Sayville-Bayport|Local Event
Ilise S. Carter and "When We Spoke to the Dead" at Tiny Raccoon Books
Join author Ilise S. Carter at Tiny Raccoon Books on June 20th at 7pm for a reading from her book, "When We Spoke to the Dead: How Ghosts Gave American Women Their Voice."
Ilise will take questions and discuss the book after a reading. We will have copies of her book for sale and she will sign copies.
About the book
Ghosts spoke. Women listened. Everything changed.
It began with whispers in a dimly lit room. In the 1840s, the Fox Sisters―and the legions of mediums they inspired―ignited the Spiritualist movement that swept through Victorian parlors and presidential campaigns alike. Contacting the dead wasn't merely a parlor trick: It was a political statement, a declaration of self that still echoes. Séances attracted suffragists and scientists, skeptics and charlatans, giving women a voice in a society that often refused to hear them. But as Spiritualism surged, it also blurred the lines between faith, fraud, feminism, and financial opportunity, drawing figures as varied as Harry Houdini, Victoria Woodhull, and even modern self-help gurus into its ever-expanding orbit.
From wartime séances to the rise of televangelists, from Victorian ghosts to goop-approved wellness rituals, When We Spoke to the Dead unearths the forgotten roots of today's obsession with manifestation, mysticism, and the power of belief. Exploring America's deep-seated hunger for the unseen―whether through politics, personal empowerment, or grief―this book traces how the supernatural, once condemned as heresy, became the ultimate commodity.
Step inside the séance room. The spirits have been waiting.
About the authors
Ilise S. Carter is a freelance writer and performer based in New York City. She has written for Allure, New York Times, Washington Post, and others. In addition, she’s spent over a decade as a consulting copywriter for companies such as Shiseido, bliss, L’Oréal, and Madame CJ Walker.
Her first book, The Red Menace: How Lipstick Changed the Face of American History from Prometheus Books, has been featured in the Wall Street Journal, NY Post, and Publishers Weekly.
Parking:
1- We have a small lot behind the store accessible from Hiddink Street. Our back door is open.
2- The LIRR lot is one block away- right next to the Gas station across the street on Depot Street. There are over 100 spots.