Learning to Haight Named Finalist for 2012 Indie Reader Discovery Award

June 5, 2012 - PRLog -- San Francisco, June 5, 2012 – Learning to Haight—a coming-of-age novel that takes place in San Francisco—was honored as one of the top independent books of 2012 by Indie Reader (www.indiereader.com) at the Book Expo America (BEA) in New York. One of nine finalists in the literary fiction category, Learning to Haight is about a young man’s journey to make a name for himself as a writer and activist in San Francisco.

Indie Reader founder and president Amy Edelman and New York Times bestselling author Darcy Chan announced the results at the show while broadcasting live on YouTube. IR Discovery Awards were given out in more than 30 categories ranging from memoirs to self-help titles.

“My novel captures the independent spirit of one of the most progressive cities in the world, and being honored as an indie author opens up my work to readers with a rebellious streak of their own who relish good writing,” said author Andrew Bardin Williams.

Learning to Haight is the story of San Francisco’s effect on the young men and women who are drawn there to find themselves. New reporter Jack McClure is assigned to write an article about an influential figure from San Francisco’s past as part of a special 40th anniversary spread on the 1967 Summer of Love. A beatnik, a hippie and a one-time movie star, Dean Simmons is anything but an easy interview, but Jack knows that getting to know the “real” Dean is his ticket off the news desk. Along the way, Jack learns what it means to be an activist and how to make a name for himself.

Learning to Haight was published through Smashwords on November 15, 2011, and was released at a launch party and reading at the Beat Museum in San Francisco. It is available exclusively as an ebook through Amazon.com and other ebook retailers.

About Andrew Bardin Williams
Andrew Bardin Williams is a freelance copywriter and author in San Francisco. Andrew has done a reading at the Beat Museum in North Beach, been featured by Kerouac.com and appeared on Dante's Hot Tub on Radio Valencia. Discover his other works at Smashwords.com. You can also connect with Andrew through Facebook at www.facebook.com/LearningtoHaight.