FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Author Talk with Brenda Sutton Rose
Libraries for Kids, International www.libraries4kids.org is pleased to announce an author talk
featuring Brenda Sutton Rose on Monday, July 21, 2025, from 10:30 to 11:30 am at the Roasting
Room, 1297 May River Road, Bluffton, SC. The event is free and open to the public; however, a $5
donation is suggested.
Following the author's talk, attendees are invited to join the author for an optional Dutch Treat lunch.
Space is limited, so reservations are necessary, and early arrival is recommended. For more
information or to RSVP, please contact Tamela Maxim at 843.683.4100 or tamelamaxim@gmail.com
or tamela.maxim@libraries4kids.org.
Featured Books: Dogwood Blues, A Wiregrass Childhood
About the Author: Brenda Sutton Rose is a Southern author and visual artist whose work captures
the rich textures of small-town life in Georgia. Her writing is steeped in the rhythms of the South, often
blending humor, heartbreak, and redemption with a lyrical voice that resonates deeply with readers.
Brenda will talk about her debut novel, Dogwood Blues, and her recently released novella, A
Wiregrass Childhood.
A Wiregrass Childhood is a nostalgic and imaginative novella that paints a vivid portrait of rural life in
Georgia’s Wiregrass region. The book blends fictional storytelling with threads of local history,
drawing inspiration from the early settlers and Creek people of Irwin County.
Rose describes the work as “a creation of my imagination,” though she skillfully weaves in historical
details from Turner and Irwin County records to enrich the narrative. The result is a heartfelt tribute to
the spirit of the South—its landscapes, its people, and its enduring traditions. While the characters
are largely fictional, the emotional truths they carry feel deeply rooted in the region’s past.
Her award-winning debut novel, Dogwood Blues, is a vibrant piece of Southern fiction set in the
fictional town of Dogwood, Georgia, near the Alapaha River. The story follows Kevin Kilmer, a New
York author returning to his hometown to confront his past, and Boone Marshall, a blues pianist and
farmer whose new marriage stirs gossip in the community. With a cast of eccentric characters –
including the sharp-tongued women of the Honeysuckle Bridge Club – the novel explores themes of
betrayal, forgiveness, and the tension between tradition and change.
“I’ve been known to slow dance with words over graves of buried prayers, drink words undiluted
under the shadow of my grandfather’s whiskey bottles, lift words from where they’ve spilled around
my father’s brogans. I write from the seeding syllables of my gardens, from the crumbling graves of
my ancestors, from sorrow sleeping in my grandmother’s tattered Bible. I dig for stories in the soil of
the southern landscape, under longleaf pines, ancient oaks dripping with Spanish moss, and in the
fields of callused farmers. When the mood hits me, I extract poetry from the juice of freshly picked
blackberries and haul memories from the soles of my bare feet. With the barbed-wire nouns and
plural verbs of my mistakes, with the cast iron consonants and sweet, silent vowels of my mother’s
kitchen, I write. But in the end, the most important thing is that I give these stories life.”
About Libraries for Kids:
Libraries for Kids, International is a 501(c)(3) organization providing leisure and reference books to
schools in rural Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda for recreational and supplemental reading. Libraries for
Kids works exclusively with schools with little or no electricity or internet access in communities facing
significant environmental, climatic, and cultural challenges.
Contact:
Tamela Maxim, Board Member, Libraries for Kids, International, tamela.maxim@libraries4kids.org,
843.683.4100
Upcoming Author Talks:
August 18, 2025, Author Mark O’Neill will discuss his book To Catch a Spy www.markoneill.com
September 15, 2025, Author Pat Branning will discuss her subscription offering, The Diary of
Southern Lifestyle Author Pat Branning www.patbranning.com
October 20, 2025, Author Scott Gould will discuss his book Peace Like a River (release date
August 2025). www.scottgouldwriter.com
November 17, 2025, Authors Lynn and Cele Seldon will discuss their book, 100 Things to Do in
the South Carolina Lowcountry Before You Die. www.seldonink.com
December 15, 2025, Author Annelore Harrell will discuss her book Et Cetera Y’all, Volume 2
www.anneloreharrell.com
January 19, 2026, Author Mary Martha Greene will discuss her book The Cheese Biscuit Queen
Tells All: Southern Recipes, Sweet Remembrances, and a Little Rambunctious Behavior
www.thecheesebiscuitqueen.com
February 16, 2026, Author Laura Elizabeth will discuss All is Now Lost and A Special Kind of
Heartache, books in her Island Mystery Series. www.theislandmysteries.com
March 16, 2026 Author Millie West
April 20, 2026 Author Jack Gannon
May 18, 2026 Author Deborah Rodriquez
June 15, 2026 Author Brian Thiem