South Carolina native Dorothea Benton Frank is the New York Times best-selling author of Pawleys Island, Shem Creek, Isle of Palms, Plantation, Sullivan's Island, Full of Grace, The Christmas Pearl, and Bulls Island, and a long-awaited sequel, her latest novel, Return to Sullivan's Island (William Morrow).
Like Anne Rivers Siddons, Rebecca Wells, and Michael Lee West, Frank’s novels are wonderfully atmospheric. Her beloved books bring to life the rich atmosphere of the Lowcountry of South Carolina, both Hilton Head and Charleston, with evocative prose that allow readers to smell the sea air, see the palmettos, and savor the sweet tea.
Frank has appeared on NBC’s Today Show, Parker Ladd’s Book Talk, and many local network affiliated television stations. She is a frequent speaker on creative writing and the creative process for students of all ages and in private venues such as the National Arts Club, the Junior League of New York, Friends of the Library Organizations, and the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation. She has also been a guest speaker at the South Carolina Book Festival, Novello, North Carolina’s Festival of Books and the Book and Author annual event in Charleston, South Carolina, sponsored by the Post & Courier.
Before she began her writing career, Frank was involved extensively in the arts and education, and in raising awareness and funding for various non-profits in New Jersey and New York. She holds an appointment on the New Jersey Cultural Trust and serves on the Advisory Boards of the Southern Literature Council of Charleston and New Jersey Theater Group.
Frank has served as a trustee of the Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company, New York, Music Theater Group New York, The Mental Health Association of Essex County, New Jersey and The Community Foundation of New Jersey. In addition, she served on the Board of Trustees of the Drumthwacket Foundation, the official residence of the Governor of New Jersey, for seven years. In 1991, she was appointed to the New Jersey State Council on the Arts. She has been a public speaker on fundraising and ADA compliance locally and nationally for the National Endowment for the Arts. Her work on ADA compliance and the Arts Access Task Force was filmed by New Jersey Network, a PBS affiliate and nominated for a regional Emmy in 1995.
Past board service includes The New Jersey Chamber Music Society, Whole Theater, Dance New Jersey, American Stage Company, and Senior Care of Montclair. As a volunteer fund raiser, Frank has planned events for Bloomfield College, The Montclair Kimberley Academy, Unity Concerts, Papermill Playhouse, Overseas Neighbors, Young President’s Organization and The National Governor’s Association. She is a 1991 graduate of the Leadership America Program.
Frank, who was born and raised on Sullivan’s Island in South Carolina, currently divides her time between South Carolina and New Jersey, where she and her husband are raising their two children.
Praise for Dorothea Benton Frank:
"Frank keeps you reading compulsively."
-- Charlotte Observer
"Frank evokes the eccentric Hamilton family and their feisty Gullah housekeeper with orginality and conviction...thanks to these scrappily compelling portraits, this is a rich read."
-- Publishers Weekly (starred review) on Bulls Island
"A masterful storyteller."
-- Booklist on Bulls Island
"Frank's absorbing narrative manages to feel both authentically Southern and universally empathetic."
-- Publishers Weekly on Pawleys Island
"Frank specializes in resilient characters who survive thanks to a saucy combination of grit and humor, and her vibrantly eccentric Russo clan may be her most endearing creation yet."
-- Booklist on Full of Grace
"Frank . . . returns to the Lowcountry for another tale of romance served with a side of antipasti."
-- Raleigh News & Observer
"A warming female-empowerment tale with a side order of southern magic."
-- Kirkus Reviews on The Christmas Pearl
"A true southern comfort."
-- Booklist