FAIRHOPE, Ala. — New York Times bestselling author Fannie Flagg will be in Fairhope next week to discuss and sign her latest book, “I Still Dream About You.” Page & Palette Bookstore is hosting this Alabama icon and her long-awaited new novel.

“I was so pleased I was able to talk Random House into starting the book tour at home at our independent bookstore,” Flagg said during a phone interview from her Fairhope home earlier this week. The Birmingham native also has a home in California, where she lives part of the year.

But, it’s her upstate birthplace that’s the focus of this novel, a somewhat comic look at Alabama’s largest city and the people who populate it.

Flagg said, “I had always wanted to write a book about Birmingham that didn’t bash it like it always had been. The better part of the city most didn’t know about. I thought it deserved something positive. There’s a lot of nice people there.”

The author noted many people only know Birmingham’s history of racial strife, which includes incidents such as bloody confrontations and an infamous 1963 church bombing.

But now they also know Maggie Fortenberry, whose friends think she has the perfect life. At the beginning of the novel, however, Maggie is actually quite miserable and contemplating suicide.

The former Miss Alabama is taking stock in how her life has turned out. She has given up her dream of living in a beautiful home like Crestview, and instead is working as a real estate agent in Birmingham.

But why did Flagg choose that career for her protagonist, especially during the downturn in the market? Some might say that alone could leave Maggie more than a little depressed.

“I am fascinated with real estate,” she said. Many of my friends are agents.”

But it seems that just when Maggie begins to wonder if there’s much point in going on, her life takes a wild turn, and she finds herself catapulted into one surprising discovery after another.

Along the way, she learns valuable lessons about the nature of friendship, and she starts to see how much more there is to life than she first thought.

Flagg knows how it feels to be an ex-beauty queen like Maggie — an emotion shared by ex-high school quarterbacks, she said.

“What was important then means nothing now. Maggie’s not equipped for the tough life.”

Flagg didn’t want to say too much and give away the book’s ending to readers, but pointed out there is a lesson to be learned inside its pages, especially as more and more cases of suicide among young people are reported.

“I think the message is although it feels terrible today, have faith that things will get better. We eventually have to understand that no matter how it gets at times, life is a gift,” she said. “Don’t waste a day being miserable or think about doing that (suicide).

“If people will just slug through these things and get out the other side … To see one of these glorious (Baldwin County) sunsets, to look at nature — these will put (life) in perspective. The book is about appreciating the simple things and happy endings. I like happy endings.”

Flagg will be at the Fairhope Civic Center on Nov. 9, from 6 until 8 p.m. It will be a celebration remembering all of her novels.

Thanks to the Fairhope Museum of History, more than 25 photographs will be on display highlighting Flagg’s illustrious career.

Several of her memorable outfits will also be featured, including the dress worn during the 1992 Academy Awards.

In the spirit of her latest book and her own crowned title as Miss Alabama, pageant dresses, crowns and sashes are encouraged, but optional.

The event is sponsored by Medical Park OBGYN.

Tickets are $5, and can be redeemed towards the purchase of her new book. They are available at Page & Palette, 32. S. Section Street, or online www.pageandpalette.com.

Pre-signed books will be available for purchase. Flagg will also sign and personalize books purchased exclusively at Page & Palette before or during the event.

Flagg’s other books include “Daisy Fay and the Miracle Man,” “Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Café” (which was produced by Universal Pictures as “Fried Green Tomatoes”), “Welcome to the World, Baby Girl!,” “Standing in the Rainbow,” “A Redbird Christmas” and “Can’t Wait to Get to Heaven.”

Flagg’s script for “Fried Green Tomatoes” was nominated for both the Academy Award and the Writers Guild of America Award, and it won the highly regarded Scripters Award.

For more information about the event, call 251-928-5295.