All LA County Library locations will be closed on Friday, July 4 in observance of Independence Day. Our Digital Library is open 24/7.
Register 9 Seats Remaining
Join us to discuss Grady Hendrix's Witchcraft for Wayward Girls. To borrow a print copy of the books, please contact the Compton Library directly. For Ages 18+
Do you find yourself attracted to the strange and unusual? Do you enjoy what others may find frightening? If so, join the Horror Book Club where each month we'll provide you with diverse horror authors and titles to discuss with people who enjoy the same genre as you.
They call them wayward girls. Loose girls. Girls who grew up too fast. And they’re sent to Wellwood House in St. Augustine, Florida, where unwed mothers are hidden by their families to have their babies in secret, to give them up for adoption, and most important of all, to forget any of it ever happened.
Fifteen-year-old Fern arrives at the home in the sweltering summer of 1970, pregnant, terrified and alone. Under the watchful eye of the stern Miss Wellwood, she meets a dozen other girls in the same predicament. There’s Rose, a hippie who insists she’s going to find a way to keep her baby and escape to a commune. And Zinnia, a budding musician who plans to marry her baby’s father. And Holly, a wisp of a girl, barely fourteen, mute and pregnant by no-one-knows-who.
Everything the girls eat, every moment of their waking day, and everything they’re allowed to talk about is strictly controlled by adults who claim they know what’s best for them. Then Fern meets a librarian who gives her an occult book about witchcraft, and power is in the hands of the girls for the first time in their lives. But power can destroy as easily as it creates, and it’s never given freely. There’s always a price to be paid...and it’s usually paid in blood.
Attendance is limited, and advance registration is required. This will be used to save your spot in the program. We cannot guarantee availability for any unregistered adult. To sign up, see library staff, or register online at Visit.LACountyLibrary.org/Events and filter by location or event date.
AGE GROUP: | Older Adults | Adults |
EVENT TYPE: | Lectures & Conversations | Books, Poetry, & Writing |
TAGS: | Summer Discovery Program | Book Club |
Compton Library branch of the Los Angeles County Free library opened its doors in July of 1913, the 11th branch of today's LA County Library.
The library was located in a storefront building near Main and Tamarind Streets and was later moved to the Compton Union High School at 212 S Acacia Street.
In 1925 a separate building was erected in the City Hall Park at 123 W Almond Street, where it remained until 1974, when the current facility was dedicated at 240 W Compton Boulevard.
