Book Signing at Dogwood Books in Rome

If you're in the Rome area, I hope you'll join me on Saturday, April 2, from 12:00 to 2:00 for a special book signing.

During the pandemic William S. Davies, or "Bill" to those who know him well, finally published a collection of stories called Blessed Along the Way. Although they may be a little "embellished" at times, they are mostly true stories of people Bill has encountered during his approximately 40 years of ministry. A few of the stories are also about his dad's family, which immigrated to the United States from Wales in the early 1900's. If you know Billl, you know that some of the stories have humor in them, but many of them reflect on how the little known people he's met have made a lasting impact on his life. For over half a century, Bill has spent much of his time with those who may be considered nameless or called "people under the bridges." His perspective on these people is often reflected in his stories. 

Perspective is important. In Caesar's funeral oration, Mark Antony says that "The evil that men do lives after them; the good is oft interred with their bones" (Julius Caesar, Act III, Scene ii). In my writing I have always tried to reverse that. I have tried to make sure that the good that men (and women) do lives after them. In my recent novel, The Best Version of Alice, there are a number of people that did some good things that I hope will live after them. Although the book is fiction, I have dedicated it to the memory of Fernando Guzman, a young man whose life was cut short by cancer. However, Fernando did a lot to make the world a better place while he was on this earth. I won't go into all the things he did, because you can read about it in the book, but I will tell you this--he seemed to bring out the best in all those who met him.

In my interviews with those who knew him, I learned that there were countless students, parents, and school staff members who surrounded Fernando with love and admiration for his courage, and they found ways to support him as he battled osteosarcoma for the last six or seven years of his life. It is my hope that The Best Version of Alice will make sure that the good that all these people have done will live after them and not be "interred with their bones."

If you are in Rome on Saturday, come on out to Dogwood books and join us, but if you are not in Rome, you can find both  Blessed Along the Way and  The Best Version of Alice  on Amazon.com.

 It's always exciting when it finally gets close to publication! The Best Version of Alice is no exception. What is different about this book is that it incorporates several different ideas I've been working on for a few years. 

One of them is the desire to write about all those years I taught school. I loved my years of teaching, and unlike many of my co-workers, I didn't get too caught up in the demands of administration or the "requirements" of all the paperwork that was expected. I don't mean that I didn't do it. I did. But my main job involved making sure that my students got what they needed to be successful in my area, which was language arts. So I completed the paperwork, but I didn't let it distract too much from my real work.

I had also wanted to write about my experiences in coaching students in literary events outside the classroom, particularly in debate. 

In 2018 I learned about a student who had been especially inspirational in another school. At the same time I learned that the school environment he was in demonstrated how a school can be a supportive community to all the students, regardless  of their situations.

All these situations gave me some ideas for The Best Version of Alice.