She's done it again. Joshilyn Jackson, that is. Isn't it exciting to have our own Atlanta author who is talented and famous and blurbed by the likes of Sara Gruen (Water for Elephants) and Haven Kimmel (A Girl Named Zippy)? Gruen says Joshilyn has a "storyteller's easy grace," and Kimmel calls it "a genius for unveiling the complexities of the South." What compliments from these wonderful writers, but Jackson seems to take it all in stride.
If you haven't read Gods in Alabama or Between, Georgia, either is a good starting place to get acquainted with our Atlanta gal. Each of her novels starts with a bang, one of those omg, what's-coming-next type beginnings. Her latest, The Girl Who Stopped Swimming, is Jackson's best writing to date. Joshilyn knows how to take a serious subject (like someone drowning in your swimming pool!) and surround it with quirky, believable characters who are funny and irritating at the same time, just like your own family. She writes a good drama with elements of a mystery novel and always gives you someone to root for. The sister, Thalia, was my favorite character in Girl because she was bold and unconventional and so funny, just like Joshilyn herself. Our hometown author has a flair for justice in all her books too. Not always the serious to-kill-a-mockingbird-type justice, but individualized, often vigilante style retribution that you applaud but wouldn't want your mother to know about.
The author gets around a lot, speaking at Margaret Mitchell House and Decatur Library and she's been on t.v. and . . . did I mention FoxTale Book Shoppe???? Yes, she is coming Saturday, April 12 at 1pm. You'll want to treat yourself and hear this lady. She is the queen of bloggers (www.joshilynjackson.com) and the most spontaneous speaker you can imagine. She's "real people," unpretentious and interesting and witty. I think she could have a career in stand up comedy if she ever gets bored with writing. But it's not likely that will happen.
If you haven't been to an author event in a while, this one will be worth the effort. Be prepared to get absorbed and unable to function until you finish this book. Then feel proud that this excellent author is one of us, an Atlanta girl turned novelist. Meet her at FoxTale Saturday, the 12th, and you can tell all your friends "I knew her when."
