Best-selling author, Anne Lamott, will speak on Wednesday, November 17, at 7:30 p.m., in the Balch Auditorium at Scripps College. The lecture will be followed by a reception and book signing in the Hampton Room of the Malott Commons. The lecture is part of the Alexa Fullerton Hampton Speaker Series, “The Power of Influence,” at Scripps College. The lecture is free and open to the public on a first-come, first-served basis.
Lamott is the author of six novels and three best-selling works of non-fiction. She writes and speaks about subjects including alcoholism, motherhood, and Jesus with self-effacing humor and ruthless honesty. Lamott writes about what many of us refuse to think about: loss-of loved ones and personal control-sadness, frustration, and disappointment.
In her debut novel, Hard Laughter, Lamott shared the most intimate moments from her father’s losing battle with brain cancer. Her 1993 best seller, Operating Instructions, undertook another difficult subject-single motherhood. She tackled her own alcoholism, drug addiction, and faith in the 1999 best seller, Traveling Mercies, a collection of autobiographical essays. Her other works include Rosie, Joe Jones, All New People, Crooked Little Heart, and Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life.
Lamott’s latest novel, Blue Shoe, has become a New York Times best seller. In the book, Lamott mines her personal life, discussing divorce, Alzheimer’s, and faith. In 2005, she debuts a new collection of essays entitled, Plan B: Further Thoughts on Faith. Winner of numerous awards, Lamott’s biweekly online column in Salon, Word by Word, was voted “The Best of the Web” by Time magazine. She is also a past recipient of a Guggenheim Fellowship.
In addition, Lamott is the subject of the documentary Bird by Bird with Annie by Academy Award-winning filmmaker Freida Mock. Previously an instructor at the University of California, Davis, Lamott currently speaks at writing conferences and other events across the country.
The Alexa Fullerton Hampton Speaker Series is made possible through the generous bequest of Alexa Fullerton Hampton, Scripps class of 1942.