Ecologically odd, mysterious bordering on creepy, possibly demon-haunted, dotted with backwoods folk, and documented by the meticulous John McPhee in a long New Yorker article turned 1968 book, the Pine Barrens of New Jersey have more recently had a star turn in “Heather” by Caitlin Mullen.
With its small-town female chief of police, excavations of unseemly family doings, explorations of misogyny, and setting-as-character, it was called “the crime novel of the year so far” in June in a write-up in The New York Times, which was followed a month later by a full-blown author profile. Now “Heather” (Celadon, $28.99) will get a fresh airing Monday during a 5 to 8 p.m. open house at the Stony Brook Southampton campus for its M.F.A. program in creative writing and literature, of which Mullen is a graduate.
Reading with her will be the faculty’s LB Thompson, a poet and past Whiting Award winner who has had work published in Prairie Schooner and The New Yorker.
“Attendees will have the opportunity to meet renowned faculty, connect with current M.F.A. students, explore degree tracks, and learn about the application process for upcoming academic terms,” a release says.
The setting is Chancellors Hall and admission is free, although R.S.V.P.s are recommended at the Stony Brook website or by calling the program coordinator at 631-632-5007.