How to Fall in Love in a Time of Unnameable Disaster by Muriel Leung

We are excited to host Muriel Leung, author of How to Fall in Love in a Time of Unnameable Diaster, on Wednesday, February 19th at 7pm CST. For this event, Muriel will be joined in conversation by Helene Achanzar.

Please note: This event is free to attend, but registration is required. Masks are required at our in-person events.

A dark and tender debut set against a writhing backdrop of postapocalyptic New York City.

Acid rainstorms have transformed New York City into a toxic wasteland, cutting its remaining citizens off from one another. In one apartment building, an unlikely family of humans and ghosts survives. Mira reels from a devastating breakup with her partner, Mal, whose whereabouts are unknown, while her mother is plagued by furious dreams and her grandfather, Grandpa Why, stakes his claims as a rambunctious ghost. Across the hall, the cockroach Shin, also a ghost. As the world around them worsens, each character must learn to redefine what it means to live, die, and love at the end of the world.

Muriel Leung (she/they) is the author of the forthcoming debut novel How to Fall in Love in a Time of Unnameable Disaster (W.W. Norton & Company) in addition to three poetry collections that include Bone Confetti, Imagine Us, The Swarm, and Images Seen to Images Felt with Kristine Thompson. She teaches critical studies and creative writing at the California Institute of the Arts. She lives in Los Angeles, California.

Helene Achanzar (she/her) is a poet and editor whose writing has been published in The Georgia Review, Sixth Finch, Best New Poets, and elsewhere. Winner of the 2022 New England Review Award for Emerging Writers, she is a senior editor for Poetry Northwest and the director of programs at the Chicago Poetry Center.

Accessibility: This event is hosted at the bookstore, which is a wheelchair accessible space. Masks are required. Seating is on a first-come, first-serve basis. We have dimmable, non-fluorescent lights. To request ASL interpretation for this event, please email [email protected] by no later than 14 days before the event. For other questions or access needs, please email [email protected].

Event Venue & Nearby Stays

Women & Children First, 5233 North Clark Street, Chicago, United States