It may be hard to believe, but Wolitzer began working on her layered new novel — about a timid college student who finds a mentor in a famous Gloria Steinem-era feminist — years before the polarizing 2016 election. But once those events transpired, she decided to add a coda to the book’s end, projecting her characters into the future of our current landscape. “I wanted to add a layer of darkness and uncertainty,” Wolitzer explained to EW, “as the world got into this strange moment for women.” (Apr. 3)