We are very excited to announce that Kati, the author, will be joining us via Zoom for our discussion! What if a lifesaving medical device causes loss of life along its supply chain? That's the question Arlington Heights native and John Hersey H.S. graduate Katherine Standefer finds herself asking one night after being suddenly shocked by her implanted cardiac defibrillator. In this gripping, intimate memoir, Standefer tells the story of her troubled relationship to her own ICD, from her harrowing experience in the American healthcare system to her global journey to the mines and factories where the minerals in her device may have originated. Deeply personal and sharply reported, Lightning Flowers takes a hard look at technological mythos, healthcare, and our cultural relationship to death--raising important questions about our obligations to one another, and the cost of saving one life.

Named one of O, The Oprah Magazine’s Best Books of Fall 2020, a New York Times Book Review Editor's Choice/Staff Pick, and one of Kirkus Reviews’ Best 100 Nonfiction Books of 2020, Lightning Flowers has also been featured in People Magazine, on NPR’s Fresh Air, and on the goop podcast. You must register to participate in this live, online event.

Registered participants will receive a Zoom link by email prior to the event.

Friday, September 24, 2021, 7:00 PM until 9:00 PM

Purchasing the Book: Because Lightning Flowers is a book about ethical supply chains, Kati encourages you to purchase your copy from independent bookstores, which most benefit authors, publishers, and communities. Some suggestions: Semicolon(Chicago’s only Black-woman-owned bookstore),Women & Children First(landmark Chicago feminist and queer bookstore), orBookshop.org(an online bookstore which supports local, independent book stores).