Beth Kan­der is a nov­el­ist and play­wright with tan­gled Midwestern/​Deep South roots. The grand­daugh­ter of immi­grants, her writ­ing explores how worlds old and new inter­twine — or col­lide. Her work’s been described as ​“riv­et­ing,” ​“expert­ly craft­ed,” and ​“habit-form­ing.” Per­son­al­i­ty: Shy the­atre kid. Edu­ca­tion: MFA/​Mississippi Uni­ver­si­ty for Women; MSW/​University of Michi­gan; BA/​Brandeis Uni­ver­si­ty. Favorite char­ac­ters: her hilar­i­ous hus­band and chil­dren. Cof­fee: please.