It’s been a long, cold winter, but spring is on the way. Make Alabama Bound! a part of your spring! Mark your calendars for April 8, 2006 and join us at the Birmingham Public Library for the eighth annual Alabama Bound!, a celebration of books and authors with Alabama connections. This event is free and open to the public, so don’t miss your chance to come and mingle with our authors and find out all about their latest books.

Among our speakers this year will be Allen Barra, author of The Last Coach, a new biography of football coach Paul "Bear" Bryant. The author of several sports-related books, Barra is scoring excellent reviews with this life story of the legendary Bryant. Biography fans will also enjoy another of our featured speakers, Paul Hemphill, who is the author of Lovesick Blues, the life story of country music superstar Hank Williams.

Sports fans will want to be in the front row to hear from Clyde Bolton (Stop the Presses) with his tales from more than thirty years as a sports writer for The Birmingham News, and from Kirk McNair (What it Means to be Crimson Tide) with stories of some of the most famous figures in Alabama football. Readers who are on the lookout for children’s books will welcome back local author Charles Ghigna (Oh, My Pumpkin Pie!) and poet Peter Huggins, who has just published his first book for children (Trosclair and the Alligator). History buffs will be eager to hear from Don Keith (In the Course of Duty).

For those who prefer to leave the real world behind for a while and dive into fiction, Alabama Bound! is proud to present novelists Kathleen Sherwood (McKenna), Joe Hilley (Double Take), and Sonny Brewer (The Poet of Tolstoy Park). But Alabama Bound! is also a multi-genre event and those readers who demand a variety of formats are certain to find a good read to suit their tastes. They can choose from the work of poet Doris Davenport (Madness Like Morning Glories), playwright John Northrop (Mayor Todd), and cartoonist Scott Stantis (Prickly City).

Rounding out the day at Alabama Bound! are several authors who present fascinating looks at Alabama and the South from a variety of angles: Deborah Ford (Grits Friends are Forevah) with a celebration of Southern women; Andy Duncan (Alabama Curiosities) with his look at the offbeat side of our state; Kieran Quinlan (Strange Kin) with an examination of the relationship between Ireland and the American South; and Michael Swindle (Slouching Towards Birmingham) with a journalistic memoir of his travels and adventures.

Alabama Bound! will also welcome representatives from the books and magazine industry, who will have representatives available to discuss their publications and submission guidelines, as well as various writers’ groups. Past participants have included Birmingham Arts Journal, Heritage Publishing, University of Alabama Press, Alabama Media Professionals, and Alabama Writers’ Forum among many others.

All Alabama Bound! activities and presentations will take place on the first floor of the Central library. BPL staff will be operating the Atrium Cafe and patrons are encouraged to visit the bookstore, which will be selling copies of books by the participating authors as well as a variety of Alabama Bound! merchandise.

So mark your spring calendar now for Alabama Bound! 2006 at the Birmingham Public Library from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m., Saturday, April 8. For all the latest news and updates, please visit our website at http://www.alabamabound.org/