The Georgia Writers Hall of Fame will begin celebrations of its 20th anniversary with a reading of inductee Philip Lee Williams’ 20th novel.
Williams’ book launch event is scheduled for 5:30-7:30 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 30, the acclaimed writer’s 70th birthday, at the Richard B. Russell Building Special Collections Libraries at the University of Georgia.
The celebration, which is open free to the public, is entitled “PLW 20/20” because it celebrates Williams’ 20th book being published in the year 2020. At the event, sponsored by the Georgia Writers Hall of Fame and the University of Georgia Libraries, Williams will read from his new novel Far Beyond the Gates and autograph copies afterward.
“I am touched by my alma mater’s kindness in celebrating the publication day of this novel in one of my favorite places,” said Williams, who graduated from UGA in 1972. “And to do it on my birthday adds a special touch. I look forward to seeing many friends and readers at the event.”
Williams was inducted into the Georgia Writers Hall of Fame in 2010. The novelist, poet, and essayist is the winner of many literary awards including the Michael Shaara Prize in 2004 for his novel A Distant Flame. He is also a winner of the Townsend Prize for Fiction for his novel The Heart of a Distant Forest, and has been named Georgia Author of the Year four times in three different categories. In 2007, he was recipient of a Georgia Governor’s Award for the Arts and Humanities and is a winner of the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Georgia Writers Association.
Registration for the event is requested and available athttps://calendar.libs.uga.edu/event/6143727
The Russell Special Collections Building is located at 330 S. Hull St. in Athens. Parking is available in a nearby parking deck.