We are having a special lunch reading with Jackson native Amy Conner discussing her debut book, THE RIGHT THING. Lunch is $10 and will be provided by Oxford's hottest new restaurant, OXFORD CANTEEN. Please RSVP at Square Books.
The menu items include a roasted vegetable sandwhich with farmers market cheese and balsamic onion marmalade on HoneyBee Bakery molasses wheat bread, or dirty grains with greens and things -- brown rice, red and white quinoa, lentils and white beans, kale/collard greens and roasted sweet potatoes lightly dressed with olive oil, roasted garlic, sherry vinegar, lemon and fresh herbs.
DESCRIPTION
On a scorching August day in 1963, seven-year-old Annie Banks meets the girl who will become her best friend. Skinny, outspoken Starr Dukes and her wandering preacher father may not be accepted by polite society in Jackson, Mississippi, but Annie and Starr are too busy sharing secrets and playing elaborate games of Queen for a Day to care. Then, as suddenly as she appeared in Annie's life, Starr disappears.
Annie grows up to follow the path ordained for pretty, well-to-do Jackson women--marrying an ambitious lawyer, filling her days with shopping and charity work. She barely recognizes Starr when they meet twenty-seven years after that first fateful summer, but the bond formed so long ago quickly reemerges. Starr, pregnant by a powerful married man who wants her to get out of town, has nowhere to turn. And Annie, determined not to fail her friend this time, agrees to drive Starr to New Orleans to get money she's owed.
During the eventful road trip that follows, Annie will confront the gap between friendship and responsibility between her safe, ordered existence and the dreams she's grown accustomed to denying.
Moving, witty, and beautifully told, The Right Thing is a story of love and courage, the powerful impact of friendship, and the small acts that can anchor a life--or, with a little luck, steer it in the right direction at last.
Amy
Conner is a semi‑retired horse trainer, and she used to co-own and co-manage
the world’s largest alligator farming concern. She lives in New Orleans,
but grew up in Jackson, so she knows whereof she speaks. The Right Thing is her first novel.
On a scorching August day in 1963, seven-year-old Annie Banks meets the girl who will become her best friend. Skinny, outspoken Starr Dukes and her wandering preacher father may not be accepted by polite society in Jackson, Mississippi, but Annie and Starr are too busy sharing secrets and playing elaborate games of Queen for a Day to care.
Roasted vegetable sandwhich with farmers cheese and balsamic onion marmalade on HoneyBoo Bakery molasses wheat bread.
