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When the Southern Light Reflects Off the Winter’s Snow,
All Hell Breaks Loose in Pulitzer Prize-Nominated Book
CHAPEL HILL, NC — A cast of peculiar characters — both dead
and alive — march to an ominous beat in the quirky, darkly
humorous new book from Eileen Saint Lauren,
Southern Light, Oxford, Mississippi. Set
against the backdrop of a Mississippi winter, Southern
Light is
a William Faulkner-flavored gothic tale that culminates with
an unforgettable Hitchcockian twist.
“In this book, you’ve got a little bit of Faulkner, but
also, there’s an astonishing surprise toward the end of the
book,” Saint Lauren said in a recent interview. “I have a
lot of justifiable homicides in my work!”
At the center of the story is Eleanor Franklin, who will
turn 88 on her upcoming birthday. Among those invited to
celebrate with her are William Faulkner himself, a cat in a
tailored coat, an eccentric caretaker who is a Holocaust
survivor, a historic Confederate American Civil War ghost
and the supernatural impact of the Southern light.
Woven with an air of uneasy intrigue, the story takes place
primarily in December 1960, unfolding in the town of Oxford,
Mississippi, near Faulkner's long-time home of Rowan Oak,
now located on the property of the University of
Mississippi.
Southern mystique permeates throughout, as Saint Lauren
blends the real and the fantastic, provoking readers to
contemplate and understand people whose life experiences and
perceptions appear outside the norm though are very real.
Hidden among the typical tree-shaded antebellum Southern
homes and façade of small-town peacefulness are tormented
souls and a dark, 25-year-old secret to which only one of
the troubled characters is privy.
The unexplainable and the supernatural impact of place and
spirit controls the people and the events in Southern
Light, Oxford, Mississippi.
“Together, the haunted characters and plot seal the message
of this timeless novel: ‘Truth can stand alone in any light
but more so amid the Southern light,’” she added.
About the Author
Eileen Saint Lauren was born in Hattiesburg and raised in
the once two red-light town, Petal, Mississippi. She is an
award-winning photojournalist and news and feature writer
who worked early in her career as a commentator for Nebraska
Public Radio and at Smith College Museum of Art. After
graduating from Jones College in Ellisville, Mississippi,
with an Associate of Arts Degree majoring in Journalism, she
continued her education at the University of
Nebraska-Lincoln where she received a Bachelor of Arts
Degree majoring in English. She then continued on with her
education in creative writing at The Washington Center, Duke
University, the University of Massachusetts Amherst and the
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She divides her
writing time between Chapel Hill, North Carolina, and
Madison, Mississippi. She was blind for three years due to
back-to-back retina detachments at an early age. Although
she did not regain her full sight, she is functional though
visually disadvantaged.
Her first book, Goodlife,
Mississippi,
was sold in 10 countries and was a finalist for the 14th
Annual International Book Award 2023.
For more information, visit http://eileensaintlauren.net, or
follow the author on social media at http://www.facebook.com/EileenSaintLaurenWriter and www.instagram.com/eileensaintlauren/.
Barnes & Noble link: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/southern-light-oxford-mississippi-eileen-saint-lauren/1144003370
Amazon link: https://www.amazon.com/Southern-Oxford-Mississippi-Eileen-Lauren/dp/B0CJ44QCJH
Southern Light, Oxford, Mississippi
Publisher: Eileen Saint Lauren Books, LLC
Release Date: September 26, 2023
ISBN: 979-8-9861963-5-0
Available from www.barnesandnoble.com, www.amazon.com,
and all independent bookstores
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