Ashley Hall Writers Series
Since its creation in 2005, the Ashley Hall’s Writers Series has hosted dozens of award-winning authors on the school’s historic campus located in downtown Charleston. Events are generally free and open to the public. Recent featured guests have included acclaimed art critic for The New Republic Jed Perl, non-fiction writer and poet Lisa Wells, and award-winning food writer Rossi Anastopoulo ’13.
UPCOMING WRITERS SERIES EVENTS
In the coming months, Ashley Hall is pleased to present the following authors:
SEPTEMBER 20: Marshall Highet and Bird Jones
An Evening with Marshall Highet and Bird Jones
SEPTEMBER 20, 2023 | 6:00 P.M. – 7:00 P.M.
Davies Auditorium & Jenkins Atrium
Reception and book signing to follow
Intergenerational writing team Marshall Highet and Bird Jones will be discussing of their co-authored book Blue-Eyed Slave, a carefully researched historical young adult novel set in Charleston. The event will be followed by a book-signing reception showcasing student projects around their study of the novel’s themes of race, religion, and responsibility.
This event is free and open to the public, but registration is required.
Book signing sponsored by
Purchase a hardback copy of Blue Eyed Slave. | Purchase a paperback copy of Blue Eyed Slave.
ABOUT THE BOOK
“The two heroines are 13-year-old girls, one a slave and one a Sephardic Jew. They are strong characters with a highly defined sense of the possible in the face of the impossible. They are fearless and fearful simultaneously but determined to see the situation through… Finally, Harry’s story is stunning. It is true and, as I have said before, almost entirely unknown. Harry taught 1000 enslaved people to read in spite of laws that forbid it. There is a lot going on here with plenty of opportunities to talk about, not only the historical record, but the challenges we face today.” – Bird Jones, author of Blue-Eyed Slave
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
MARSHALL HIGHET has previously published several novels and a short story: Spare Parts, a YA science-fiction novel based on real science; Modified, chapters of which were serially published in Realm, a science-fiction and fantasy literature magazine; and “Fetch,” a short story that will appear in Skelos, a science-fiction and dark fantasy fiction publication. Marshall also wrote the foreword to the republished novels of Helen MacInnes, an espionage writer of the 1950s, ’60s, and ’70s.
BIRD JONES is an emerita of Elon University and an ethnographer by training. Her love of stories and story collecting has taken her from Appalachia to Central Asia. She has published widely in academic journals and presented at conferences. Her book And That’s the Way of It: Life in a Maine Village became a popular read in Down East Magazine, was a best-book pick by independent bookstores along the coast, and was featured on Maine Public Radio. Together, Bird and Marshall wrote Hold Fast, a historical novel. Blue-Eyed Slave is their second collaboration.
Learn more about Highet and Jones
Parking is available in the Smith Street parking lot. Please enter through the Smith Street gate.