Alum Debuts Novel About Growing Up in KY

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Jan. 13, 2012) − Did you wish you were in the popular crowd in high school? Did you want to go to homecoming with the most popular guy at school? "The Queen of Kentucky,"by University of Kentucky alumna Alecia Whitaker, explores just that dream of being the "it" girl in high school.

Inspired by Whitaker's own experiences growing up in Kentucky, "The Queen of Kentucky" follows the life of 14-year-old Kentucky girl Ricki Jo Winstead, who has decided to reinvent herself as Ericka as she enters public high school. The farmer's daughter sets out to shed her roots and join the popular crowd. Caught between being a country girl and a wannabe country club girl, Ricki Jo begins to forget who she truly is, and it will take a serious incident involving an old friend to snap her back to reality. "The Queen of Kentucky" is published by Poppy, which is known for paperback original series for teen girls including the national bestselling series "Gossip Girl."

To see a video trailer of "The Queen of Kentucky," featuring students from the Kentucky Governor's School for the Arts, visit YouTube at http://youtu.be/4elPfcYcnrE.

Whitaker's journey to publishing her first young adult novel was the subject of the recent Louisville Courier-Journal article "Cynthiana native's new book revisits her experiences in high school" by Matt Frassica. To read Frassica's article, visit the newspaper online at www.courier-journal.com/article/20120109/FEATURES06/301090026/Alecia-Whitaker-Queen-of-Kentucky. 

Local audiences had an opportunity to hear more about "The Queen of Kentucky" from the author herself when Whitaker returned Lexington to celebrate the release of her debut novel. She participated in a book discussion and signing at Joseph-Beth Booksellers, located in Lexington Green.

Whitaker, a native of Cynthiana, Ky., is a 2002 UK graduate where she earned a bachelor's degree in theatre and integrated strategic communication. An actress, as well as a writer, she has performed in the New York City Fringe Festival and several commercials. Whitaker currently resides in New York City with her husband, Jerrod Lee Pace, a fellow UK graduate from Corbin, Ky., who holds a bachelor's degree in kinesiology, and their son, Knox.

MEDIA CONTACT: Whitney Hale, (859) 257-8716 or whitney.hale@uky.edu