HELEN OF NOWHERE: Makenna Goodman in conversation with Lara Williams
Schedule
Tue Jun 16 2026 at 06:30 pm to 08:00 pm
UTC+01:00Location
Blackwell's Bookshop | Manchester, EN
Join us to hear Makenna Goodman discuss her novel Helen of Nowhere with Lara Williams!About this Event
We are thrilled to welcome Makenna Goodman to Blackwell's to discuss Helen of Nowhere, an electrifying and surreal novel about about the delights and dangers of starting over. Makenna will be in conversation with Lara Williams, author of Supper Club and The Odyssey.
Doors: 6.30pm, Starts: 6.45pm
Tickets are £4 or admission is free when purchasing a Book & Ticket option or a copy of the book in store ahead of the event.
About the book:
In the middle of the countryside, a realtor is showing a disgraced professor around an idyllic house. She speaks not only about the home's many wonderful qualities but about its previous owner, the mystifying Helen, whose presence still seems to suffuse every fixture.
Through hearing stories of Helen's chosen way of living, the man begins to see that his story is not actually over - rather, he is being offered a chance to buy his way into the simple life, close to the land, that's always been out of reach to him. But as evening fades into black, he will learn that the asking price may be much higher, and stranger, than anticipated.
Philosophically and formally adventurous, at once intimate and cosmic in scope, Helen of Nowhere asks: What must we give up in exchange for true happiness?
About the author:
Makenna Goodman is the author of two novels, Helen of Nowhere and The Shame, and has written for international publications including the New York Review of Books, the Los Angeles Review of Books, Harvard Review, The White Review, BOMB, The Common, ASTRA Magazine and Mousse Magazine. Also an editor, she is based in Vermont.
If you cannot make the event but would like a dedicated copy of the book, please email [email protected] or call us on 0161 274 3331.
Our event format is usually a 45 minute discussion between the author and interviewer, followed by a chance for audience members to ask questions. There will be the opportunity to get your book signed/dedicated after the event. Events are a brilliant opportunity to discover new books, meet authors and likeminded readers and learn something new.
Support your local bookshop and help us keep the Manchester literary scene vibrant and exciting. You can follow us on Eventbrite and social media (@BlackwellsMCR) to keep up to date on upcoming events.
Where is it happening?
Blackwell's Bookshop, 146 Oxford Road, Manchester, United KingdomGBP 4.00 to GBP 12.99
