an accomplished suburban mother, who discovers her husband's betrayal, known by others, at the time a shameful secret surfaces from her own past. Morris' eighth novel was Light from a Distant Star (2011). It drew comparisons to Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird. It tells of a brutal murder and family love. At the center of the novel is 13-year-old Nellie Peck, a girl who wrestles with the meanings of loyalty, love and truth. Awards and honors Finalist, National Book Award, 1988 Finalist, PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction, 1989 Five Best Books of 1991, Time Best Books of 1991, American Library Association Library Journal Barnes and Noble Discover Great New Writers Award, 1991 Oprah Book Club Selection, 1997 Biography Morris was born in Meriden, Connecticut and raised in Rutland, Vermont. She resides in Andover, Massachusetts with her husband Michael W. Morris. They have five children, twelve grandchildren and one great-grandchild. Her first novel, Vanished, was nominated for high awards. It was the first that many people knew she was working at writing. Before writing full-time, Morris had worked as a social worker for the Massachusetts Department of Public Welfare in Lawrence, Massachusetts. A number of her novels are set in fictional towns in Vermont while parts of Vanished, A Hole in the Universe and The Lost Mother are set in Massachusetts. Bibliography Vanished, 1988, Viking Press A Dangerous Woman, 1991, Viking Press Songs in Ordinary Time, 1995, Viking Press Fiona Range, 2000, Viking Press A Hole in the Universe, 2004, Viking Press The Lost Mother, 2005, Viking Press The Last Secret, 2009, Shaye Areheart Books Light from a Distant Star, 2011, Crown Publishing References External links Keillor, Garrison. "Mary McGarry Morris", Writer's Almanac, 10 February 2007. 1943 births Living people People from Meriden, Connecticut Novelists from Connecticut Novelists from Vermont Novelists from Massachusetts People from Rutland (town), Vermont 20th-century American novelists 21st-century American novelists American women novelists 20th-century American women writers 21st-century American women writers American women short story writers American social workers American women dramatists and playwrights 20th-century American dramatists and playwrights 20th-century American short story writers 21st-century American short story writers PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction winners