My novella, "The Last Best Thing," has created a lot of media buzz since its publication last spring. I like to think that's because of the beautiful prose, the finely crafted story, the humor or the compelling theme: How far would you go to help a friend?
But the book’s popularity is just as likely due to the subject matter. Set in rural Iowa, the story centers upon an aging group of life-long friends confronting end-of-life decisions, including assisted suicide. “The Last Best Thing” humanizes and personalizes the right-to-die debate, Alzheimer’s, institutionalization, poverty and the myriad other issues facing America’s elderly today.
Kate Sebeny is the author of the recently published novella The Last Best Thing. Born in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Kate earned her bachelor’s degree at the University of Iowa and her master’s at Iowa State University. Amongst other things, she’s taught undergraduate writing at two universities, and has been editor of a regional newspaper and at a national magazine. She is the recipient of several grants and awards for her writing. Kate has also renovated every place she’s lived, including the historical Madison County jailhouse in Winterset, Iowa. At work on a new novel and a short-story collection, she resides at her current rehab project on the Des Moines River, along with her three dogs and three cats.
