‘Bernie’s Mittens’ Book Event with Jen Ellis

118 Elliot, Everyone’s Books, and Green Writers Press welcomes celebrated author Jen Ellis who will read from and discuss her hot-off-the-press debut memoir Bernie’s Mitten Maker (Green Writers Press) on Friday May 12, 2023 at 6:30 pm. Books will be available for purchase/signing. Event is free but donations are appreciated.

Bernie’s Mitten Maker is a raw and honest account of the joy, stress, and shock of sudden internet fame. Told with captivating storytelling, this memoir explores the many roads that led to the Bernie Sanders mitten meme sensation that followed the 2021 presidential inauguration. Jen Ellis’s debut publication reads like an intimate conversation with an old friend. Vermont teacher, mother, and crafter, Ellis weaves the stories of her life together with humor and thoughtful insight. She shares her struggles with childhood trauma, infertility, and homophobia and shows us how crafting can build community and generosity can bring joy.

Alison Bechdel, comic artist of Dykes to Watch Out For and Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic, has this to say about the book: “In the fine old Vermont tradition, Jen Ellis keeps it real—as well as warm and fuzzy. Not even going viral stays this crafter from her self-appointed rounds of neighborliness, generosity, and radical kindness. Bernie’s Mitten Maker is an engrossing memoir about the healing power of handwork and the generative potential of an openhanded approach to life. And when you think about it, what’s an upcycled, fleece-lined mitten but a wide open hand?”

UVM Alum Jennifer Ellis with Bernie mittens

JEN ELLIS was a teacher and crafter when the mittens she sewed for Senator Bernie Sanders became the inspiration for millions of memes. Originally from South Portland, Maine, Ellis’s teaching career spanned nearly two decades in the public schools of North Carolina and Vermont. She is a songwriter, beekeeper, and crafter of the occasional pair of mittens for local non-profit fundraisers. She is currently pursuing a Master’s in Counseling from the University of Vermont. This is her debut publication. Ellis lives in Vermont with her wife and daughter.