Historical Society's Bookfest brings authors, reading buffs together

Oct. 15—ANDERSON — Chele Denney's grandmother, Mary Ninde, left an impression on countless students as a school librarian.

That love of reading, passed along for generations, eventually led to Denney writing a children's book, "The Secret Life of Mary the Librarian," which tells Mary's story in a unique way.

"It's about her life," Denney said. "To be able to share her story with others brings me a lot of joy."

Denney joined other local authors in signing and selling copies of their work to dozens of book lovers who visited the Madison County Historical Society's annual Bookfest event Saturday.

Local historian Stephen Jackson, Roger Hensley and Benjamin O'Neal were also on hand to chat with customers, and historical society members provided tours of the museum's newest exhibits.

"The last couple of years, we've done it the first weekend in December, but we decided to get a jump on the holiday shopping," organizer Carol Grace said. "Particularly with all the new books that we have, this will be an excellent time to get a jump on the shopping."

Sale items included novels, non-fiction works, cookbooks and yearbooks. A gift basket raffle featured prizes from local businesses. The proceeds, Grace said, would go to help fund the historical society's normal operating costs.

As she perused a display of works focused on the county's history, Lauren Ertle said her interest in old school yearbooks and fiction novels drew her to the sale. She noted some of the maps for sale would make ideal birthday and Christmas gifts for her family members.

"I want to learn about my history," she said. "I've lived here my entire life. I've lived in Anderson, Alex, Madison County since I was born (in 1991), so I want to learn about where I'm living."

Grace said she and other volunteers were encouraged to see younger customers like Ertle spending considerable amounts of time at the sale, as well as exploring other rooms in the museum, which included historical sports exhibits, photographs and summaries of other notable events.

In the basement a room housing the museum's collection of dollhouses was a popular stop.

"We are really trying to get particularly the younger population to find out what they can be proud of with Madison County," Grace said, "and why we want to stay in Madison County instead of going to other places."

Denney said the event's emphasis on local history is a natural fit with her approach as an author.

"Sharing your family history is super important," she said. "Being here at the historical society is definitely a huge connection with what I'm trying to do with sharing my family's stories."

Follow Andy Knight on Twitter @Andrew_J_Knight, or call 765-640-4809.