Bellingham-based author JoAnn Roe is very familiar with the past. It’s the more recent history of the San Juan Island that Roe, author of 16 books, focuses on in her latest work, “The San Juan Islands: Into the 21st Century.”

Published by Claxton Press, Roe explores the farming of lavender rather than wheat, raising of alpacas rather than cattle, development of land-use regulations and the endearing magnetism of the San Juans resident killer whales.

Roe, a historian by heart and by trade, and a Blakely Island property owner since the early 1960s, believes a whole lot has happened in the last 50 years that has shaped the San Juans, but much of it remains mostly unexplored—until now.

Roe will be at Harbor Bookstore, 22 Cannery Landing, Saturday, March 17, to sign and discuss her latest work. For info, 378-7222.