Wednesday May 4th 7:00 p.m.
In 92 AD, Alexandria, Egypt was the height of civilization at that time. It included the famous Library, Museum, and Lighthouse. While lesser known than Rome, it was the unchallenged pinnacle of Western intellectual achievement. A melting pot of Egyptians, Greeks, Jews, and Romans, it frequently boiled over into violence. Alexander’s Lighthouse is the story of a team of young engineers who invent the most powerful weapon in the world for the Romans who rule Egypt. When rebels steal the weapon, the team is caught between the Romans and the rebel forces who threaten to overthrow the hated Roman occupiers. The Friends of Crowell Public Library’s popular Meet the Authors series continues with the appearance of Don Westenhaver, author of this captivating historical novel on Wednesday, May 4th at 7:00 p.m.
Midway through the writing of Alexander’s Lighthouse, Westenhaver and his wife decided to visit Egypt to gather research, with a few days scheduled in Alexandria. They were due to leave on February 11, but the Arab Spring erupted at the end of January. They were glued to their TV watching demonstrators filling Cairo’s Tahrir Square and the streets of Alexandria. The Egyptian revolution Don was writing about in 92 AD was actually happening before his eyes.
Don Westenhaver lives in Southern California and is halfway through a fifth novel, another story that makes history come alive. He combines well-known historical people, fictional characters, an intense plot, and vivid sensory descriptions to insert readers into a different time and place and make them feel at home there. He has found people display the same faults and virtues no matter what part of the earth and which century they inhabit. Don is a member of the Southern California Writers Association and the Military Writers Society of America.
Come to Crowell Library and learn more about this author on Wednesday, May 4 at 7:00 p.m. in the Library’s Barth Community. Thanks to the Friends of the Library, the authors keep coming to Crowell Public Library!
