On September 10th Phyllis Harrison attended the Bookmarks Festival of Books in Downtown Winston Salem, North Carolina.
On June 4th Phyllis Harrison attended the Eastern North Carolina Family History Fair from 9:00 AM to 6:00 PM at the New Bern Riverfront Convention Center.
On April 2nd Phyllis Harrison was the guest speaker at The Huguenot Society of North Carolina's luncheon in Chapel Hill, NC.
On October 23rd from 2:00 - 5:00 PM, Phyllis Harrison signed books at: Barnhills, 811 Burke Street, Winston Salem, NC 27101. Call for information 336-602-1363 or write onlyatbarnhills@yahoo.com. The website is www.onlyatbarnhills.com
In July, Phyllis Harrison attended the Fiction Among Friends workshop with Irene Sherlock at The Willows Bistro in Warrensburg, NY.
In April, Phyllis Harrison attended The Huguenot Society of North Carolina‘s luncheon featuring guest speaker Dr Swihjin Pak, Reformation scholar of Duke University Divinity School.
Enter www.bookreads.com giveaway (located under Plowshares in the Palatinate ) to win a free copy!
January 12th, 2010 7:00PM - 8:00 PM– Phyllis Harrison talked about her books with three other area authors at the Eva Perry Branch of the Wake County NC Public Library. Link here.
On December 7th, Phyllis Harrison was interviewed by Audrey Layden and Paul Nagy on Carrboro Book Beat, radio station WCOM-FM . Link here to hear the hour-long discussion of “The Fires of Europe” and “Plowshares in the Palatinate.”
North Carolina Literary Festival (www.ncliteraryfestival.org)
Location: UNC Chapel Hill Campus, Chapel Hill , NC
Phyllis Harrison, author of Fires of Europe, and North Carolina resident, was at the North Carolina Literary Festival. The NCLF featured John Grisham, Elizabeth Edwards and many other wonderful authors
The Fires of Europe is now available through many public library Interlibrary Loan programs. The next book is anticipated to go to publication in autumn, 2008.
Political and social upheaval continues and spreads across the European continent but lives go on as many families escape the terror and seek refuge in the Rhine River Valley .
Audio books will be in the future, too, but there is no definite date yet on these. In the meantime, check out my blog on Amazon.com, accessible from their site and The Fires of Europe page. Share your thoughts or family history stories there or to my e-mail on this site. Thanks for reading my book!
Subject of newly published novel is nearly forgotten time period in history, roots of religious freedom in America
October 30, 2007- iUniverse, Inc. announced today the publication of The Fires of Europe, Phyllis Harrison’s novel set during the religious struggles in Europe during the Thirty Years War and the Huguenot (Protestant) persecutions of 17th century France. During this time prevailing religious beliefs came under scrutiny and new ideas about religious freedom were formed, ideas that were subsequently included when America’s founding fathers sat down to write the American Constitution. The release of the novel coincided with the celebration in the New York City area of the three hundred and sixty-second anniversary of the Flushing Remonstrance, the first written declaration of religious freedom on American soil, composed by average citizens who, having suffered much to obtain this freedom, refused to relinquish it or allow others to lose it without a protest.
The Fires of Europe details the changes and struggles in a young man’s life just as he is coming of age in 17th Century France. It contrasts the circumstances in his native country with the Netherlands, a major world sanctuary of the day. Young Gilles Montroville’s life circumstances radically change from privilege and being above the law, and not being much concerned about anyone else’s situation, to becoming a miserable outcast, waiting in prison for his own execution by burning at the stake. Not even privilege, wealth, or the intervention of powerful allies can save him when authorities decide to make a public example of him in reprisal for his standing up for what he believes is the truth. Set during a time in history when there was unprecedented global trade and the creation of the first stock and commodity markets, it was also a time of extreme political, religious, and personal upheaval leading to reevaluation of personal and collective values. The all-powerful kings who had previously ruled with impunity both countries and the European world’s major religion, Catholicism, attempted to use whatever force was necessary to stop those changes and regain control over their subject’s lives.
At certain times, notably at the beginnings of new centuries, or in election years, there is a tendency to review history; where we have been, where we are going, and how we got here. Although the events of the 17th century took place a long time ago in terms of individual human lives, they have relevance today, particularly because the outcome of these conflicts led to the basis of American laws. Have we been over this territory before? Places and dates alone can tell a compelling story, especially if we can imagine ourselves living in Boston in 1773, Atlanta in 1863, San Francisco in 1906, New York City in 2001, Spain in 1492, Wittenburg in 1517, London in 1605, Paris in 1789, or Leipzig in 1813.
Author Phyllis Harrison grew up in the mountains of New York and was always interested in history. After a career in finance and law, her love of history and genealogy led her research to surprising places and historically significant dates. Her previous publications include business and editorial pieces but this is her first novel.
The Fires of Europe can be purchased from this website (by Email), Quail Ridge Books, Bulls Head Bookshop, iUniverse Online Bookstore and other major outlets. The ISBN numbers are 0-595-44349-4 and eBook editions are 0-59588678-7. It was published on October 30, 2007 and is available in eBook editions.
Plowshares in the Palatinate is the story of one family’s move to the Rhenish or Lower Palatinate area in present-day Germany’s Rhine River Valley. At the close of the seventeenth century, a call was sent out from the archbishop of Canterbury in London, who needed help in resettling the “poor Palatines”, whose numbers had overwhelmed the charitable institutions that were trying to feed them in England. These refugees eventually made their way to England, Ireland, and the American colonies. They were identified as “Huguenots”, French Protestants, but who were they? Why had they gone there and what had they been doing while living in this forsaken wilderness for a few generations?
The Palatine descendants were resettled in America from New Paltz to Savannah, sent to some of the most severe conditions that the new American colonies had to offer, but the refugees survived. This stubborn refusal to give up on life speaks to their faith and to the hardships with which they had already become accustomed while living under similarly extreme conditions in the Pfaltzland.
Plowshares in the Palatinate can be purchased from this website and iUniverse Online Bookstore. The ISBN numbers are 978-14401-5217-7 and 978-14401-5218-4. E-book editions are available.
Media Contact: Phyllis Harrison at www.phyllisharrison.com or
Please feel free to contact Phyllis Harrison by Email with any comments, questions or for speaking engagement and interviews.