Alix Harrow
Alix Harrow, one of the leading young fantasy and gothic writers in the United States, is the featured writer Sunday, June 2, at 3 p.m. at the Washington County Public Library in Abingdon, Virginia, as part of the annual “Sunday with Friends” literary series.
She will be speaking about her newest novel, “Starling House,” which was published just last year. The novel is about a small town haunted by secrets that stay buried and the sinister house that sits at the crossroads of it all. Reviewer Olicia Blake says, “Alix Harrow is an exceptional, undeniable talent, and ‘Starling House’ with its gentle reassurances of the homes we make and the love we deserve, is more than satisfying. It’s pure loveliness in book form.”
Harrow, a Kentucky native, attended Berea College, earned a degree in history from the University of Vermont, and taught history at Eastern Kentucky University before becoming a full-time writer. She and her family live in Charlottesville, Virginia.
Her first novel, “The Ten Thousand Doors of January” (2019), was received with critical acclaim and nominated for multiple awards, including the Hugo Award, Nebula Award and World Fantasy Award for best novel. A second novel, “The Once and Future Witches” (2020), won a British Fantasy Award for Best Fantasy Novel (the Robert Holdstock Award) and was named one of the Best Books of the Year by NPR books.
A more recent novella, “A Spindle Splintered” (2021), was nominated for a Hugo Award for best novella. Harrow has also written short fiction for Shimmer, Strange Horizons, Tor.com, and Apex. This has produced a Hugo award-winning 2018 short story called “A Witch’s Guide to Escape: A Practical Compendium of Portal Fantasies.”
The Friends of the Washington County Public Library is a volunteer, non-profit organization whose purpose is to help strengthen the resources of the library and to make it a dynamic force in the community.
There will be refreshments as well as book sales and signings after the events. For more information, contact the event’s coordinator, Ben Jennings, at ben.h.jennings@gmail.com.
