- Nicholson Baker
- Russell Banks
- Virginie Despentes
- Diane DeVillers
- Louise Erdrich
- Jeffrey Eugenides
- Jonathan Letham
- Mario Vargas Llosa
- Ishmael Reed
- Anne Tyler
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Your turn now to give a shoutout.
Tag: Books
The world opened up
The hippie movement opened Cassia’s father’s horizons. He wound up trekking through the Himalayas. Many others hitchhiked through Europe.
What’s the most exotic place you’ve been?
When the dead weigh in
Living in New England, I’ve found many people have ghost stories to tell, especially if they’ve inhabited an old house.
Maybe that’s why I found it so natural to see her family in that vein when it comes to my novel What’s Left. So what if hers takes place out in Indiana?
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Have you ever experienced apparitions or something else that might be described as haunted? Have you heard others tell about their encounters? What do you think?
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Walk right in, see for yourself
Nita didn’t tell him much about her family. She knew he’d like her younger sister.
Have you ever been thrown into a social situation you knew little about – but that changed your life? The kind where the door just opened for you?
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A big family like theirs needs a big house
In my novel What’s Left, Cassia’s extended family revolves around a big Victorian house, one that’s undergone extensive restoration.
Do you ever dream of living in a big old house? What most attracts you?
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Right time, right place
The hippie movement brought tensions to the family before Cassia’s future father showed up on the scene. He had no idea he never would have been welcomed by everyone even a year or two earlier, much less encouraged to stay.
Have you ever been welcomed in a situation where timing was everything?
Expectations of normal?
In my novel What’s Left, they aren’t a typical Greek-American family. Not exactly. But they’re not like Cassia’s classmates’ homes, either.
How would you say yours differs from a “normal” family?
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Sometimes a rare adult really does listen
After playing a central role in two previous novels, Nita returns in What’s Left, where she develops a special bond with her niece, once Cassia reaches adolescence.
When you were younger, was there an adult you admired who never looked down to you because you were “just a kid”?
Thinking about first names, especially
Cassia, the voice of my novel What’s Left, is more formally named Acacia. I think it fits her to a T.
Are there any combinations of first name and diminutive or nickname in your circles you especially like?
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Care to boogie?
In my novel What’s Left, Cassia’s family turns an old church into a hot music center. It seemed like a natural extension from their restaurant.
Where do you go to hear live music?
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Jnana's Red Barn 