News & Events

UPCOMING APPEARANCES

Sept. 17, 2022, PALO ALTO, CA: Wendy will lead a Zoom book club discussion with the Sigrid Undset Daughters of Norway Lodge about Searching for Nora. For members only. RESCHEDULED to Oct. or Nov.

Sept. 19, 2022, EUGENE, OR: Wendy will lead a Zoom book club discussion with the Eugene Sons of Norway and Daughters of Norway Lodges about Searching for Nora. For members only.

Oct. 26, 2022, RENO, NV: Wendy will give an in-person book presentation to the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute about Searching for Nora. For OLLI members only.

Oct. 27, 2022, RENO, NV: Wendy will lead an in-person discussion about Searching for Nora with a private book club.

TALK WITH THE AUTHOR: FREE ZOOM/FACETIME/SKYPE SESSIONS

Wendy is currently offering free online book talks (by Zoom, FaceTime or Skype) for anyone who wants to gather a few friends to talk about Searching for Nora. This opportunity is great for:

· Sons/Daughters of Norway Lodges

· Book Clubs that have read Searching for Nora

· Women’s Groups, such as AAUW Chapters

· Writers’ Groups & High School/College Classes

Groups of 5-25 are welcome to schedule a date and time with me by email at wendy@searchingfornora.com. Participants do not need a Zoom account, and I provide the info your group members need to participate. Everyone can tune in from the comfort of their own home.

I have several online Book Talk options:

1. An Introduction to Searching for Nora (spoiler-free) about the premise of the book and historical/literary parameters I used to imagine a life for Nora Helmer after A Doll’s House, with a slideshow. This talk is for groups of fifteen or larger, and is the best talk for those who have not read my book but would like to know more about it.

2. A Book Club Q&A (or circle of friends) for those who have read Searching for Nora and want to discuss plot, character, setting, or other aspects of the novel.

3. For Women’s Groups, a talk about why Ibsen’s play A Doll’s House is still relevant and exploring themes of love, family and self-determination.

4. A How-I-Did-It talk about the challenges and delights of writing historical fiction, how the creation of the book unfolded, and what writerly habits helped or hindered me. This talk/Q&A can be fun for those who have already heard one of my other two talks, or for anyone interested in what it takes to write a novel. High School groups, in particular, might enjoy a Q&A with an author. You don’t need to have read Searching for Nora to enjoy this talk.

If you are interested in having Wendy Swallow talk to a group about Searching for Nora, contact her here.

PREVIOUS APPEARANCES

2022

Sept. 10, 2022, Daughters of Norway, Burien, WA (Virtual Book Presentation)

May 21, 2022, Daughters of Norway, Palo Alto, CA (In-Person Book Presentation to three Bay Area Daughters of Norway Lodges)

May 5, 2022, Private Book Club, Silver Spring, MD (Virtual Book Club Discussion)

Apr. 9, 2022, Daughters of Norway, Bellevue, WA (Virtual Book Presentation)

Mar. 29, 2022, St. Bernard’s Grammar School, Slough, UK (Virtual Ibsen Discussion)

Mar. 16, 2022, Vesterheim Norwegian-American Museum, Decorah, IA (Virtual Bokprat — Youtube link: https://youtu.be/wxVg7sje1Ds.)

Mar. 12, 2022, Daughters of Norway, Poulsbo, WA (Virtual Book Presentation)

Mar. 8, 2022, American Association of University Women, Somerset Hills Chapter, Somerset, NJ (Virtual Book Presentation)

Mar. 3, 2022, Sons of Norway and Daughters of Norway, Eugene, OR (Virtual Book Presentation)

Feb. 5, 2022, Bruka Theatre, Reno, NV (Virtual Bruka Book Club Presentation Searching for Nora Meets Doll’s House Part 2 Bruka Theater Youtube account https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UDp6tqWIrEk)

Feb. 6, 2022, Bruka Theatre, Reno, NV (In-Person Talkback Discussion after Lucas Hnath’s Doll’s House Part 2.)

Jan. 22, 2022, Daughters of Norway, Bellingham, WA (Virtual Book Presentation)

2021

Nov. 20, 2021, Daughters of Norway, Mission Viejo, CA (Virtual Book Presentation)

Nov. 3, 2021, Daughters of Norway, Spokane, WA (Virtual Book Presentation)

Nov. 2, 2021, Friendship Force Book Club, Spokane, WA (Virtual Book Club Discussion)

Oct. 29, 2021, Mock Custody Hearing for the Helmers, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL (Served as Juror)

Sept. 21, 2021, Private Book Club, Hampton Rhodes, VA (Virtual Book Club Discussion)

Sept. 14, 2021, Daughters of Norway, Souix Falls, SD (Virtual Book Presentation)

Sept. 2, 2021, Daughters of Norway, Tacoma, WA (Virtual Book Presentation)

Aug. 3, 2021: AMA Alliance National Book Club (Virtual Book Club Discussion)

Aug. 2, 2021: Private Book Club, Dennis, MA (In-Person Book Club Discussion)

July 22, 2021, Daughters of Norway Grand Lodge Convention, Bremerton, WA (In-Person Presentation)

June 27, 2021, Historical Novel Society of North America annual convention, Austin, TX (Virtual Talk “The Play’s the Thing!”)

June 23, 2021, Lumberton Book Club, Medford, NJ, (Virtual Book Club Discussion)

May 15, 2021, Daughters of Norway, Minneapolis, MN (Virtual Book Presentation)

May 12, 2021: AMA Alliance Book Club, Reno, NV (In-Person Book Club Discussion)

May 8, 2021, Daughters of Norway, Seattle, WA (Virtual Book Club Discussion)

May 2, 2021, Daughters of Norway, Minot, ND (Virtual Book Presentation)

Apr. 10, 2021: Daughters of Norway, San Diego, CA (Virtual Book Presentation)

Apr. 10, 2021: Sons of Norway, Rochester, MN (Virtual Book Club Discussion)

Apr. 6, 2021: Daughters of Norway, Des Moines, IA (Virtual Book Presentation)

Mar. 25, 2021: Private Book Club, Silver Spring, MD (Virtual Book Club Discussion)

Mar. 18, 2021: Sons of Norway, Hampton Roads, VA (Virtual Book Presentation)

Mar. 13, 2021: Daughters of Norway, Seattle, WA (Virtual Book Presentation)

Mar. 13, 2021: Sons of Norway, Rochester, MN (Virtual Book Presentation)

Feb. 25, 2021: Private Book Club, Washington, DC (Virtual Book Club Discussion)

Feb. 21, 2021: Private Book Club, Washington, DC (Virtual Book Club Discussion)

Feb. 21, 2021: Daughters of Norway, Port Townsend, WA (Virtual Book Presentation)

Jan. 21, 2021: Delaware, OH, Buckeye Valley High School (Virtual Writer’s Talk)

2020

Nov. 7, 2020: Daughters of Norway, Sacramento, CA (Virtual Book Presentation)

Nov. 5, 2020: Private Book Club, Harwich, MA (Virtual Book Club Discussion)

Oct. 27, 2020: Norwegian History Roundtable, Washington, DC (Virtual Book Presentation)

Oct. 2, 2020: Sons of Norway, Boston, MA (Virtual Book Presentation)

Sept. 18, 2020: Private Book Club, Medford, NJ (Virtual Book Club Discussion)

Sept. 16, 2020: Private Book Club, Worchester, MA (Virtual Book Club Discussion)

Aug. 20, 2020: Private Book Club, Portland, OR (Virtual Book Club Discussion)

Aug. 12, 2020: Private Book Club, Portland, OR (Virtual Book Club Discussion)

July 30, 2020: Tattered Cover Book Store, Denver, CO (Virtual Book Club Discussion)

July 14, 2020: St. Bernard’s Grammar School, Slough, UK (Ibsen Discussion)

June 18, 2020: Private Book Club, Hyannis, MA (Virtual Book Club Discussion)

May 30, 2020: Private Book Club, Reno, NV (Virtual Book Club Discussion)

May 27, 2020: Private Book Club, Washington, DC (Virtual Book Club Discussion)

Apr. 25, 2020: Lagslaget Book Club, Washington, DC (Virtual Book Club Discussion)

Apr. 25, 2020: Sons of Norway, Washington, DC (Virtual Book Club Discussion)

Mar. 12, 2020: Private Book Club, Grand Marais, MN (Virtual Book Club Discussion)

Feb. 28, 2020: Private Book Club, Reno, NV (Book Club Discussion)

Feb. 18, 2020: Private Book Club, Concord, MA (Virtual Book Club Discussion)

Jan. 30, 2020: Private Book Club, Shamong, NJ (Virtual Book Club Discussion)

Jan. 21, 2020: Private Book Club, Washington, DC (Virtual Book Club Discussion)

2019

Dec. 18, 2019: Medford Leas Retirement Center, Medford, JN (Book Presentation)

Dec. 14, 2019: Snow Public Library, Orleans, MA (Book Talk & Signing)

Dec. 12, 2019: WCAI Public Radio Station, Woods Hole, MA (Interview)

Dec. 10, 2019: Private Book Club, Boston, MA (Virtual Book Club Discussion)

Dec. 9, 2019: Private Book Club, Concord, MA (Book Club Discussion)

Nov. 19, 2019: Daughters of Norway, Reno, NV (Book Presentation)

Nov. 17, 2019: Tattered Cover Book Store, Denver, CO (Book Talk & Signing)

Nov. 16, 2019: Sons of Norway, Denver, CO (Book Presentation)

Nov. 14, 2019: Private Book Club, Silver Spring, MD (Virtual Book Club Discussion)

Nov. 12, 2019: Private Book Club, Pittsburgh, PA (Virtual Book Club Discussion)

Nov. 10, 2019: Northfield Public Library, Northfield, MN (Book Talk & Signing)

Nov. 9, 2019: Sons of Norway, Minneapolis, MN (Book Presentation)

Nov. 8, 2019: Ingebretsen’s, Minneapolis, MN (Book Talk & Signing)

Nov. 7, 2019: Magers & Quinn Book Store, Minneapolis, MN (Book Talk & Signing)

Oct. 12, 2019: Sundance Book Store, Reno, NV (Book Signing)

Sept. 21, 2019: Sons of Norway, Fairfax, VA (Book Presentation)

Sept. 21, 2019: Barnes & Noble Book Store, Rockville, MD (Book Signing)

Aug. 26: Official publication date for Wendy Swallow’s Searching for Nora: After the Doll’s House (Peavine Mountain Press).

Searching for Nora: A Novel After The Doll's House by Wendy Swallow

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BOOK CLUB PAGE

Reviewers Praise Searching for Nora

“So much more than a sequel, Searching for Nora is a masterful tale that spans generations, continents, and the intertwined lives of two remarkable women. Lyrically told and meticulously researched, this unforgettable saga transports you from the fjords of Norway to the wide open plains of the American west. I couldn’t put it down.”

Joanne Lipman, author of That’s What She Said: What Men Need to Know (and Women Need to Tell Them) About Working Together, No. 1 bestseller at The Washington Post

“Few narratives in Western literature have inspired more “what happened next?” speculations than Ibsen’s A Doll’s House, with its famous “door slam heard ’round the world.” Nora’s risky (and theatrically unprecedented) act of self-emancipation challenged paradigms of both dramatic and social structure, leaving us to wonder, with a deliberate absence of guidance or foreshadowing, about the next “act” in the play of her life. Wendy Swallow has done the hard work of imagining in four dimensions – across time and space, from Norway to America, and into the first quarter of the 20th century – how the echoes of that door slam might reverberate in the lives of several families, and in the intellectual and social currents of two continents. Her book is steeped in the Ibsen tradition of meticulous observation, careful design, and rich implication. Part family drama, part evocation of early feminism (both also notable Ibsen specialties), the work takes us on a satisfying and altogether believable journey of discovery as Nora’s story comes full circle across the generations.”

Rick Davis, dean of the College of Visual and Performing Arts and Professor of Theater at George Mason University, co-founder of the American Ibsen Theater in Pittsburgh, and co-translator (with Brian Johnston) of five Ibsen plays

“For those who wondered what happened to Ibsen’s Nora Helmer after she slams the door on her marriage, comes this compelling and engaging novel. A fascinating social history of turn-of-the-century women in Norway and the American Midwest. Beautifully written, with characters that resonate long after you turn the last page.”

Beth Brophy, author of My Ex-Best Friend and Reunion

“Exquisitely crafted and brilliantly delivered. Wendy Swallow has brought us a passionate and cautionary tell that speaks to the life choices we all make – and how those decisions ripple through the generations, affecting us and those closest to us, in ways we never could have imagined. Searching for Nora forces two important questions – are the lives we’re living in alignment with our core values, and if not, what are we willing to do about it?”

News & Events

“I did it to leave Torvald in a stew of scandalous talk because it was what he feared most, more than he feared losing me.”

~ From Searching for Nora: After the Doll’s House

Reviewers Praise Searching for Nora

Joanne Lipman, author of That’s What She Said: What Men Need to Know (and Women Need to Tell Them) About Working Together, No. 1 bestseller at The Washington Post

Rick Davis, dean of the College of Visual and Performing Arts and Professor of Theater at George Mason University, co-founder of the American Ibsen Theater in Pittsburgh, and co-translator (with Brian Johnston) of five Ibsen plays

Beth Brophy, author of My Ex-Best Friend and Reunion

Steve Piacente, author of Bella, Bootlicker, Pretender, and Your New Fighting Stance: Good Enough Isn’t… and You Know It

Nora’s Journey, a Photo Slideshow

searchingfornora

Are You a Teacher?

Peavine Mountain Press