Emily Austin at the Cambridge Public Library

Harvard Book Store and the Cambridge Public Library welcome Emily Austin—bestselling author of Everyone in This Room Will Someday Be Dead, Interesting Facts About Space, and the poetry collection Gay Girl Prayers—for a discussion of her new novel We Could Be Rats, an unforgettable story of two sisters finding their way back to each other. She will be joined in conversation by Kimm Topping—Lecturer on Education at the Harvard Graduate School of Education and author of Generation Queer.

Ticketing

RSVP for free to this event or choose the "Book-Included" ticket to reserve a hardcover copy of We Could Be Rats and pick it up at the event. Emily will sign copies of her new book after the presentation.

A moving story about two very different sisters, and a love letter to childhood, growing up, and the power of imagination—from the bestselling author of Everyone in This Room Will Someday Be Dead and Interesting Facts About Space.
Sigrid hates working at the Dollar Pal but having always resisted the idea of growing up into the trappings of adulthood, she did not graduate high school, preferring to roam the streets of her small town with her best friend Greta, the only person in the world who ever understood her. Her older sister Margit is baffled and frustrated by Sigrid’s inability to conform to the expectations of polite society.
But Sigrid’s detachment veils a deeper turmoil and sensitivity. She’s haunted by the pains of her past—from pretending her parents were swamp monsters when they shook the floorboards with their violent arguments to grappling with losing Greta’s friendship to the opioid epidemic ravaging their town. As Margit sets out to understand Sigrid and the secrets she has hidden, both sisters, in their own time and way, discover that reigniting their shared childhood imagination is the only way forward.
What unfolds is an unforgettable story of two sisters finding their way back to each other, and a celebration of that transcendent, unshakable bond.

Emily Austin is the author of We Could Be Rats, Everyone in This Room Will Someday Be Dead, Interesting Facts About Space, and the poetry collection Gay Girl Prayers. She was born in Ontario, Canada, and received two writing grants from the Canadian Council for the Arts. She studied English literature and library science at Western University. She currently lives in Ottawa, in the territory of the Anishinaabe Algonquin Nation.

Kimm Topping, Ed.M. (they/them) is a writer, educator, historian, and artist. Kimm is the author of Generation Queer (Lee & Low, 2025), the first-ever collection of illustrated biographies about LGBTQ+ youth activists in the United States. As the Founder of Lavender Education, they lead a national program that celebrates LGBTQIA+ history through arts and education. Kimm is also a Lecturer on Education at the Harvard Graduate School of Education where they specialize in gender, sexuality, and equity. Prior to founding Lavender Education, Kimm managed the Safe Schools Program for LGBTQ Students in Massachusetts. Over the past ten years, Kimm has worked closely with schools, organizations, and cities to create inclusive educational programs, foster leadership, and inspire community-driven change. In 2023, the Massachusetts Transgender Political Coalition awarded Kimm the inaugural In-Service Award in recognition of their decade-long contributions to the transgender community across Massachusetts.

Masks are encouraged but not required for this event.

Host or Publisher Harvard Book Store