Booksmith is thrilled to host the launch event for Meron Hadero and her debut collection of stories A Down Home Meal for These Difficult Times, winner of the Restless Books Prize for New Immigrant Writing with stories that have won the AKO Caine Prize for African Writing and appeared in Best American Short Stories, Zyzzyva, and McSweeney's Quarterly Concern, among others. Meron will be joined in conversation by Ingrid Rojas Contreras, author of the fabulous novel Fruit of the Drunken Tree, which we had the honor of launching, and of the forthcoming memoir The Man Who Could Move Clouds. Please join us for what is sure to be a memorable evening.

*** PLEASE NOTE: advance sales for this event have ended. We have some seats remaining, which will go on a first-come, first-served basis. Doors are at 7pm PDT. Please note all of the following:

Please note:

• Safety: ID and proof of full vaccination, including booster, will be required at the door. Masks will be required throughout the duration of the event, capacity will be limited to allow indoor distancing, and we'll have extra ventilation in place. 
• Because we’re limiting capacity, we can't guarantee we'll have space for walk-ins. The best way to ensure you’ll get a seat is to order the Book + Seat ticket through this link; you can also RSVP for a free standing room spot right here.
• We are happy to offer *signed copies* of A Down Home Meal for These Difficult Times: order a Book + Seat ticket bundle if you'd like to pick up a signed copy at the event, or order here if you just want a signed copy.
• You can pre-order copies of Ingrid Rojas Contreras' forthcoming memoir, The Man Who Could Move Clouds, here (out July 12), and order her novel, Fruit of the Drunken Tree, here.
• If we feel it is not safe to gather, as the event gets closer, we will pivot to a virtual event and your registration will remain valid.
• Questions? Write [email protected].

About the book

Set across the U.S. and abroad, Meron Hadero’s stories feature immigrants, refugees, and those on the brink of dispossession, all struggling to begin again, all fighting to belong. Moving through diverse geographies and styles, this captivating collection follows characters on the journey toward home, which they dream of, create and redefine, lose and find and make their own. Beyond migration, these stories examine themes of race, gender, class, friendship and betrayal, the despair of loss and the enduring resilience of hope. 

Winner of the 2021 AKO Caine Prize for African Writing, “The Street Sweep” is about an enterprising young man determined not to lose his home in Addis Ababa. Appearing in Best American Short Stories, “The Suitcase” follows a woman visiting her country of origin for the first time, where an ordinary object opens up a bridge between worlds. Shortlisted for the 2019 Caine Prize, “The Wall” portrays the intergenerational friendship between two refugees living in Iowa who have connections to Germany before the fall of the Berlin Wall. 

Kaleidoscopic, powerful, and illuminative, the stories in A Down Home Meal for These Difficult Times expand our understanding of the essential and universal need for connection and the vital refuge of home—and announce a major new talent in Meron Hadero.

About the authors

Meron Hadero is an Ethiopian American who was born in Addis Ababa and came to the U.S. via Germany as a young child. Meron's short stories have won the 2021 Caine Prize for African Writing, shortlisted for the 2019 Caine Prize for African Writing, and appear in Best American Short Stories, Ploughshares, McSweeney’s Quarterly Concern, Zyzzyva, The Iowa Review, Missouri Review, 40 Short Stories: A Portable Anthology, and others. She's also been published in The New York Times Book Review, the anthology The Displaced: Refugee Writers on Refugee Lives, and will appear in the forthcoming anthology Letter to a Stranger: Essays to the Ones Who Haunt Us. A 2019-2020 Steinbeck Fellow at San Jose State University, and a fellow at Yaddo, Ragdale, and MacDowell, Meron holds an MFA in creative writing from the University of Michigan, a JD from Yale Law School (Washington State Bar), and a BA in history from Princeton with a certificate in American studies.

Please note:

• Safety: ID and proof of full vaccination, including booster, will be required at the door. Masks will be required throughout the duration of the event, capacity will be limited to allow indoor distancing, and we'll have extra ventilation in place. 
• Because we’re limiting capacity, we can't guarantee we'll have space for walk-ins. The best way to ensure you’ll get a seat is to order the Book + Seat ticket through this link; you can also RSVP for a free standing room spot right here.
• We are happy to offer *signed copies* of A Down Home Meal for These Difficult Times: order a Book + Seat ticket bundle if you'd like to pick up a signed copy at the event, or order here if you just want a signed copy.
• You can pre-order copies of Ingrid Rojas Contreras' forthcoming memoir, The Man Who Could Move Clouds, here (out July 12), and order her novel, Fruit of the Drunken Tree, here.
• If we feel it is not safe to gather, as the event gets closer, we will pivot to a virtual event and your registration will remain valid.
• Questions? Write [email protected].