The next Literary Cafe will feature author Rachel Barenbaum whose new novel "Atomic Anna" is an epic adventure about three generations of women who work together to travel through time to prevent the Chernobyl disaster and to right the wrongs of their past. Rachel will be in conversation with Literary Café Host, Marjan Kamali (author of "Together Tea" and "The Stationary Shop"), about her masterfully plotted novel, the way women are depicted in literature, and why time travel is an excellent device to explore questions of science and ethics in fiction.

This is a hybrid program - you can attend in person or watch via Zoom. If you are attending via Zoom, please register to receive the Zoom link. Although registration is not required to attend an in-person program, it enables us to notify you if a program is postponed or cancelled.

About Rachel Barenbaum:
ATOMIC ANNA is Rachel's second novel. The New York Times Book Review said, "The novel is masterfully plotted." The LA Review of Books called it "propulsive and intimate." In a *starred* review Kirkus wrote, "The book is an incredible achievement... As ambitious as a Greek tragedy and just as lyrical and unflinching." In a *starred* review from Publishers Weekly the editors wrote, "Barenbaum burnishes her reputation as an up-and-coming talent with this audacious time travel story.... Barenbaum dares greatly, and succeeds."

Rachel's debut, A BEND IN THE STARS, was named a New York Times Summer Reading Selection and a Barnes & Noble Discover Great New Writers selection. It is also a Boston Globe Bestseller.

Rachel is a prolific writer and reviewer whose work has appeared in publications such as the LA Review of Books, Harper’s Bazaar, Hey Alma! and more. She will be a scholar in residence at the Hadassah-Brandeis Institute at Brandeis University this fall and is a graduate of GrubStreet’s Novel Incubator. She is the founder of Debut Spotlight and the Debut Editor at A Mighty Blaze. In a former life she was a hedge fund manager and a spin instructor. She has degrees from Harvard in Business and Literature and Philosophy. She lives in Brookline, MA and is an elected Town Meeting Member.

About Marjan Kamali:

Marjan Kamali is the award-winning author of The Stationery Shop (Gallery Books/Simon & Schuster), a national bestseller, and Together Tea (EccoBooks/HarperCollins), a Massachusetts Book Award finalist. She is a 2022 recipient of the National Endowment for the Arts Creative Writing Fellowship.

Kamali’s novels are published in translation in more than 20 languages and The Stationery Shop was awarded the Prix Attitude in France. Her essays have appeared in the Wall Street Journal, Literary Hub, and the Los Angeles Review of Books.

The Stationery Shop is being adapted into a TV series at HBO and Together Tea was adapted for the stage.

Kamali holds a bachelor’s degree in English literature from the University of California, Berkeley, an MBA from Columbia University, and a Master of Fine Arts in creative writing from New York University. Born in Turkey to Iranian parents, Kamali spent her childhood in Turkey, Iran, Germany, Kenya, and the U.S.  She currently teaches creative writing at GrubStreet and lives in the Boston area with her family.

Copies of Rachel's book will be available for purchase through Maxima Gift Center.

This program is sponsored by the Cary Library Foundation.