F216
- #Appearance or Signing
- #Arts
- #Literary Arts
Don't miss this chance to meet Jodi Picoult, the #1 New York Times bestselling author of By Any Other Name, as she returns to Des Moines!  Jodi had such a great visit in 2024, that she requested to come back again. Ticket price includes admission for one person + a pre-signed copy of her newest book and a photo with her, too! Â
Hollow Bones is a riveting novel about the risks we take to protect the ones we love in a world where crisis is always just around the corner.
On September 11, 2001, when Molly Fitzgerald was only two months old, her mother went to an appointment at the World Trade Center and never came home. Her father and the stepmother who raised her couldn’t have loved her more, but she still grew up with a healthy dread of disasters.
Now an adult, she runs the Rhode Island Department for Emergency Preparedness, mapping out ways to save lives during storms, epidemics, and airplane crashes. She and her husband, Jesse—a police polygraph expert with his own history of crisis—have found a love that is a solace in a dangerous world. But then the unexpected upends their new marriage, leading them both to question everything they thought they knew.
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Moving between past and present, Hollow Bones is an epic story of the lies we tell ourselves as we write the narratives of our lives, the plans we design to protect ourselves at the worst moments, and the ties that bind mothers and daughters.
Jodi Picoult is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of twenty-nine novels, renowned for combining richly drawn characters with timely and thought-provoking themes. Her 30th novel, Hollow Bones, will publish on September 15, 2026. Her books, including Mad Honey (co-written with Jennifer Finney Boylan), Wish You Were Here, The Book of Two Ways, A Spark of Light, Small Great Things, Leaving Time, and My Sister’s Keeper, have been translated widely and have reached millions of readers around the world. She has also co-authored two young adult novels, Between the Lines and Off the Page, with her daughter Samantha van Leer.
Picoult’s work is celebrated not only for its emotional depth and meticulous research but also for tackling complex moral and ethical issues with nuance and compassion. Whether writing about reproductive rights, racism, school shootings, or end-of-life choices, she invites readers into intimate, often controversial spaces that challenge assumptions and spark conversation.
In addition to her literary achievements, Picoult is a passionate and vocal advocate for intellectual freedom and the freedom to read. She has emerged as one of our nation’s most outspoken opponents of book banning, working with organizations such as PEN America and Unite Against Book Bans to defend the right to read. Her essays and speeches on the subject have resonated with educators, librarians, and readers nationwide.Â
Kali White VanBaale will join Jodi as moderator for this event. She is the award-winning author of the novels The Monsters We Make, The Good Divide, and The Space Between. She also writes and publishes short stories, personal essays, and articles.
​Kali is the managing editor-at-large of the nonfiction literary journal and anthology Past Ten  and is a core faculty member in the Lindenwood University MFA in Writing Program where she was named adjunct professor of the year.Â
She lives in Iowa with her family and is a 2025 Iowa Author Award recipient.
NOTE: This event will be held in the Franklin Center Center's Auditorium located on the northwest corner of the venue. Doors will open at 5:30 pm. Free parking is available on the north, west, and south parking lots. All books will be pre-signed. Additional copies will be available for purchase from Beaverdale Books. A professional photographer will arrange for photos. Full refunds must be requested 48 hours prior to the event. Handicapped access is available. If unable to attend, ticketed attendees may arrange to pick up their signed copy at Beaverdale Books the week FOLLOWING the event.
Do you have a QUESTION for Jodi?  Before the event, please fill out this google form with your first Jodi book and your favorite Jodi book. If you have a question for Jodi to answer during the Audience Q&A portion of the event, you may submit it using this google form and it might be asked by the moderator on stage! Â
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