Following the Mississippi Book Festival’s initial round of author announcements last week, we now know another author who will be attending this year’s literary lawn party.
During an interview on The Gallo Show, Mississippi Book Festival executive director Ellen Daniels revealed that J.L. Holloway will be joining a star-studded list of writers that includes Erik Larson, Angie Thomas, Sebastian Junger, Kate DiCamillo, Grace Elizabeth Hale, Ron Rash, Maurice Carlos Ruffin, Kaveh Akbar, Rachel Khong, and Aimee Nezhukumatahil.
Holloway, a native of Prentiss who now splits his time between Ridgeland and Nashville, Tenn., overcame poverty with a remarkable willingness to work, which included picking cotton at the early age of four. He went on to beat the odds and became a successful entrepreneur owning businesses ranging from rental equipment to offshore drilling to aerospace leasing.
His new book, Nothing to Lose, is a limited-edition memoir that tells the story of those businesses plus what Holloway had to do to get to success and the eccentric cast of characters he encountered along the way. The book was made available for purchase last month.
“Since you brought up Mr. Holloway, I will tell you something that we haven’t told anybody else. He is coming to the festival,” Daniels said. “That is a great book … It is an incredible story.”
Outside of Holloway, one of the other featured authors Daniels is most excited about is Larson. The non-fiction novelist has written a number of bestsellers, including The Devil in the White City and The Splendid and the Vile. His newest work, The Demon of Unrest, takes a closer look at the pivotal five months between the election of Abraham Lincoln and the start of the Civil War in 1861.
“Erik Larson, he is as big as it gets when you talk about writing (about) history. Because it is so narrative and not just like dry facts. I mean he really makes a story about it,” Daniels said. “He’s been to Jackson before and he is so beloved, so we are really excited to get him to the festival.”
While the public is now aware of eleven authors attending the Mississippi Book Festival, more announcements are expected leading up to the event’s new date of Sept. 14. The festival welcomes thousands annually to the grounds of the State Capitol and Galloway United Methodist Church.
You can learn more about the Mississippi Book Festival here.
