Residents can get their hands on historian Kristin Kobes Du Mez's new book 12 days before it hits shelves, thanks to Main Street Books' next author event in Davidson.

The independent bookstore, a fixture on Davidson's Main Street since 1987, is hosting Du Mez for an evening talk on Thursday, Sept. 3, at 7 p.m. in the sanctuary of Davidson College Presbyterian Church, 100 N. Main St. Tickets cost $40 and include a pre-release copy of "Live Laugh Love: The Secret History of White Christian Women and the World They Made," which doesn't publish until Sept. 15.

Du Mez will sign books after the talk. Additional copies of "Live Laugh Love" and her New York Times bestseller "Jesus and John Wayne" will be available for purchase.

"We are thrilled to bring author Kristin Du Mez to Davidson for a robust discussion on faith in today's culture," events coordinator Olivia Eldridge said in an announcement posted Aug. 7. "We are grateful to Davidson College Presbyterian Church for providing space for the community to hear from this prominent religious scholar."

Du Mez is a professor of history at Calvin University who holds a PhD from the University of Notre Dame. Her research focuses on the intersection of gender, religion and politics, and her writing has appeared in The New York Times, The Washington Post and NBC News. She is a Senior Democracy Fellow with the Public Religion Research Institute.

The new book examines white Christian women's culture through topics including multilevel marketing, purity culture, Christian retail and what Du Mez describes on her website as "systems of manipulation and control."

Davidson is one of the earliest stops on a national fall book tour. Du Mez confirmed the visit on her Substack newsletter, noting that early copies will be available at each of her in-person events starting in September. The tour also includes stops in Washington, D.C., New York City, Minneapolis, Denver and Chicago.

Tickets are available at mainstreetbooksdavidson.com. For questions, contact Eldridge at [email protected] or 704-892-6841.

Upcoming community events:

• Thursday, Sept. 3, 7 p.m. — Kristin Kobes Du Mez author talk, Davidson College Presbyterian Church, 100 N. Main St., Davidson. $40 (includes book). mainstreetbooksdavidson.com