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
On a Mission: The History of US Women Astronauts with Smithsonian Curator Emerita Valerie Neal, A Library Speakers Consortium and Smithsonian Institution Collaboration
Thursday, April 2nd at 1 PM
Join us for an exhilarating journey through the history of US women astronauts with Valerie Neal, emerita curator from the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum and expert on human spaceflight. Valerie offers a culturally insightful history of the achievements of US women astronauts, the challenges they’ve faced, and their distinctive stories as they carve out space in a male-dominated field. On a Mission is an inspiring tribute to unsung women’s history. Register now to take part in this inspirational discussion!
FICTION
On Writing Action-Packed and Suspenseful Spycraft with Brad Taylor, New York Times bestselling author and former special forces officer
Tuesday, April 14th at 6 PM
Join us in conversation with acclaimed author Brad Taylor on his latest work, Shadow Strike, book 20 of the bestselling Pike Logan series. When a routine prison transfer is ambushed, Abdul Rahman (known in the shadows as the Ghost) escapes. The only Operator who can hunt him down is the man who stopped him before: Pike Logan. But as the team races against the clock, Pike learns the stakes are much greater than a single life. The consequences extend into the heartland of America itself. Register today to learn why the Pike Logan series has everyone buzzing!
HEALTH & WELLNESS
How Exploration, Uncertainty, and Risk Help Us Find Meaning with Author Alex Hutchinson, New York Times bestselling author of Endure
Thursday, April 16th at 1 PM
In The Explorer’s Gene, Alex Hutchinson dives headfirst into a fascinating and provocative new field of research, examining how exploration is a fundamental part of what makes us human. From paddling the lost rivers of the northern Canadian wilderness to the ocean-spanning voyages of the Polynesians, The Explorer’s Gene combines riveting stories of exploration with cutting-edge insights from behavioral psychology and neuroscience.
Register now to participate in this timelessly relevant discussion on finding meaning in our past struggles, embracing the possibility of failure in our future, and crucially, recognizing when our present is good enough.
VARIETY & LIFESTYLE
Lush Lyricism and Intimate Confessions with Miranda Cowley Heller, New York Times bestselling author of The Paper Palace and Reese’s Book Club pick
Wednesday, April 22nd at 1 PM
Award-winning and bestselling author Miranda Cowley Heller takes us on an intimate journey through the life stages of a woman in her new poetry collection, What the Deep Water Knows. In poetry that is at once bold and lyrical, affecting and devastatingly frank, Miranda Cowley Heller takes us through childhood, marriage, motherhood, and beyond. Suffused with the natural world and the landscape of Cape Cod, where many of the poems are set, What the Deep Water Knows contemplates love in all the seasons.
Bittersweet: Exploring the Five Tastes of Dessert with Thalia Ho, Award-Winning Blogger and Author of Wild Sweetness
Thursday, April 23rd at 6 PM
Thalia Ho, creator of the award-winning blog Butter and Brioche and author of Wild Sweetness, explores the five tastes of dessert and beyond in her new book, Bittersweet. With gripping prose, deep reflection, and hauntingly beautiful photographs, Thalia shares inspired and inventive recipes to elevate what your last bite can be—adventurous, otherworldly, and unforgettable.
Register today and learn how to take your sense of taste to the next level.
On Writing Beloved Characters and Powerful Portrayals of Resilience with Jason Reynolds, Award-Winning and New York Times Bestselling Author
Thursday, April 30th at 6 PM
Join us in conversation with bestselling author Jason Reynolds as we discuss his latest work, Coach, the fifth–and last–entry in the highly popular Track series. Following the immersive stories of Ghost, Lu, Patina, and Sunny, it’s finally time for Coach to shine in his own book as we discover: Who was Coach before he became an inspiring leader? Register now to join in on the conversation about the final installment to Jason Reynold’s Track series!