First Light is excited to welcome Rebecca Bendheim to the shop to celebrate the release of her middle grade novel, When You're Brave Enough, out April 7.

The event will begin with a conversation between Rebecca and her former students, Ellie and Greta Ford, followed by a a book signing. Please arrive a few minutes early to check in and find a seat. ​

Tickets include a copy of the book and a reserved seat. Unreserved seats are available on a first come, first served basis. Free RSVPs are also encouraged.

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ABOUT THE BOOK

"Bendheim delicately and heartbreakingly paints a portrait of first love, the struggle to understand one’s authentic self, and the uncertain, painful, and still somehow joyful landscape of coming of age.”

-Corey Ann Haydu, author of The Ordinary and Extraordinary Auden Greene

Before she moved from Austin to Rhode Island, everybody knew Lacey as one half of an inseparable duo: Lacey-and-Grace, best friends since they were toddlers. But at school, being lumped together with over-eager, worm-obsessed, crushes-on-everyone Grace meant Lacey never quite fit in—and that’s why at her new middle school, Lacey plans to reinvent herself.

At first, everything seems to go as planned. Lacey makes new friends right away, she finds a rabbi to help her prepare for her bat mitzvah, and she even gets cast as a lead in the eighth-grade musical. Which is when things start to get stressful, because it turns out the students at her new school have a long-standing, un-official tradition: No matter what the show is, in the final performance, the leads always kiss for real.

Lacey’s never kissed anyone before—she’s not even sure she’s ever had a crush. But while her new friends create elaborate schemes to help her decide which co-lead to choose, Lacey realizes she might want something totally different than what any-one expected. With the final performance approaching and big decisions looming, Lacey must determine if she’s brave enough to be who she really is in front of the person who matters most.

For ages 10-14.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR​

Rebecca Bendheim is a middle school teacher, poet, and graduate of Vanderbilt University and Vermont College of Fine Arts’s MFA program in writing for children and young adults. She has performed her poetry on NPR and types poems around the country with Austin’s Typewriter Rodeo poetry troupe.

She lives in Austin with her partner, an orange cat, and a chorgi (chihuahua-corgi) puppy. Rebecca has bungee jumped, skydived, and swam with sharks, but the bravest thing she’s ever done is put all her deepest emotions into books.

She will be joined in conversation by two of her former students, sisters Ellie and Greta Ford.