Marie-Helene Bertino
Marie-Helene Bertino’s novel, Beautyland, tells the story of Adina Giorno, an alien girl sent to Earth as an infant to gather intelligence about whether the planet is habitable. The discovery of a fax machine becomes a path for her to navigate life in Philadelphia with a single and somewhat distant mom. Adina’s outsider’s perspective takes ordinary life and describes it so perfectly that it is as if the reader is seeing it for the very first time. Beautyland is a novel of startling originality about the fragility and resilience of life on Earth and in the universe. Bertino is the author of two novels and a story collection. She won the O. Henry Prize, the Pushcart Prize, and was the 2017 Frank O’Connor International Short Story Fellow. She teaches at NYU and Yale and lives in Brooklyn.
“Astonishing.” – The New York Times. “Poignant, bracing. . .” – The LA Times. “Warm, witty, and touching.” – Esquire. “A monumental accomplishment, a shimmering masterpiece.” – The Boston Globe.
At the Festival
Marie-Helene Bertino appears in 1 session in the archive.
2025 Festival: Video and Photos
Featuring Marie-Helene Bertino, Yangsze Choo, Xochitl Gonzalez, Rachel Khong, Rita Bullwinkel, Essie Chambers, Eve J. Chung
Books
Copies of every title are available from Vroman's Bookstore at the festival.
Beautyland
Marie-Helene Bertino’s novel, Beautyland, tells the story of Adina Giorno, an alien girl sent to Earth as an infant to gather intelligence about whether the planet is habitable. The discovery of a fax machine becomes a path for her to navigate life in Philadelphia with a single and somewhat distant mom. Adina’s outsider’s perspective takes ordinary life and describes it so perfectly that it is as if the reader is seeing it for the very first time. Beautyland is a novel of startling originality about the fragility and resilience of life on Earth and in the universe.