Stephen Graham Jones joins us to talk scary stories, horror, and more with horror expert Becky Spratford. Jones is the New York Times bestselling author of The Only Good Indians and Don’t Fear the Reaper, and a prolific author of more than twenty-five books spanning genres. He received an NEA Fellowship and won several awards including: the Ray Bradbury Award from the Los Angeles Times, the Bram Stoker Award, the Shirley Jackson Award, the Jesse Jones Award for Best Work of Fiction from the Texas Institute of Letters, the Independent Publishers Award for Multicultural Fiction, and the Alex Award from American Library Association. He is the Ivena Baldwin Professor of English at the University of Colorado Boulder.

Illinois librarian and Readers’ Advisor Becky Spratford will join Stephen in conversation. She trains library staff all over the world on how to match books with readers through the local public library and runs the critically acclaimed blog RA for All. A devout horror fan, she writes a horror review column for Library Journal, is the author of The Reader’s Advisory Guide to Horror, and is a proud member of the Horror Writers Association.

This event is made possible by Illinois Libraries Present, a statewide collaboration among public libraries offering premier events. ILP is funded in part by a grant awarded by the Illinois State Library, a department of the Office of Secretary of State, using funds provided by the U.S. Institute of Museum and Library Services, under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA).

Click here to register for this free event.

Please note: You must select The Hayner Public Library District from the How Did You Hear About This Event? drop-down menu when registering for this event. Libraries are listed alphabetically by our full formal names (The Hayner Public Library District).

In addition to an evening with Stephen Graham Jones, the following programs are also part of the  2023-2024 Illinois Libraries Present season:

Tuesday, October 17, 7:00 p.m. — Children’s book author and illustrator Grace Lin discusses food, family, and folktales, along with a drawing demonstration.

Wednesday, November 8, 7:00 p.m. — Netflix’s Bake Squad star and owner of the Chicago-based bakery Justice of the Pies Maya-Camille Broussard shows us how to bake with love.

Wednesday, December 6, 7:00 p.m. — Psychotherapist and New York Times bestselling author Lori Gottlieb helps us survive the holidays.

December (Date and Time TBD) — A stream of The Nutcracker, danced by The Royal Ballet, with music played by the orchestra of the Royal Opera House.