All Our Yesterdays: A Conversation with Joel Morris and Austin Tichenor

The Book Stall (811 Elm Street in Winnetka) welcomes author Joel Morris for a discussion featuring his new book, All Our Yesterdays on Tuesday, March 12 at 6:30 pm. This propulsive and piercing debut, set ten years before the events of Shakespeare’s historic play, follows the ambition, power, and fate that define one of literature’s most notorious figures: Lady Macbeth. Olga Grushin, author of The Charmed Wife and Forty Rooms, says, “Richly atmospheric, All Our Yesterdays takes the familiar material as a departure point and gives fresh voice to a woman maligned by history.”  Joel will be in conversation with actor, author, podcaster and playwright Austin Tichenor!

This event is free with registration. To register, please visit our website or CLICK HERE. 

More About the Book: All Our Yesterdays opens in the misty Scottish Highlands of the 11th century. Born in a noble household as the granddaughter of a fallen Scottish king, a young girl carries the guilt of her mother’s death and the weight of an unknowable prophecy. When she is married, at fifteen, to the Mormaer of Moray, she experiences firsthand the violence of a sadistic husband and a kingdom constantly at war. To survive with her young son in a superstitious realm, she must rely on her own cunning and wit, especially when her husband’s downfall inadvertently sets the two free.

In the tradition of Maggie O’Farrell’s Hamnet and Lauren Groff’s Matrix, All Our Yesterdays is gorgeously told, madly original literary fiction at its best. Kirkus Reviews, in a starred review says. “[A] beautiful interpretation, which is so rich in its descriptions and well-crafted characters. . . A most enjoyable setup for the Scottish play.”

More About the Author: Joel H. Morris has a Ph.D. in comparative literary studies from Northwestern University. Recipient of a Fulbright Fellowship, he has worked as a bookseller, sailor, and teacher, and lives near Denver, Colorado. All Our Yesterdays is his debut novel.

About the Conversation Partner: Austin Tichenor is an actor, playwright, director, and co-Artistic Director of the Reduced Shakespeare Company, for whom he’s written ten stage comedies. He’s also the co-author of Pop-Up Shakespeare and Reduced Shakespeare: The Complete Guide for the Attention-Impaired. Austin has acted and directed off-Broadway, in the West End, and on stages around the world. His many TV credits include recurring and guest-starring roles on The West Wing, 24, Alias, Ally McBeal, The Practice, NYPD Blue, Gilmore Girls, Felicity, The X-Files, Chicago Med, and ER. Austin co-created the six-part BBC World Service comedy series The Reduced Shakespeare Radio Show, and hosts the long-running Reduced Shakespeare Company Podcast.