Join us on Tuesday October 8th at 7pm to celebrate the release of STILL LIFE by Katherine Packert Burke. A debut novel of queer friendship, transition, and grief, STILL LIFE marks the arrival of a vibrant new literary voice. She will be joined in conversation Aurora Mattia, author of The Fifth Wound. Tickets for this event include a copy of STILL LIFE and a reserved seat, and all unreserved seats will be available on a first-come, first-served basis. The event is free and open to the public.

‍

about the book

STILL LIFE volleys between the present and recent past. Edith was a bumbling college “boy,” pre-transition, in love with Tessa, enamored by Val, and drowning in Boston. She and Tessa called each other Joni and Joan, an homage to fledgling adulthood’s musical backdrop. Now, Edith is wracked with guilt over Val. A sometimes-lover, trans mentor, purveyor of estrogen pills and wisdom from a life on the fringe, Val was everything Tessa wasn’t and everything Edith needed. Was Valerie’s fatal car crash Edith’s fault? Would she have stayed put if Edith had loved her better?

Infused with pop culture, cigarettes, and Sondheim, Katherine Packert Burke traces the lives of three women, trans and cis, here and gone, to craft a tableau of modern womanhood.

‍

about the authors

Katherine Packert Burke is a graduate of the Clarion Writer’s Workshop in San Diego and the MFA program at the University of Alabama. Still Life (WW Norton) is her first book. She lives in Austin, TX and is on Twitter @katpburke.

Aurora Mattia was born in Hong Kong and lives in Texas, where her mother was born. Her first book, The Fifth Wound, was published by Nightboat in 2023. Her stories have appeared in various magazines, and also in exhibitions at the RISD Museum and the Renaissance Society, accompanying portraits by Elle Pérez. She’s sometimes working on a new novel called Seven Come Eleven, sometimes writing country songs, and mostly doing something else.