Award-Winning Appalachian Author David Joy to Visit Gardner-Webb University on Oct. 2

Critically-Acclaimed Novelist to Speak and Read From his Latest Work in 7 p.m. Program Open to the Community

BOILING SPRINGS, N.C.—The Gardner-Webb Department of English Language and Literature is hosting author David Joy on Oct. 2 at 7 p.m. in Stewart Hall, Tucker Student Center. The event is part of the Darlene J. Gravett Visiting Writer Series. Joy will discuss his most recent novel, “Those We Thought We Knew,” winner of the 2023 Willie Morris Award and the 2023 Thomas Wolfe Prize. He will also offer a reading and take questions from the audience.

The event is free and open to the public and university community. A limited number of books will be available for purchase at the event.

“We are excited to host David Joy on campus,” said Dr. Chris Davis, chair of the Department of English and Dr. Chris Davis and organizer of the Darlene J. Gravett Visiting Writer Series. “David has established himself among the next generation of North Carolina writers, one who focuses on the contemporary Western North Carolina region in unique and important ways.”

A 12th generation North Carolinian, Joy grew up in the Piedmont along the Catawba River, moved away at 18, and has spent the last 22 years 100 miles west in the mountains of Jackson County. His work is place-driven and deeply rooted to Appalachia, and has been translated into six languages. In 2023, his debut novel was adapted to film starring Billy Bob Thornton and Robin Wright.

He is the author of four additional critically-acclaimed novels, including “When These Mountains Burn” (winner of the 2020 Dashiell Hammett Award), “The Line That Held Us” (winner of the 2018 Southern Book Prize), “The Weight of This World,” and “Where All Light Tends to Go” (Edgar finalist for Best First Novel). His stories and creative nonfiction have appeared in a number of publications, most recently “Garden & Gun,” “The New York Times Magazine,” and “TIME.” He is also the author of the memoir “Growing Gills: A Fly Fisherman’s Journey” and a coeditor of “Gather at the River: Twenty-Five Authors on Fishing,” a book he spearheaded to raise money for the CAST For Kids Foundation.

Joy lives in Tuckasegee, N.C. with his dog Edie Munster.

Auxiliary aids will be made available to persons with disabilities upon request 10 working days prior to the event.  Please call 704-406-4270 or email [email protected] with your request.

About The Darlene J. Gravett Visiting Writer Series

The series is named for Gravett, who joined Gardner-Webb in 1989 as a professor of English and served as chair of the Department of English Language and Literature and dean of the Graduate School. In 2004, she was named associate provost for schools and became the University’s first female member of the senior staff. After her retirement in 2007, she was honored with the title of associate provost emerita. The endowed fund for the writer series was initiated by a gift from Gravett and expresses her commitment to the Department of English Language and Literature.

About Gardner-Webb University

Gardner-Webb is North Carolina’s recognized leader in private, Christian higher education. A Carnegie-Classified Doctoral/Professional University, GWU is home to nine colleges and schools, more than 80 undergraduate and graduate majors, and a world-class faculty. Located on a beautiful 225-acre campus in Boiling Springs, N.C., Gardner-Webb prepares graduates to impact their chosen professions, equips them with the skills to advance the frontiers of knowledge, and inspires them to make a positive and lasting difference in the lives of others. Learn more at gardner-webb.edu.