Elizabeth McCracken will read from her latest short story collection, Thunderstruck & Other Stories, at the University of Tennessee’s Writers in the Library on Wednesday, October 22, at 7 p.m. in the Lindsay Young Auditorium of the John C. Hodges Library. The reading is free and open to the public.

McCracken is the author of five books, most recently Thunderstruck, currently on the long list for the 2014 National Book Award in fiction. Her other books include National Book Award finalist The Giant’s House and New York Times Book Review Notable Books An Exact Replica of a Figment of My Imagination and Niagara Falls All Over Again. McCracken is currently James A. Michener Chair of Creative Writing at the University of Texas at Austin.

Thunderstruck is a collection of nine stories featuring a variety of eclectic characters, including a girl ghost, the human musical saw, and two three-legged dogs, among others. Publishers Weekly heralded the work as “mesmerizing and strange,” and commented that McCracken “transforms life’s dead ends into transformational visions.”

In addition to the reading, the author will participate in a Q&A discussion about her work at 3 p.m. in 1210 McClung Tower on October 22. The discussion is open to all UT students and faculty.

Writers in the Library hosts readings by noted authors of fiction, poetry, and creative nonfiction. The series is sponsored by the UT Libraries and the UT Creative Writing Program in association with the John C. Hodges Better English Fund.

Christopher Hebert, the UT Libraries’ Jack E. Reese Writer-in-Residence, emcees Writers in the Library events. Hebert and Marilyn Kallet, director of the UT Creative Writing Program, have lined up an exceptional group of authors to read in the 2014–2015 academic year. Visit lib.utk.edu/writers for a complete schedule.
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For further information contact Marilyn Kallet, Director, UT Creative Writing Program (mkallet@utk.edu), or Christopher Hebert, Writer-in-Residence, UT Libraries (chebert3@utk.edu).

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