2025 Book & Author Luncheon
The Friends' annual Book and Author Luncheon and Silent Auction began in 2005 and is a major literary event for the community. This year we are celebrating not only the 20th anniversary of the luncheon but also the 125th anniversary of the Lena Armstrong Public Library. The proceeds from the Luncheon ticket sales and the Silent Auction constitute the major source of funding for the Friends' activities in support of the library.
In a departure from our usual format of hosting several Texas authors, this year we featured a single, nationally known, New York Times best selling Texas author, Lisa Wingate, author of Before We Were Yours. Of course, we also had a full luncheon as well as a silent auction and book signing. Lisa presented an excellent program and the luncheon was a huge success with almost 300 people attending.
Lisa Wingate, author of Before We Were Yours.- BLOCKBUSTER — Over three million copies sold.
- A New York Times, USA Today, Wall Street Journal, and Publishers Weekly Best Seller.
- "Poignant, engrossing." – People
- "Lisa Wingate takes an almost unthinkable chapter in our nation's history and weaves a tale of enduring power."--Paula McLain
Lisa Wingate is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Before We Were Yours, which remained on the NYT list for more than two years and has sold over three million copies. She has written more than 30 novels and co-authored the nonfiction Before and After with journalist Judy Christie which follows stories of some the survivors from the Before We Were Yours experience. Wingate’s books have been translated into over forty languages and have appeared on bestseller lists worldwide. Shelterwood (2024) marks her thirty-third release.
Wingate is a Goodreads Choice Award winner, an Oklahoma Book Award finalist, a Southern Book Prize winner and was named a 2023 Distinguished Alumni of Oklahoma State University. Americans for More Civility, a kindness watchdog organization, selected Wingate as a recipient of the National Civics Award, which celebrates public figures who work to promote greater kindness and civility in American life. “Booklist” summed up her work by saying, “Lisa Wingate is, quite simply, a master storyteller.”
She was inspired to become a writer by a first-grade teacher who said she expected to see Lisa’s name in a magazine one day. Wingate also entertained childhood dreams of being an Olympic gymnast and winning the National Finals Rodeo but was stalled by a mental block against backflips on the balance beam and by parents who stubbornly refused to finance a rodeo career. She was lucky enough to marry into a big family of tall tale enthusiasts who never let the truth get in the way of a good story. Wingate lives in Texas and Colorado with her family and her cuddly teddy bear of a dog, Huckleberry.
One of her favorite things about being a writer is connecting with people, both real and imaginary. Find out more at www.lisawingate.com. Or follow her on Facebook at LisaWingateAuthorPage, or on Instagram @author_lisa_wingate. More information about her novels can also be found at www.lisawingate.com.
Lisa Wingate's books are available at Blackbird Books & Spirits Bookstore, 203 N. East Street, Suite E, Belton, TX.