So it’s half-way through the month of November. Thanksgiving is late this year, so after that Trinity only has one week of classes before finals. Students in my Senior Seminar course read A Prairie Faith earlier this semester. It was a real treat; I wrote it for readers like them. They are now finishing paper drafts based on their own research projects. Students in my first-year course are working their way through a historical monograph on the use of the atomic bomb during World War II. I’ve also begun preparing to teach two new courses in the spring.
A Prairie Faith has been available for ten months. I recently received my first royalty statement from Eerdmans. Almost a thousand copies were sold between February and the end of June. That number is more than my first book sold in twenty years. My deepest thanks to all those who purchased a book for themselves and/or for someone else. I believe that the book also makes an excellent Christmas gift.
About a month ago, on an October Saturday, I was able to do a book signing at the Barnes & Noble store in Orland Park, Illinois. It was a new experience to have to attract people’s attention. All my previous events were either connected with Laura Ingalls Wilder or were talks where people came particularly to hear about Wilder’s life and faith. Even though the table they gave me was close to the entrance to the store, I found that I had to say something to everyone who entered in the hope that some would come over. Fortunately, Eerdmans had made me bookmarks, so I offered people a bookmark and then made a quick pitch if someone accepted one (“It’s a biography of the author of Little House on the Prairie”). I saw two Trinity graduates who had me as their history teacher, and I met a high school student who is hoping to become an author. The store had bought twenty-five books and I ended up selling eight of them. I signed the rest and said that I would advertise on my social media that signed copies are available at the store in Orland Park Place. Many thanks to Val Martinez for setting things up for me.
Thanks again for your all your support!
Links:
The Faith of Laura Ingalls Wilder 