Vanessa Miller: Reading and Signing

Join us at Hub City Bookshop on March 18th at 6 pm for an unforgettable reading and signing with Vanessa Mille. The Filling Station by Vanessa Miller is a poignant novel that explores the intertwining lives of several characters connected through a small-town gas station. As the story unfolds, each character grapples with their own struggles and secrets, finding unexpected hope and healing in the most unlikely places.

Get a 10% discount on the book when you RSVP on Eventbrite and present it at the bookshop register!

"The 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre is, shockingly, little more than a footnote in history . . . Miller's book, thankfully, reverses that egregious oversight . . . we viscerally learn how this vibrant Black community fought devastation with resilience, faith, and grit." --Jodi Picoult, #1 New York Times bestselling author

Two sisters. One unassuming haven. Endless opportunities for grace.

Sisters Margaret and Evelyn Justice have grown up in the prosperous Greenwood District of Tulsa, Oklahoma--also known as Black Wall Street. In Greenwood, the Justice sisters had it all--movie theaters and entertainment venues, beauty shops and clothing stores, high-profile businesses like law offices, medical clinics, and banks. While Evelyn aspires to head off to the East Coast to study fashion design, recent college grad Margaret plans to settle in Greenwood, teaching at the local high school and eventually raising a family.

Then the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre upends everything they know and brings them unspeakable loss. Left with nothing but each other, the sisters flee along what would eventually become iconic Route 66 and stumble upon the Threatt Filling Station, a safe haven and the only place where they can find a shred of hope in oppressive Jim Crow America. At the filling station, they are able to process their pain, fill up their souls, and find strength as they wrestle with a faith in God that has left them feeling abandoned.

But they eventually realize that they can't hide out at the filling station when Greenwood needs to be rebuilt. The search for their father and their former life may not give them easy answers, but it can propel them--and their community--to a place where their voices are stronger . . . strong enough to build a future that honors the legacy of those who were lost.

Vanessa Miller is a best-selling, award-winning author and playwright. Her writing has been centered on themes of redemption, often focusing on characters facing multi-dimensional struggles. Several of Vanessa’s novels have appeared on Bestseller’s Lists. Miller’s work has received numerous awards, including the 2024 American Fiction Award winner for Historical Fiction and The 2022 Best Christian Fiction Award.The American Queen has been featured in GMA, Washington Post and Essence Magazine roundups. She lives in North Carolina with her husband and family.

Event Venue & Nearby Stays

Hub City Bookshop & Press, 186 West Main Street, Spartanburg, United States