IN POLITE COMPANY
“Here is the captivating story of a contemporary young woman navigating the expectations of family, the traditions of Charleston’s elite, and the fierce pull of her own heart... This is a beautiful debut novel.”
-- Sue Monk Kidd, #1 New York Times bestselling author
“This terrific debut lifts the veil on the charming old city of Charleston and a prominent Lowcountry family to deliver an entertaining story about becoming yourself without totally rejecting your past. Plus: debutante balls! I love this novel.”
-- Lauren Weisberger, #1 New York Times bestselling author of The Devil Wears Prada and When Life Gives You Lululemons
"Peek behind the veil of Charleston’s cobbled streets, Southern charm and pedigreed society. In Polite Company offers a nuanced look at birth and death, privilege and discrimination at odds between generations. Gervais Hagerty is an author to watch!”
-- Mary Alice Monroe, New York Times bestselling author
"Reading In Polite Company is like visiting a college friend from Charleston—the one who brings you to all the glamorous, old-fashioned events you might not otherwise get invited to...Gervais Hagerty’s keen insights on the quagmires of the modern South set it apart from other summer reads. I loved this book."
-- Katie Crouch, New York Times bestselling author of Embassy Wife and Girls in Trucks
“Gervais Hagerty’s compelling debut novel allows us a fascinating glimpse into an elite Southern society trying to hold onto age-old traditions and values in a rapidly changing world... This is the kind of highly readable, richly populated, and beautifully written book you will be eager to recommend to others!”
-- Cassandra King Conroy, award-winning author of Tell Me a Story: My Life with Pat Conroy
In this warm and moving anthology, a group of bestselling authors and writers pay tribute to legendary, larger-than-life New York Times bestselling author Dorothea Benton Frank and her literary legacy.
Inspired by the title Dorothea Benton Frank planned for her next book—Reunion Beach—these close friends and colleagues channeled their creativity, admiration, and grief into stories and poems that celebrate this remarkable woman and her abiding love for the Lowcountry of her native South Carolina—a land of beauty, history, charm, and Gullah magic she so brilliantly brought to life in her acclaimed novels.
“I am deeply grateful to be included on this very special project.”
— Gervais Hagerty