WOW Center and Straw Dog Writers Guild to present acclaimed author Patricia Lee Lewis!
WOW Center and Straw Dog Writers Guild to present acclaimed author Patricia Lee Lewis!
Westfield on Weekends (WOW) in association with Straw Dog Writers Guild and WhipCity Wordsmiths, will present acclaimed poet and author Patricia Lee Lewis as part of the free “Writers Out Loud Guest Author Series.” The event will take place on Thursday, May 21st at 7:00 PM at The WOW Center, 105 Elm Street in Westfield’s Downtown Cultural District.
Patricia has spent much of her life as an advocate: for women, for civil rights, for peace, for a healthy environment, for small farms and rural communities, for the arts. Born and raised in Austin, Texas, she moved north years ago with her children. She is a business owner and trail walker, and has been director of several organizations, including women’s centers, community economic development corporations, district congressional offices, and served as an elected county commissioner for four years. In 1985, when she joined Pat Schneider’s Amherst Writers & Artists writing workshop, she found the courage to write for others to read.
Dona Rose Willis’s life on a vast West Texas ranch in 1938, is shaped by hard work, a starkly beautiful landscape, and a loveless marriage. Everything shifts when her orphaned niece, Annalou, arrives, and Samuel Washington, a Black man, seeks refuge from a lynch mob, thrusting Dona into a dangerous fight against brutal prejudices.
A powerful and timely tale of historic fiction, Thorns of the Mesquite paints a stirring portrait of a woman’s awakening—of love
and the resilient spirit demanded to fight for what’s right against staggering odds.
It is the intention of the author that all profits from this book be shared between organizations that protect the civil rights of all people, and those that serve and support victims of domestic violence.
Patricia’s debut historical fiction novel is available now from Levellers Press and Amazon. It is available in person at Broadside Bookshop, Northampton, MA.
The evening will feature a wide?ranging conversation with the author about her writing and creative process, along with selected readings from Thornes of the Mesquite. Attendees will also have the opportunity to participate in a Q&A and meet Patricia during a book?signing immediately following the program.
The Writers Out Loud series also hosts monthly Open Mike nights on the second Thursday of each month, offering writers of all levels a welcoming space to share their work.
Copies of the book will be available for purchase.
This program is funded in part by grants from the Massachusetts Cultural Council and the Westfield Cultural Council, supporting accessible literary and cultural programming for the Greater Westfield community.
Westfield on Weekends, a non?profit organization that helps to define the cultural and creative vitality of the Greater Westfield community through accessible programming that celebrates its many neighbors; Straw Dog Writers Guild is a non?profit volunteer organization dedicated to the craft and transformative power of writing and serving writers in Hampden and Hampshire Counties; and WhipCity Wordsmiths is a Westfield?based writers’ social and support group committed to fostering connection and creativity among local authors.
