Women’s history talk in Manzanita

Just in time to close out Women’s History Month, Marianne Monson will visit Manzanita’s Hoffman Center for the Arts on Wednesday, March 27, for a discussion of her research and writing about historical women.

Monson is a women’s history writer known for unearthing incredible yet true stories. She is the author of 12 books for children and adults, with an emphasis on frontier-era women’s history. Her nonfiction book, “Frontier Grit” was nominated for the American Library Association’s Amelia Bloomer award. The companion volume, “Women of the Blue and Gray” was released in 2018 and was awarded a silver medal by Foreword Reviews. Her newest historical fiction novel, “The Opera Sisters” is based on the true story of Ida and Louise Cook, who helped refugees escape from Nazi Germany. Her poetry and prose have appeared in Rain Magazine, Hipfish, Coast Weekend, Northwest Review and Our Coast Magazine.

She has an MFA from Vermont College of Fine Arts and has taught writing at a number of colleges and universities. She is founder of the literary nonprofit, The Writer’s Guild, and co-host of the radio show River Writers on KMUN. She has interviewed many popular authors including Randall Sullivan, Cheryl Strayed and Jericho Brown.

Monson will show research photos and share details about her writing process. Her work throughout the past decade aims to bring more and more stories of incredible women overlooked by history into the public arena.

Her books will be available for purchase at the event.

The talk begins at 4:30 pm, with an entry fee of $7. The Hoffman Center is located at 594 Laneda Avenue in Manzanita. For more information, go to hoffmanarts.org or call 503-368-3846.