AFL - Speaker Series

Lafayette as a Fictional Character

            Four prominent authors, who are also AFL members, will discuss how they came to include Lafayette in their work and what they learned about him when they did. Our panelists, all lovers of history, will also discuss the importance of historical fiction and why they have chosen to work in this genre. Alan Hoffman, AFL President, will moderate the discussion.

Friday December 4th, 5:00pm ET. The Zoom link will be sent to the email you use when you register for this event.

            Our panelists are:

Stephanie Dray, a New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and USA Today bestselling author of historical women’s fiction. She is the author of:

                        America’s First Daughter

                        My Dear Hamilton

                        Ribbons of Scarlet

                        The Women of Chateau Lafayette

Jenny L. Cote, an award-winning historical fiction author and speaker, whose books for children, tweens, and teens feature talking animals that work behind the scenes in pivotal points of the story.

            In addition to her other works, Jenny has completed two volumes of her five-part series on the American Revolution:

                        The Voice, the Revolution and the Key

                        The Declaration, the Sword and the Spy

Dorothea Jensen, an award-winning author of historical fiction and non-fiction for middle graders and teenagers. Her first historical novel, The Riddle of Penncroft Farm, has been in print since 1989. Her second, A Buss from Lafayette, is about a troubled teenager who meets Lafayette on his Farewell Tour.                    

            Her most recent work is Liberty-Loving Lafayette, a rhyming history inspired by the Broadway hit, Hamilton.

Libby McNamee, an author of young adult historical fiction. Her first book won two awards for juvenile fiction in 2020. Her second book, Dolley Madison and the War of 1812: America’s First Lady, will be released in 2021 on Dolley Madison’s birthday, May 20.

            Libby’s Lafayette-related work, Susanna’s Midnight Ride: The Girl Who Won the Revolutionary War, tells the true story of a Virginia teenage girl who leaves her house in the dead of night to warn Lafayette of an imminent attack by English forces.