Scarsdale Adult School Catalog Winter 2024
Special Events Author Visit: Ann Napolitano, Hello Beautiful (2023)
Meet New York Times best selling author Ann Napolitano in conversation with Anna Katsavos as they discuss Hello Beautiful (2023), instant bestseller and Oprah’s 100th selection for the year. This profoundly moving family saga, at times heartbreaking, explores a number of emotionally complicated issues and predicaments, as the author expertly tackles themes of grief, mental illness, love, loss, betrayal, and forgiveness. Written with a nod toward Louisa May Alcott’s classic Little Women , the novel focuses on four sisters, close-knit but distinct, as they test the limits of sisterly devotion and family obligations. Though inseparable, the Padavano girls are very different: Julia is the most ambitious; Sylvie the dreamer; Cecelia the artist; and Emeline the caretaker. When William Waters, Julia’s beau, enters their world, so does unexpected chaos, causing a catastrophic family feud. As the years pass, the family must deal with depression, teen pregnancy, divorce, a suicide attempt and much more, testing the sisters’ devotion to one another. Time will be reserved forQ&A. Pair this course with the book discussion led by Anna Katsavos ( Course 12374 ), also in the winter schedule. Separate registration is required. ANN NAPOLITANO is the author of Dear Edward (2020), an instant New York Times bestseller, a Read with Jenna selection, and an Apple TV+ series. She is also the author of A Good Hard Look (2011) and Within Arm’s Reach (2004). Napolitano received her MFA from NYU, and has taught fiction writing at Brooklyn College, NYU, and Gotham Writers Workshop. She lives in Brooklyn with her husband and two children. ANNA KATSAVOS , PhD, is an experienced book group facilitator. A SUNY Professor Emerita of English Literature and Women’s Studies, she has received numerous awards for teaching, and her scholarship has been published in a variety of literary journals. She has interviewed many best-selling authors and has presented interactive programs focusing on a wide range of women’s issues. Additionally, she conducts writing, editing and publishing workshops. Monday, January 22 • 1:00pm-2:15pm • Online • Course 12378 • $30 Author Visit and Book Discussion: Thrity Umrigar, The Museum of Failures (2023) Meet best-selling author Thrity Umrigar in a half-hour conversation with Anna Katsavos as they discuss Umrigar's latest critically-acclaimed novel, The Museum of Failures (2023). Immediately after, dive into a book discussion. A story of family, frailty, and forgiveness, this book's focus is on the relationship between Remy Wadia who returns to visit his family in India after a long absence and his ailing, hospitalized mother. Newly disclosed family secrets cause Remy to reevaluate his entire childhood and his relationship to his parents at the point that he is about to become a parent himself. Grief, bewilderment, nostalgia, displacement, and guilt yield to redemption and healing in this heartfelt tale.
THRITY UMRIGAR is a best-selling author of the novels Bombay Time , The Space Between Us , If Today Be Sweet , The Weight of Heaven , The World We Found , The Story Hour , Everybody’s Son , The Secrets Between Us , and Honor . She has also published a memoir and three children’s picture books along with many essays and articles. She is currently a Distinguished University Professor of English at Case Western Reserve University in
Cleveland. She was raised in Bombay, India, as a Parsi child attending a Catholic school in a predominantly Hindu country before coming to the United States at age 21. Her latest novel, The Museum of Failures, was named a best
book of 2023 by NPR and others. ANNA KATSAVOS (see bio for “Author Visit: Ann Napolitano, Hello Beautiful (2023)”). Monday, March 25 • 1:00pm-2:30pm • Online • Course 12441 • $30
www.ScarsdaleAdultSchool.org • (914) 723-2325
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