Marie Benedict, author of books including “Mystery of Mrs. Christie” and “The Only Woman in the Room,” will speak at 6:30 p.m. Friday, March 8 at the Glen Eden Barn in Forward Township. Submitted Photo

A $13,000 grant came just in time for administrators of the Evans City Public Library to bring a bestselling author, noted for writing about overlooked female figures, to the area for an event on International Women’s Day on Friday, March 8.

Marie Benedict, author of books including New York Times bestselling titles “Mystery of Mrs. Christie,” “The Personal Librarian” and “The Only Woman in the Room,” will speak at an event starting at 6:30 p.m. Friday at the Glen Eden Barn in Forward Township.

“We chose her because she is an international bestseller, and she is also originally from Pittsburgh,” said Maria Barron, president of the Evans City library board. “A lot of historical events are kind of pulled from a male perspective, and (Benedict) focuses on the woman experience during these historical events; it may be different, but it’s still very important.”

During the presentation, Benedict will read excerpts from her books and have a question-and-answer session.

Barron said the library applied for a grant through the Robert E. and Helen Nixon Forsythe Foundation in June and received $13,000. Part of the funding is paying for the event with Benedict. Barron added that the library wanted to bring a woman author to the area to highlight stories of women.

“When we were writing the grant, we specifically wrote that we would really like to have an international bestselling author for our patrons because that's not something we could normally afford,” Barron said. “Benedict is a really popular author of historical fiction where she in particular writes about women that may have been overlooked.”

Library administrators are expecting the event to be popular — up to around 200 people, Barron said. Admission is free, but tickets are required, so people planning to attend should reserve a spot online, Barron said.

The event will include a book signing by Benedict, a bake sale raising money for the Evans City library, as well as other ways to donate, Barron said.

For more information or to reserve a ticket for the event, visit evanscitylibrary.org.