Hallie Gross
Forever...Hallie Gross is Katherine's maternal grandmother, a lawyer and political activist whose life joins public engagement with family responsibility. She practices law alongside her husband, remains involved in politics and reproductive-health advocacy, and appears in Katherine's life as both a trusted presence and a frank adviser.
Identity and Public Life
Hallie once ran for Congress and lost. She and her husband, Grandpa, practice law together in New York City, although his stroke has changed their working arrangement: he no longer handles cases but continues to go to the office every day. Their son, Katherine's maternal uncle, now largely runs the practice. Hallie's own commitments to politics, Planned Parenthood, and NOW leave her too busy to see many clients. She is nearly seventy, but remains active across professional and political life.
Family and Daily Presence
When business slows in January, Katherine's parents usually go away for a week, often to Mexico, and Hallie and Grandpa come to stay with Katherine and her sister, Jamie. The arrangement makes the maternal grandparents part of the household's regular rhythm, not merely visitors. Hallie's family role also includes sharing time with Katherine outside the home: she and Grandpa meet her for lunch at Basil's, their favorite small East Side restaurant, where the owner accommodates Grandpa's low-sodium diet.
Relationship with Katherine
Hallie's manner with Katherine combines warmth with directness. At lunch, she looks Katherine over and remarks on her healthy, glowing appearance. On another occasion, her advice to be careful centers specifically on the possibility of pregnancy. The warning is brief, but its clarity suits a grandmother who is also publicly involved with Planned Parenthood: she addresses a consequential risk without turning the exchange into an extended lecture.
Hallie's care is practical as well as conversational. During the lunch visit, Katherine notices that Grandpa looks pale; after they say goodbye, Hallie helps him into a cab. Katherine kisses her grandfather and hugs Hallie, gestures that place Hallie's public identity as a lawyer and activist alongside the intimate work of maintaining family ties and attending to an aging spouse.
Character and Significance
Hallie is presented through the overlap of civic life, work, and kinship rather than through a separate personal storyline. Her lost congressional campaign, legal practice, and involvement with Planned Parenthood and NOW establish a sustained public life; her visits, candid caution, and assistance to Grandpa show how that life sits beside everyday family care. In Katherine's world, Hallie represents an older generation that is neither removed from contemporary questions about sex and responsibility nor confined to the domestic sphere.
