Author of book featuring local landmarks to visit St. Joseph

Sep. 18—The author of a book that takes place in St. Joseph and features many of its landmarks is coming to visit the city that inspired her story.

St. Joseph Reads, a group made up of community members and organizations with a goal of promoting literacy, helped organize Hattie Davish Week. It's the name of the main character in Anna Loan-Wilsey's mystery novel "A Deceptive Homecoming," which features several St. Joseph landmarks.

Wednesday's activities included guided tours of Mount Mora Cemetery, the Glore Psychiatric Museum and the Jesse James House.

"Because Mount Mora is mentioned in the book, I was involved in doing the tour," Mount Mora historian Suzanne Lehr said.

Lehr said Sarah Elder, who used to work at the St. Joseph Museums, provided plenty of background information for Loan-Wilsey's book. Some spots mentioned in the book are no longer around, like the St. Charles Hotel.

"It really took us back in time and reminded us about everything that existed at that time in 1893," Lehr said.

More than 20 people participated in the tour. After Mount Mora Cemetery, the group traveled to the Glore Psychiatric Museum to learn about its history and how mental illness was treated in the past.

One St. Joseph resident on the tour said she loved how "A Deceptive Homecoming" used St. Joseph history.

"For the author to put as much research as she did, it brought it to life for me as a resident of our town," Roxanna Kerns said.

Kerns belongs to a book club and is always searching for books to read, so she recommended "A Deceptive Homecoming" to St. Joseph residents.

"They're going to be able to relate to not only what happened in the past, but they can bring that to the present and then their families," she said.

The next event will be a screening of the movie "Paper Moon" 7 p.m. Thursday at the Trail Theater at 111 N. Ninth St.

The events of the week culminate in a meet and greet with author Anna Loan-Wilsey at 11 a.m. Saturday at the Story Collective, located at 114 S. Seventh St.

Those interested can learn more about St. Joseph Reads and its upcoming events at www.stjosephreads.org.