John Connolly was exceptional November 15, 2011. He came to
USM (University of Southern Maine) to speak. He had no problem holding the
audience’s attention for what he called a lecture. With him speaking it could
be called that. He decided to speak about something he thought was important to
share; his list of the 20 must read mystery novels. Instead of talking about
him-self, which that audience would have been fine with, he chose to speak
about other authors and literature that he felt was important. He decided to do this because he came to
realize that a lot of people and a lot of authors have only read current
mystery titles. John Connolly is very charismatic and you could feel his
passion for these books. He even said, “without some of them he probably
wouldn’t be an author”, though I find that hard to believe.
If you are interested
in the list of 20 mysteries you must read before you die, here is the link, http://johnconnollybooks.posterous.com/twenty-mysteries-you-must-read-before-you-die.
John Connolly is a great public speaker and has this way of
speaking that is just captivating. He makes you think and laugh at the same
time. He is also very personable when you talk to him. He is appreciative of
his audience and fans, not taking it for granted. John Connolly is a remarkable
man and author. I have not met anyone like him. He is a bestselling author and nowhere
do you find arrogance or superiority over another person. He loves what he does
and seems to love the people around him. I would just love to sit and talk to
him for hours.
When I went to get my books signed he said he remembered me
from Borders when I asked. He could have just been saying it but I think he
actually did. I’m sure it’s hard since he has a ton of fans. He was extremely
nice and thanked me for coming and ended up giving me a T-Shirt after talking
with him. It was above and beyond any expectations I had. I expected it to be
great but he still managed to make it even better.
The Swag I got :)
A Bumper sticker :) I love that John Connolly loves Maine :) The Great Lost Bear is a Maine restaurant... oh yah :)
The T-Shirt He gave me-front and back :)
Pins that shall decorate my school bag ;)
One of the three books I got signed. Some of them were a bit hard to decipher what he wrote :-P
I hope everyone has a chance to meet him at some point!
Check out books by him on Amazon!
