Atención: Book Club Featuring Local Authors

By Catherine Marenghi

Atención News is launching a new book club for San Miguel book lovers. Recognizing the vibrant literary community in San Miguel de Allende, Atención will focus on titles by talented local authors, with a preference for fiction, memoir, and short stories.

Monthly book club meetings will be held at 3:00 p.m. on the fourth Tuesday of the month beginning February 24th, at Casa Nigromante, the historic birthplace of Ignacio Ramirez located on Umaran #38.

A unique feature of the new book club is that the authors of the featured selection will be invited to the meetings to speak to book club members. After the author presentation, the author will take questions and comments from the audience.  These events will be free and open to the public, with a suggested nominal donation to cover refreshments.

A committee comprised of Atención News editorial staff will select the books and announce their selections at least one month in advance of meetings. The first book selections are as follows:

February 24^th, The Paper Demon & Other Stories, by Rosaleen Bertolino

Each story in this award-winning collection explores complex emotions, often taking readers somewhere between reality and fantasy. Shapeshifters and aliens share the pages with a traumatized widow and a homeless man, as Bertolino finds reality in the fantastic. Rosaleen Bertolino is an active member of the San Miguel literary community and manages the monthly San Miguel Poetry & Prose Cafes.

March 24^th, The Many Lives and Secret Sorrows of Josephine B, by Sandra Gulland

This acclaimed historical fiction is the first of three books inspired by the life of Josephine Bonaparte, who rises from impoverished beginnings on the island of Martinico to ultimate power as queen of Revolution-era France.

Sandra Gulland’s internationally best-selling novels have been published in 17 countries. The Josephine Trilogy was followed by Mistress of the Sun and then The Shadow Queen, a sister novel; both novels are set in the Court of Louis XIV, the Sun King. Gulland also authored The Game of Hope, a Young Adult novel about Josephine Bonaparte's daughter (and Napoleon's stepdaughter.)

To help ensure the availability of books, Atención News is partnering with Aurora Books, the only independent bookstore in San Miguel, featuring new and popular English-language books as well as selected Spanish-language titles.

The store is owned by the San Miguel Literary Sala. Interested readers may pre-order books from Aurora Books by contacting aurorabookssma@gmail.com or by visiting the store at Hacienda Aurora, Calzada de la Aurora 48A.

“We are fortunate to have a wealth of outstanding local authors in San Miguel. Our goal in establishing this book club is to encourage community reading and literary dialogue, and to support our excellent local writers,” said Camie Fenton, owner and publisher of Atención News. “We hope you will join us!”

There is no requirement to enroll or preregister to participate in the book club. Interested readers are simply invited to read the featured book and attend the book club meetings as their schedules allow.

“For those who are looking for a local book club but are unable to make year-long commitments, this is a perfect opportunity to meet wonderful local authors and participate in live book discussions,”  Fenton added.

Ongoing news and updates about the Atención Book Club will be published in our print publication and on our Facebook page. Questions, comments, and inquiries about the Book Club may be directed to Atención News by visiting atencionnews.net and using the “contact us” form.

Staff writer Catherine Marenghi is an award-winning poet, novelist, and memoirist and has published five books. She has been active in the San Miguel literary community for more than a decade. www.marenghi.com.