Third Annual Lunch With An Author Fundraiser Welcomes Adam Johnson

The Friends of the Library of Tampa-Hillsborough County, Inc. is pleased to announce the Third Annual Lunch
with an Author fundraiser, featuring

ADAM JOHNSON, author of
The Orphan Master’s Son. This lunch event will be held on Monday, March 18th at the University Club, 38th Floor, One Tampa City Center in downtown Tampa. Johnson’s debut novel, a New York Times bestseller, earned tremendous critical acclaim, including starred reviews from Booklist, Publisher’s Weekly, and Library Journal.

Johnson had the rare opportunity to visit the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, witnessing a culture “where…starving families forage for chestnuts in trees, pedestrians are randomly scooped up for ‘volunteer’ labor, and loudspeakers blast nonstop patriotic anthems” (-- Random House). His experiences led to creating a novel Publisher’s Weekly raves “...accomplishes the seemingly impossible: an American writer has masterfully rendered the mysterious world of North Korea with the soul and savvy of a native, from its orphanages and its fishing boats to the kitchens of its high-ranking commanders.” Booklist calls The Orphan Master’s Son “part adventure, part coming-of-age tale, and part romance.” This special event begins at 11:30 a.m. with the luncheon beginning at noon. Mr. Johnson will speak during the luncheon, and a question and answer period will follow, along with a book signing. A representative from Inkwood Books will be at the event to sell copies of the book.

Reservations are required. RSVP by Friday, March 8, 2013. Tickets are $50 for an individual reservation; table and luncheon sponsorship opportunities are available. To reserve your seat for the luncheon and for all other information please call the Friends Office at 813-273-3616.

Senator Bob Graham To Speak At Second Annual Lunch With An Author

Photo Credit: William B. McCullough

The Friends of the Library of Tampa-Hillsborough County is pleased to announce the Second Annual Lunch With An Author event. Former two term Governor of Florida and U. S. Senator Bob Graham will be the featured speaker for the luncheon being held on Tuesday, June 21st, 2011 at the University Club, 38th Floor, One Tampa City Center in downtown Tampa. Respected and trusted by leaders on both sides of the political aisle, Senator Graham was Chairman of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence and a presidential candidate with 18 years of service in the United States Senate. Now, based on actual events, he has written a compelling political thriller, Keys To The Kingdom. With a story line that cuts chillingly close to true-life dealings, it raises penetrating questions and all-too-real, alarming predictions. In Keys To The Kingdom, Senator Graham delivers a page-turner that sounds a warning and is thoroughly entertaining.

Guests may arrive at 11:30 a.m. with the luncheon beginning at noon. Senator Graham will speak during the luncheon and a question and answer period will follow with a book signing for those who wish to purchase Keys To The Kingdom. A representative from Inkwood Books will be at the event to provide booksales - $27.00 tax included.

Reservations are necessary to attend. Tickets are $50 for an individual reservation; table and luncheon sponsorship opportunities are available. To reserve your seat for the luncheon and for all other information please call the Friends Office at (813) 273-3616 by Wednesday, June 15th, 2011. Lunch With An Author is a fundraiser event whose proceeds benefit the Friends of the Library of Tampa-Hillsborough County, Inc. and a portion of the ticket price includes a donation to the Friends of the Library of Tampa-Hillsborough County, Inc. The fair market value of the individual ticket is $15.00.

Keys To The Kingdom

More about the book…

Retired U.S. Senator John Billington, a co-chair of the 9/11 Congressional Inquiry Commission, sets off a firestorm of protest when he suggests in a New York Times op-ed that Saudi Arabia — aka “The Kingdom” — was behind the 9/11 terrorist attacks. Billington asks: Will Saudi Arabia assist in future attacks within the U.S., does the Kingdom have the bomb, and why is the Administration engaged in a comprehensive, sustained cover-up to keep answers from the American people?

Less than two weeks later, Billington is murdered — but not before slipping a detailed briefing to ex-Special Forces operative Tony Ramos, a street-smart Miami Cuban, proficient in Pashto and Arabic, with a love of fine clothing that has tagged him “the Will Smith of State” at the State Department’s Bureau of Intelligence and Research. Soon Tony is on the road and on the run for his life, collaborating with Billington’s estranged, enticing, and egotistical daughter Laura to solve her father’s murder and discover the hidden agendas that ominously threaten the security of America and the world.

In a race against time, betrayals, and layers of deceit, Tony uncovers a shocking international conspiracy linking Saudi Arabia — the Kingdom — to Osama bin Laden and al-Qaeda, in an investigation that spans Saudi Arabia, India, Pakistan, Malaysia, and Afghanistan. Targeted by an assassin and framed for murder, will he be able to honor the senator’s last wish and thwart al-Qaeda’s planned nuclear attacks, as they escalate toward a final massacre in the United States?