Barbara Kingsolver. Photo by Annie Griffiths
The Literacy Council of Buncombe County will host the 11th annual Authors for Literacy Dinner and Silent Auction on Thursday, November 29, from 6–9 p.m. at the Crowne Plaza Resort Expo Center. This year’s keynote speaker will be New York Times bestselling author Barbara Kingsolver. “We have hoped to have the opportunity to host Barbara Kingsolver for a number of years,” says Ashley Lasher, executive director for The Literacy Council. “She has a very strong readership in Buncombe County, including many of our staff members, and we knew that our community would be excited to hear her speak.”
Barbara Kingsolver is the author of nine bestselling works of fiction, as well as books of poetry, essays and the influential nonfiction bestseller, Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: A Year of Food Life. She has won or been a finalist for major awards including the PEN/Faulkner, Pulitzer, Dayton Literary Peace Prize and the UK’s Orange Prize. In 2000, she was awarded the National Humanities Medal, our country’s highest honor for service through the arts.
The Literacy Council serves more than 300 students and more than 1,600 book recipients annually through four programs: Adult Education, English for Speakers of Other Languages, the Augustine Project, which serves lowincome children, and Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library. “We give opportunities to people who don’t believe they have a second chance to learn,” says Lasher. “Besides being a principal fundraiser, Authors for Literacy is also a vehicle to promote the Literacy Council’s mission: to increase comprehensive literacy and English language skills through specialized instruction by trained tutors and access to literacy resources.”
The Crowne Plaza Resort Expo Center is located at 1 Resort Drive in Asheville. General admission tickets are $95. For more information or to purchase tickets, visit LitCouncil.com or call LuAnn Arena at 828.254.3442, extension 206.
