NEED TO KNOW<\/p>\n
Bsrat Mezghebe\u2019s debut novel is arriving soon.<\/p>\n
PEOPLE can exclusively reveal the cover forI Hope You Find What You\u2019re Looking For<\/a>, out next year from Liveright Publishing. The title is the second novel to be published as part of the Well-Read Black Girl Books<\/a> series, created by Glory Edim<\/a>.<\/p>\n Set in 1991 D.C., the book centers on 13-year-old Lydia, whose family is grappling with what the looming liberation of Eritrea from Ethiopian rule will mean for them and their immigrant community. As they do so, their cousin, Berekhat, arrives to stay with them from Ethiopia to attend medical school.\n<\/p>\n The cover of ‘I Hope You Find What You’re Looking For’ by Bsrat Mezghebe.<\/p>\n Liveright<\/p>\n I Hope You Find What You\u2019re Looking For<\/a> follows Lydia as she unravels new ideas Berekhat introduces to her about nationhood and freedom, along with Lydia’s mother Elsa and matriarch Mama Zewdi. With Berekhat’s help, Lydie uncovers new family secrets \u2014 including ones about her martyred father.<\/p>\n Mezghebe notes that her own family\u2019s experiences as Eritrean immigrants in 1990s D.C. influenced the novel.\n<\/p>\n \u201cFrom the safety of my American upbringing, I witnessed immigrants in my family and community make incredible sacrifices in search of peace for themselves and their country,\u201d Mezghebe explains. \u201cI also witnessed how war and geopolitics were still no match for the drama of everyday life: carving out space for yourself in your family, searching for love and companionship and finding meaning in your life.\u201d<\/p>\n Bsrat Mezghebe.<\/p>\n Meron Hagos<\/p>\n The author calls the novel a story of \u201cself-determination,\u201d as well as a narrative about a family \u201cgrappling with the stories they\u2019ve been told about love, motherhood, and freedom and ultimately creating their own.\u201d\n<\/p>\n \u201cWriting this book allowed me to explore how the personal and political intertwine, and how ordinary people respond to extraordinary times,\u201d Mezghebe says.\n<\/p>\n Edim, who founded Well-Read Black Girl <\/a>in 2015, has been publishing titles in collaboration with Liveright since 2025<\/a>. She says that she is \u201chonored\u201d to release Mezghebe\u2019s novel as part of the initiative.<\/p>\n Glory Edim.<\/p>\n Tamera Darden<\/p>\n \u201cI was drawn to the uniqueness of her voice, it’s undeniably sharp,\u201d the Gather Me author says of the novel. \u201cReaders will discover a deeply moving exploration of the Black diaspora; filled with humor and poignant reflections on the immigrant experience.\u201d\n<\/p>\n