On Wednesday, August 26, current and past students, West Virginia natives, and faculty (even WVU president Gordon Gee made an appearance) all packed in together at local favorite 123 Pleasant Street to hear Glenn read an excerpt from his new novel, A Hanging at Cinder Bottom, now out from Tin House. The event mirrored Glenn: warm, open, enthusiastic, and filled with genuine excitement. It was evident from the turnout that Glenn is adored by colleagues and neighbors alike.

Former student John Bryant introduced Glenn, reminding the audience of Glenn’s simple but straightforward advice: Write a good sentence. John was also sure to remind the audience of Glenn’s eagerness—or is it cutthroat attitude?—on the basketball court. The reading was accompanied by current WVU MFA poet Barrett Lipkin, better known by his basketball moniker “Feets,” on background guitar. During the reading, Glenn paused and laughed at certain points, as if reminded of his own ballsiness and wit. And several times, the whole crowd was laughing out loud.

The reading itself lasted about twenty minutes, at which point, Glenn put on his “singing hat” and did quite a respectable version of “Oh Hang Me” with lyrics changed to mirror the characters in his book. To conclude, Glenn, who had promised to launch the Cinder Bottom custom embroidered t-shirts (hand sewn by his wife Margaret) out of a slingshot, told the crowd that he’d had some trouble finding a slingshot big enough to accommodate the prizes for the raffle winners. Glenn then illustrated this by showing off several large, handmade contraptions, including a slingshot made out of exercise bands by MFA student Kelsey Englert. With egging on from the crowd, the t-shirts were launched, to various degrees of success but overall hilarity. At 7:45 Glenn Taylor announced it was past his bed-time.

Please join us as we congratulate Glenn and wish him success with Hanging at Cinder Bottom. Read the New York Times review, and purchase the book directly from Tin House (or through Amazon).

Contributed by Kelsey Liebenson-Morse