In Eden Undone: A True Story of Sex, Murder, and Utopia at the Dawn of World War II, Abbott Kahler—New York Times bestselling author of The Ghosts of Eden Park—unravels the fascinating true story of a doomed utopian experiment in the Galápagos. Instead of creating a harmonious tropical community, the exploits of an unlikely group of exiles led to two mysterious disappearances and two deaths in the remote archipelago. At the next Lit Salon on October 9th, Kahler will discuss this stranger-than-fiction tale with Untapped New York founder and author of the forthcoming
book
The Art Spy, Michelle Young, and Pulitzer Prize winner Debby Applegate!
Lit Salon guests will enjoy a welcome cocktail and a live performance by The Brownstone Quartet followed by an hour of conversation and audience Q&A. The evening will conclude with a book signing and mingling with complimentary drinks. You can pre-order an autographed copy of Eden Undone here.
Lit Salon: Eden Undone Launch Party w/ Abbott Kahler
Eden Undone follows a vibrant cast of characters from across the globe: a Berlin doctor so committed to island life that he replaced his natural teeth with steel dentures, a traumatized World War I veteran and his young family, and an eccentric Austrian baroness who traveled with her two adoring paramours and a pearl-handled revolver. This eclectic group fled political and economic unrest in their homelands to create a paradise free from societal restraints on the uninhabited island of Floreana. However, under the harsh conditions of isolated jungle life, tensions rise. Jealousy, animosity, and suspicion grow among the expats—especially when people start to disappear…and turn up dead. Kahler tells this unbelievable yet true story with dialogue and first-hand accounts from diaries, newspapers, letters, and other primary sources.
Even though the Galápagos affair happened nearly one hundred years ago, the story continues to captivate both readers and film audiences. A fictionalized version of the tale, directed by Ron Howard, debuted at the Toronto Film Festival this September. Titled Eden, the film stars Jude Law, Sydney Sweeney, Ana de Armas, Vanessa Kirby, and Daniel Brühl.
Join Abbott Kahler at the Lit Salon for more insight into what went wrong in this fateful attempt at utopia and why audiences are still obsessed with the story decades later!
Lit Salon: Eden Undone Launch Party w/ Abbott Kahler
The Lit Salon is an intimate literary salon set to candlelight inside Maison Brooklyn, a lovingly restored, historic 1890s townhouse. For this intimate salon, the home will be filled with glowing and wonderfully scented candles by Aerangis and decorated with fresh flowers by Ode à la Rose, a NYC flower delivery service. The specialty cocktails being served featured spirits from the Brooklyn-based Fort Hamilton Distillery.
