Lunch with Ben Markovits

About the Author

Ben Markovits was born in Texas and grew up there and in London and Berlin. He studied at Yale University and the University of Oxford. After graduating, he became a professional basketball player in Landshut, Germany (where he played against a young Dirk Nowitzki). His eleven previous novels include Fathers and Daughters, You Don’t Have to Live Like This, and The Sidekick. He has published essays, stories, poetry, and reviews in The Guardian, Granta, The Paris Review, and The New York Times, among others. In 2013, Granta selected him as one of their Best of Young British Novelists and in 2015 he won the Eccles British Library Writer in Residence Award and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize. He lives in London and teaches creative writing at Royal Holloway, University of London.

About The Rest of Our Lives

Shortlisted for the 2025 Booker Prize

A triumphantly life-affirming road trip novel about a man at a crossroads in his life.

When Tom Layward’s wife had an affair twelve years ago, he resolved to leave her as soon as his youngest child left the nest. Now, while driving his college-bound daughter to Pittsburgh, he remembers his promise to himself. He is also on the run from his own health issues and a forced leave from work.

So, rather than returning to his wife in Westchester, Tom keeps driving west, with the vague plan of visiting people from his past—an old college friend, his ex-girlfriend, his brother, his son—en route, maybe, to California. He’s moving towards a future he hasn’t even envisioned yet while he considers his past and the choices he’s made that have brought him to this particular present. Pitch-perfect, tender, and keenly observed, The Rest of Our Lives is a story about what to do when the rest of your life is only just the beginning of your story.

About the Luncheon

• Doors Open: 11:30 a.m.

• Books: Registrants will pick up their books at the luncheon.

• Guests: Non-members are welcome to attend up to two luncheons per season. Members may bring with them an unlimited number of non-member guests, as long as the guests, individually, abide by the above Non-member Guest policy.

• Registration: Pre-registration is required. 

• Payment: Pre-payment is required.

• Cancellation Policy: Refunds will not be allowed for cancellations received after registration closes, and no-shows.