Iowa Writers' Workshop alum and current University of Iowa instructor Anna Bruno will read from her newest novel, Fine Young People, and will be joined in conversation with bestselling author and former Prairie Lights bookseller, Claire Lombardo. Described by publisher Algonquin Books as the story of a high-school senior investigating the death of a star hockey player at her elite Jesuit school, which uncovers "the rot" within the institution as well as the truth of her own past, Fine Young People is praised by Katy Hays, New York Times bestselling author of The Cloisers and Saltwater, as an "engrossing mystery about the perils of belonging, how joy and tragedy can irrevocably shape close-knit communities, and the all-consuming pursuit of the truth." Meanwhile, Chelsea Bieker, bestselling author of Madwoman and Godshot, says, "Bruno masterfully performs psychological suspense and coming-of-age narrative, creating a propulsive story that examines the true cost of achievement culture. Heart-grabbing, page-turning, and unflinching, Bruno holds us in her grip."
Anna Bruno is the author of Fine Young People (Algonquin, 2025) and Ordinary Hazards (Atria, 2020). She teaches at the University of Iowa’s Tippie College of Business and the Iowa Summer Writing Festival. Previously, Anna managed public relations and marketing for technology and financial services companies in Silicon Valley. She holds an MFA in fiction from the Iowa Writers’ Workshop, an MBA from Cornell University, and a BA from Stanford University. She lives in Iowa City with her husband, two sons, and blue heeler.
Claire Lombardo is the author of the national bestseller, Same As It Ever Was, and The Most Fun We Ever Had, which has been optioned for television by Reese Witherspoon. She now lives in Minneapolis but previously lived in Iowa City, where she taught at the Iowa Writers' Workshop (she is also an alum) and at Grinnell College and worked part-time as a bookseller at Prairie Lights.
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