Amelia Island Book Festival’s Kickoff Luncheon
Thursday, February 13, 2020
Noon – 2:00 pm
Walker's Landing, Omni Plantation and Resort
11 Beach Lagoon Road, Fernandina Beach
The New York Times #1 best-selling and Edgar Award-winning author Lisa Scottoline will give the keynote speech to kick off the 19th annual Amelia Island Book Festival in February 2020. Known for the emotionality of her writing and the warm and down-to-earth characters she creates in her novels, she also brings a wry humor to the page with comments like “Women shouldn't iron, ever. It's our wrinkles that make us interesting.”
A former attorney, Lisa—who pronounces her surname "Scott o lee nee, like fettuccine"—writes legal thrillers, stand-alone novels and humor. Her latest novel is Someone Knows, a story of how a single decision can undo a family, how our past can derail our present, and how not guilty doesn't always mean innocent.
She also writes a weekly column with her daughter Francesca Serritella for the Philadelphia Inquirer titled “Chick Wit” — a witty and fun take on life from a woman’s perspective.
Parade Magazine said, “Lisa Scottoline is like your funny best friend—if your best friend was a lawyer, best-selling author, and all-around hilarious person who will gladly invite you over to watch The Real Housewives of New York City as a life-sized cutout of Bradley Cooper keeps watch nearby.”
The three-day festival draws readers from near and far every year, to see some of the world’s most famous authors at various events, and to enjoy and indulge in the world of books at the Author Expo and Readers’ Extravaganza. The festival’s honorary chair David Baldacci selected and invited the authors for the 2020 festival.
“David has given us a stellar lineup,” said AIBF Board President Larry Williams. “Lisa Scottoline will set an exciting and upbeat tone for what is destined to be another unforgettable event. It's sure to be a sell-out, and best of all, every ticket we sell supports our goal of purchasing a book for every student in Nassau County."
A crown jewel in the festival’s mission is the award-winning Authors in Schools Literacy Program, which not only brings best-selling and notable authors into local classrooms, but also purchases books so that every student gets a copy of a book by the author he or she meets. In 2019, the festival purchased and distributed 12,300 books. In 2020, that number rises to 13,000.
A gourmet, hot, plated meal will be served at the luncheon, catered by Chef Michael of Kitchen 251.