So many books

by Joan

Last week, Susan shared a Center for Fiction link to the long list for the 2013 Flaherty-Dunnan First Novel Prize. 

I was excited to see a novel I’m reading now, Anthony Marra’s A Constellation of Vital Phenomena, a stunningly told story that drops the reader into alternating timelines in war-torn Chechnya. Yet as I read over the list, I was embarrassed to admit I'd only heard of two of twenty-one other novels. 

Why hadn't I heard of those books? Which made me wonder, whose opinion do you value when choosing your next read? New York Times Bestseller list? Oprah?

I receive email newsletters from Powells, Barnes & Noble, Audible, The Kenyan Review, among others. I follow the Twitter feeds from L.A. Times Books, Simon & Schuster, Media Bistro's Galley Cat, The Paris Review, to name a few. I could spend all day, every day reading lists, adding each book to my never-ending TBR spreadsheet, but my writing time would suffer. 

There's a line in the movie Mona Lisa Smile where Katherine Watson (Julie Roberts) ask her Wellesley art students, "What is art? What makes it good or bad, and who decides? To which Betty Warren (Kirsten Dunst) replies, "Art isn't art until someone says it is." And then, "The right people."

So who are the right people? Fiction is subjective, we all know that. I love historical fiction, though lately I've been expanding my reading horizon. I love finding novels that are not necessarily the most widely-read, but whose characters haunt me until I tell the world about them. 

Catherine McKenzie (author of the novels Forgotten, Arranged and Spin) started a Facebook page, "I'll bet we can make these bestsellers." Her mission: "Welcome to the AUTHOR/READER EFFECT, where authors and readers band together to bring attention to deserving books. Because who says Oprah's the only one who can get people reading?"  

Carol Woods, freelance editor and founder of Lesser North Texas Writers’ critique group says, “Sometimes I read bestsellers but not because they're on the bestseller list; they definitely have to appeal to me on a personal level. Covers and back-of-the-book blurbs are the first elements I evaluate, but I've been burned even by those (there's a publishing house I've learned never to trust). I spot my potential buys in bookstores, CostCo (the person who selects their books has my interests nailed), Publishers Weekly blurbs (especially the Friday email that focuses just on books and not the industry), personal recommendations, and mentions of titles that I spot in articles that might have nothing to do with reading. Of course, there are authors that I try to keep up with--despite reading 40 or so books a year, I doubt that I'll ever read all that I want to, but please don't tell me that."

I asked the others here at What Women Write to weigh in:

Pamela: I rely heavily on recommendations from friends (mostly y'all) whose opinions I trust. I'm also bad about (I suppose) reading the same authors, therefore limiting my exposure to debut authors. I also read what I might not normally pick up due to book club selections. Other than that, I always read the Dallas Morning News' Sunday edition's book reviews to see if anything piques my interest and have also discovered books based on recommendations from writers I follow on Facebook. A time or two I've purchased a book from an Amazon recommendation based on a past purchase I've made. I remember discovering The Stuff that Never Happened by Maddie Dawson that way.

Susan: I read reviews. For example, I picked up (and loved) Claire Messud's The Woman Upstairs because of this series of interviews: Publisher's Weekly, NPR, and Slate. However, I usually like to see multiple positive reviews before I go buy a hardback. This book was worth it-- I really loved it….

Kim: I get a lot of my ideas of books to read from friends on Facebook. Many authors will mention books that they enjoyed on there and some will specifically tell me I would enjoy certain ones. I also look on Goodreads.

Elizabeth: I, like Pamela, read book reviews every Sunday and most weeks there’s something that I either buy or put on request at the Dallas Library. I’m also a good one for just picking up random books that look good (covers do matter, I guess!), and reading the acknowledgements. Often the writer will thank their agent. There are many agents whose names almost guarantee I will like the book. And I’m usually right! Another way I get recommendations is from friends and, much to my daughter’s chagrin, strangers. If you are next to me in a longish grocery line, odds are I’ll start a conversation with you, and there’s a good chance the subject of books will come up. I’ll recommend, and get recommendations in turn. And I have gotten some good reads that way.

I wrote to Susan after she sent the prize list: “So many brilliant books I won’t get to in my lifetime,” to which she replied, “Heaven must be a library, if you think about it.”

In case you're interested, here's the long list:

Flaherty-Dunnan Prize 2013 Long List

Any Resemblance to Actual Persons by Kevin Allardice (Counterpoint)

The Blood of Heaven by Kent Wascom (Grove Press) 

The Carriage House by Louisa Hall (Scribner) 

A Constellation of Vital Phenomena by Anthony Marra (Hogarth) 

Elders by Ryan McIlvain (Hogarth)

Eleven Days by Lea Carpenter (Alfred A. Knopf)

Ghana Must Go by Taiye Selasi (The Penguin Press)

In the House Upon the Dirt Between the Lake and the Woods by Matt Bell (Soho Press) 

The Morels by Christopher Hacker (Soho Press)

Motherlunge by Kirstin Scott (New Issues Poetry & Prose) 

The Next Time You See Me by Holly Goddard Jones (Touchstone)

The Residue Years by Mitchell Jackson (Bloomsbury)

The Silence of Bonaventure Arrow by Rita Leganski (Harper Paperbacks)

Southern Cross the Dog by Bill Cheng (Ecco)

Tampa by Alissa Nutting (Ecco) 

A Teaspoon of Earth and Sea by Dina Nayeri (Riverhead Books) 

The Unchangeable Spots of Leopards by Kristopher Jansma (Viking) 

Wash by Margaret Wrinkle (Atlantic Monthly Press)
Wise Men by Stuart Nadler (Reagan Arthur Books/ Little, Brown and Co.)
Y by Marjorie Celona (Free Press/Simon & Schuster)
The Yonahlossee Riding Camp for Girls by Anton DiSclafani (Riverhead Books)
You Are One of Them by Elliott Holt (The Penguin Press)

- See more at: http://www.centerforfiction.org/awards/the-flaherty-dunnan-first-novel-prize/2013-long-list/#sthash.2hu8J8Co.dpuf

Book review: Orphan Train

by Joan

Christina Baker Kline’s new novel, Orphan Train was published this spring to wide acclaim, quickly reaching the New York Times Bestseller list. 

I pre-ordered this novel and eagerly anticipated its arrival. The immigrant experience fascinates me, perhaps because my ancestors arrived in Ellis Island and dispersed to other states to forge a better life. Some families fared better than others; some stayed together, many did not.

Ann Packer wrote: “A lovely novel about the search for family that also happens to illuminate a fascinating and forgotten chapter of American history. Beautiful.”

Vivian Daly was once Niamh Power, a nine-year-old Irish girl whose "unfortunate" red hair puts off the Midwesterners choosing orphans arriving on the train from New York City’s Children’s Aid Society. 

A toddler Niamh’s bonded with is wrenched from her arms at the first stop and a troublemaker she’s befriended is snatched up right away for farm labor. Niamh travels on a heart-wrenching journey from one dire environment to another. When finally she is taken in by a family with an inside privy, air vents and ample food (“…and fruits, even exotic ones like oranges and bananas”), she feels safe for the first time in her short life.

“It is a pitiful kind of childhood, to know that no one loves you or is taking care of you, to always be on the outside looking in. I feel a decade older than my years. I know too much; I have seen people at their worst, at their most desperate and selfish, and this knowledge makes me wary. So I am learning to pretend, to smile and nod, to display empathy I do not feel. I am learning to pass, to look like everyone else, even though I feel broken inside.”

Over eighty years later, Molly Ayers is a foster child in need of community service to wipe clean her record. Her crime? She’s stolen a copy of Jane Eyre, the most beat up version on the shelf because she thought no one would miss it. 

Molly finds herself agreeing to help ninety-year-old Vivian clean out her attic, which holds remnants of the old woman’s past. These two women have more in common than either imagines and neither is prepared for the journey they will take together. 

In spare prose, Christina Baker Kline created a beautifully written novel that balances the gritty realities of orphans in the Depression era to those in present-day. The reader is never told how to feel, but is shown in nuanced action and atmospheric detail. I highly recommend this novel to not only readers of historical fiction, but to anyone looking to root for two most endearing characters.

Advance review: Jacquelyn Mitchard's No Time to Wave Goodbye

By Julie

In June, I was thrilled when Jacquelyn Mitchard selected me to be an early reader for No Time to Wave Goodbye, a sequel to The Deep End of the Ocean, Mitchard's bestselling debut novel and Oprah Winfrey's first book club selection, later brought to life on the big screen.

We were also lucky enough to have Jackie stop by What Women Write for an interview with Pamela in July. As promised then, I'm posting an early review of No Time to Wave Goodbye.

I received my copy in July and couldn't wait to jump right in, but decided to revisit Deep End first. It had been nearly 15 years since I read it. I found a copy at my local library and took my time reading, enjoying the second time even more as I explored the story from a writer's perspective.

The level of detail and layering in Deep End is much more noticeable to me now, and the suspense wasn't any less, even knowing how the book ends. I remembered the main plot points, but was surprised at how much my brain (weary from raising three children!) had forgotten. I highly recommend you read it again, too, or read it for the first time.

On the other hand, No Time to Wave Goodbye could probably stand on its own. It's hard for me to say considering my recent re-acquaintance with Beth, Pat, Vincent, Ben/Sam, and Kerry Cappadora.

What I can say, without hesitation, is I was unable to let this new story rest. I couldn't wait to get my hands back on it no matter how I was distracted by the responsibilities of my own life. No Time to Wave Goodbye is a relatively short read, coming in at 240 pages, maybe half the length of Deep End. I've been a slow reader this year, but I polished it off in less than two days after only a few sittings.

Mitchard brings the reader up to speed on the lives of the Cappadoras and various beloved Deep End characters, revisiting their emotional fallout after experiencing the kidnapping and eventual return of a child, while introducing a new supporting cast of other families who lost children through abductions and participated in a documentary filmed by Vincent.

It is especially gratifying to find out how Beth has reinvented her life, how Vincent climbed out of the quagmire that went along with his guilt at losing his younger brother, and how Ben, who still prefers to be called Sam, is also still pulled between the family who lost and found him again and the innocent father created out of his abduction. Mitchard brings the reader along on the Cappadora's continuing journey to make peace with what happened so many years earlier.

If Deep End was suspenseful in a taut, finely drawn way, No Time to Wave Goodbye is a slam to the chest. Once again, Mitchard deals with the subject of child abductions, but this time, pulls the reader alongside the characters in a heart-pounding race against time to save a child. My adrenaline was as elevated as it was last year reading Jackie's most recent release for adults, Still Summer.

I found a twist at the end slightly unsettling, as certain other readers might, but reminded myself that readers and writers bring varied experiences and backgrounds to the table, which affects how we read and write, and Mitchard is no different. This twist, though incidental to the main plot, may bring about some lively discussion for book clubs or other forums, and that isn't a negative thing. It's the rare author who's disappointed when her books create a stir and get readers thinking.

No Time To Wave Goodbye offically goes on sale September 15 and is available for pre-order. That means, if you're so inclined, you have less than a week to get your hands back on Deep End and prepare yourself for another wild ride, compliments of Jackie Mitchard's skillful storytelling.

From the publisher:

New York Times bestselling author Jacquelyn Mitchard captured the heart of a nation with The Deep End of the Ocean, her celebrated debut novel about mother Beth Cappadora, a child kidnapped, a family in crisis.

Now, in No Time to Wave Goodbye, the unforgettable Cappadoras are in peril once again, forced to confront an unimaginable evil.

It has been twenty-two years since Beth Cappadora’s three-year-old son Ben was abducted. By some miracle, he returned nine years later, and the family began to pick up the pieces of their lives. But their peace has always been fragile: Ben returned from the deep end as another child and has never felt entirely at ease with the family he was born into. Now the Cappadora children are grown: Ben is married with a baby girl, Kerry is studying to be an opera singer, and Vincent has emerged from his troubled adolescence as a fledgling filmmaker.

The subject of Vincent’s new documentary, “No Time to Wave Goodbye,” shakes Vincent’s unsuspecting family to the core; it focuses on five families caught in the tortuous web of never knowing the fate of their abducted children. Though Beth tries to stave off the torrent of buried emotions, she is left wondering if she and her family are fated to relive the past forever.
The film earns tremendous acclaim, but just as the Cappadoras are about to celebrate the culmination of Vincent’s artistic success, what Beth fears the most occurs, and the Cappadoras are cast back into the past, revisiting the worst moment of their lives–with only hours to find the truth that can save a life. High in a rugged California mountain range, their rescue becomes a desperate struggle for survival.

No Time to Wave Goodbye is Jacquelyn Mitchard at her best, a spellbinding novel about family loyalty, and love pushed to the limits of endurance.

Q&A with Jamie Ford

by Joan

In February, fellow What Women Write blogger Julie Kibler invited me to join her at Jamie Ford's author talk and signing at Dallas’ Crow Collection of Asian Art. It was an intimate gathering for an as-yet unknown author, but I figured, if I didn’t like him, I’d get a peek at some fantastic art. Little did I know, the next month his novel would make the New York Times Bestseller list. As it happened, Jamie thoughtfully answered our questions and enthralled us with a short reading from his debut novel, Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet.

Since then, I’ve been reading his Bittersweet Blog and following him on Facebook. He’s a genuinely nice person and kindly agreed to answer some questions.

From his publisher:

In the opening pages of Jamie Ford’s stunning debut novel, Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet, Henry Lee comes upon a crowd gathered outside the Panama Hotel, once the gateway to Seattle’s Japantown. It has been boarded up for decades, but now the new owner has made an incredible discovery: the belongings of Japanese families, left when they were rounded up and sent to internment camps during World War II. As Henry looks on, the owner opens a Japanese parasol.

This simple act takes old Henry Lee back to the 1940s, at the height of the war, when young Henry’s world is a jumble of confusion and excitement, and to his father, who is obsessed with the war in China and having Henry grow up American. While “scholarshipping” at the exclusive Rainier Elementary, where the white kids ignore him, Henry meets Keiko Okabe, a young Japanese American student. Amid the chaos of blackouts, curfews, and FBI raids, Henry and Keiko forge a bond of friendship–and innocent love–that transcends the long-standing prejudices of their Old World ancestors. And after Keiko and her family are swept up in the evacuations to the internment camps, she and Henry are left only with the hope that the war will end, and that their promise to each other will be kept.

Forty years later, Henry Lee is certain that the parasol belonged to Keiko. In the hotel’s dark dusty basement he begins looking for signs of the Okabe family’s belongings and for a long-lost object whose value he cannot begin to measure. Now a widower, Henry is still trying to find his voice–words that might explain the actions of his father; words that might bridge the gap between him and his modern, Chinese American son; words that might help him confront the choices he made many years ago.

Set during one of the most conflicted and volatile times in American history, Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet is an extraordinary story of commitment and enduring hope. In Henry and Keiko, Jamie Ford has created an unforgettable duo whose story teaches us of the power of forgiveness and the human heart.

Joan: Jamie, thanks for agreeing to answer a few questions here. Success has come quickly for you. If you weren’t such a nice guy—we might be stabbing pins into a Jamie Ford voodoo doll. What’s been the biggest surprise for you?

Jamie: Aside from someone actually paying me to write? Hmmm…let’s see, the most surprising moment would probably be a group of ESL students that were reading Hotel in their classroom—students from all over the world: Ethiopia, Sudan, Thailand, Iran, just to name a few. They could all relate to the challenge of trying to assimilate into another culture while retaining their unique identities. They also gave me these really cool hand-made cards, which were lovely.

Joan: That must have been a wonderful moment—knowing your book reached other cultures and touched them in such a way. Hotel is a moving novel—did you really write it in two months? If yes, stabbed voodoo doll will be mailed to you.

Jamie: Well, yes and no. (Hold onto that voodoo doll). I’d actually been researching 1940s Seattle for another book when I wrote the short story that would later become the Hotel. So I’d spent a lot of time––probably six months––researching and ruminating on the time period, the neighborhood, the jazz scene, etc. But when an editor read the short story and encouraged me to write the book, I wrote like a madman—about three months, with a week or two of non-writing in the middle where I flew to Seattle for more research, toured the Panama Hotel and met with historian Doug Chin.

Joan: Okay, we’ll save the voodoo doll for someone else. But what’s the latest on Hollywood? Are you negotiating a bit part into the contract? Will you write the screenplay?

Jamie: Hollywood is strange. Creatively, I’m sure there are incredible screenplays collecting dust while Dumb & Dumberer III gets made. Because of that I’m morbidly curious about the whole process (read: frightened). So far we’ve turned down two small offers on the film option. Both were intriguing, but not intriguing enough, I guess. Hotel is a difficult story to finance from a Hollywood perspective since the three main characters are Chinese, Japanese, and Black—not exactly a vehicle for your chisel-jawed Caucasian movie star, but we’re hoping that the success of Slumdog Millionaire has changed that mindset a bit. And no bit part for moi. I think the Hollywood version of that these days is an Executive Producer credit. I’d probably be better off with the walk-on. And as far as writing the screenplay, I love the control I have when writing novels. A screenplay on the other hand is like a sandbox where all the kids take turns getting dirty. I’m not sure I’d be able to share my toys in that environment.

Joan: I’m sure you’re right about the screenplays collecting dust. Executive Producer sounds good. No bit part, but at least you read your audio book, right?

Jamie: Oh, actually the audio version is read by actor Feodor Chin, but thanks—he has a far better voice than I do, trust me. Back in the day I think there was something sexy about having the author read, but then, some authors are terrible readers, so professional voice talent is used these days––a much better proposition than listening to some drunken, slurring, crowd-shy, Tourrette’s-addled writer who’s better off staying behind a keyboard. I listen to a LOT of audio books, and a great voice can make a book come alive. Mine would probably make dogs howl.

Joan: Hotel visits two time periods—something I’m writing as well. What was the biggest challenge for you? How much cutting and pasting did you do? Not as much as I’ve done, I’ll bet.

Jamie: Not so much really. I found that the narrative ebbed and flowed as my short-attention span waned. What was the question again?

Joan: Well, it worked. I couldn’t put your book down. It truly was a sweet love story. You’ve been fairly close-mouthed on your next book. What can you tell us about it?

Jamie: The juicy good news is that I’ve just agreed to a new contract with Random House, so my new book, tentatively titled WHISPERS OF A THUNDER GOD, is slated for release in early 2011. It’s about a failed Kamikaze pilot, now in his 70s who’s still searching for a noble death—one that will allow his spirit to be reunited with that of his late wife. It’s another historical, multi-cultural love story. Shhh…but don’t tell anyone.

Joan: I love it! But I don’t want to wait until 2011. I’ll never understand this crazy business. What advice can you give an aspiring author in this strange and uncertain publishing market? What do you think of the publishing industry’s current crisis?

Jamie: The best advice I can give to aspiring authors is this: Allow yourself a healthy margin for self-improvement. Keep writing. Consider everything to be good practice. You wouldn’t expect to sit down at a piano and play Mozart the first time. The same rule applies to writing. It just takes practice. As far as the publishing industry’s crisis, I think it’s rooted in an inward self-reflecting style of literary writing mistakenly aimed at other writers (and critics) rather than readers who are looking to be entertained and perhaps educated a bit. If publishers focused more on storytelling and less on performance writing, I think they wouldn’t be losing their battles with television and cinema.

Joan: Great advice and an interesting take on the industry. For self-improvement, do you have favorite books on writing? Tell us a little about Orson Scott Card’s boot camp. Did you have to run ten miles before breakfast?

Jamie: Scott Card’s Characters & Viewpoint was a godsend. It’s a terribly practical read, but really helped break some bad habits of mine leftover from writing for the camera. I stopped writing from the outside in and started writing from the inside out. And his Literary Boot Camp was amazing––and exhausting. With most writers conferences, you bring something you’ve already written, you workshop it, you sit through panels and basically hang out in some resort-like setting with a glass of merlot in your hand. At Boot Camp you start with a blank screen and you write. No show, all go. Then you go through a blood and guts workshop of those stories. It’s tough love at its finest. There were writers there who wrote 9,000-word short stories in two days that were AMAZING (and later published).

Joan: I’m not big on blood and guts, but I’d love to attend one day. You’ve traveled quite a bit since then. How many cities did you visit on your book tour? For your next book, imagine the budget is tight so you’re asked to sleep on friends’ sofas to save money. How many states can you visit if you employ this tactic?

Jamie: Hmmm…(counting)…I think I did 22 events in 16 cities. The funny thing is, I had friends (or relatives), in almost every city, which was fun but exhausting, because we usually ended up going out every night for dessert or a late dinner. And if I did the couch tour I’d probably have a place to rest my head in every city but Chicago. Hello, Chicago?

Joan: Our blog audience will want me to ask this question: How did you snag the wonderful Kristin Nelson as your agent? I love her blog, but I skip over the “what’s playing on the iPod right now.” If I don’t, the songs follow me around all day. And did you really turn down four New York agents?

Jamie: You know, honestly I think Kristin was surprised that I chose Kristin––because it seems that most newbie authors equate New York with success. But I’d always looked at Sandra Dijkstra in California as one of the premier agents in the industry, so the distance/geography thing was really a non-factor. In the end I did turn down those other agents, because Kristin truly understood the book, she understood what I wanted to do with my career, and she’s a well-respected up-and-comer in the industry. I describe her as “relentlessly nice.” She knows her stuff, and don’t be fooled, she’s a strong negotiator, but she doesn’t make you feel like you’ve been in a hockey fight afterwards. Plus she has an insanely diverse taste in music.

Joan: She sounds like a dream. Okay, what’s a question you’d love to answer but no one ever asks?

Jamie: “How did you get so strikingly handsome? Are you single? Is your wife here?” I keep waiting for stalkers, but they just don’t seem to show up at book events.

Thank you so much for joining us, Jamie. We wish you great success and will anxiously await your next novel. Readers, the paperback of Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet will be out in October. And if you’d like to leave a comment here, we’ll enter you in a drawing for an autographed copy of the hardback. But hurry; we’ll only take entries from people who comment before midnight on Thursday, August 6, so check back on Friday to see if you’ve won. Be sure your comment links us to contact info for you or contact us at wwwtx6 (at) yahoo (dot) com. Also, unless you're willing to spring for postage, winner must live in the U.S.

UPDATE: The winner of the autographed book is C. I will email you today for your address. Thanks everyone!