BBB Author Series

Charleston's Own Mary Alice Monroe Joins Fans for Lunch and Discussion of her Newest Novel "Beach House Reunion" June 15

Join us Friday, June 15 at noon for Blue Bicycle Books Author Series luncheon at Halls Signature Events as perennial favorite and NY Times Bestseller Mary Alice Monroe Introduces "Beach House Reunion"   Enjoy a lovely three-course luncheon at Halls Signature Events and meet the bestselling author. Tickets are only $32 for the author luncheon, or $60 for a signed, hardcover, first edition book and delicious luncheon with Mary Alice at Halls Signature Events. Of course, there is a full-service cash bar for your enjoyment. Click here for tickets.

Click here for tickets

About The Book Whisking you back to the shores of her bestselling Beach House series, Mary Alice Monroe weaves together a tale of the struggles and triumphs of the historic Rutledge family of Charleston, South Carolina. Beautifully wrought and rich with keen insight, this is an illuminating tale of new beginnings, resilience, and one family's enduring love.   Cara Rutledge returns to her Southern home on the idyllic Isle of Palms. Everything is comfortingly the same, yet each detail is rife with painful memories. Only through reconnecting with family, friends, and the rhythms of the lowcountry can Cara release the hold of the past and open herself to the possibility of a new love, career, and hope for the future.   Meanwhile, her niece Linnea, a recent college graduate who doesnt know where her life will take her, leaves her historic home in Charleston, with all its entitlement and expectations, and heads to her aunts beach house. On the island, she is part of the freer, natural ocean lifestyle she loves, rejoining the turtle team, learning to surf, and falling in love. Remembering the lessons of her beloved grandmother, Lovie, the original turtle lady, Linnea rediscovers a meaningful purpose to her life and finds the courage she needs to break from tradition.   In this heartwarming novel, three generations of the Rutledge family gather together to find the strength, love, and commitment to break destructive family patterns and to forge new bonds that will endure long beyond one summer reunion.

About the Author New York Times bestselling author Mary Alice Monroe found her true calling in environmental fiction when she moved to coastal South Carolina. Already a successful author, she was captivated by the beauty and fragility of her new home. Her experiences living in the midst of a habitat that was quickly changing gave her a strong and important focus for her novels.   Mary Alice Monroe writes richly textured books that delve into the complexities of interpersonal relationships and the parallels between the land and life. Monroe's novels are published worldwide.   Books are provided by Blue Bicycle Books, an independent bookstore and staple in the downtown Charleston community selling new, used and rare books in the fashionable Upper King Street District. Support your local bookseller.

About the Venue Halls Signature Events is located at 5 Faber Street, just off East Bay Street directly behind S.N.O.B. There is a city-owned parking garage right next door, with an entrance on Cumberland Street for your convenience   In the heart of historic downtown Charleston on a cobblestone street, Halls Signature Events is a 6,900 square-foot space, perfect for corporate meetings, cocktail and dinner receptions, welcome parties, weddings, rehearsal dinners and holiday parties for up to 250 guests.

Charleston Favorite Karen White Releases Her Newest Novel "Dreams of Falling" Monday, June 11

Join us Monday, June 11 at noon for Blue Bicycle Books Author Series luncheon at Halls Signature Events with Karen White. Karen will talk, entertain and sign copies of her just-released novel, Dreams of Falling. Karen is always one of our liveliest and most fun authors. You don't want to miss it!   Tickets are only $32 for the author luncheon, or $60 for a signed, hardcover, first edition book and delicious luncheon with Karen at Halls Signature Events. Of course, there is a full-service cash bar for your enjoyment. Doors open at 11:30.   Click here for tickets. About Karen White Karen is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author and currently writes what she refers to as 'grit lit'--Southern women's fiction--and has also expanded her horizons into writing a mystery series set in Charleston, South Carolina, "The Tradd Street Mysteries."   Dreams of Falling is her 25th novel. Her last novel, The Night the Lights Went Out, debuted at #15 on the New York Times hardcover bestseller list.   Karen hails from a long line of Southerners but spent most of her growing up years in London, England and is a graduate of the American School in London. When not writing, she spends her time reading, scrapbooking, playing piano, and avoiding cooking. She currently lives near Atlanta, Georgia with her husband and two children, and two spoiled Havanese dogs. About the Book On the banks of the North Santee River stands a moss-draped oak that was once entrusted with the dreams of three young girls. Into the tree's trunk, they placed their greatest hopes, written on ribbons, for safekeeping--including the most important one: Friends forever, come what may.   But life can waylay the best of intentions....   Nine years ago, a humiliated Larkin Lanier fled Georgetown, South Carolina, knowing she could never go back. But when she finds out that her mother has disappeared, she realizes she has no choice but to return to the place she both loves and dreads--and to the family and friends who never stopped wishing for her to come home.   Ivy, Larkin's mother, is discovered badly injured and unconscious in the burned-out wreckage of her ancestral plantation home. No one knows why Ivy was there, but as Larkin digs for answers, she uncovers secrets kept for nearly fifty years--whispers of love, sacrifice, and betrayal--that lead back to three girls on the brink of womanhood who found their friendship tested in the most heartbreaking ways.   About the Venue Halls Signature Events is located at 5 Faber Street, just off East Bay Street directly behind S.N.O.B. There is a city-owned parking garage right next door, with an entrance on Cumberland Street for your convenience   In the heart of historic downtown Charleston on a cobblestone street, Halls Signature Events is a 6,900 square-foot space, perfect for corporate meetings, cocktail and dinner receptions, welcome parties, weddings, rehearsal dinners and holiday parties for up to 250 guests.

An Exceptional First Novel from Talented Cinelle Barnes, Monsoon Mansion

Join us Thursday, May 31 at noon for Charleston Author Series lunch at Halls Signature Events with Cinelle Barnes. Barnes will present her just-released memoir Monsoon Mansion at this Blue Bicycle Books and Piccolo Spoleto Event.   Doors open at 11:30 AM and lunch is served at noon. Limited seating provides an intimate experience with the author. In addition to three creative courses by the renowned Halls Chefs, the bar will feature specialty cocktails and wines.   Tickets are $31 for the luncheon and $56 for lunch + book.   Click here for tickets.   About the Author Cinelle Barnes is a creative non-fiction writer and educator from Manila, Philippines. She writes memoirs and personal essays on trauma, growing up in Southeast Asia, and on being a mother and immigrant in America.    In 2014, she was nominated for the AWP Journal Intro Award for Creative Non-Fiction, and in 2015 received an MFA from Converse College. She was part of the inaugural Kundiman Creative Non-Fiction Intensive in New York City and is an alum of the VONA/Voices workshop for political content writing at the University of Pennsylvania. Barnes was a presenter and panelist on Diversity in Literature at the Creative Writing Studies Organization Conference in 2016 (Warren Wilson College, Asheville, NC) and a founding member of the C.D. Wright Women Writers Conference.   Her writing has appeared or is forthcoming in Literary Hub, South85, Skirt!, West Of, Your Life Is A Trip, the Piccolo Spoleto Fiction Series, Itinerant Literate's StorySlam, and Hub City Press's online anthology, Multicultural Spartanburg.   About the Book Told with a lyrical, almost-dreamlike voice as intoxicating as the moonflowers and orchids that inhabit this world, "Monsoon Mansion" is a harrowing yet triumphant coming-of-age memoir exploring the dark, troubled waters of a family's rise and fall from grace in the Philippines. It would take a young warrior to survive it.   Cinelle Barnes was barely three years old when her family moved into Mansion Royale, a stately ten-bedroom home in the Philippines. Filled with her mother's opulent social aspirations and the gloriously excessive evidence of her father's self-made success, it was a girl's storybook playland.    But when a monsoon hits, her father leaves, and her mother's terrible lover takes the reins, Cinelle's fantastical childhood turns toward tyranny she could never have imagined. Formerly a home worthy of magazines and lavish parties, Mansion Royale becomes a dangerous shell of the splendid palace it had once been.   In this remarkable ode to survival, Barnes creates something magical out of her truth-underscored by her complicated relationship with her mother. Through a tangle of tragedy and betrayal emerges a revelatory journey of perseverance and strength, of grit and beauty, and of coming to terms with the price of family-and what it takes to grow up.   Books are provided by Blue Bicycle Books, an independent bookstore and staple in the downtown Charleston community selling new, used and rare books in the Upper King Street neighborhood of Charleston. Owner Jonathan Sanchez is Charleston's book muse and the originator of the Charleston Author Series.     About the Venue Halls Signature Events is located at 5 Faber Street, just off East Bay Street directly behind S.N.O.B. There is a city-owned parking garage right next door, with an entrance on Cumberland Street for your convenience   In the heart of historic downtown Charleston on a cobblestone street, Halls Signature Events is a 6,900 square-foot space, perfect for corporate meetings, cocktail and dinner receptions, welcome parties, weddings, rehearsal dinners and holiday parties for up to 250 guests.

Annual "Lunch With Dottie" Thursday May 15th. She's Launching Her Newest Novel "By Invitation Only"

Join us Tuesday, May 15 for lunch at Halls Signature Events as Dorothea Benton Frank launches her newest book By Invitation Only. Charleston's favorite author examines what happens when a young sophisticated Chicagoan falls for the owner of a farm on Johns Island, a lush Lowcountry paradise off the coast of South Carolina--trading the bustle of a city for a small Southern town.

Tickets to "Lunch With Dottie" are $62 which includes a signed, hardcover copy of By Invitation Only. Additional signed books will be available for purchase at the luncheon.

Click Here to Purchase Your Tickets

About Dottie Frank
We adore Dottie and she's one of the most cordial, entertaining authors around. It's an honor to help her launch her newest book.

"I am the author of 18 novels placed in and around the Lowcountry of South Carolina and thanking God for my chance to speak. When I'm not writing, I'm reading or gardening or cooking. Love to travel, shoot the breeze with people and most of all, be with my husband and children - not always necessarily in that order. And by the way, serious huge gushing thanks for everything - your kind words, posts and emails. Writing saves me, but without your support it wouldn't mean as much."

Dottie Frank was born and raised on Sullivans Island, attended Bishop England High School in Charleston and graduated from General William Moultrie High School in 1969. She is the recipient of an Honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters from The College of Charleston and a Doctorate of Fine Arts from Bloomfield College.

About the Book

By Invitation Only begins at a lowcountry barbecue party thrown by Diane English Stiftel, her brother Floyd, and her parents to celebrate her son's engagement. On this gorgeous, magical night, the bride's father, Alejandro Cambria, a wealthy power broker whose unbelievably successful career in private equity made him one of Chicago's celebrated elite, discovers the limits and possibilities of cell phone range.

 

While the mother of the bride, Susan Kennedy Cambria, who dabbles in the world of public relations and believes herself deserving of every square inch of her multimillion-dollar penthouse and imaginary Carrara marble pedestal, learns about moonshine and dangerous liaisons.

 

Soon By Invitation Only zooms to Chicago, where the unraveling accelerates. Nearly a thousand miles away from her comfortable, familiar world, Diane is the antithesis of the bright lights and super-sophisticated guests attending her son Fred's second engagement party. Why a second party? Maybe it had been assumed that the first one wouldn't be up to snuff? Fred is marrying Shelby Cambria, also an only child. The Cambrias' dearest wish is for their daughter to be happy. If Shelby wants to marry Frederick, aka Fred, they will not stand in her way although Susan does hope her friends won't think her daughter is marrying more than a few degrees beneath her socially. At the same time, Diane worries that her son will be lost to her forever.

 

By Invitation Only is a tale of two families, one struggling to do well, one well to do, and one young couple the privileged daughter of Chicago's crème de la crème and the son of hard -working Southern peach farmers.

Dorothea Benton Frank's first novel, SULLIVANS ISLAND, debuted on the NY Times list at number nine and went back to press over 25 times, has well over one million copies in print and can be found in ten foreign languages. Her subsequent novels PLANTATION, ISLE OF PALMS, SHEM CREEK, PAWLEY'S ISLAND, FULL OF GRACE, BULL'S ISLAND, THE CHRISTMAS PEARL and LAND OF MANGO SUNSETS, LOWCOUNTRY SUMMER, RETURN TO SULLIVANS ISLAND, FOLLY BEACH, PORCH LIGHTS, THE LAST ORIGINAL WIFE, and ALL SUMMER LONG were all NY Times bestsellers and may also be found in various foreign languages.

Dottie is an avid cook, enjoys fly-fishing, reading and travel and is a frequent speaker on the creative process for students of all ages. She divides her time between the Lowcountry of South Carolina and New Jersey.

Holly Herrick Has a New Book

Join us Friday, May 4, at noon for lunch at Halls Signature Events with local author and chef Holly Herrick. Holly is one of our most entertaining chef/author/food writers and it's certain to be a fun time for all at the big reveal of The New Charleston Chef's Table.   Click here for tickets.   About the Book  When the original Charleston Chef's Table was published in December, 2009, Charleston's food scene was hot. In the book, author Holly Herrick referred to the period as a second culinary renaissance.   Since that time, Charleston has become an even hotter food town, indeed, one of the hottest, ranked the #1 most popular tourist destination in The United States, according to Conde Nast Traveler Magazine. The primary reason people come here is for the food.   Charleston, which hosts more than 6 million visitors annually, has matured into a world-class culinary destination. Now, this book allows locals and visitors alike to take a bit of the city's incomparable flavor home, with profiles of the city's best restaurants and a signature recipe from each.    From roadside dives to upscale eateries, Southern to Chinese, Holly Herrick leaves no stone unturned as she winnows Charleston's 1,500 restaurants down to her top picks. From fried chicken to sautéed duck livers, The Charleston Chef's Table delivers all the goods that make Charleston such an exciting place to visit, live, and dine. Complementing the text are full-color photographs, as well as sidebars that highlight this Southern gem's 300-year history.   About the Author Holly Herrick is a Cordon Bleu-trained chef, national award-winning food writer and restaurant critic, and longtime Charleston resident and booster. After stints in Paris, Minneapolis, and Jackson Hole, Wyoming, Herrick landed in Charleston, where she worked for seven years at The Post and Courier, before leaving to focus on her freelance career in 2006.   That same year she received a First Best Place Award for Newspaper Series, Special Sections, and Special Projects from the American Association of Food Journalists. Her work has appeared in Bon Appetit, Gourmet, Southern Living, and her column, Delectable Delights, appears regularly in Lowcountry Living Magazine. Herrick is the author of more than eight cookbooks, most recently Mashed: Beyond the Potato.   About the Venue Our location for the luncheon is Halls Signature Events, located at No. 5 Faber Street just behind S.N.O.B. off of East Bay Street. Halls Signature Events is a private events facility located in the heart of the French Quarter in Downtown Charleston, SC. The renovated historic space is the perfect venue for all types of events, from business lunches to weddings. Parking is available in the garage at Cumberland and Concord Streets, or at meters on the street.

Caitlyn, America's Dog, has a new book! Come to lunch at High Cotton to hear about it.

Join us Friday, April 20 for lunch at High Cotton, as we discuss and support Charleston's own Caitlyn: America's Dog. It's a story about how a national community came together to recognize and correct an extreme case of animal cruelty.   You'll support Charleston Animal Society's Caitlyn Anti-Cruelty Fund with your purchase of her book, and your kindness will be rewarded with treats from our favorite Woof Gang Bakery. Sit. Stay. Eat. Drink. Read.   Click here for tickets.   About the Book  While Caitlyn's story is still being written, this book captures the most difficult part of her life, her journey from abuse to recovery. Found in North Charleston with her muzzle taped shut with electrical tape, Caitlyn nearly died. But thanks to a community who cared, Charleston Animal Society, local veterinarians, detectives and prosecutors Caitlyn's story became an inspiring tale of triumph over adversity. This beautiful animal put a face on animal cruelty and in the process, she inspired people around the world.   The book is dedicated to everyone connected to Caitlyn's discovery, treatment and recovery, as well as those who saw justice served, those who helped spread her story, and all those who helped by donating to Charleston Animal Society to fund her recovery and new life.   When you purchase this book, you are helping future Caitlyns get the help they need through the Caitlyn Anti-Cruelty fund at Charleston Animal Society. We know you'll enjoy this book and want to share it with your friends and family as a lesson to all of us about the power of good over evil.   Swag bags and raffle sponsored and supported by Woof Gang Bakery, 341 King Street.    About the Venue Our location for this luncheon is High Cotton 199 East Bay Street, Refined eatery with daily live music and Lowcountry fare cooked using ingredients from nearby farms. Owned and operated by Hall Management Group.   Parking is available in the garage at Cumberland and Concord Streets, or at meters on the street.

Coming Up: Food, Best Sellers and Fun, Join Us!   Friday, April 27 A special event featuring Assouline Books newest luxury publication Bulova: A History of Firsts edited by luxury historian Aaron Sigmund and held at the Restoration Hotel, home of Charleston's only Assouline Library. Luncheon in the beautiful Exchange Suite at the Restoration Hotel. Click here for tickets.     Tuesday, May 15 for lunch at Halls Signature Events as Dorothea Benton Frank launches her newest book By Invitation Only. Charleston's favorite author examines what happens when a young sophisticated Chicagoan falls for the owner of a farm on Johns Island, a lush Lowcountry paradise off the coast of South Carolina--trading the bustle of a city for a small Southern town. Click here for tickets.   Thursday, May 31 Cinelle Barnes releasesMonsoon Mansion at lunch at Halls Signature Events. Told with a lyrical, almost-dreamlike voice as intoxicating as the moonflowers and orchids that inhabit this world, Monsoon Mansion is a harrowing yet triumphant coming-of-age memoir exploring the dark, troubled waters of a family's rise and fall from grace in the Philippines. It would take a young warrior to survive it. Click here for tickets.   Monday, June 11 Karen White Dreams of Falling at lunch at Halls Signature Events. On the banks of the North Santee River stands a moss-draped oak that was once entrusted with the dreams of three young girls. Into the tree's trunk, they placed their greatest hopes, written on ribbons, for safekeeping--including the most important one: Friends forever, come what may. But life can waylay the best of intentions....Click here for tickets.   Friday, June 15 Mary Alice Monroe Beach House Reunion Whisking you back to the shores of her bestselling Beach House series, Mary Alice Monroe weaves together a tale of the struggles and triumphs of the historic Rutledge family of Charleston, South Carolina. Beautifully wrought and rich with keen insight, this is an illuminating tale of new beginnings, resilience, and one family's enduring love. Click here for tickets.   6/29 Susan Jane Rivers The Second Mrs. Hockaday 7/20 Andrew Lawler The Secret Token 8/9 Kristan Higgins Good Luck With That     Less screen time, more book time and more art timemakes us healthy, wealthy and wise. Join us at Blue Bicycle Books Charleston Author Series events this year for a perfect start, and watch how Charleston Library Society fills your cultural calendar with rich, rewarding events.

Don't Miss These Author Series Luncheons!

 

Upcoming Book Events for You     Food, Best Sellers and Fun, Join Us!   Friday, April 6 for lunch at Halls Signature Events as Charleston's own Holly Herrick presents The New Charleston Chefs Table Cookbook. Holly is an accomplished and endearing speaker, and if you attended her Mashed: Beyond the Potato luncheon last year, you can attest to the wonderful appeal of this event. Click here for tickets. Part of Blue Bicycle Books Charleston Author Series.   Friday, April 20 for lunch at High Cotton for Caitlyn, America's Dog, a book and event to benefit Caitlyn Anti-Cruelty Fund at Charleston Animal Society. Yes, Caitlyn has a book! Join us for a fun luncheon with CAS, Woof Gang Bakery Swag and more. Click here for tickets. Part of Blue Bicycle Books Charleston Author Series.   Wednesday May 2, for lunch at Halls Signature Events with Denise Kiernan The Last Castle:The Epic Story of Love, Loss, and American Royalty in the Nation’s Largest Home, A fascinating saga of unimaginable excess, devastating tragedy, inspiring generosity, and unlikely endurance at The Biltmore. Tickets on sale Friday. Presented by Blue Bicycle Books.   Tuesday, May 15 for lunch at Halls Signature Events as Dorothea Benton Frank launches her newest book By Invitation Only. Charleston's most beloved author examines what happens when a young sophisticated Chicagoan falls for the owner of a farm on Johns Island, a lush Lowcountry paradise off the coast of South Carolina--trading the bustle of a city for a small Southern town. Click here for tickets.   Thursday, May 31 Cinelle Barnes Monsoon Mansion. Told with a lyrical, almost-dreamlike voice as intoxicating as the moonflowers and orchids that inhabit this world, Monsoon Mansion is a harrowing yet triumphant coming-of-age memoir exploring the dark, troubled waters of a family's rise and fall from grace in the Philippines. It would take a young warrior to survive it. Click here for tickets.   Monday, June 11 Karen White Dreams of Falling. On the banks of the North Santee River stands a moss-draped oak that was once entrusted with the dreams of three young girls. Into the tree's trunk, they placed their greatest hopes, written on ribbons, for safekeeping--including the most important one: Friends forever, come what may. But life can waylay the best of intentions.... Click here for tickets.   6/15 Mary Alice Monroe Beach House Reunion 6/29 Susan Jane Rivers The Second Mrs. Hockaday 7/20 Andrew Lawler The Secret Token 8/9 Kristan Higgins Good Luck With That     Less screen time, more book time and more art time makes us healthy, wealthy and wise. Join us at Blue Bicycle Books Charleston Author Series events this year for a perfect start, and watch how Charleston Library Society fills your cultural calendar with rich, rewarding events. ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌

 

Meet Bestselling Author Caitlin Macy Discussing Her Just-Released Novel "Mrs." March 12

--- Named one of the "Most Anticipated Books of 2018" by Entertainment Weekly. "Mrs. could be the next Big Little Lies." ---EW

Join us at noon Monday, March 12, at Halls Signature Events for Blue Bicycle Books Charleston Author Series luncheon with bestselling author Caitlin Macy who will discuss her newest novel Mrs.   Tickets for this fun event are $31 for the luncheon with Caitlin Macy or $58 for lunch and a signed, hardcover copy of Mrs.   In addition to three creative courses by Halls executive chefs, the bar will feature specialty cocktails and wines.  Click here to purchase tickets.   About the Book: In the well-heeled milieu of New York's Upper East Side, coolly elegant Philippa Lye is the woman no one can stop talking about. Despite a shadowy past, Philippa has somehow married the scion of the last family-held investment bank in the city. And although her wealth and connections put her in the center of this world, she refuses to conform to its gossip-fueled culture.   Then, into her precariously balanced life, come two women: Gwen Hogan, a childhood acquaintance who uncovers an explosive secret about Philippa's single days, and Minnie Curtis, a newcomer whose vast fortune and frank revelations about a penurious upbringing in Spanish Harlem put everyone on alert.   When Gwen's husband, a heavy-drinking, obsessive prosecutor in the US Attorney's Office, stumbles over the connection between Philippa's past and the criminal investigation he is pursuing at all costs, this insulated society is forced to confront the rot at its core and the price it has paid to survive into the new millennium.    Macy has written a modern-day House of Mirth, not for the age of railroads and steel but of hedge funds and overnight fortunes, of scorched-earth successes and abiding moral failures. A brilliant portrait of love, betrayal, fate and chance, Mrs. marries razor-sharp social critique and page-turning propulsion into an unforgettable tapestry of the way we live in the 21st Century. About the Author: Caitlin Macy is the author of The Fundamentals of Play and Spoiled. A graduate of Yale, she received her MFA from Columbia. Her work has been published in The New Yorker, The New York Times Magazine, O, The Oprah Magazine and Slate, among other publications. She lives in New York City with her husband and two children.

Located in the heart of historic downtown Charleston on a cobblestone street, Halls Signature Events is a 6,900 square-foot space, perfect for corporate meetings, cocktail and dinner receptions, welcome parties, weddings, rehearsal dinners and holiday parties for up to 250 guests. There is a city-owned parking garage located right next door for your convenience.

Peter Zheutlin "Rescued" Friday, February 23

What Second-Chance Dogs Teach Us About Living with Purpose, Loving with Abandon, and Finding Joy in the Little Things

‌ Join us Friday, February 23 at noon for Blue Bicycle Books Charleston Author Series at Halls Signature Events as acclaimed author Peter Zheutlin discusses his new book, Rescued. In the follow-up to his New York Times bestseller Rescue Road, Zheutlin offers a heartwarming and often humorous new look into the world of rescue dogs.    Click Here for Tickets   Tickets for this fun event are $31 for the luncheon or $48 for lunch with Peter Zheutlin and a signed, softcover copy of Rescued. In addition to three creative courses by Halls Executive Chefs, the bar will feature specialty cocktails and wines.    This event is sponsored in part by Woof Gang Bakery, 341 King Street, who will provide swag bags for each attendee.   About the Book In the follow-up to his New York Times bestseller Rescue Road, acclaimed journalist Peter Zheutlin offers a heartwarming and often humorous new look into the world of rescue dogs. Sharing lessons from his own experiences adopting Labs with large personalities as well as stories and advice from dozens of families and rescue advocates, Zheutlin reveals the surprising and inspiring life lessons rescue dogs can teach us, such as:   - How to “walk a mile in a dog’s paws” to get a brand-new perspective - Living with a dog is not one continuous Hallmark moment—but it’s never dull! - Why having a dog helps you see your faults and quirks in a new light,  - How to set the world right, one dog at a time   For anyone who loves, lives with, or has ever wanted a dog, this charming book shows how the dogs whose lives we save can change ours for the better too.

About the Author: Peter Zheutlin is a freelance journalist and author whose work has appeared regularly in The Boston Globe and The Christian Science Monitor. He has contributed to The New York Times, The Los Angeles Times, AARP Magazine, Parade and many more.  With his wife, author Judith Gelman, they wrote The Unofficial Mad Men Cookbook: Inside the Kitchens, Bars and Restaurants of Mad Men in 2011 and The Unofficial Girls Guide to New York: Inside the Cafes, Clubs, and Neighborhoods of HBO’s Girls in 2013. He is a graduate of Amherst College and Boston College Law School and lives in Needham, Mass. with his wife and their two rescue dogs, Albie and Salina. They also have two grown sons.

About the Venue Halls Signature Events is a 6900 square-foot renovated historic building at No. 5 Faber Street in Charleston's City Market area. It's just behind S.N.O.B. off East Bay Street.   Parking is available on the street or in the garage at Cumberland and Concord Streets, which adjoins Halls Signature Events.   It's the perfect venue for all types of events, receptions, luncheons and dinners for up to 250 guests. The Hall Family appreciates the importance of true hospitality, unexcelled service and great food.

Feb. 2 Meet Christina Baker Kline, Author of the Instant NY Times bestseller "A Piece of the World"

--- a stunning, atmospheric novel of friendship, passion, and art, inspired by Andrew Wyeth's mysterious and iconic painting Christina's World. Join us Friday, February 2 at noon for Blue Bicycle Books Charleston Author Series Luncheon at High Cotton. You'll meet Christina Baker Kline author of the instant New York Times bestseller A Piece of the World. Tickets for this fun event are $31 for the luncheon or $48 for lunch with Christina Baker Kline and a signed, softcover copy of A Piece of the World. In addition to three creative courses by High Cotton, the bar will feature specialty cocktails and wines.  Click Here to Order Your Tickets   About the Book To Christina Olson, the entire world was her family's remote farm in the small coastal town of Cushing, Maine. Born in the home her family had lived in for generations, and increasingly incapacitated by illness, Christina seemed destined for a small life. Instead, for more than twenty years, she was host and inspiration for the artist Andrew Wyeth, and became the subject of one of the best known American paintings of the twentieth century.    "Later he told me that he'd been afraid to show me the painting. He thought I wouldn't like the way he portrayed me: dragging myself across the field, fingers clutching dirt, my legs twisted behind. The arid moonscape of wheatgrass and timothy. That dilapidated house in the distance, looming up like a secret that won't stay hidden."    As she did in her beloved smash bestseller Orphan Train, Christina Baker Kline interweaves fact and fiction in a powerful novel that illuminates a little-known part of America's history. Bringing into focus the flesh-and-blood woman behind the portrait, she vividly imagines the life of a woman with a complicated relationship to her family and her past, and a special bond with one of our greatest modern artists.    Told in evocative and lucid prose, A Piece of the World is a story about the burdens and blessings of family history, and how artist and muse can come together to forge a new and timeless legacy.    About the Author:  Christina Baker Kline has written six other novels - Orphan Train, Orphan Train Girl, The Way Life Should Be, Sweet Water, Bird in Hand, and Desire Lines - and written or edited five works of nonfiction. Her 2013 novel Orphan Train spent more than two years on the New York Times bestseller list, including five weeks at # 1, and was published in 40 countries. More than 100 communities and colleges have chosen it as a "One Book, One Read" selection.    Kline was born in Cambridge, England, and raised there as well as in the American South and Maine. She is a graduate of Yale, Cambridge, and the University of Virginia, where she was a Henry Hoyns Fellow in Fiction Writing.    She has taught fiction and nonfiction writing, poetry, English literature, literary theory, and women's studies at Yale, NYU, and the University of Virginia, and served as Writer-in-Residence at Fordham University for four years. She is a recipient of several Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation Fellowships and Writer-in-Residence Fellowships at the Virginia Center for the Creative Arts.     Kline lives in an old house in Montclair, New Jersey, with her husband, and three sons, and spends as much time as possible in an even older house in Southwest Harbor, Maine.

High Cotton is located at 199 East Bay Street, where the luncheon and discussion will take place. Parking is available at the Cumberland Street Garage, other municipal lots or at meters on the street.

Upcoming Author Events Please Join us... Friday, Feb. 23, for lunch at Halls Signature Events as acclaimed author Peter Zheutlin discusses his new book, "Rescued." In the follow-up to his New York Times bestseller "Rescue Road," Zheutlin offers a heartwarming and often humorous new look into the world of rescue dogs. Click here for tickets Wednesday, March 7 at the Charleston Library Society where A.J. Finn discusses his best-selling novel "The Woman in the Window," one of the biggest debut books of all time. Click here for tickets.    Monday, March 12 at noon for lunch at Halls Signature Events when bestselling author Caitlin Macy discusses her newest book, "Mrs." Click here for tickets   Monday, March 19 at the Charleston Music Hall where Colson Whitehead kicks off "The Underground Railroad" paperback tour. Click here for tickets. Presented by the Charleston Library Society.