Dear Gentle Reader,

Hello October! The lackadaisical delights of summer are out the window as we hurtle towards the holiday packed conclusion of 2025, a year that has passed with both lightning speed and tortoise-like entropy. Check out our list of events for the month below.

Speaking of events, we have some sweet ones this month, including visits from our friends Margot Lester, who is here to help writers stuck or needing advice with herWriters’ Office Hours (tomorrow 1:30-3:30pm), and Vietri founder Susan Gravely,with a cocktail party celebrating her latest book, Italy in a Glass, on Friday. October 10th.

Beloved children’s author John Claude Bemis will be here this Saturday, October 4th, to discuss his middle grade graphic novel, Rodeo Hawkins and the Daughters of Mayhem. This adventurous comic is getting great reviews, and we always love hosting John! The graphic novel is great for ages 8-12 but all are welcome for the reading and book signing event. “A ­delightful, interdimensional graphic adventure about found family, the need to belong, and dubious ­motivations.”—School Library Journal

Sunday the 5th at 2pm, Scott Gould will be here to discuss his novel, Peace Like a Riverwith Marjorie Hudson. Weaving a lyrical and heartwarming tale of fathers, sons, and grandfathers, and the intricate bonds that define them, this novel tells the story of sixty-something Elwin McClennon’s return to the hometown in Lowcountry South Carolina—and the dying father—he fled fifteen years before. Accompanied by Thom, his odd and precocious thirteen-year-old son, Elwin embarks on a journey to reconcile with his father, and their complicated pasts, along the banks of the syrup-slow Black River.

Get your book club on! We are offering two events this fall for those in book clubs (and those who love good books). Thursday, October 16th at 6:30pm, we will gather in the bookstore to present staff picks and enjoy a presentation from our special guest, Hachette Book Group rep Julie Isgrigg. Wine and bites will be served. Friday, October 17th at 10:30 am, we present book picks and turn to our special presenter, Linda-Marie Barrett who will discuss her new book,Creating a Salon: The Magic of Conversations that Matter. Coffee and sweet bites will be served. Tickets to attend are $10 per event and available by clicking the purple date link.

Lastly, if you haven’t purchased tickets for Chatham Literacy’s Fall into Literacy Luncheon, time is ticking. The fundraiser for this workhorse organization is Thursday, October 30th and features author and journalist Steven Petrow in conversation with Jill McCorkle. Chatham Literacy helps adults, living or working in Chatham County, acquire the literacy and educational skills they need to function successfully in society.

The Usual Suspects,

Pete, Johanna, Sarah G., Tyler, Amy, Juliana, Sarah C. and Keebe