Author Sue Monk Kidd Will Lecture At Fairfield University

FAIRFIELD — Sue Monk Kidd, the best-selling author of The Secret Life of Bees, will discuss her new book, The Mermaid Chair, at Fairfield University’s John A. Barone Campus Center Oak Room on Monday, April 24, at 7 pm. A book signing will follow.

The story in this newest release centers around Jessie Sullivan, whose mother Nelle, a devout Catholic, has committed an unthinkable act of violence. Jessie returns to the tiny South Carolina island where her mother lives, finding solace in the familiarity of the place and deepening her ties with her mother’s closest friends, a circle of women she has known since childhood.

Near Nelle’s home is a Benedictine abbey, a place that has always been special to Jessie. Inside the abbey is a beautiful and mysterious chair with ornately carved mermaids that is dedicated to Saint Senara, who, legend claims, was a mermaid before her conversion.

The Mermaid Chair is the winner of the 2005 Quill Award for General Fiction.

The cost to attend the lecture and book signing is $8. Call 203-254-4307 to reserve a seat.

The Fairfield University campus is on North Benson Road.