Jessica Handler in conversation with Virginia Prescott | The World to See

Name: Jessica Handler in conversation with Virginia Prescott | The World to See
Start: 2026-05-26T19:00:00-04:00
Location: Manuel's Tavern

Schedule

Tue, 26 May, 2026 at 07:00 pm

UTC-04:00

Location

Manuel's Tavern | Atlanta, GA

“Handler brings her trademark scything gaze and compassionate understanding of human nature to this vivid tale of two women navigating their relationships with their mothers, their entwined histories, and their music. Her nuanced exploration of how art, lies, and community shape female identity is lived out by characters so real, I had to remind myself that they were fictional. This is a powerful, compulsively readable story that will stay with me for a very long time.” —Joshilyn Jackson, New York Times bestselling author of “Never Have I Ever” and “With My Little Eye”
A Cappella Books is delighted to welcome award-winning author Jessica Handler to Manuel’s Tavern to celebrate the launch of her new novel, “The World to See.” Handler will appear in conversation with Virginia Prescott, President of School of Humans Audio and former host of GPB's "On Second Thought."
This event is free and open to the public; copies of the book will be available for purchase.
About the Book
When teenager Nadine Harvey helps her best friend hide a disturbing secret, she’s also concealing her own deepest truth: she’ll do almost anything to be wanted. Five years and three thousand miles later, Nadine is thrilled when her idol, Celeste—a rock singer known as “the oracle”—befriends her.
As Celeste’s career begins to falter, she launches a bold program encouraging women to speak their truths. Nadine eagerly becomes her business partner, but as their ambitions clash, their alliance starts to unravel.
Determined to hide their growing rift, Celeste and Nadine invite their mothers to a high-profile awards gala. When painful histories resurface, each woman must confront how she sees herself—and how the world sees her.
About the Author
Jessica Handler's novel “The Magnetic Girl” was awarded the 2020 Southern Book Prize. She is the author of the memoir, “Invisible Sisters,” and the craft guide, “Braving the Fire: A Guide to Writing About Grief and Loss.” Her writing has appeared on NPR, in Tin House, The Bitter Southerner, Brevity, Creative Nonfiction, the Washington Post, Oldster, and elsewhere. She lives in Atlanta with her husband, author Mickey Dubrow.
About the Conversation Partner
Before being named President of School of Humans audio division, Virginia Prescott hosted GPB's "On Second Thought" from 2018-2021. In 2024, the School of Humans podcast "Unreformed" was nominated for a Peabody Award. Prescott has gathered an impressive collection of tote bags and awards over decades in public media. She earned her audio chops as producer and director for NPR’s "On Point" and "Here and Now" and on the Peabody Award-winning team behind "Jazz from Lincoln Center with Ed Bradley." She’s worked at stations from New Orleans to New York, in conflict zones from the Balkans to Sierra Leone and was awarded a Loeb Fellowship from Harvard.