"Bookaccino Live" Book Group: Charmaine Wilkerson-Black Cake
Release Date: 12/09/2022
Simone Gorrindo: The Wives
Bookreporter Talks To
Simone Gorrindo, whose debut memoir, THE WIVES, is a Bookreporter Bets On selection, joins Carol Fitzgerald on this episode of “Bookreporter Talks To.” Simone explains how she found her way to writing this book when her husband, an Army Special Ops team member, was assigned to a base in Columbus, Georgia. There she found herself with a group of women who had followed their husbands to this area. Here were wives who had one thing in common: their husbands and their work as soldiers. When the men left town, the women would gather together for support, and any of the typical social lines...
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Megan Miranda: Daughter of Mine
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Megan Miranda returns to “Bookreporter Talks To” to talk about her new thriller, DAUGHTER OF MINE, a Bookreporter Bets On selection with Carol Fitzgerald. She shares her inspiration for the book, as well as insight into her creative process. They talk about how she laid out the twists that make the book so special. She loves the narrator for the audio edition Ines del Castillo --- she feels that Ines sets the right tone for the book. Book discussed in this episode: DAUGHTER OF MINE by Megan Miranda: Our Latest “Bookreporter Talks To” Interviews: Anna Quindlen: Tamron Hall: Kristin...
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Anna Quindlen: After Annie
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Anna Quindlen joins Carol Fitzgerald to discuss her latest novel, AFTER ANNIE. The idea for the opening of the book came to Anna in a moment, which she explains. She thought for a while about just writing from the point of view of Ali, Annie’s 13-year-old daughter, but she changed her mind as she realized that she could not see the complete purview of a person that age. Instead, she layered in Annie’s husband, Bill, and her best friend, Annemarie, to give readers a fuller picture of the impact of Annie’s life even after her death. Annie, and what she thinks, is alive on every page....
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Tamron Hall: Watch Where They Hide
Bookreporter Talks To
Tamron Hall, the Emmy Award-winning host and executive producer of the syndicated talk show “Tamron Hall” and the bestselling author of the Jordan Manning series, joins Carol Fitzgerald to discuss her latest thriller, WATCH WHERE THEY HIDE. Tamron shares the genesis of the plot for this second book in the series and why it is set in 2009. She also talks about how she crafts her story, her writing process, and the realism that she brings to the table about how a broadcast journalist works. And yes, she explains how she came up with her character’s name....
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Bookreporter Talks To... Kristin Hannah
Bookreporter Talks To
Kristin Hannah was our guest for a very special “Bookreporter Talks To” program. She was in conversation with Bookreporter readers and Carol Fitzgerald about her #1 bestseller, THE WOMEN, which is a Bookreporter Bets On pick. A lot of ground was covered, including Kristin’s inspiration for writing the book, why she felt that now was the right time to tell this story, and how she researched the time period. There was much discussion about the divisiveness of our times now compared to the ’60s. How the Vietnam vets were treated when they returned home was another big focus. And the last...
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"Bookaccino Live" Book Group with Shelby Van Pelt
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Shelby Van Pelt, author of REMARKABLY BRIGHT CREATURES, joins us for February’s “Bookaccino Live” Book Group event. She explains how a short piece that she had written for a writing class became the start of her New York Times bestseller, how growing up with her Swedish grandmother influenced her character, Tova, and why it worked for Marcellus to have his voice in the first person. Shelby shares background on the cover design, as well as what it was like to be a debut author getting a call that she was the “Read with Jenna” selection for May 2022 and what being on the set of...
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Hank Phillippi Ryan: One Wrong Word
Bookreporter Talks To
Hank Phillippi Ryan joins Carol Fitzgerald to discuss her latest thriller, ONE WRONG WORD, which is a Bookreporter Bets On selection. The idea for this book came from something that happened to Hank when she was 19. She talks about crafting the characters and how she tries to keep readers on top of the action by introducing the characters as chapter titles where they are speaking. Hank always writes organically without an outline; both the characters and the action come to her as she writes. She points to various details in the book and explains why it matters that they are presented as...
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“Bookaccino Live” Book Group with Lisa See
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For our first “Bookaccino Live” Book Group of 2024, Lisa See talks about her most recent book, LADY TAN’S CIRCLE OF WOMEN, with Carol Fitzgerald. She explains how she came to discover Tan Yunxian, a female physician from 15th-century China, and why she decided to write a novel based on her extraordinary life. Two readers, Debbie and Michelle, appeared on camera to ask Lisa about her interest in ancient Chinese medicine and the role of women in it, as well as how a new book idea comes to her. Michelle learned that Lisa’s mother, Carolyn See, wrote a book called MAKING A...
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Ashley Elston: First Lie Wins
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Ashley Elston joins Carol Fitzgerald to talk about her instant New York Times bestseller, FIRST LIE WINS, which is Reese's Book Club pick for January and a Bookreporter Bets On selection. Ashley shares how she came to write this book and why the time was right for her to work on it. She explains what she learned about storytelling from the decade she spent as a wedding photographer, as well as her time writing YA novels, where readers keep authors on their toes. Ashley wrote the start of the book, and it looks much like what people are reading now. She discusses how the backstories...
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Amanda Peters: The Berry Pickers
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Amanda Peters joins Carol Fitzgerald to talk about her breakout hit debut novel, THE BERRY PICKERS, which is a Bookreporter Bets On selection. Amanda, who is a mixed-race of Mi’kmaq and European ancestry, was born and raised in Annapolis Valley, Nova Scotia. She explains how a trip with her father to Maine to see the actual site of the blueberry picking that is depicted in the book spurred the story. As he walked her through the fields and showed her the cabin where he and his family had lived during picking season, the story came to her. Amanda had the opening line very quickly, and...
info_outlineCharmaine Wilkerson joined Carol Fitzgerald for a "Bookaccino Live" Book Group discussion about her debut novel, BLACK CAKE. Three readers shared questions on screen, and then there were numerous audience questions. Charmaine explained how she writes in bursts, and that her writing can sometimes appear in brief on the page, while at other times more is explored. She talked about her characters, her background that inspired the story…and, yes, black cake! There was also discussion about the cover and the additional materials in the paperback edition.
Check out our past "Bookaccino Live" Book Group events!
Joyce Maynard: https://youtu.be/atXP9_gxGU8
Marie Benedict and Victoria Christopher Murray: https://youtu.be/rYelwWiTJbE
Janet Skeslien Charles: https://youtu.be/47Sx9DtcAkA
Miranda Cowley Heller: https://youtu.be/gVlKvApDO8M
More “Bookreporter Talks To”:
Clare Mackintosh: https://youtu.be/yxU_npofftw
Jamie Fiore Higgins: https://youtu.be/bz6tTCLmxlE
Thrity Umrigar: https://youtu.be/295H-VzRJeU
Alli Frank and Asha Youmans: https://youtu.be/4kvcZ6nqoo4
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Art Credit: Greg Fitzgerald
Edited by Jordan Hickman