Aug 15, 2023 | Featured Author
Debbie Harpham
from author’s website
In her own words:
I was born to a truck driver and homemaker in rural Michigan. My mom read to us for hours on end and carted us to the library each week. My dad bounced me on his knee while he practiced guitar, sewing the seeds of artistic obsession. A consummate middle child, I spent years struggling and failing to understand each person’s perspective, which is probably why I can’t help writing about one reality from multiple points of view.
My first job consisted of picking vegetables on a local farm, where I labored each summer morning until I had amassed the grand total of $185.37. Eventually I upgraded to waiting tables at the Cracker Barrel, where I scribbled astute observations of human nature on the backs of decaf liners, only to discover years later that my scribbles were not astute at all.
I studied classical piano until my senior recital in college, which found me sobbing in the green room because performance actually scared the ever-living piss right out of me. Shortly after my nervous break-down, I moved to an intentional community in Comer, Georgia, where I taught English to refugees and discovered the Mennonites, whose faith struck me as humble, just, and consistent. I’ve been trying to emulate them ever since. My work in Georgia also led me to Lithuania, where I taught for a year at a university on the Baltic Sea.
At some point between vegetable-picking and moving to Europe, I fell in love with the keyboardist for a jam band out in Colorado. Four years later, after Scott discovered that I didn’t like Phish as much as I’d pretended, we got married anyway. He remains my best reader and best friend, and now we tend a small homestead in Waterloo, Michigan, where we raise our children, cats, rabbits, chickens, sheep, vegetables, and a lazy beagle named Flannery.
It wasn’t until my mid-twenties that I gathered my courage and made writing a daily practice. Since I started, I haven’t stopped, apart from the 8-month stint when my second child was born and I was so psychotically tired that I didn’t even have the mental presence to cry. Between kids, I earned my MFA from Vermont College of Fine Arts, a program that I recommend wholeheartedly to everyone, regardless of age, ability, or interest.
Out of Esau, my debut novel, was published in October of 2022 by Counterpoint Press. My work has been nominated four times for a Pushcart Prize, recognized in the Best American series, and featured on the show “Stateside” from Michigan Radio. I’ve been published in Modern Farmer, Ruminate Magazine, LitHub, River Teeth, and Hunger Mountain, among other places. More than anything, I consider myself obscenely lucky to get to live a life dedicated to words and to what they can do. And if you’re reading this, and you have made that possible in some way, big or small, then thank you, dear reader, from the fullness of my heart.
ABOUT OUT OF ESAU:
When a woman questioning her marriage encounters the kind and steadfast pastor of her small town, they are both forced to reconsider their pasts, their faith, and their future
Robert Glory has never quite felt as though he fit in the small town of Esau, Michigan, but he finds solace in his role as the pastor of Esau Baptist and in his spare, orderly routine. When Susan Shearer arrives at his church seeking the strength to stay true to her increasingly volatile husband, neither expect that their immediate connection will upend both of their lives. As their relationship deepens and Susan’s life at home becomes more unstable, Robert and Susan are forced to confront the wounds that have shaped them and discover if they still have the power to change.
Told from five different perspectives–including Susan’s husband, Randy, her brilliant but high-strung young daughter, Willa, and Robert’s long-estranged mother, Leotie–Out of Esauis a visceral look at the dynamics of an abusive marriage, a nuanced portrait of faith and its loss, and a sweeping story of redemption.
PRAISE AND RECOGNITION FOR OUT OF ESAU:
“Beautifully captures the rewards and burdens of the intimate connections between mothers, fathers and their children . . . Fully submerges readers in both its setting and the innermost thoughts of the characters . . . The novel celebrates profound human connections . . . Heartbreakingly genuine characters distinguish Webster-Hein’s nuanced portrayal of love and loyalty to one’s family.” —Clara Newton,Shelf Awareness
“The narrators’ distinct voices complement this beautifully descriptive, character-driven work contemplating themes of change and doing the right thing.” —Booklist
“Eloquent . . . A worthy first outing.” —Publishers Weekly
“A graceful fiction debut . . . Soulful . . . With characters yearning for intimacy and acceptance, Hein delicately probes the meanings of family, freedom, and desire. A gentle tale of love and loneliness.” —Kirkus Reviews
“Out of Esauis a tremendous achievement. A literary page-turner with prose that dips and soars, and characters that leap off the page. I was deeply moved by this tale of love, faith, and family, and I know you will be, too. This wonderful novel is one of the best books of the year.” —David Heska Wanbli Weiden, author ofWinter Counts
“With gorgeous, glittering prose, Michelle Webster Hein explores a community in rural Michigan, looking at family, marriage, and faith with a precise, compassionate eye. A novel of rare honesty and beauty.” —Karen E. Bender, author ofRefundandThe New Order
“Out of Esauis a wonder of a novel. I fell in love with these characters and found myself continuously astonished by the depth and range of Michelle Webster Hein’s emotional intelligence, lyric touch, and ability to fully inhabit the tender bodies of others. An unflinching look at poverty, place, generational trauma, resiliency, faith, spirit, and love, these pages radiate with compassion and generosity, and shimmer with moments of beauty and insight.Out of Esauis a propulsive and masterfully spun web, one I can’t wait to gift again and again.” —Robin MacArthur, author ofHeart Spring Mountain
“From the cold, wet bleakness of a loyal wife’s Michigan autumn, writer Michelle Webster Hein skillfully stokes the warmth of redemption in a story that pairs like-minded souls with the hope of second chances. A lovely and engaging work of faith and family.” ––Sophfronia Scott, author ofUnforgivable LoveandAll I Need to Get By
AUTHOR VISITS:
Michelle Webster-Hein is available for book club visits via NovelNetwork.com.