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Meet Maryland Author Casey Cep

Casey Cep, staff writer at The New Yorker, will join us live on Zoom to discuss her first book, "Furious Hours: Murder, Fraud, and The Last Trial of Harper Lee".

Furious Hours: Murder, Fraud, and the Last Trial of Harper Lee is a true-crime story.  In the 1970's Reverend Willie Maxwell was a rural preacher accused of murdering five of his family members.  His motive was insurance money.  Maxwell was acquitted of his crimes, thanks to the expertise of his shrewd lawyer. Several years later, Maxwell was murdered at the funeral of his 16-year-old stepdaughter, by the girl's brother Robert Burns.  Burns was acquitted of his crime, by reason of insanity, by the same lawyer who had succeeded in keeping Reverend Maxwell out of jail.

Beloved author Harper Lee, attended Burns's Alabama trial.  Lee's intention in attending the standing-room-only trial, was to write her own true-crime story surrounding Maxwell's supposed crimes. Though Lee was never able to finish the book, or as some say, never able to get the book off the ground, author Casey Cep took up the challenge.  With countless hours of her own research and access to Lee's notes and research, Cep has woven the fascinating tale for us of Reverend Maxwell, his savvy lawyer, Maxwell's murderer, and the life and writing challenges of writer Harper Lee.

Don't miss this exciting discussion!  Register to receive the link to the Zoom meeting the day before the event.  Copies of Cep's books can be found in our catalog.  Signed copies will be available for purchase at The White Rabbit bookstore in California, Md.

If you require an ASL interpreter or other accommodation for this event, please contact us at virtualservices@stmlib.org with as much notice as possible, but no later than five business days before the event date.

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