Beer And Books? Sounds Delicious
By Betsy Mikel in Arts & Entertainment on Dec 1, 2010 9:20PM
With holiday shopping in full swing, Sheffield’s has an interesting event for anyone looking for gifts for bookish friends and family. Tomorrow the bar will host four local authors for a Books and Beer Holiday Shopping Night. Bestselling Chicago authors Marcus Sakey, Laura Caldwell, David Ellis, and Gillian Flynn will be signing their books as the bartenders get everyone drunken and merry. All purchases will be 10 percent off, and purchases of four or more books will be 20% off.
Local book publicist Dana Kaye thought of the idea based on a holiday shopping night in Andersonville where bars open for “wine while you shop.” She thought books and beer would make a happy marriage. To ensure that there’d be gifts for purchase for all types of readers, Kaye selected authors from different genres. “Laura Caldwell's suspense novels are more sassy and female oriented, Marcus Sakey's are dark and gritty, David Ellis writes legal thrillers, and Gillian Flynn writes very literary, southern-gothic type mysteries. That way, there's something for every reader on your list,” she said.
A little bit about the authors:
Marcus Sakey: The dark and gritty author of crime novels and thrillers, including Good People and The Amateurs. From Chicago magazine: Ben Affleck’s production company has optioned Sakey’s first novel, The Blade Itself, while Tobey Maguire has picked up the rights to Sakey’s third book, Good People. And it’s not just Hollywood’s A-list lining up to pay homage: Reviewing his second novel, At the City’s Edge, the Chicago Tribune anointed Sakey “the reigning prince of crime fiction.”
Laura Caldwell: a crime fiction author and now nonfiction author of Long Way Home based on her own experience in the criminal justice system. Caldwell is a lawyer turned writer and is also a professor at Loyola University Chicago School of Law.
David Ellis: served as the House Prosecutor who convicted former Governor Rod Blagojevich in the impeachment trial before the Illinois Senate. The lawyer also writes legal thrillers, and was awarded Edgar Allan Poe Award for his first novel, Line of Vision.
Gillian Flynn: the former television critic for Entertainment Weekly whose debut novel, Sharp Objects, was an Edgar Award finalist the first book to win two of Britain’s Dagger Awards in one year. Her second book, Dark Places is another crime thriller is an investigation of a 24-year-old murder.