This event has passed
The New People by Andrea Uptmor
Past event
Featured Book
The New People: A Novel
A searing and strikingly intimate debut set in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis, about a newly married lesbian couple who move into a flipped foreclosure, unaware that the former homeowners are still living in the attic.
Months after the housing bubble bursts, newlywed Chicagoans Emma and Rachel move into a charming little house in a conservative Indiana college town, hoping for a fresh start after a painful miscarriage. As Rachel immerses herself in her new role as a tenure-track professor and bestselling novelist, adjunct Emma struggles in the shadow of her wife’s success. Desperate to build something of her own, Emma secretly pursues IVF, even as Rachel insists they wait to have children. The house, initially a symbol of new beginnings, becomes a refuge for Emma from the town she’s convinced is set against her—until strange occurrences make her question whether she and her wife are truly alone.
They aren’t.
Charlotte and Dirk, the former homeowners, are secretly living in the attic above Emma and Rachel’s attached garage. Dispossessed by the recession and anxious about her husband’s declining health, Charlotte listens to the interlopers below, and her resentment steadily grows. What starts as small acts of defiance—missing food, flipped breakers in the fuse box, subtle scratches in the furniture—soon becomes sabotage. But when her campaign to drive out the couple goes too far, Charlotte’s and Emma’s stories converge in an explosive climax that will reveal the lengths people will go to reclaim what they’ve lost.
This book will be available for purchase at the event.
About This Event
The New People by Andrea Uptmor
Please join us for a book launch celebrating The New People by Andrea Uptmor! For this event, Andrea will be in conversation with Adrienne Gunn.
Featured Author
Andrea Uptmor
Andrea Uptmor received her MFA in fiction at the University of Minnesota, and her short fiction has been published in McSweeney’s, PANK, and The Masters Review, among others. She lives in the Chicago area with her family.
About the Venue
Women & Children First
Women & Children First believes in the transformative power of literature. As intersectional trans-inclusive feminists, we believe books are tools for liberation. Since 1979, we have celebrated and amplified underrepresented voices.
Visit store pageMore at Women & Children First
Weekly Morning Storytime!
Join us for Weekly Morning Storytime! Doors open at 10:15 a.m. and the program begins at 10:30 a.m. This is one half hour of stories, songs, and finger plays designed for ages 2 and up, but kids of all ages are welcome! Storytime is led by a rotation of seasoned readers and performers including teaching artist Miss Ruby and W&CF co-founder Miss Linda! Suggested donation of $3/kid.Featured Performers: Ruby Gibson (she/her) is a teaching artist, actor, and playwright who loves to tell stories full of music and magic! Since graduating from Northwestern University in 2022, she has worked with PlayMakers Laboratory, Chicago Children's Theatre, and Evanston Public Library as a teacher and performer. As a playwright, her adaptation of The Little Prince was developed for young audiences across Chicagoland with Improv Playhouse and the Actors Gymnasium. When she’s not playing pretend, you can find Ruby baking, gardening, or reading young adult fantasy novels.Miss Linda is the co-founder of Women & Children First, Chicago's feminist bookstore since 1979! Linda has led kids storytime for more than three decades! Now retired from running the bookstore, she spends her days reading whatever she wants, babysitting several amazing kids in the area, and following the Chicago Sky! She also continues to facilitate the Women's Book Group on the third Tuesday of every month.
Offsite: Susan Stryker at Gerber/Hart LGBTQ+ Library & Archive - SOLD OUT
We are excited to be the bookseller for an event with Susan Stryker at Gerber/Hart LGBTQ+ Library & Archives! Registration is required for this free event. Register through Gerber/Hart's Eventbrite page. Join us at Gerber/Hart LGBTQ+ Library & Archives for a conversation with Susan Stryker about her new book, Changing Gender Gerber-Hart Library and Archives will host the acclaimed author and historian Susan Stryker for a discussion of her new book, Changing Gender on Sunday November 8 at 2pm. Stryker will sit down for a public interview with Loyola University Chicago historian Michelle Nickerson to talk about the book and how it can help us understand and reckon with the challenges facing the LBGTQ+ community in the current political landscape. Seating is limited - RSVP for a seat here. Doors will open at 2pm to welcome registered participants to a reception in the Gerber Hart’s Raffety/Tran Community Room. Visitors can visit the library reading room (and perhaps find a LGBTQ+ book to check out) and exhibit space while enjoying a beverage and bite. At 3pm the event will start in the Atrium with introductory remarks. Audience Q and A will follow. Staff from Women & Children First Books will also be on site selling copies of Changing Gender for purchase at the event. Sponsored by the Gannon Center for Women and Leadership’s Ann F. Baum Speaker Series and the Departments of History and Women’s Studies & Gender Studies at Loyola University Chicago RSVPS required for this free event.
Bad Company: A Thriller by Sara Paretsky
We're excited to host the book launch party for Sara Paretsky in celebration of the release of Bad Company: A Thriller. The date of this event is especially auspicisous as it coincides with Women & Children First's 47th birthday! We've had the honor of hosting Sara for nearly every book she's published throughout her prolific career; we're thrilled to welcome her back once more for this book-signing and conversation with mystery writer Lori Rader-Day!