Dear Dealer Book Launch – Nadia Bowers in Conversation w/ Dani Shapiro

Join us as local author Nadia Bowers launches her debut memoir DEAR DEALER in conversation with Dani Shapiro and editor Aimee Bell.

"A moving embodiment of the powerful, creative energy of grief." — Kirkus Reviews (STARRED)

“In this gorgeous, brokenhearted elegy to a lost sister, Nadia Bowers has written an extraordinary, brave book.” — Dani Shapiro, author of Inheritance

“One of the most honest books I’ve read about what addiction actually costs — not just the person using, but everyone who loved them and couldn’t find a way through. Dear Dealer broke my heart and then did something rarer — it helped me understand why.” — Hank Azaria

In the summer of 2015, Nadia Bowers’s beloved older sister, Sasha—a social worker and Ivy League grad—was found in her car in a restaurant parking lot in their hometown outside New Haven, CT, dead from a fentanyl overdose. In Dear Dealer, Bowers recounts how, plunged into grief, equipped with Sasha’s phone, and just weeks from giving birth to her first child, she began to investigate her sister’s shadow life: who sold Sasha the drugs that killed her? Did they know each other well? Did the dealer have any idea who Sasha was, outside of addiction? One part narrative, one part epistolary, Bowers interrogates her sister, her family, their history, and herself.

Expanding on her viral 2018 This American Life essay of the same name—a letter to this imagined dealer—Bowers’s memoir is a love letter, a diary, and a quest in search of the dealer’s identity, as well as her own. Who is she without her sister? Who is she because of her sister? And what now? Bowers reflects on her shifting roles as sister and mother, examining how this sudden loss has reshaped her sense of self. Her letters to the faceless dealer are interwoven with rage, reflection, and even moments of humor as she recounts their intertwined lives alongside memories of charismatic and complex Sasha.

As poetic as it is unflinchingly honest, Dear Dealer is a richly compelling account of one woman’s search for meaning, forgiveness, and hope in the aftermath of tragedy.

About Nadia Bowers:
Nadia Bowers is an actor, writer, and voice-over artist. She has a BA in sociology and French from Dartmouth College and an MFA in acting from NYU’s Graduate Acting Program. Nadia works in theater, television, and film. She lives in Brooklyn, New York, with her husband, actor Corey Stoll, and their son.

About Dani Shapiro:
Dani Shapiro is the author of eleven books, and the host and creator of the hit podcast Family Secrets. Her most recent novel, Signal Fires, was named a best book of 2022 by NPR, Time Magazine, Washington Post, Amazon, and others, and was a national bestseller. Her most recent memoir, Inheritance, was an instant New York Times Bestseller, and named a best book of 2019 by Elle, Vanity Fair, Wired, and Real Simple. Both Signal Fires and Inheritance were winners of the National Jewish Book Award. Dani’s work has been published in fourteen languages and she’s currently developing Signal Fires and Inheritance for feature film adaptation. Dani’s book on the process and craft of writing, Still Writing, was recently reissued on the occasion of its tenth anniversary. She occasionally teaches workshops and retreats, and is the co-founder of the Sirenland Writers Conference in Positano, Italy.

Registration is required to attend this IN-PERSON event.

Presented by Gallery Books.