A sharply observed, emotionally exacting novel about an unconventional family, creative ambition, and the girl growing up at the center of the art world’s spotlight.

When a freak accident claims the lives of her first mothers, Vabeh—a bi-racial, precocious tween—moves to New York to live with Devon and Morgan Gregson Bennett, a couple whose identities and ambitions were never built with parenthood in mind. Devon, an artist fighting to stay visible, must protect a child whose presence attracts both warmth and scrutiny. Morgan, a strategist and writer, finds her carefully ordered life reshaped by the story unfolding at home.

As Vabeh navigates schoolyards, art studios, and the sharply lit rooms of collectors and gatekeepers, she becomes the witness—and unexpected catalyst—for the adults orbiting her.

With wit, tenderness, and a clear-eyed look at the art world’s seductions and distortions, How to Raise an Art Star explores what it means to raise—and to be—an artist when work, love, and identity collide.

Perfect for listeners who love:

• Contemporary literary fiction

• Art, ambition, and creative life stories

• Queer family-making and unconventional motherhood

• Sharp social observation with emotional depth

Performed by Amy Gordon, whose warm, nuanced narration brings depth to each character’s voice.