O.C. Writers

What do you envision when you think about the library?

Yes, of course, books! But something many people don’t think about are that libraries are community spaces. Libraries must adapt to meet their communities’ needs and expectations, consequently we as librarians are constantly expanding the way we think about programming. There will always be a place for story time, but there is also a growing trend toward libraries becoming a place for literary and cultural events.

As bookstores and other traditional venues for book readings and author signings close, the library has taken on more of that responsibility. Over the past few years, the Brea Library is proud to have hosted nearly forty authors. These writers have been a mix of best-selling and local emerging authors. The opportunity to meet and be inspired by their journey appeals to the public. We have a number of aspiring authors in our community who are encouraged by hearing published authors’ road to publication.

Brea Library’s next author event is on Saturday, May 20th at 11 am.

Lisa Alvarez and Andrew Tonkovich will discuss their book Orange County: A Literary Field Guide and introduce you to novelist Peggy Hesketh and poet Grant Hier. This is a particularly special event as the book is an anthology inspired by Orange County. Gustavo Arellano, who wrote the forward to the book, describes it in an OC Weekly article as,

A fantastic book, one that collects the OC observations and experiences of everyone from literary legends to local cranks, Pulitzer Prize winners to alt-weekly hacks, poets to novelists to essayists, whether homegrown or not.”

In an interview with The Los Angeles Times, Lisa Alvarez says,

I hope readers get a deeper appreciation for where we are and how we live.”

This is an important book for everyone who lives in, works in, or cares about Orange County. I hope you join us on May 20th. As always, this event is free to attend and no registration is required.

If you’re a bestseller, or a local emerging author, or have any questions about our author events, please contact Samantha from Brea Library at 714-671-1722 or by email at brea.ocpl@occr.ocgov.com.