Deatsville writer Faye Gibbons will speak about her newest young-adult book “Halley” Nov. 18 at 2 p.m. at the Chilton-Clanton Public Library.

“I had a very interesting childhood growing up in Georgia,” Gibbons said. “For entertainment, my family told stories. Some of the stories were family history, like how my father met my mother on his way to marry another girl. Now, when I write, I like to draw on a lot of those memories I have of my childhood.”

Themes such as broken homes, poverty, rural life, and family appear in Gibbons’ stories.

The oldest of four siblings, Gibbons was born on Jan. 31, 1938, in Carter’s Quarter, located in the mountains of north Georgia. Her father, George Manley, was a welder and mechanic, and her mother, Alice Lenell, was a mill worker.

Gibbons said her family moved a lot, and she often remembers times when she lived in places as a child without running water or electricity.

“My parents put me in school at age 9, which is when I learned to read,” Gibbons said. “When I learned to read, it opened so many doors. I would often read to my siblings, and we would sit around and discuss the books we were reading. We all decided at a pretty early age that the route to a better life was to pursue an education.”

Gibbons’ book “Halley” is a young-adult fiction, which is loosely based on her mother’s life.

“I sort of took the basic facts of my mother’s childhood, but I fictionalized it.”

Gibbons said she plans to speak at the book lecture about different experiences that led her to write “Halley” including experiences she had while growing up.

“When I was a girl, women didn’t have much of a say in anything,” Gibbons said. “There was no such thing as independence. In most cases, then men had all of the say.”

Gibbons said her stories often start with a picture in her mind, with a main character, and she doesn’t know about them until she starts writing.

“What I am usually very sure of is the setting,” Gibbons said. “It is almost always rural. I am a countrywoman, and I feel more at home surrounded by trees and fields, and so do my characters. My stories frequently involve families because family is so important to me.”

Gibbons said copies of her book will be available for purchase at the book lecture as well as several of her children’s books that have also been published.

Copies of “Halley” are $20 and can be purchased on Amazon.com or www.fayegibbons.com.