Anna Hogeland is the author of the novel The Long Answer (Riverhead, 2022), which has been translated into seven languages, and the forthcoming novel Wild Aster (Bloomsbury, 2026). She is a psychotherapist in private practice, with an MSW from Smith College School for Social Work and an MFA from the University of California, Irvine. Her work has appeared or is forthcoming in Literary Hub, Electric Literature's Recommended Reading, The Southern Review, The Common, and elsewhere. She lives in western Massachusetts.

Praise for WILD ASTER

"Anna Hogeland’s Wild Aster is that rare thing: a novel that marries the feel of a timeless classic with a sharp, contemporary sensibility. Mae’s journey is filled with twists and turns—at times devastating, at others affirming, often unexpected, yet always with a deep feel of truth to them. Mae herself is a singular protagonist, filled with strength, curiosity, and an unwavering commitment to herself that I found completely mesmerizing. I fell in love with her and with this beautiful, insightful book."—Alexis Schaitkin, author of Saint X and Elsewhere

"Wild Aster spans decades of quiet tragedy, but delivers one of the most satisfying endings I have read in a long time. Hogeland’s prose feels like a character in its own right, stoic and resolute, leaving space for readers to consider their own longing, loss, and repair.”—Cara Wall, author of The Dearly Beloved, A Read with Jenna Pick

“Exquisitely written, Wild Aster charts the legacy of motherhood and the echoes of our choices. A shining novel that captures the beauty and bravery of ordinary life."—Serena Burdick, bestselling author of The Girls with No Names and A Promise to Arlette

“Against the backdrop of an evolving 20th-century United States unfolds the 43-year drama of Wild Aster: one woman’s life in all its grim strain, keen appetites, hard grief, and vivid pleasure. Anna Hogeland’s prose is clear water, lucid and drinkable. Her Mae Smith is a character as indelible as some fabulous ancestor, as intimately known as an admired friend.”—Rachel Lyon, author of Self-Portrait with Boy, Fruit of the Dead, and Sixes

“As women's rights are currently challenged, it is important to look back and remember when bodily autonomy and basic financial independence were not a given. Wild Aster introduces a character who blooms where she is planted as life presents ongoing obstacles and tragedies. Readers will empathize with Mae and be inspired by her actions. Anna Hogeland's work of historical fiction could not be more relevant. This is a treasure trove of discussion material for book clubs.”—Pamela Klinger-Horn, The Valley Bookseller (Stillwater, MN)

“Mae's story vibrates with the passion and desire for life that beats in the heart of a strong woman; challenged by the times (war and the Depression), she struggles to gain traction in a world that has been denied to her. I loved Mae's strength and hope for a better life.”—Linda Bond, Auntie's Books (Spokane, WA)

“Coming from nothing, with nothing, Mae manages to reinvent herself multiple times, becoming a woman who can, as her mother Ida urged. . .A complicated marriage, complicated motherhood, and complicated desires make Mae an unusual heroine, and unforgettable.”—Robin Glossner, Odyssey Bookshop (South Hadley, MA)