New York Times best-selling author Abbott Kahler, (formerly writing as Karen Abbott) is coming to the Luecht Auditorium at McHenry County College on Thursday, Nov. 14 at 7:00 p.m. for a special presentation hosted by McHenry County Libraries – Let’s All Read Together Community Reading Program. Kahler will discuss her new book, Eden Undone, an incredible true story of murder, romance and a fateful search for utopia in the Galapagos Islands.
“At the height of the Great Depression, Los Angeles oil mogul George Allan Hancock and his crew of Smithsonian scientists came upon a gruesome scene: two bodies, mummified by the searing heat on the shore of a remote Galapagos island. Using never-before-published archives, Kahler weaves a chilling, stranger-than-fiction tale worthy of Agatha Christie. Set against the backdrop of the Great Depression and the march to World War II, Eden Undone explores the universal desire to seek utopia– and lays bare the human fallibility that inevitably dooms the quest.”
In advance of the program, participating McHenry County libraries will hold discussions of Eden Undone. Each library has copies of the book available to borrow. Algonquin’s discussion will be at Scorched Earth Brewing Company on Wed. November 6, at 7:00 p.m. Registration is required for both the book discussion and Kahler’s presentation, and both events are free. Copies of Eden Undone and some of Kahler’s previous books will be available for purchase and signing at the Nov. 14 event, courtesy of Read Between the Lynes bookstore in Woodstock.
Kahler is the author of six biographies and historical true-crime books including Sin in the Second City; American Rose; Liar, Temptress Soldier, Spy; The Ghosts of Eden Park, and Where You End. She also hosts the podcast, Remus: The Mad Bootleg King, about legendary bootlegger, George Remus.
The McHenry County Libraries – Let’s All Read Program encourages residents to come together for a shared reading experience. Sponsoring libraries include Algonquin Area Public Library, Cary Area Public Library, Crystal Lake Public Library, Fox River Grove Memorial Library, Harvard-Diggins Library, Huntley Area Public Library, Johnsburg Library, Marengo-Union Library, McHenry Public Library, Nippersink Public Library, and Woodstock Public Library.