Author Event with Aram Mrjoian/Waterline

Join Anderson’s Bookshop for an author event with Aram Mrjoian, to celebrate the release of his newest book, Waterline, on Wednesday, June 18th at 7:00 pm in our Naperville store. Mrjoian will be in conversation with author Jami Nakamura Lin.

Event Format

We will begin checking you in approximately 30 minutes before the start time. After a presentation and Q&A with the author, the line will form in numbered order with the following guidelines:

• Posed photo with your camera taken by our staff

• There is a limit of 2 additional books from home to be signed (unless otherwise stated)
  

• There is a limit of 1 personalization of the new book only (unless otherwise stated)

Pre-registration is required for this event because space is limited.

More about Waterline:

"A gripping journey through time, Mrjoian brings readers deep into the heart of the Armenian Genocide and its ripples across generations. . . . Waterline is a must-read—intense, moving, and unforgettable.”—Morgan Talty, national bestselling author of Night of the Living Rez and Fire Exit

"A moving portrait of grief and the shadows of silence.”—Vanessa Chan, bestselling author of The Storm We Made

In this deeply moving debut, a close-knit Armenian American family grapples with the aftermath of losing one of their own.

Outside Detroit on the island of Gross Ile, the Kurkjians receive news that Mari, the eldest of their youngest generation, has swum into the depths of Lake Michigan with no intent of returning to shore—the consequences of which drag out a deeply rooted pain passed down from generations before.

More than a century earlier, Gregor, the great-grandfather and patriarch of the Kurkjian family, survived the Armenian Genocide after fighting for his freedom atop Musa Dagh. Decades later and miles away, Gregor’s epic mythos is inherited by his family as they navigate living in its shadow. As the Kurkjians now struggle with their new, devastating loss, secrets and shortcomings rise to the surface, forcing each relative to decide where their own story fits in the narrative of their family’s fraught history.

For fans of Tommy Orange’s There, There, Thao Thai’s Banyan Moon, and Jeffrey Eugenides’ epic Middlesex, Waterline explores the complex beauty of diaspora, the weight of inherited trauma, and the echoes of the Genocide on contemporary Armenian life. This is a searing portrait of a family afloat in grief and the perseverance needed to rise above.

About the Author: 

Aram Mrjoian is the editor-in-chief of The Rumpus, managing editor of Michigan Quarterly Review, and a 2022 Creative Armenia-AGBU Fellow. Aram has previously worked as an editor at the Chicago Review of Books, the Southeast Review, and TriQuarterly. He is also the editor of the anthology We Are All Armenian: Voices from the Diaspora. His writing has appeared in the Guardian, Runner’s World, Literary Hub, Catapult, West Branch, Electric Literature, Gulf Coast, Boulevard, Joyland, Longreads, and many other publications. He holds an MFA in creative writing from Northwestern University and a PhD in creative writing from Florida State University. He lives in Michigan.

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Please read these Event Policies carefully:

Anderson’s Bookshop reserves the right to change the format of this event at any time in coordination with the author and publisher. Anderson’s Bookshop assumes no responsibility or liability for any personal injury or other loss you may incur as a result of your decision to attend an event, including the transmission of Covid-19 or related illnesses. 

Failure to treat all participants and staff with courtesy and respect may result in your expulsion from the event.