It'll seem like old times for a lot of folks in Greenwood tonight when Lewis Nordan comes to town.
He and novelist Olympia Vernon will sign books and visit with attendees at a reception from 5:30 to 7 p.m. at Turnrow Book Co. on Howard St.
Nordan won the Southern Book Award for his novel "Wolf Whistle," which is built around the 1955 lynching of Emmett Till, a 14-year-old Chicago youth who got fresh with a Money, Mississippi store owner's wife.
Nordan, a Forest native, grew up in the Itta Bena. He has set several of his works in the Delta.
"When I began recommending him around here, people didn't know who I was talking about," said Jamie Kornegay, one of the owners of Turnrow Book Co.
"Then - they'd always say, 'Oh, you mean Buddy.' I think he writes the funniest, most imaginative fiction about the Delta. He's one of a small handful of the South's most vibrant and essential contemporary writers. Every serious Delta reader should check out at least one of his books."
Vernon is a younger novelist, who grew up near Osyka on the border between Louisiana and Mississippi. Her first novel, "Eden" won high critical acclaim. She followed it with "Logic" in 2004.
"Her novels tend to be set in rural Mississippi, and critics have raved about her wonderful, lush prose and fearless subject matter," Kornegay said.
"Her brand new novel is called 'A Killing in This Town,' and it's a powerful story about racial violence. Too many fans of Mississippi literature are unaware of her talent, I think," he said. "She's also a very interesting person, so I hope we get a good crowd to meet her."
