Hello Ann Napolitano: The Author of "Hello Beautiful" is Coming to Surfside Park

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In every profession, there are pinnacles. Lofty goals that many strive for, and very few achieve. For writers, Oprah Winfrey’s Book Club is Mount Everest, one of the highest peaks of all.

Last autumn, best-selling author Ann Napolitano reached that summit, when Oprah Winfrey called to tell her that she was not only selecting Napolitano’s novel, “Hello Beautiful” as her Book Club Pick, Winfrey was also making it her 100th Book Club selection. An honor on top of an honor.

And now, the Avalon Free Public Library is honored that Ann Napolitano will be joining their Speakers at Surfside Series with an author event and book signing at Surfside Park in Avalon on Monday, July 24 at 7pm.

“We’re thrilled to host internationally best-selling author Ann Napolitano,” says Kara Buono, assistant director of programming and engagement at the library. “Her most recent book, ‘Hello Beautiful,’ has been a staple on the patron request list since it was released in March.”

During her appearance, Napolitano will discuss her inspiration and experience with “Hello Beautiful,” her writing, career, and creative process. She will answer questions from the audience in a Q&A session, and sign books afterward.

With Napolitano’s books in high demand at the library, they are expecting quite a turnout for this event.

Of course, library patrons are not the only fans of “Hello Beautiful.” The book, released in March 2023, was an instant New York Times Bestseller and currently has 26 international publishers. The sprawling family saga has earned rave reviews and sits atop numerous “Best of” book lists, including the No. 1 spot on Amazon’s recent list of Best Books of the Year So Far.

And then there is the endorsement from publishing’s fairy godmother. Since launching her Book Club in 1996, Oprah Winfrey has become a powerhouse in the publishing world. By last autumn, she had bestowed the honor of her Book Club Pick on 99 books, turning each book into a best-seller and each author into a celebrity. So, her 100th pick would be monumental. And Winfrey took her time choosing.

She recently told The New York Times that she’d read “many, many, many books” in search of that special one that would engage “every sector of the population.”

Then she started reading “Hello Beautiful.”

“I was like 30 pages in and said, ‘OK, this is the book,’” Winfrey shared. “You cannot read it without being opened. It just opens you in ways you didn’t know were closed. What an extraordinary writer Ann is.”

Describing the experience of being chosen as Winfrey’s 100th Book Club Pick, Napolitano has said it was “the most exciting thing that’s ever happened to me in my life. I felt like I went into full menopause, because my whole body system was just adrenalized.”

For someone who’d been working on a career as a writer from a very young age, this was certainly a hard-earned dream come true. Napolitano received a master of fine arts degree from New York University. She has taught fiction writing for Brooklyn College’s MFA program, NYU’s School of Continuing and Professional Studies and Gotham Writers’ Workshop, and was also associate editor of “One Story” literary magazine for seven years.

Always writing, Napolitano published two novels before her third book, “Dear Edward,” vaulted on to The New York Times Bestseller list. Published in January 2020, the novel was named one of the best books of 2020 by numerous outlets and was recently adapted as a TV series starring Connie Britton, on Apple TV +.

Yet back in 2020, celebrations of the novel’s success were short-lived as the COVID-19 pandemic shut down the world shortly after its publication. It was in the quiet seclusion of those dark months that Napolitano was inspired to write the emotional, seeringly perceptive “Hello Beautiful.”

“I always live inside myself as a reader and a writer, but the pandemic amplified that,” Napolitano wrote in an essay for Literary Hub. “Connections that I thought were strong faltered. My father died and the people that loved him were unable to gather to mourn…”

Napolitano turned to writing to ease her intense feelings and discovered inspiration spilling in from “Little Women,” a book that she had read and reread in her childhood. “I found myself writing about a family with four sisters,” Napolitano shared. “These girls erupted to life on the page, and the engagement I craved, I found in their presence. There is something in that tussle of sisters – rarely peaceful, always ferociously affectionate – that give me something to write and live towards.”

“Hello Beautiful” vibrates with energy, emotion, and love. It tells the story of the four Padavano sisters – Julia, Sylvie, Cecilia, and Emeline – through decades of good intentions and questionable decisions. Told from deeply personal viewpoints, the novel is sprinkled with achingly accurate observations and personal revelations that Napolitano unveils in language that is straightforward, yet eloquent.

The New York Times Book Review called the book “radiant and brilliantly crafted.” The Oprah Quarterly publication said, “this sumptuous family saga is one of those rare novels whose singular characters are so beautifully rendered, it’s as if they’re your best friends, and you’re grateful to be in their orbit.”

No doubt, “Hello Beautiful” is a singular literary achievement by a writer at the top of her game. And her appearance at Surfside Park in Avalon on July 24 is a rare opportunity for book lovers and fans alike.

“This will definitely be a very special event,” says Erin Brown, director of the Avalon Library. “Ann Napolitano is an unbelievable talent and a star in the literary world. We couldn’t be more excited that she will be at Surfside Park to share her wisdom and experience with our patrons and visitors.”

It is not an exaggeration to say Ann Napolitano is one of the most acclaimed writers of our time. So, while Avalon’s Surfside Park will provide a familiar setting, the evening, like the author, will be one of a kind.

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To Know if You Go

Who: Ann Napolitano, New York Times Bestselling author of “Dear Edward” and “Hello Beautiful,” Oprah’s 100th Book Club Pick.

What: Author Event and Book Signing as part of the Avalon Free Public Library’s Speakers at Surfside Series.

Where: Surfside Park, 2901 Avalon Ave., Avalon

When: Monday, July 24 at 7pm

How: Bring your chairs and blankets to this outdoor venue. In case of inclement weather, event will be moved into Community Hall, 3001 Avalon Avenue.

**Books will be available for purchase at the event from Beach Bound Books.