of five novels, a book of nonfiction, numerous short stories, magazine articles, and essays. Her fiction has won readers' hearts everywhere, especially in the American South. Often told in first person, her novels portray strong and memorable characters who struggle with the same timely issues and dilemmas that readers face in their own lives.
Tell Me a Story: My Life with Pat Conroy is a memoir published by William Morrow on October 29, 2019. Cassandra Conroy, the widow of acclaimed author Pat Conroy, resides in Beaufort, South Carolina, where she is the honorary chair of the Pat Conroy Literary Center. www.patconroyliterarycenter.org www.cassandrakingconroy.com
Free Author Monthly Event Series
Free Author Monthly Events sponsored by Libraries for Kids, Int’l
Location: The Roasting Room, 1297 May River Rd, Bluffton, SC (2nd floor above Corner Perk)
Time: 10:30-11:30 AM, followed by an optional Dutch Treat lunch with the author.
Libraries for Kids Int’l sponsors the free talks, but there is a suggested donation of $5 to the sponsor. Books will be available for sale and signing.
Reservations are required because seating is limited. Call or text Tamela Maxim at 843-683-4100 or email at tamela.maxim@libraries4kids.org to reserve a spot or with any questions.
December 4, 2023, Author John Warley discussed his book Jury of One.
John Warley is an award-winning author, a dedicated dad, and a retired lawyer. He has practiced criminal law as a prosecutor and civil law as a litigator for over forty years. A South Carolinian by birth, he grew up largely in Yorktown, Virginia. After accepting a football scholarship to The Citadel, from which he graduated in 1967, he took his law degree from the University of Virginia School of Law in 1970.
He is the award-winning author of five published novels and one non-fiction history of his undergraduate alma mater. Jury of One is his sixth novel. www.johnwarley.com
Free Author Monthly Event Series
Free Author Monthly Events sponsored by Libraries for Kids, Int’l
Location: The Roasting Room, 1297 May River Rd, Bluffton, SC (2nd floor above Corner Perk)
Time: 10:30-11:30 AM, followed by an optional Dutch Treat lunch with the author.
Libraries for Kids Int’l sponsors the free talks, but there is a suggested donation of $5 to the sponsor. Books will be available for sale and signing.
Reservations are required because seating is limited. Call or text Tamela Maxim at 843-683-4100 or email at tamela.maxim@libraries4kids.org to reserve a spot or with any questions.
October 2, 2023, Author Dana Ridenour discussed her Lexie Montgomery FBI Series.
Dana Ridenour is a retired FBI agent and the author of three FBI undercover novels: Behind the Mask, Beyond the Cabin, and Below the Radar. The highlight of her career came in 2003 when she attended and passed the FBI's prestigious undercover school, thus allowing her to work as an undercover FBI agent. Dana had the rare experience of working a long-term undercover investigation with her husband, who was also an FBI agent. An award-winning author, Dana lives in Beaufort, South Carolina, and is currently writing her fourth novel. www.danaridenour.net
Free Author Monthly Event Series
Free Author Monthly Events sponsored by Libraries for Kids, Int’l
Location: The Roasting Room, 1297 May River Rd, Bluffton, SC (2nd floor above Corner Perk)
Time: 10:30-11:30 AM, followed by an optional Dutch Treat lunch with the author.
Libraries for Kids Int’l sponsors the free talks, but there is a suggested donation of $5 to the sponsor. Books will be available for sale and signing.
Reservations are required because seating is limited. Call or text Tamela Maxim at 843-683-4100 or email at tamela.maxim@libraries4kids.org to reserve a spot or with any questions.
September 18, 2023, Author Susan Beckham Zurenda discussed her book The Girl from the Red Rose Motel.
After teaching literature, composition, and creative writing to thousands of high school and college students for 33 years, Susan Beckham Zurenda turned her attention to putting a novel in her heart on paper. Her award-winning debut novel, Bells for Eli, launched her career as an author. Zurenda dedicated The Girl from the Red Rose Motel to her students, whose lives likely included some of the issues showcased in the novel: homelessness, hunger, abuse, addiction, and unplanned pregnancy. She lives in South Carolina with her two Boston Terriers. www.susanzurenda.com
Free Author Monthly Event Series
Free Author Monthly Events sponsored by Libraries for Kids, Int’l
Location: The Roasting Room, 1297 May River Rd, Bluffton, SC (2nd floor above Corner Perk)
Time: 10:30-11:30 AM, followed by an optional Dutch Treat lunch with the author.
Libraries for Kids Int’l sponsors the free talks, but there is a suggested donation of $5 to the sponsor. Books will be available for sale and signing.
Reservations are required because seating is limited. Call or text Tamela Maxim at 843-683-4100 or email at tamela.maxim@libraries4kids.org to reserve a spot or with any questions.
August 7, 2023, Author Joe Palmer discussed his book A Mariner's Tale.
A native of Waycross, Georgia, Joe Palmer is an award-winning former newspaper reporter and longtime columnist, whose folksy newspaper column, Cup of Joe, ran for ten years in the Fernandina Beach News-Leader with a large and enthusiastic following.
A sailor, he got the inspiration for his debut novel, A Mariner’s Tale, while doing sweat labor one scorching August afternoon on an antique sailboat he and his wife painstakingly restored.
He lives in Fernandina Beach, Florida, with his wife, Pam, and a room-sized Great Dane named Harley. www.joepalmerauthor.com