Get out there and have fun

Newbery-winning author Susan Patron is coming to the Owens Valley next week to talk about her book "The Higher Power of Lucky . In January Susan Patron won the 2007 Newbery for "Lucky," the story of a 10-year-old girl struggling to come to terms with her mother’s death and her life in Hard Pan, a fictional town that many judge to be a composite of different communities in Southern Inyo County. The Newbery is awarded annually by the American Library Association to the author of the most distinguished contribution to American literature for children.

Patron will visit LonePine and Bishop as part of her Newberry Award speaking tour. Her first stop is the Lone Pine Film History Museum Theater at noon. Patron will sign books and talk to fans, including the Lone Pine Elementary fourth and fifth graders, who have been reading The Higher Power of Lucky with their teachers in preparation for Patron’s visit. The event is open to the public, and all are welcome to attend.

In the evening Patron will head north to Bishop where at 7 PM she will be at the Inyo Council for the Arts to answer questions and sign her book.

Books will be available for purchase at both events and will be offered for 20 percent off the publisher's price. If you cannot make it to the events you can still purchase her book at Spellbinder Books in Bishop for the discounted price.

In preparation for Patron’s visit, Spellbinder Books has been working with the book’s publisher, Simon & Schuster, to donate books to local school libraries. “We would really like to thank the venues, the Lone Pine Film History Museum, and the Inyo Council for the Arts for providing us such wonderful spaces for community events like this,” said Lynne Almeida, co-owner of Spellbinder Books.

If you would like more information on the events, or on how to get a book donated to your school library please contact Genevieve at Spellbinder books at (760) 873-4511.