by Mary Ann Hogan
A bittersweet story of a father, a daughter, and a remarkable California family.
In her memoir, Mary Ann Hogan grapples with identity, family, and the creative calling. Proceeds from this book, and proceeds from the art of Bill Hogan, go to the Hogan-Newton Fund to support journalism education.
About the book
Circle Way: A Daughter's Memoir, a Writer's Journey Home is a memoir by Mary Ann Hogan about her relationship with her father, Bill Hogan, the longtime literary editor at the San Francisco Chronicle.
The book, published the day after Valentine’s Day on 2022 by Wonderwell Press, examines her childhood and her father's influence on her life. It is a moving and honest portrait of a father-daughter relationship and a celebration of the power of writing to connect us with ourselves and with others.
Awards
Circle Way was well-received by reviewers, featured in the 2023 Bay Area Book Festival and recognized with nine awards:
- Nautilus Award Gold Medal in the “Lyric Prose” category
- Montaigne Medal Finalist for a “thought-provoking book”
- Pub West Gold Medal for design in the “Adult Trade Book, Non-Illustrated” category
- Pub West Silver Medal for best designed book in the competition overall
- Independent Book Publisher (IPPY) Gold Medal for Outstanding Craftsmanship
- IPPY Silver Medal for Cover Design
- Best Prose or Poetry Award, Memoir (and) Literary Journal, third place
- New Millennium Writing Literary Journal Nonfiction Contest, Honorable Mention
- Aisling Award for Nonfiction, Florida Atlantic University
“A love letter not only to the author’s literary father, but also to the vanished lives and sensibilities of an earlier California…it’s a bittersweet pleasure to share her journey.”
—Sarah Pollock, writer and editor
“CIRCLE WAY is a gorgeous and refreshing exploration of writing and family. Hogan’s masterfully woven memoir offers new ways to consider the stories of our lives—what appear to be gaps in knowledge are ultimately paths to understanding.”
—Kate Schmitt, author of Singing Bones
Things people say about Circle Way
“History, poetry, art, and family come together in Mary Ann Hogan’s loving exploration of her journalist father’s life. Her quest to understand this gifted and complicated man is a delight to read, leaving us with a rich portrait of not one, but two consequential lives.”
—Judy Woodruff, anchor and managing editor, PBS NewsHour
“One can’t help comparing Mary Ann Hogan to Joan Didion. The prose is subtle; the insights, piercing. CIRCLE WAY…speaks eloquently to what goes unsaid in any family.”
—Susan Stern, director,Bad Attitude: The Art of Spain Rodriguez
“This story is about people who escape prisons of their own making, and people who don't.”
