Heidi Durrow Back to Portland to Read at BB!

We are so excited to be hosting Heidi Durrow next Tuesday, January 11th, at 7 pm for the Portland premiere of the paperback edition of her debut novel, The Girl Who Fell from the Sky! Heidi grew up in Portland, attending Harriet Tubman Middle School and Jefferson High. We wrote about Heidi's book when it first came out in hardcover from Algonquin Books. Here's what we had to say. The book is a coming-of-age novel, wrapped in a bit of a mystery, and an examination of society's ideas of race, class, and beauty. But mostly it is just a beautifully written page-turner of a book. Oh, and did I mention it's set in Portland??

Barbara Kingsolver, who selected the manuscript for the Bellwether Prize, described it as a "breathless telling of a tale we've never heard before. Haunting and lovely, pitch-perfect, this book could not be more timely." Author Caroline Leavitt said the book is "as exquisitely written as a poem." Recently The Oregonian named it one of the best books of the year -- one of many publications to recognize the book.

Heidi is a graduate of Stanford, Columbia's Graduate School of Journalism, and Yale Law School. But her website summarizes her background best: "I'm a former corporate attorney, a former journalist, a former Life Skills trainer for NBA and NFL athletes, a podcaster and a festival producer. I'm a coffee drinker, an avid user of bendy straws (yes, with the coffee). Oh, and I'm a writer."

I've had the pleasure of chatting with Heidi a couple of times at book events. Here is a brief video clip from the first time we met, in which she tells us why we'll like her book. And you know what? She was right!

We hope you can come for this event on Tuesday. Heidi is one of the most delightful authors I've met, so I'm sure we're all in for a good time. Come early if you want a seat -- we're expecting a big crowd!