A Weekend of Bookish Mayhem
On Saturday and Sunday, BookHampton is celebrating spring with Mayhem, a weekend festival of mysteries and mystery writers, ranging from old childhood favorites to the newest — dare we say it? — cutting-edge whodunits, featuring well-known authors reading from, or talking about, their works.
On Saturday at 10 a.m in the East Hampton store, Kelly Killoren Bensimon, a personality on “The Real Housewives of New York City” and the author of “In the Spirit of the Hamptons,” will host a marathon reading of Carolyn Keene’s timeless Nancy Drew mystery “The Secret of the Old Clock.” Any and all readers under the age of 16 will be invited to step up and join in to read for a few paragraphs. The event will be taped for future broadcast.
At 2 p.m. Saturday, also in East Hampton, Linda Fairstein, a former assistant district attorney and chief of New York City’s sex crimes unit, will be BookHampton’s guest author in the “Conversations With” series. Ms. Fairstein has written several best-selling novels featuring Alexandra Cooper, an intrepid prosecutor, that are set at New York City landmarks. Her talk will focus on “The City as Character.” Her latest book, “Silent Mercy,” features churches around Manhattan, including the Cathedral of St. John the Divine in Morningside Heights.
In the Southampton store at 2 p.m., junior detectives are again asked to join Ms. Killoren Bensimon as she explores and tapes some classic young-reader favorites: “Nate the Great,” “Cam Jansen,” and “Encylopedia Brown.” Everyone under 10 years old is invited to read a chapter, even if a little help from an older sibling or parent is needed.
For those who can handle a little more gore between the covers, BookHampton in Sag Harbor will offer a table of tough guys at 3 p.m. Saturday: Lorenzo Carcaterra (“Sleepers”), Kenneth Wishnia (“The Fifth Servant”), Justin Evans (“The White Devil”), Wallace Stroby (“Cold Shot to the Heart”), Reed Farrel Coleman (“Innocent Monster”), and Michael Atkinson, a longtime film critic and author of the “Hemingway” series, will discuss “Talk the Talk and Write the Walk: The How-to of a Thriller.”
Quick cut back to the East Hampton store at 4 p.m., where Ms. Fairstein will introduce three new mystery writers: Karen Bergreen, the author of “Following Polly,” Hilary Davidson with “The Damage Done,” and Cara Hoffman, whose book is “So Much Pretty.” They will talk about their writing and read some excerpts.
Saturday’s mayhem comes to a chilling end at Guild Hall at 8 p.m., when Adam Ross, author of “Mr. Peanut,” will introduce a free screening of Alfred Hitchcock’s classic creeper “Rear Window,” starring James Stewart and Grace Kelly. Mr. Ross, whose book proves he is an expert on all things Hitchcockian, will discuss the esteemed director before the screening.
On Sunday at the Sag Harbor store, Nelson DeMille, a well-known mystery author who frequently sets his novels on Long Island, will be on hand for an interview celebrating the publication of his new book, “The Rich and the Dead.” Mr. DeMille will be available to sign copies of the book and will also answer questions.
More information about any of these events can be had by calling BookHampton at 324-4939.