Marlene Lee – författare

Anna and Sebastian opens as a much older Anna grapples with aging and a disorienting change in the relationship with her long-time lover, Sebastian. Years earlier he hired a woman who, unlike Anna, was still of child-bearing age to conceive. Now, eighteen years later, the daughter, attempting to live alone as an adult, is sexually assaulted and trafficked. At this point, the novel explores the effects of assault and trafficking not only on Sebastian’s daughter, but on Anna, who adapted to the unusual paternity, and on Sebastian, who did not bargain for the suffering he experiences as a father.

In the heartland of Kansas, old wounds, lost family, and self-discovery converge in this riveting exploration of identity and redemption.  Set in the post-WWII era, Middler follows Hazel Johnson Middler, a woman who, years ago, abandoned her marriage and children to carve out a solitary existence on her family’s remote farm. When her nearly grown daughters arrive from California, it’s Jean, the eldest, who gently coaxes Hazel back into the world, beginning with a single college class. What starts as a reluctant step into society becomes a journey of transformation, challenging Hazel to confront her past, reclaim her identity, and open herself to love again.  Alongside Hazel’s journey, there’s Jim Nylund—both a new beginning and a challenge for Hazel, testing her ability to navigate a relationship that offers both love and the painful echoes of her past choices. Meanwhile, a parallel story unfolds as Jim’s runaway daughter, Divonne, takes her own path to California. As Divonne grasps for the Middler family identity she longs for, Hazel and Jean confront the very legacy they've fought to escape, bringing the generations into a delicate, surprising reconciliation.  Rich in themes of estrangement, reconciliation, and the resilience of the human spirit, Middler is a moving, multi-generational tale of what it takes to find—and embrace—one’s true self.