10/19/2026
Join us at Finnriver for a reading and discussion this Thursday evening, 10/22 with author Miranda Mellis, whose novel Crocosmia was recently published by Nightboat Books. Miranda will be in conversation with Finnriver co-founder Crystie Kisler about this extraordinary book. Books will be sold by Imprint Bookshop, with a book signing to follow. Imprint Bookshop
Crocosmia is a revelatory novel (or parable) of art, adventure, and radical politics, set in a world on the precipice. A philosophical fable, Crocosmia centers on Maya as she recollects the “great turning”—a moment of radical social and ecological change effected in part by the art of her mother, Jane. As Maya recalls her upbringing—from a commune run by anarchist nuns to a time of rural isolation before her mother’s disappearance—Mellis’ prose gorgeously conjures a life defined by revolutionary thought and action and the interplay and tension between family life and political commitment. At once a fantasy, a handbook to political thought, and a work of eco-fiction, this lush novel meditates on how, in a world on the precipice, dreams of communal care can bloom.
Join us for this important inquiry into how art and the creative life can transform the future!
On a personal note, Crystie, pictured painting in the slides here, thinks this is one of the most intriguing and important books of the decade and now cannot stop making art with crocosmias🌺.
In lieu of an entrance fee, donations will be accepted on behalf of Longhouse For The People, an Indigenous led revitalization project focused on land stewardship, spiritual education and first foods.
To learn more about Miranda’s work, visit her website mirandamellis.com and substack.
