Rock and roll your way to Midtown Reader to hear Eliza Knight talk about her electrifying, freeing new book, Lost in the Summer of '69, a story of motherhood, self-liberation, and totally groovy music, with local author Mary Ann Lindley.
ABOUT THE BOOK
Daisy Jones and the Six meets Where’d You Go Bernadette in LOST IN THE SUMMER OF ‘69, an epic summer romp from USA Today bestselling author Eliza Knight following a possibly-losing-her-mind, definitely-rock-fanatic runaway grandmother and her worried family through a summer of music, love, and electric possibility.
Eleanor Bell spent decades defined by the obligations of marriage and motherhood. Now widowed and facing the early shadows of dementia on her sixty-ninth birthday, she plans to return to herself: the woman with a voice and a Gibson L-00. Without a word to her family, Eleanor does the unthinkable: she boards a plane to the Newport Pop Festival, steps onto an open-mic stage, and eventually hitches a ride on a tour bus headed to the summer's biggest stage: Woodstock.
Following the bus’s tire marks, Eleanor’s worried daughter and granddaughter set off on their own cross-country odyssey to track her down. As the nation begins to hail Eleanor as the “Dame of Rock and Roll,” Leanne and Nora must confront what this wild summer means—not just for Eleanor’s future, but for the versions of themselves they found along the way.
Windswept by the freedom of the road and reinvention, LOST IN THE SUMMER OF ‘69 is an expertly wrought women’s story that blends the anguished heart of rock ’n’ roll and the nostalgic, infectious fun of the late sixties with a powerful journey to reclaim dreams deferred by the generational push-and-pull between autonomy and expectation.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Eliza Knight is an award-winning, USA Today and international bestselling author of dozens of novels. Her latest novel is Lost in the Summer of ‘69. A lifelong history obsessive, Eliza’s love affair with the past began as a young girl when she traipsed the halls of Versailles. She is the creator of the popular historical blog, History Undressed, and host on the History, Books and Wine podcast. Her books have been translated into multiple languages, and most recently, her co-authored title A Day of Fire has been optioned for television. Knight holds an MFA in creative writing from Drexel University and is a creative writing instructor. She lives in the sunshine state with her husband, three daughters, a dog, a crab and a turtle.
ABOUT MARY ANN LINDLEY
Mary Ann Lindley was a newspaper columnist for nearly 40 years. Her commentaries on Florida politics, community issues and, most frequently, trends and curiosities throughout American culture received state and national awards. She managed the capital bureau of the New York Times’ Florida news group, writing about state government and the courts in the 1970s. She was a state news editor at The Miami Herald and later, editorial board chairman of the Tallahassee Democrat. She left journalism in 2011 to hold a seat on the Leon County Commission from 2012 until 2020, when she returned to her writing career. Her book, Fragments, muses on a myriad of poignant topics. She’s a community volunteer in Tallahassee, where she lives with her husband Charlie.
