Shelbyville, IN -- On Thursday, July 24 from 6:30 pm to 8 pm, Shelby County Public Library will host award-winning novelist Sarah Hollowell as she discusses her work and reads a short excerpt.
 
Hollowell’s debut novel, a contemporary fantasy, is entitled “A Dark and Starless Forest.”  Published in 2021, the young adult book is “an absorbing tale of magic and horror, bravery and family,” according to Booklist Online. Hollowell also wrote a speculative thriller, “What Stalks Among Us,” published in 2023; it was designated a Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection and was the Publishers Weekly Best Books YA Selection in 2023, as well as Best Fiction for Young Adults Selection in 2024.
 
Held at the main building, 57 W. Broadway St., the program is free to attend and open to the public. Copies of Hollowell’s books may be checked out at the front desk in Adult Services. There will also be copies available for purchase; Hollowell plans to sign them after the discussion.
 
Hollowell’s work has appeared on The NoSleep Podcast, Huffington Post, and Fireside Magazine, among others. Sarah is represented by Thao Le of the Sandra Dijkstra Literary Agency.
 
Although the author visit will be held at the main library in Shelbyville, both book clubs at the Morristown branch have been reading Hollowell’s work. Cat Roberts, Morristown Branch Head, applied for a grant with Indiana Author Awards to bring the author to our community.
 
According to Roberts, Hollowell’s writing recently was useful to a patron who has been struggling with a dementia diagnosis and having difficulty understanding and retaining information from books and conversations.
 
“After some treatments, she decided to try Sarah's book (What Stalks Among Us), and she found it flowed so smoothly she was able to follow the story, giving her the chance to read a book again for the first time in months,” Roberts said.
 
Shelby County Public Library offers a wide array of programs for adults, teens, and children: story times, how-to programs, entertainment events, book discussions, and author visits, such as this one.
For further information about the program, call the library at (317) 398-7121 or Cat at (765) 818-1718 (ext.235).