ROCKPORT — Shannon Mullen and Governor Janet Mills discuss their book, In Other Words, Leadership, Friday, June 21, 2024, from 5 - 7 p.m., at Barnswallow Books, in Rockport. The talk will be followed by light bites, refreshments and book signing. This event is free and open to the public.

In Other Words, Leadership, is based on an unexpected bond, born out of the Pandemic with a mother who offered wisdom, friendship, and support in the form of a pen pal.

Janet Trafton Mills is the 75th Governor of Maine and the first woman elected to that office. She was sworn in for her second consecutive term in January 2023 after winning re-election, having earned more votes than any previous Maine governor. She was also the first governor since 1970 to be elected with a majority of the vote, in her case for both terms. Under her leadership during the global COVID-19 pandemic Maine had one of the highest vaccination rates and lowest death rates in the US, as well as one of the strongest economic recoveries among the states, according to Barnswallow, in a news release. Governor Mills previously served as Maine’s first female Attorney General and its first woman district attorney, as well as in the state’s House of Representatives. She is step-mother to her late husband’s five daughters and a grandmother of five.

Shannon A. Mullen is a journalist, author and screenwriter. She grew up in the White Mountains and Lakes Region of New Hampshire and studied at UNH before earning a graduate degree in broadcast journalism at Boston University. Shannon went on to report for national programs on public radio for two decades, including Marketplace, Morning Edition and All Things Considered. Her print journalism has been published by The New Yorker, Boston Magazine and The Boston Globe, among other outlets. She is also a playwright, film producer and podcast host, and develops stories for the screen, stage and spoken word through her production company Broad Reach.