St. John the Baptist Parish Library showcases a virtual author talk series each month featuring bestselling, award-winning, and highly acclaimed authors from around the world. The free, virtual series takes place six times a month and includes the opportunity to ask questions to the author. Monthly topics include fiction, nonfiction, health and wellness, cooking, K-12, and variety.
NONFICTION
The Legacy of Julia Child’s Kitchen with Smithsonian Curator Paula J. Johnson, A Library Speakers Consortium and Smithsonian Institution Collaboration
Tuesday, August 4 at 1 PM
Join us for a conversation that’s sure to warm your heart (and make your stomach rumble), as we delve into the legacy of cooking icon Julia Child with Smithsonian curator and public historian Paula J. Johnson, author of Julia Child’s Kitchen: The Design, Tools, Stories, and Legacy of an Iconic Space. The book includes interviews with chefs who knew Julia well, commentary on her favorite culinary tools and kitchen gadgets, and a stunning array of photos.
HEALTH & WELLNESS
Like a Wave We Break: Overcoming Burnout to Lead with Resilience and Alignment featuring Jane Marie Chen, National Bestselling Author, Internationally Acclaimed Inventor, and Leadership Coach
Wednesday, August 5 at 11 AM
Join internationally acclaimed inventor, former CEO, and national bestselling author Jane Chen as she shares her journey from saving over a million babies to overcoming profound burnout. Moving past generic self-help, Jane introduces the Whole-Body Yes—a somatic framework designed to help you leverage the science of emotions to make high-stakes decisions with absolute clarity. Learn to cultivate the emotional intelligence and self-compassion required to stay grounded, beat burnout, and lead through uncertainty with sustainable strength.
COOKING/FOOD
Preserving the Seasons: The Art of Canning, Jamming, and More with Holly Capelle, Expert Home Preserver and Cook
Thursday, August 6 at 1 PM
Connect with your food like never before by diving into the art of preserving. In her new book, Preserving the Seasons, author and cook Holly Capelle offers a comprehensive guide to canning, jamming, infusing, drying, dehydrating, pickling, and more!
Register today to learn about enhancing your recipes with delicious preserving ideas!
K-12
My Bicentennial Summer: A True-Life Adventure Across America with G. Neri, Award-Winning and Bestselling Author, Filmmaker, and Artist
Thursday, August 20 at 6 PM
Celebrated author G. Neri invites readers for a journey through the U.S. in his funny and heartfelt book, My Bicentennial Summer. The year is 1976, and America is throwing its biggest birthday party ever—its bicentennial. What better way to celebrate than with an eight-thousand-mile road trip? Young Greg is entranced by the variety of accents, strange foods, natural wonders, and historical attractions, from the Grand Canyon to the Statue of Liberty. And he glimpses the darker side of traveling as a family of color, pondering whether “We the People” includes people like him.
VARIETY & LIFESTYLE
When Trees Testify: Reclaiming America’s Black Botanical Legacy with Beronda Montgomery, Award-Winning Plant Biologist and Author
Tuesday, August 25 at 1 PM
The histories of trees in America are also the histories of Black Americans. Pecan trees were domesticated by an enslaved African named Antoine; sycamore trees were both havens and signposts for people trying to escape enslavement; poplar trees are historically associated with lynching; and willow bark has offered the gift of medicine. In When Trees Testify, award-winning plant biologist Beronda L. Montgomery explores the ways seven trees—as well as the cotton shrub—are intertwined with Black history and culture.
FICTION
High Altitudes and High Stakes: A Miss Marple Mystery with Lucy Foley, #1 New York Times Bestselling Author of The Guest List and The Midnight Feast
Thursday, August 27 at 1 PM
Join us for a thrilling conversation with acclaimed author Lucy Foley as we delve into her brand-new Miss Marple mystery, Murder at the Grand Alpine Hotel. High in the Swiss Alps, accessible only by a single, winding railway, stands the luxurious Grand Alpine Hotel. But not everyone is here for a winter holiday. Beneath the champagne and furs, dark histories simmer; old grudges emerge like cracks in the ice. And someone is watching from the shadows.