Bestselling Author Dennis Lehane in conversation with Eddie Muller August 18, 2011

Litquake welcomes author Dennis Lehane to San Francisco for an exclusive evening in conversation with the film scholar, author and founder of Noir City, Eddie Muller. Three of Lehane's books have been turned into films by some of the country's most respected directors, including Mystic River by Clint Eastwood and Shutter Island by Martin Scorsese, as well as the critically admired Gone Baby Gone directed by Ben Affleck released in 2007.
Lehane comes to San Francisco to talk about his writing, his books, and his experiences of having his books turned into films to celebrate the paperback editions of Mystic River, Shutter Island, A Drink Before The War, and his newest release, Moonlight Mile. Book signing and sales will follow.
A Boston native, Lehane is known for communicating a sharp sense of place,or as The Guardian in London said about Mystic River, "The city is as sharp and unpredictable as the villains themselves." In addition to his books, Lehane has also written three scripts for the much lauded television series The Wire, which suits his approach perfectly. "I've always been fascinated by the loss of innocence or corruption of the soul at a young age."
At one point in his career, Lehane worked as a counselor with traumatized children, which informed both his politics and his fiction. "I'm so far right on this issue, I'm Pat Buchanan," he told The Guardian. "I think sexual predators should have a mandatory 'one mistake and you're out' law."
As for adapting his own work, he told the Patriot Ledger that he never wanted to write the screenplays for the films based on his books because he says he has "no desire to operate on my own child.'"

"Dennis Lehane is a throwback to a tradition of great, big-hearted American novelists," declares Eddie Muller. "He believes in the transformative power of heart-on-the-sleeve storytelling. I wish some critic would call him 'The Voice of a Generation,' because then I might feel better about this generation."

Official Website: http://www.litquake.org/