What Comes After author JoAnne Tompkins
Everybody Reads is excited to announce author JoAnne Tompkins will hold events across the Palouse and Lewiston-Clarkston Valley next week, November 7 – 10. With a propulsive mystery at its core, What Comes After offers an unforgettable story of loss and anger, but also of kindness and hope, courage and forgiveness.
Everybody Reads is a regional partnership that builds a shared reading experience around a single book to foster curiosity, spark discussion, and celebrate a love of story and community engagement.
Visit http://www.everybody-reads.org for a full schedule of events, discussion questions, and read-alikes.
Copies of What Comes After are available now at local libraries and bookstores!
JoAnne Tompkins Reading and Community Conversations:
Tuesday, November 7 –
- 12:00pm – Whitman County Library, Colfax, WA
- 7:00pm – Neill Public Library, Pullman, WA
Wednesday, November 8 –
- 12:00pm – Latah County Library, Moscow ID
- 7:00pm – Winchester Community Library, Winchester ID
Thursday, November 9 –
- 12:00pm – Asotin County Library, Clarkston WA
- 7:00pm – Lewiston City Library, Lewiston ID
Friday, November 10 –
- 1:00pm – Lewiston High School at the P1FCU Performing Arts Center
Primary media contact: Minh Elan – Neill Public Library – 509.338.3252
minh.elan@neill-lib.org
Tompkins’s debut novel What Comes After is at once a propulsive mystery and a meditation on grief and guilt, family, and hope. The community of Port Furlong has been shaken by a terrible tragedy, none more so than neighbors Isaac and Lorrie whose deceased sons are the center of the maelstrom. When a mysterious pregnant girl appears in their lives, isolation and pain give way to kindness and hope, courage and forgiveness. What Comes After is a deeply moving account of the complexity of humanity and the power of forgiveness.
About JoAnne Tompkins: Before JoAnne Tompkins was an author, she was a trial lawyer and mediator, which immersed her in lives disrupted by conflict, injury, and far too often violence and abuse. Even in these circumstances, her clients demonstrated a resiliency and passion for life that moved her. Her written work explores the small moments that hold the possibility of transformation and for finding grace in life’s darkest times. Her short work has appeared in journals such as High Country News, Lithub, Writer in the World, Stratus: Journal of Arts and Writing. She received her MFA in Creative Writing from Goddard College. She lives in Port Townsend, Washington.
Praise for What Comes After:
- “Gripping . . . What Comes After juxtaposes the often brutal natural world, with its crepuscular woods, twisty paths, and wild creatures, and the “civilized” world, with its own dark places and feral inhabitants. Ms. Tompkins’s understanding of both is palpable. So is her compassion.” —The Wall Street Journal
- “If you enjoyed The Searcher by Tana French, read What Comes After by JoAnne Tompkins. . . . a mystery—and a gritty meditation on loss and redemption, drenched in stillness and grief.” —The Washington Post
- “Nail-biting wallop of a debut novel . . . Tompkins delivers a thoughtful, unexpectedly optimistic tale.” —The New York Times
- “Rich in characters, atmosphere, and storytelling, this book has it all. . . . If you are looking for something deeply emotional, full of memorable characters, this is it.” —San Francisco Book Review
- “What Comes After is equal parts thrilling mystery and aching examination of grief and guilt.” —Time
What Comes After Awards and Accolades:
- One of O, The Oprah Magazine’s Most Anticipated Books of 2021
- Dayton Literary Peace Prize Runner-up in Fiction Award
- Washington State Book Award for Fiction 2022 – Finalist
- Edgar Award, Best First Novel by an American Author 2022 – Finalist
Primary media contact: Minh Elan – Neill Public Library – 509.338.3252 – minh.elan@neill-lib.org
Everybody Reads is brought to you by:
Idaho Humanities Council, Confluence Press, Lewiston Tribune, Moscow-Pullman Daily News, …And Books, Too!, Unleashed Marketing + Design, BookPeople of Moscow, Brused Books, Holiday Inn of Clarkston, Monarch Motel, Your Pullman Radio, KQZB-FM Hits 100, KHTR-FM New Country 104.3, Hits 104.7 and KQQQ-AM News Talk for the Palouse.