Lara Tupper, Author of At the Center

We are delighted to host author Lara Tupper, in conversation with Alexis Schaitkin, to talk about her brand new novel At the Center. Books will be available for purchase and signing. About the book: Trapped in a dead-end teaching job, a toxic relationship, and a cramped Manhattan apartment, Koögon abandons it all for the Center: a secluded compound devoted to yoga, “empathic studies,” and the secret preservation of banned books. At first, the Center seems like a sanctuary—but Koögon uncovers a thrilling secret. Amid nationwide paper bans, the Center maintains a black-market cache of blank notebooks, and Koögon must decide whether it is safe to leave her story for future generations. Blending rich characterization with psychological complexity, At the Center reckons with the loss of printed material, the climate crisis, and the destabilizing rise of AI. At its heart, it is a visceral, courageous meditation on the power and risk of telling one’s story—out loud and on paper. More details to come.