By Lisa Stone – ReminderNews

Enfield Public Library hosted a “Meet the Author” night with Denis Horgan on June 26, to help kick off its summer reading program. Horgan’s most recent accomplishment is his novel, “Bangkok World.” This work is based on his experience in Thailand. Other works by the author include “Ninety-Eight Point Six…and other stories,” “The Dawn of Days” and “Flotsam: A Life in Debris.”

Horgan was drafted into the United States Army and sent to Thailand. After his military duties were completed, he stayed to be a newspaper publisher and editor. He had many experiences in Southeast Asia that he really wanted to share with the world. He decided to put his memories into a book, which became “Bangkok World” – the same name of the newspaper that he was working for in Thailand.

Horgan talked to the audience about his time served in the military as well as time at the paper. When Horgan was in college, he worked for the “Boston Globe.” “My father didn’t approve of my career choice. Men that were in newspapering were usually women-chasing scoundrels,” Horgan said. “For the most part, he was right. That’s why I signed on for the job.”

After only one year of being in the U.S. Army, Horgan sent for his wife. She was supportive of his desire to stay on after his military time and work at the newspaper. At the age of 26 he had become the editor/publisher of the newspaper. He remained in Thailand for approximately three years after the service and then returned to the U.S.

Horgan worked for newspapers in several cities: Dublin, Ireland, Washington, D.C., Boston. The paper he worked for the longest was the “Hartford Courant,” where he wrote columns for 25 years. “One thing that I find sad about our society now is we are losing newspapers and we have little to no local news coverage. People just don’t buy newspapers like they used to, so the advertising is way down. A lot of companies don’t advertise in the papers anymore. This will hurt our society in ways we don’t understand,” said Horgan. “We’re losing a piece of our history.”

Now retired from the newspaper field, Horgan is concentrating on his book career. People stood in line to have the author sign their books and have a moment of his undivided attention.

http://www.remindernews.com/article/2013/07/01/local-author-denis-horgan-comes-to-enfield-public-library