Wednesday may be the first day of fall, but Stratford will have one last taste of summer on Tuesday.

 New York Times bestselling author Mary Alice Monroe will visit the Tift Auditorium from 9:30 to 10:30 a.m. She will talk to the fifth through eighth graders about her new book, “The Islanders.’’

After she is finished in the auditorium, she will be going to the Olsen Library for a reception. At the reception, high school students will have the opportunity to meet her and have their books signed from 10:30 am to 12:00pm.

This book is the first of hers that targets middle school students. All the middle school students have been introduced to her book, so they are very excited to meet her. 

Ms. Monroe has written 28 books. All these books incorporated summer as a main theme. Her books also have the beach and ecological elements. Just a few of these books include “The Summer Wind,”  “The Summer Girls” and “The Book Club.”  Some of her bestselling books are in her Beach House series.

Ms. Monroe is not just a New York Times bestselling author. She is also the winner of the 2008 South Carolina Center for Book Award for Writing, the 2014  South Carolina Award for Library Excellence, the 2015 SW Florida Author of Distinction Award, the RT Lifetime Achievement Award, and the International Book Award for Great Fiction.

Stratford was able to get in contact with Ms. Monroe through a Stratford alumni whose wife is a publicist to Mary Alice Monroe, according to head librarian Mrs. Beth Davis.