COLUMBIA -- Joy Barnes, coauthor of "Knowing Who I Am: A Black Entrepreneur's Struggle and Success in the American South," will be one of the featured authors at the 12th annual S.C. Book Festival, Feb. 22-24, at the Columbia Metropolitan Convention Center.

"Knowing Who I Am: A Black Entrepreneur's Struggle and Success in the American South" (USC Press, 216 pages, $29.95 hardcover) tells the story of Orangeburg businessman Earl Middleton. Middleton, who grew up in segregated Orangeburg, used the values instilled by his parents -- hard work, perseverance, compassion and a love of the Lord -- to graduate from college, train as a Tuskegee Airmen Cadet, serve in World War II and begin a barbering business which he later converted into a thriving real estate brokerage and insurance agency that is now managed by his son, Kenneth Middleton.

Earl Middleton's entrepreneurial achievements were recognized in 1992 with a front page Wall Street Journal story, due in large part to his hiring of Barnes, a white woman, 20 years earlier, making his the first racially integrated real estate agency in Orangeburg. The firm later became the first black-owned real estate agency to affiliate with Coldwell Banker.

Barnes will join a panel of authors of South Carolina history at 12:40 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 23, at the convention center. And at 3:30 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 24, Barnes and members of the Middleton family will present a special tribute to Earl Middleton at the Hilton Columbia Center. The tribute will include short video productions about Middleton interspersed with readings from his book.

"I think we're very fortunate to be invited as first-time authors," Barnes said of their presence at the S.C. Book Festival. "And USC Press has been just fabulous to work with.

"I know that Earl would be proud. He would just be elated about this book." Middleton died Nov. 20, 2007, nearly four months before the book's Feb. 15 release.

"Knowing Who I Am" will be available for purchase during the festival at the USC Press booth. Retail price is $29.95.

Other participating authors at the S.C. Book Festival include Tasha Alexander, James Born, Virginia Boyd, Jackie Cooper, Carolyn Kreiter-Foronda, Gwen Hunter, Tito Perdue, Cathy Pickens and Peter Zheutlin, among others. Book clubs can mingle with authors during the morning toast Saturday, Feb. 23, at the Hilton Columbia Center. Coffee, Danish pastries and a cash bar serving mimosas and Bloody Marys will be available from 8:30 to 9:45 a.m. Admission is $25 for a group of five book club members and $5 for each additional member. Preregistration is preferred, but checks will be accepted at the event. To register, visit www.scbookfestival.org.

On Saturday and Sunday, Humanities at the Hilton will feature 50-minute sessions with festival presenters. Saturday's topics include "Game, Set, Match," the story of South Carolina native Althea Gibson; Chaplain Talk about Civil War chaplains; medieval manuscripts from the South Carolina collection; multi-media presentation about the Gullah culture and big screen, blogs and books. In addition to the Middleton tribute on Sunday, other topics include family life in the 19th century and the history press. Humanities at the Hilton sessions are free and door prizes will be awarded at each session.

The S.C. Book Festival invites book lovers to listen to local, regional and national authors discuss their writing in a relaxed atmosphere, shop the many exhibitor booths, and get books signed or appraised. More than 75 authors and poets will be attending the festival, including Harlan Coben, Cassandra King, Josephine Humphreys, Sallie Ann Robinson, Kwame Dawes, George Singleton, South Carolina Poet Laureate Marjory Wentworth and others. Admission Saturday and Sunday is free. Special ticketed events include Friday, Feb. 22, master writing classes, the opening night keynote and reception Friday featuring Kevin O'Keefe, and Brunching with Authors on Sunday morning. Registration for these special events is available online at www.scbookfestival.org.

For more information on the S.C. Book Festival, visit scbookfestival.org.

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