Ann Saab and Lollie White to Engage in Conversation about Their Books on October 29

 
Thursday, October 29: A Conversation with Emeritus Authors Ann Saab and Lollie White.
4 p.m.
Hodges Reading Room Jackson Library 2nd floor, UNCG.

 Alex Haley, author of Roots, once answered the question of why his novel became so popular.  "It came at the right time," he modestly replied.

When is the best time to publish a novel?  When it’s ready, two recent novelists with long ties to UNCG might reply.

Ann Saab

Lollie White

Ann Saab (History) and Laura (Lollie) White (English) are two retired professors at UNCG who have recently published novels after retiring from the classroom and other university responsibilities.  The Friends of the UNCG Libraries invite you to an afternoon conversation between the two at 4 pm on Thursday, October 29 in the Hodges Reading Room of Jackson Library on the second floor.

Dr. Saab, now retired after a long tenure as a UNCG history professor and department head, is the author of Bathsheba’s Book: A Woman’s Tale.  She originally wrote the novel as part of a thesis for the MALS program. Saab used her expertise in Middle Eastern history and her experience living in Turkey and Lebanon, to bring a unique perspective to Bathsheba’s story. The story is told from Bathsheba's view—from teenager to Queen Mother.

“Bathsheba has been seen in some circles as a slut,” publicity for the book notes, "but in others she is highly esteemed, a role model for motherhood as the successful mother and nurturer of King Solomon, who became the ruler at Israel's most glorious time."

Starting as a simple country girl, she experienced the richness, intrigue and perplexities of life in David's palace before winning her way to be the Queen Mother in Solomon's kingdom. Saab’s book tells her story of that journey.  As Rabbi Eliezer Havivi of Beth David Synagogue in Greensboro wrote, “Ann Saab fills in the flesh and blood and heart and soul of Bathsheba — the woman who was the object of David’s desire. In this imaginative, first-person account, she weaves passion and plotting, daily life and war, Biblical characters, both attested and invented.”

The book’s cover art is “David and the Harp” by Marc Chagall, used with the permission of the Chagall estate.

Dr. White wrote her novel Play Music over three years, basing it on the experiences of the parents of her first piano teacher and family friend, whose piano lessons provided “my first tantalizing taste of Europe.”

White’s novel follows the lives of Liesl and Hugo Huber, Viennese Jewish immigrants to New York at the turn of the 20th century.  Hugo finds work as a musician and Liesl designs costumes for the Metropolitan Opera, and their friends are the artists of opera and vaudeville, including the Enrico Caruso.   Hugo’s career soars when he masters the art of musical accompaniment for silent movies, and he is hired as a conductor of the prestigious motion picture orchestra at the Eastman Theater in Rochester. 

A review in Kirkus notes: "Colorful glimpses into the worlds of classical music and opera, Prohibition-era America, and the timing and scoring of music for silent films...  White's novel is reminiscent of Ragtime in its fictional depiction of an emerging cultural change. An entertaining, ambitious historical saga infused with the love of music and inspired by fascinating real-life figures."

The program is free and open to the public.  No reservations are required.  Copies of the books will be available for sale and signing.

Please contact Barry Miller at barry_miller@uncg.edu or 336-256-0112 at least one week prior to the event to request disability accommodations. In all situations, a good faith effort (up until the time of the event) will be made to provide accommodations.