The Blue Hill Public Library and Blue Hill Books are cosponsoring an author talk with Maine author Jessica Berger Gross for her new novel Hazel Says No on Thursday, July 24 at 7PM in the library's Howard Room. Jessica will be speaking about the book, and will be joined in conversation by her husband, Neil Gross. 

In her debut novel, Jessica Berger Gross tells a relatable fish-out-of-water story that handles big issues with great empathy and humor, capturing the love that unites one unforgettable family and the essence of life in small-town Maine. When a tight-knit family moves from Brooklyn to Maine, their lives are upended by an event that will alter their new community forever in this bighearted, sparkling debut for fans of Now Is Not the Time to Panic, Pineapple Street, and Schitt’s Creek. 

Jessica Berger Gross is the author of the memoir Estranged: Leaving Family and Finding Home. Her essays have appeared in The New York Times Magazine, The Cut, Longreads, and many other publications. She lived in Brooklyn for many years and currently lives in Maine with her husband and teenage son. Hazel Says No is her first novel.

Neil Gross (Jessica's husband) is the Charles A. Dana Professor of Sociology at Colby College. His last book was Walk the Walk: How Three Police Chiefs Defied the Odds and Changed Cop Culture (Metropolitan/Holt). He is a frequent contributor to the New York Times and is currently working on a book for Avid Reader Press on politics and the undergraduate experience.

This program is free and open to all, and for more information, please call the library at 374-5515 or email Assistant Director Kayleigh Thomas at kayleigh.thomas@bhpl.net. Blue Hill Books will be on site with copies of the book available for purchase.