Lee Smith, Hal Crowther Lectures April 18-19

Lee Smith, the acclaimed Appalachian author of favorite novels such as "Fair and Tender Ladies" and "Oral History," will present two lectures at The University of Virginia's College at Wise April 18-19.

Smith will be joined by her husband, Hal Crowther, a noted Southern columnist and the author of "Cathedrals of Kudzu, A Personal Landscape of the South," a collection of essays, many first published in the Oxford American.

The Friends of the Wise County Public Library will host Smith for a reception, reading and book signing at 3 p.m. on Thursday, April 18, at the Wise County Public Library.

Smith and Crowther will each discuss their works during a lecture at UVa-Wise. The lecture, which will be followed by a book signing, begins at 7:30 p.m. in the UVa-Wise Chapel of All Faiths. The event is free and open to the public.

The public is also invited to attend lectures by Smith and Crowther at 1 p.m. on Friday, April 19 in the UVa-Wise Chapel of All Faiths.

In addition to their public presentations, Smith and Crowther will be special guests in several UVa-Wise classes.

A native of Grundy, Smith is the author of nine novels, including "Family Linen," "Saving Grace," "The Devil's Dream," and "Black Mountain Breakdown," as well as three collections of stories including her most recent book, "News of the Spirit." A retired professor of English at North Carolina State University, Smith has received many honors including an Academy Award in Fiction from the American Academy of Arts and Letters in 1999. Crowther is a former editor and critic for Time and Newsweek, a screenwriter, and a contributor to the Oxford American.

He is the winner of the 2001 Lillian Smith Book Award for Commentary, the 2001 Fellowship Prize for Nonfiction from the Fellowship of Southern Writers, and Forward Magazines' 2000 Book of the Year Award for Essays.

Copies of books by Smith and Crowther are available for sale at the UVa-Wise Campus Store and the Wise County Public Library.

The lectures are funded in part by Verizon and the Colgate Darden Lecture Fund. For more information, contact the Office of College Relations at 276-328-0130.