The first of our SOUR MASH titles – Regal House Publishing’s Southern Literature Series
“Monarchs Under the Sassafras Tree reads like a Lowcountry boil with spice and warm flavor. It is a love letter to the resilient people of Georgia.” – Avid Bookstore, Book of the Week Pick (Athens, GA)
This title was printed via traditional offset printing by McNaughton & Gunn; it is available at industry-standard discounts, returnable, and can be ordered through IPG. Browse additional information for retailers.
Lillah Lawson: Book Tour
Lillah Lawson will be traveling through bookstores in Georgia and other neighboring Southern states for readings and book signings. Her currently scheduled events are as follows:
September 26: Avid Bookstore
October 13: Madison County Library in Danielsville, Georgia.
October 16 : Barnes & Noble, Athens, GA
SIBA promotions for Monarchs Under the Sassafras Tree
Monarchs Under the Sassafras Tree will be featured on the following promotions in association with the Southern Independent Booksellers Alliance:
Lady Banks Newsletter: Monarchs Under the Sassafras Tree will be featured in SIBA’s Lady Banks Bookshelf promotion for the month of Septmber. Monarchs will appear in SIBA’s Lady Banks weekly newsletter, on SIBA’s Facebook pages (pinned to be the top post, and boosted for thousands more views). Monarchs will also appear throughout the month on the top of SIBA’s authorsroundthesouth.com homepage. Participating SIBA booksellers will be notified that Monarchs is the featured title two weeks in advance, so you can order copies of the book. We would like to invite you to consider scheduling an author event in your store to further help drive sales.
Circle of Sites: SIBA’s Circle of Sites promotion, featuring Monarchs, will be active for an entire week on the home pages of over 50 member bookstores. A banner ad clicks thru to purchase at your store’s shopping cart. SIBA provides bookstores with a head’s up to stock and display Monarchs so you can fill orders easily. We would like to invite you to consider scheduling an author event in your store to further help drive sales.
Marketing Material, ARCs, and Scheduling an Author Event in your Store
Contact us to schedule a signing/reading event with the author.
Request an Advance Reader Copy.
Monarchs Under the Sassafras Tree
It is Indian summer, 1929, and O.T. Lawrence is about as content as a cotton farmer can be in Five Forks, Georgia—nothing, not poverty, drought, or even the boll weevil can spoil the idyllic family life he shares with his doting wife and children, and his beloved twin brother Walt. Until illness and Black Tuesday take everything O.T. ever held dear in one fell swoop. Grieving, drinking, and careening towards homelessness, O.T. is on the brink of ending it all when he receives an odd letter from a teenage acquaintance, the enigmatic Sivvy Hargrove, who is locked away in Milledgeville’s asylum for the insane. Traveling through desperate antebellum towns, O.T. and his daughter Ginny are determined to find Sivvy and discover her story. Set against the backdrop of the Great Depression, Monarchs Under the Sassafras Tree is a love story to Georgia and the spirit of its people—a story of family, unconditional love, poverty, injustice and finding the strength inside to keep on going when all is lost.
Advance Praise for Monarchs Under the Sassafras Tree
“Ever clear is the narrator in this wonderfully written debut novel by Lillah Lawson. You get swept up almost instantly by the sweet Southern charm of its characters and it gently nudges you forward. The movement and flow of the book feel very organic. It’s not every day you get to peer into the intricate, complicated, and deep set bonds between family and friendship. Lawson poured her heart, soul, and lived experiences into this novel and it shows in the multifaceted and fully developed characters she created.”
-Pascale Lemire, NYT Bestselling author of Dogshaming
“Lillah Lawson spins a yarn that’s wonderful in its knottiness. Monarchs Under the Sassafras Tree is a historical Southern fable about butterflies, biscuits and the healing power of family, both biological and chosen. The images are evocative, the dialogue rough and realistic, the emotions achingly real. A must-read.”
– Lauren Emily Whalen, author of Satellite
“A hauntingly beautiful story, full of twists and tragedy, rich in detail and told with gorgeous lyrical flair… A deeply moving, unforgettable read.”
– Alice Hayes, author of The Thread that Binds
“This was an absolute delight, and gave me so many feelings. There’s something about reading a book that has such a familiar setting, such a recognizable tone (in both atmosphere and actual dialogue/narrative voice) that just gives you this warm feeling. Almost like you’re homesick for a place you never left… Reading Lawson’s words is a truly immersive experience.You’ll be thinking about these characters long after you’re done with the story!”
-Lindsey Ouimet, author of What’s a Soulmate, Perdition, and (Not Quite) The Same Old Song
“An exquisite read, with the tender yet gritty undertones of Steinbeck, Monarchs Under the Sassafras Tree is a solemn walk through the deep south during one of the most difficult eras in American history: the early twentieth century. Lawson captures the southern gothic through the often fragile, yet always hopeful hearts of her characters as they try to cope with the hard knocks of life. This book will touch your heart in the beautifully tragic way that only southern gothic can, slowly at first, and then all at once.”
-Melanie Cossey, author of A Peculiar Curiosity
“For O.T. Lawrence, life in rural Five Forks, Georgia, in 1929 was as sweet and slow as sorghum syrup. He married the prettiest girl in town and farmed the prettiest land. He could never have guessed that his life would cross paths with a mountain girl whose life is about abuse, loss, and life in an asylum. Author Lillah Lawson ushers the reader into a world of sassafras tea and moonshine, revival meetings and fiddle music. Her pitch-perfect use of dialect authentically evokes the story’s time and place. During the Depression, lots of folks are drawn to drink or desperate measures, but it seems that mostly women, like Sivvy Hargrove, are locked away when her response to what life has dealt her is interpreted as insanity. As O.T. says, “What business has they got keepin’ you in this place on account of some hard luck? This story of grit and determination and love is intriguing (yes, there are mysterious secrets to be revealed) and inspiring. A powerful debut novel.”
-Paula Butterfield, author of La Luministe: Berthe Morisot, Painter of Light