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Bards Alley Bookshop

A conversation and book signing with award-winning author Ray Nayler (The Mountain in the Sea) 
Join Bards Alley as we welcome D.C.-based speculative fiction author Ray Nayler for a discussion about his new novel Palaces of the Crow!
Nayler won the Locus Award for his debut novel The Mountain in the Sea and the Hugo Award for his novella The Tusks of Extinction. With Palace of the Crows, he shifts from science-fiction to alternate history, following four disparate teenagers as they fight to survive a winter in the woods of World War II-era Lithuania. They find unlikely allies in each other and a flock of hyper-intelligent crows.
The conversation will be moderated by Brent Cassell, the leader of Bards Alley's science-fiction/fantasy book club, and a book signing will follow. In addition to "Palaces of the Crow," paperback copies of Nayler's backlist will be available for purchase. To reserve a specific title for pick-up, call the store at (571) 459-2653.
Free registration is required here:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.eventbrite.com/e/author-event-ray-nayler-palaces-of-the-crow-tickets-1987077378931?aff=ebdsoporgprofile" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">eventbrite.com/e/author-event-ray-nayler-palaces-of-the-crow-tickets-1987077378931?aff=ebdsoporgprofile</a>

ABOUT&nbsp;THE&nbsp;BOOK
Neriya, a young Jewish girl who dreams of becoming a biologist, has befriended a local flock of crows in her shtetl. Czeslaw is an underage Polish soldier who deserts the Red Army and runs into the freezing Lithuanian woods. Kezia is a Roma horse trader whose family is on the run from Soviet collectivization. As the German blitzkrieg crashes across the border in June 1941, all three are caught up in the onslaught. Along with Innokentiy, an abandoned boy who cannot speak, they are driven into the primeval forest, where they survive by forming an unbreakable bond with one another-and with Neriya's intelligent crows, who for years have been bringing her intricate gifts suggesting they are no ordinary corvids.
As the war goes on, the crows warn the children of danger and help them hide from the human threats of the forest-not only the Germans but also Russian deserters, Polish partisans, fascist Lithuanian police, and the other bandits and outcasts wandering the benighted landscape.
From a Ray Bradbury Prize and Arthur C. Clarke Award finalist, and Hugo and Locus Award winner, Palaces of the Crow blends history and haunting speculative wonder into a story of survival, loyalty and the fragile beauty of life in the darkest of times.
ABOUT&nbsp;THE&nbsp;AUTHOR
Ray Nayler is the author of the Locus Award-winning novel The Mountain in the Sea and the Hugo Award-winning novella The Tusks of Extinction. Born in Quebec and raised in California, Ray lived and worked abroad for two decades in Russia, Central Asia, the Caucasus, and the Balkans. He has served as international advisor to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Office of National Marine Sanctuaries and as visiting scholar at the George Washington University's Institute for International Science and Technology Policy. He lives in Washington, DC.

Local Event: Author Talk: Ray Nayler on PALACES OF THE CROW

Author Talk: Ray Nayler on PALACES OF THE CROW

A conversation and book signing with award-winning author Ray Nayler (The Mountain in the Sea) 
Join Bards Alley as we welcome...

Kingstowne Regional Library

The Forgotten World War author Derek Baxter presents a global perspective on the American Revolution
Join local author Derek Baxter at Kingstowne Regional Library for a discussion of his most recent book, The Forgotten&nbsp;World War: Exploring the Secret History of the American Revolution, from Spain to India and Back Again.Part history, part travelogue, The Forgotten World War reveals how people in Europe, South America, and Asia contributed to the American colonists' struggle for independence. A book signing will follow Baxter's talk with copies available for purchase from the independent bookstore Bards Alley.

Attendance is free. RSVP here: <a href="https://librarycalendar.fairfaxcounty.gov/event/17021683" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">librarycalendar.fairfaxcounty.gov/event/17021683</a>
ABOUT&nbsp;THE&nbsp;BOOKThe Revolutionary War wasn’t just fought in the Thirteen Colonies—it was a world war, spanning four continents. To discover more, Baxter embarks on an adventure-filled quest across the globe. He finds the human stories behind this long-ago conflict, expanding the universe of those who contributed to the cause, including the French, Spanish, Dutch, Oneida Indians, and Mysore Kingdom of India. And he delivers a powerful message: The United States only exists because peoples of different races, languages, and religions learned how to fight together, writing an unexpected story of independence that continues to resonate and inspire today.ABOUT&nbsp;THE&nbsp;AUTHORDerek Baxter, a Fairfax County native, is the author of In Pursuit of Jefferson: Traveling through Europe with the Most Perplexing Founding Father, which chronicles how he followed Thomas Jefferson’s travels across six countries. You can follow him at <a href="https://www.derekbaxterbooks.com/" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">www.derekbaxterbooks.com</a>

Local Event: Author Derek Baxter: The Forgotten World War

Author Derek Baxter: The Forgotten World War

The Forgotten World War author Derek Baxter presents a global perspective on the American Revolution
Join local author Derek...

Mary Riley Styles Library

Author Jared Peatman discusses his book A Hell of a Regiment and the turning point of the Civil WarOn the heels of Fourth of July weekend, the City of Falls Church continues its commemorative events for the U.S. semiquincentennial with a talk by local author Jared Peatman at Mary Riley Styles Public Library. His military history book A Hell of a Regiment: To Gettysburg and Beyond with the Twentieth Maine&nbsp;was published in May.&nbsp;&nbsp;
A Hell of a Regiment chronicles one Union Army infantry unit's exploits during the American Civil War. In true underdog fashion, the 20th Maine originated as a wayward collection of volunteers before attaining renown for its prowess in combat, particularly at the Battle of Gettysburg.
Bards Alley will have copies available for purchase and a post-discussion book signing. Free registration is required through Mary Riley Styles here: <a href="https://www.mrspl.org/event/draft-july-author-talk-jared-peatman-32525" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">mrspl.org/event/draft-july-author-talk-jared-peatman-32525</a>ABOUT&nbsp;THE&nbsp;BOOKOrganized in the summer of 1862, the 20th Maine, a mix of spirited, independent men from small towns and the backwoods, did not initially inspire soldierly confidence. Its first commander, a West Pointer, was not impressed: “This is a hell of a regiment!” he barked. Hard training and campaigning whipped the regiment into shape, and the 20th would fight hard to give its leader’s judgment new meaning, nowhere more so than at Gettysburg.
By the time the 20th Maine marched into Pennsylvania in July 1863, a new colonel stood at its head, thirty-four-year-old college professor and citizen-soldier Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain. Late on the afternoon of the second day of the Battle of Gettysburg, the regiment found itself on the rocky slope of Little Round Top, the very last regiment in the Union line, just as the Confederates launched an attack to destroy the Union flank. If the 20th broke, the entire Army of the Potomac would be in grave jeopardy – and perhaps the outcome of the battle, perhaps the war. As whooping Alabamians swarmed up the hill, Chamberlain ordered a bayonet charge, and the Maine men overwhelmed the shocked enemy, saving Little Round Top and likely much more. The 20th Maine was a hell of a regiment indeed.
With an eye and ear for the excitement and horror of Civil War combat, Jared Peatman evocatively reconstructs the 20th Maine’s stand on Little Round Top, shedding new light on the battle and explaining just how a ragtag group of soldiers, led by a colonel trained in rhetoric and religion instead of military drill and tactics, became an effective fighting force. More than just an account of a single regiment during its finest hour, this is the story of the Union soldier’s experience in the Civil War battlefield.ABOUT&nbsp;THE&nbsp;AUTHORJared Peatman is senior fellow at the Center for Excellence in Public Leadership at George Washington University, director of curriculum at the Lincoln Leadership Institute at Gettysburg, where he provides history-based leadership training, and a member of the board of directors of the Civil War Roundtable Congress. He is the author of The Long Shadow of Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address (Southern Illinois University Press, 2013). Peatman lives near Washington, DC.

Local Event: VA250 Author Talk: Jared Peatman

VA250 Author Talk: Jared Peatman

Author Jared Peatman discusses his book A Hell of a Regiment and the turning point of the Civil WarOn the heels of Fourth of...

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Author Talk: Ray Nayler on PALACES OF THE CROW

Author Derek Baxter: The Forgotten World War

VA250 Author Talk: Jared Peatman