Gwyn Hyman Rubio, the award-winning author of "Icy Sparks" and "The Woodsman’s Daughter" will deliver a public lecture followed by a question and answer session at the Jesse Stuart Foundation, 1645 Winchester Avenue in downtown Ashland on Friday January 27, beginning at 7p.m. She will be available for a booksigning Friday afternoon from 2:30 - 4:30 and the next morning from 10a.m. to noon.

Gwyn Hyman Rubio was born in Macon, Georgia and grew up in south Georgia. Her father Mac wrote "No Time For Sergeants," a bestseller that became a popular movie starring Andy Griffith.

Mac died of a heart attack at age 39, and Gwyn spent her early life running away from a literary life, because she thought it was the stress of writing that had killed her father.

After serving in the Peace Corps and being involved with a number of service organizations in Appalachia, Gwyn finally surrendered to the siren call of writing. She completed an MFA in Creative Writing in 1986 and, at that point, dedicated herself to her father’s profession.

Since then, Rubio, a resident of central Kentucky, has produced twenty-years-worth of award-winning short stories and novels. Wade Hall, the dean of Kentucky’s literary scholars praises her work and says she "has the makings of a major American writer."

I reviewed Rubio’s novel "Icy Sparks" in the December 25, 2005 issue of the "Independent."

Her second novel, "The Woodsman’s Daughter" is an epic that traces three generation’s of a dysfunctional Georgia family. The story is told by the oldest daughter Dalia, whose father, Monroe Miller, is a self-made millionaire in the south Georgia turpentine industry. His sexual indiscretions have visited syphilis upon his heirs. Dalia’s mother is addicted to laudanum and her younger sister is blind. Dalia becomes an intriguing heroine.

Kentucky’s greatest literary critic calls this book an "American tragedy with a Georgia accent."

We have some major publication projects underway for 2006, and we need to make room for new books, so we would like to sell our excess used furniture which includes desks, bookshelves, and other items that could be used at home or in the workplace. Drop by during our regular working hours and one of our staff members will show you our used furniture. You’ll find some great bargains.

Recently, I loaned a collection of essays on Jesse Stuart to someone writing a paper. I also loaned out several videos. If you borrowed items from the JSF for research purposes, please return them as soon as possible.