HWS News
10 August 2020 • Alums Virtual Conversation with Author Carrie Firestone '92
Writer, teacher and community builder Carrie Lenarcic Firestone '92 has agreed to host a virtual author talk for the Hobart and William Smith community. The general writing discussion will be followed by a 30-minute ask me anything conversation about writing and publishing. The date will be set shortly.
Firestone is the author of the acclaimed young adult novels The Loose Ends List and The Unlikelies. Her new novel, Dress Coded, tells the story of an eighth grader who starts a podcast to protest the unfair dress code enforcement at her middle school and sparks rebellion, while also dealing with changing friendships and her older brothers vaping addiction.
A New York Timesreview calls Dress Coded "brutal in its honesty [and] quite funny and full of hope" and notes that this book is "a much-needed reminder that certain fights are worth fighting, fear can be faced down and victories achieved, especially with strength in numbers." Dress Coded has earned starred reviews from Kirkus, which calls the book "timely, engaging, and full of heart," and Publishers Weekly, which calls the story "a deeply satisfying, variously inclusive journey."
"I can trace back so many of my career and personal decisions to people and events from college," says Firestone, who majored in English and anthropology. "So many of my English professors were instrumental in teaching me about craft, but my anthropology professors taught me to observe patterns in human communities. Those classes helped me with the art of storytelling."
Firestone hosts fiction writing, craft and teacher/librarian workshops and is looking forward to connecting with aspiring authors about writing and publishing during the Q&A portion of the event.
The HWS discussion will be hosted by Director of Alumni and Alumnae Relations Chevanne DeVaney '95, P'21, P'23 and moderated by Senior Associate Director of Annual Giving Ruth Benedict GP '22.
Available beginning July 7, 2020, Dress Coded is published by Putnam, a division of Penguin Random House.