To celebrate Independent Bookstore Day this year, Birch Tree Books & Plants teams up with Loudoun County High School journalist students for a very special interview with best selling author Bruce Holsinger whose latest book, Culpability, was picked by Oprah's Book Club. Bruce grew up own Leesburg and graduated from Loudoun County High School.

Each ticket includes a copy of Culpability and a Shop Local tote.

About the book

"A gripping, impossibly timely thriller."--One of NPR's "Books We Love"

A suspenseful family drama about moral responsibility in the age of artificial intelligence.

When the Cassidy-Shaws' autonomous minivan collides with an oncoming car, seventeen-year-old Charlie is in the driver's seat, with his father, Noah, riding shotgun. In the back seat, tweens Alice and Izzy are on their phones, while their mother, Lorelei, a world leader in the field of artificial intelligence, is absorbed in her work. Yet each family member harbors a secret, implicating them all in the tragic accident.

During a weeklong recuperation on the Chesapeake Bay, the family confronts the excruciating moral dilemmas triggered by the crash. Noah tries to hold the family together as a seemingly routine police investigation jeopardizes Charlie's future. Alice and Izzy turn strangely furtive. And Lorelei's odd behavior tugs at Noah's suspicions that there is a darker truth behind the incident--suspicions heightened by the sudden intrusion of Daniel Monet, a tech mogul whose mysterious history with Lorelei hints at betrayal. When Charlie falls for Monet's teenaged daughter, the stakes are raised even higher in this propulsive family drama that is also a fascinating exploration of the moral responsibility and ethical consequences of AI.

Culpability explores a world newly shaped by chatbots, autonomous cars, drones, and other nonhuman forces in ways that are thrilling, challenging, and unimaginably provocative.

About the Author

Bruce Holsinger is the author of Culpability, the 116th selection of Oprah's Book Club, and hailed by Oprah Winfrey as "a must-read for all generations." Other novels include The Gifted School, which won the Colorado Book Award, and The Displacements, the inaugural title in the United Nations Read for Action Book Club. He's also written many works of nonfiction, most recently On Parchment: Animals, Archives, and the Making of Culture from Herodotus to the Digital Age. His essays and reviews have appeared in The New York Times, Vanity Fair, and many other publications, and he has been profiled on NPR’s Weekend Edition, Here & Now, and Marketplace. He teaches English at the University of Virginia and is the recipient of a Guggenheim Fellowship.

Accessibility Statement

We want our events to feel welcoming and comfortable for everyone. Our shop has two steps at the entrance, and we use a yoga studio, located up a flight of stairs.

If these barriers affect your ability to attend, please reach out—we’re happy to explore ways to make the experience more accessible whenever we can.

Contact the host of Independent Bookstore Day: Young Journalists Interview Best Selling Author Bruce Holsinger

There were 0 errors found in the information you submitted: