Friends & Fiction LIVE

Celebrating Patti Callahan Henry's Book Launch for The Story She Left Behind

Author Talks
Monday, Mar 17 @ 6pm

Not-Yet Members. $45 (includes signed copy of The Story She Left Behind and pre-conversation reception).

Members. $40 (includes signed copy of The Story She Left Behind and pre-conversation reception).

Join Friends & Fiction and Atlanta History Center for an exclusive live event honoring Patti Callahan Henry’s newest novel, The Story She Left Behind. First, guests will enjoy a reception, complete with themed cocktails and light bites, a meet-and-greet and photo opportunity featuring all four Friends & Fiction hosts, New York Times bestselling authors Mary Kay Andrews, Kristin Harmel, Kristy Woodson Harvey and Patti Callahan Henry. Then, all four authors will host a LIVE show of Friends & Fiction to discuss The Story She Left Behind. Following the conversation, there will be a book signing and personalization line. All tickets include access to the reception and a signed copy of The Story She Left Behind. We hope you will help us give a warm Atlanta welcome to Friends & Fiction!

Event Schedule

  • 6 PM: Doors open, reception with themed cocktails and light bites, photo line with all 4 authors of Friends & Fiction
  • 7:30 PM: Live on-stage conversation with Friends & Fiction discussing Patti Callahan Henry’s new book
  • Post-conversation: Book personalization and additional signing opportunity

About The Story She Left Behind

Inspired by a true literary mystery, New York Times bestselling author of the mesmerizing The Secret Book of Flora Lea returns with the sweeping story of a legendary book, a lost mother, and a daughter’s search for them both.

In 1927, eight-year-old Clara Harrington’s magical childhood shatters when her mother, renowned author, Bronwyn Newcastle Fordham, disappears off the coast of South Carolina. Bronwyn stunned the world with a book written in an invented language that became a national sensation when she was just twelve years old. Her departure leaves behind not only a devoted husband and heartbroken daughter, but also the hope of ever translating the sequel to her landmark work. As the headlines focus on the missing author, Clara yearns for something far deeper and more insatiable: her beautiful mother.

By 1952, Clara is an illustrator raising her own daughter, Wynnie. When a stranger named Charlie Jameson contacts her from London claiming to have discovered a handwritten dictionary of her mother’s lost language. Clara is skeptical. Compelled by the tragedy of her mother’s vanishing, she crosses the Atlantic with Wynnie only to arrive during one of London’s most deadly natural disasters—the Great Smog. With asthmatic Wynnie in peril, they escape the city with Charlie and find refuge in the Jameson’s family retreat nestled in the Lake District. It is there that Clara must find the courage to uncover the truth about her mother and the story she left behind.

Told in Patti Callahan Henry’s lyrical, enchanting prose, The Story She Left Behind is a captivating novel of mystery and family legacy that captures the profound longing for a mother and the evergreen allure of secrets.

About the Author

Patti Callahan Henry is the New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling author of several novels, including Surviving Savannah and Becoming Mrs. Lewis. She is the recipient of the Christy Award, the Harper Lee Award for Alabama’s Distinguished Writer of the Year Award, and the Alabama Library Association Book of the Year. She is the cohost and co-creator of the popular weekly online live web show and podcast Friends and Fiction. She lives in Alabama and South Carolina with her family. Find out more at PattiCallahanHenry.com.

About Friends & Fiction

Friends & Fiction is a community of more than 250,000 members, hosted by New York Times bestselling authors Mary Kay Andrews, Kristin Harmel, Kristy Woodson Harvey and Patti Callahan Henry. Each Wednesday, Mary Kay, Kristin, Kristy and Patti welcome fellow authors to their popular weekly web show, where they discuss the story behind some of the world’s most popular books. Learn more at https://friendsandfiction.com/.

Atlanta History Center

130 West Paces Ferry Road NW
Atlanta, GA 30305 United States
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