A powerful, vibrant novel about the life-changing weekend shared between two strangers, from the award-winning writer Roxane Gay calls "a consummate storyteller."​ On a rainy October night in Kentucky, recently divorced therapist Tallie Clark is on her way home from work when she spots a man precariously standing at the edge of a bridge. Without a second thought, Tallie pulls over and jumps out of the car into the pouring rain. She convinces the man to join her for a cup of coffee, and he eventually agrees to come back to her house, where he finally shares his name: Emmett.  Over the course of the emotionally charged weekend that follows, Tallie makes it her mission to provide a safe space for Emmett, though she hesitates to confess that this is also her day job. What she doesn’t realize is that Emmett isn’t the only one who needs healing—and they both are harboring secrets. Alternating between Tallie and Emmett’s perspectives as they inch closer to the truth of what brought Emmett to the bridge’s edge—as well as the hard truths Tallie has been grappling with since her marriage ended— This Close to Okay  is an uplifting, cathartic story about chance encounters, hope found in unlikely moments, and the subtle magic of human connection. ​Longlisted for the 2022 Mark Twain American Voice in Literature Award Longlisted for the Goodreads Choice Awards Book of the Month December Pick Good Housekeeping  Book Club February Pick Marie Claire Book  Club March Pick Most Anticipated by  Elle ,  Today  (according to Goodreads),  The Millions ,  She Reads , and  Real Simple Recommended by Refinery29, Shondaland, Oprah Daily,  Washington Post ,  Glamour ,  Cosmopolitan ,  Electric Literature ,  Bookriot ,  Parade ,  Harper's Bazaar , and more  "Leesa Cross-Smith is a consummate storyteller who uses her formidable talents to tell the oft-overlooked stories of people living in that great swath of place between the left and right coasts."― Roxane Gay, New York Times bestselling author “This book hits the ground running. Cross-Smith writes tenderly about the trial and error of intimacy and draws you in with enormous warmth and control.”― Raven Leilani, New York Times bestselling author of Luster "Leesa Cross-Smith writes the way many people wish they could: ferociously, tenderly, and with a tremendous amount of heart. The stories contained in So We Can Glow showcase the very best of Cross-Smith's voice. They stick with readers long after the book is closed. This collection is tantalizing and Cross-Smith is a delight."― Kristen Arnett, New York Times bestselling author of Mostly Dead Things (on So We Can Glow) “Leesa Cross-Smith has written a book to help us through these bleak and confusing times. This Close to Okay is a story of loneliness and wrenching loss, perfectly counterbalanced by the compassion of strangers and the love of family. This book is a hand-knitted sweater in the middle of a cold winter night.”― Bryn Greenwood, New York Times bestselling author of The Reckless Oath We Made "This Close to Okay is such a joy to read! It at once delights and moves, its sweetness and sass and sexiness balanced with deep questions about honesty, intimacy, and heartbreak. Leesa Cross-Smith is a confident storyteller and, in her hands, her characters come alive; they are fallible, charming, complicated, and--like all of us--aching for connection."  ― Edan Lepucki, New York Times author of California and Woman No. 17 " This Close to Okay  is the kind of novel that allows the reader to slip into a world rich with both comforts and troubles. The story of Emmett and Tallie is delicious, romantic, cozy, and satisfying, and it's also mysterious, unstable, and loaded with loss. This book opens up hard emotions and truths, but it also offers moments of relief and attention to the sustaining pleasures of life."― Naima Coster, author of What's Mine and Yours and Halsey Street "One of those rare feel-good novels that also crackles with wisdom, This Close to Okay introduces readers to two characters who will come to feel like cherished friends. . . Over the course of a single weekend, their many conversations on love, loss, grief, and joy coalesce into a primer on human goodness.”― Elle “With an effortlessly Baldwinian style of misleading simplicity, Leesa Cross-Smith's beguiling prose lures readers in from the first moments. Reading Cross-Smith is like stepping into seemingly calm water, only to be swept away by the force of a story so immediate, and characters so intimate and bewitching, that you do not want to come up for air.”  ― Bethany C Morrow, author of Mem and A Song Below Water “Another page-turner . . . A story about the power of vulnerability and connection, This Close to Okay is a moving reminder of the importance of authentic human relationships.”― Refinery29 “One of the most charming and uplifting stories I’ve read recently. It’s the perfect dose of escapism.”― Maisy Card , Glamour