"Bookaccino Live" Book Group: Charmaine Wilkerson-Black Cake
Release Date: 12/09/2022
John Mutter: Fortune and Glass
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John Mutter joins Carol Fitzgerald to talk about his debut novel, FORTUNE AND GLASS. The book, which received starred reviews from Library Journal, Kirkus and Booklist, is inspired by the true story of Fritz Kolbe, an anti-Nazi German Foreign Ministry official who smuggled nearly 2,000 top-secret documents to American spy Allen Dulles in Switzerland during WWII. John explains the novel's dual focus as a spy story and a love story, with the protagonist sheltering a Jewish former lover and maintaining a dangerous friendship with an SS officer. He had two primary motivations for writing the book:...
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Mary Beth Keane: Whale Harbor
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Mary Beth Keane joins Carol Fitzgerald to talk about her latest novel, WHALE HARBOR, which is a “Good Morning America” Book Club pick and a Bookreporter Bets On selection. The story is deeply rooted in Mary Beth's family history, drawing from her father's Irish immigrant experience, including the loss of his mother and the disappearance of a younger brother. Starting in 1963, the book is about 11 brothers from an Irish-speaking family in western Ireland whose mother dies suddenly after the birth of her 11th son. The interview covers themes of family, immigration, forgiveness, identity, and...
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“Bookaccino Live” Book Group: Kathryn Stockett
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Kathryn Stockett joined us for October’s “Bookaccino Live” Book Group event to discuss her #1 New York Times bestseller, THE CALAMITY CLUB, a Bookreporter.com Bets On selection that released in May and still is on the NYT list. Eleven enthusiastic readers appeared on camera to ask Kathryn questions about the novel. We touched on many different aspects of the book in the hour that Kathryn gave us, including what inspired her to tell this story about a group of unbreakable women fighting for what’s rightfully theirs, the historical research she conducted as she wrote about the...
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Robert Kolker: The Vanishing Family
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Robert Kolker joins Carol Fitzgerald to talk about his new book, THE VANISHING FAMILY, which chronicles a nine-sibling unnamed family affected by an inherited form of frontotemporal dementia (FTD). This Bookreporter Bets On selection explores profound questions about identity, caregiving, genetic testing, and whether or not people would choose to know their fate if a hereditary disease runs in their family. FTD is frequently misdiagnosed for years as depression, schizophrenia or addiction, delaying proper care and support. Approximately 40% of these cases are inherited; the remaining 60%...
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Bonnie Garmus: Peck & Peck
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Bonnie Garmus joins Carol Fitzgerald to talk about her new novel, PECK & PECK. Set in 1980s New York City, it centers on a young man named Batter Gray, who has an entry level job at a downtown Manhattan poetry journal, which is very quirky. Bonnie had a memory of a high school English teacher who read a poem aloud every day and urged students to do the same for life. She admitted that she, like most of her fellow classmates, did not keep that promise, and she did not read poetry seriously again for about 20 years. Bonnie was “blown away” during her poetry research for the book,...
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“Bookaccino Live” Book Group: Lisa See
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Lisa See joined us for September’s “Bookaccino Live” Book Group event to discuss her instant New York Times bestseller, DAUGHTERS OF THE SUN AND MOON, which was a Bookreporter Bets On selection when it released in June. Lisa shared how a story that her grandmother told her when she was a child standing in downtown Los Angeles gave her the initial idea for the book. Research is always critical to her writing, and she explained how she created her three characters, basing them on four women she read about. Lisa loves talking to book groups and has created materials to enhance the...
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Amanda Peters: The Birthing Tree
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Amanda Peters joins Carol Fitzgerald to talk about her latest novel, THE BIRTHING TREE, which is an instant national bestseller. Like her debut, THE BERRY PICKERS, it is a Bookreporter Bets On selection. Amanda shares the personal and professional inspirations behind the book. They include a childhood memory involving her grandmother, who had dementia and told her about a tree near the water where Mi'kmaq women used to give birth, as well as Amanda’s work with Nova Scotia's midwifery regulation committee. Our conversation explores the importance of preserving Mi'kmaq traditions,...
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Jonathan Santlofer: Ten Perfect Guests
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Jonathan Santlofer joins Carol Fitzgerald to talk about his latest thriller, TEN PERFECT GUESTS, which is a Bookreporter Bets On selection. He describes the book as a classic whodunit featuring 10 characters brought to an isolated island for a memorial, with an inheritance at stake. Jonathan wanted to use all classic tropes — locked room, large cast, hidden motives — without a detective figure. He explains that managing 10 distinct characters was more difficult than anticipated, requiring a character chart and careful differentiation so readers would not need to look back. The novel is...
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Hank Phillippi Ryan: Mother Daughter Sister Stranger
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Hank Phillippi Ryan joins Carol Fitzgerald to talk about her latest novel, MOTHER DAUGHTER SISTER STRANGER, which is a Bookreporter Bets On selection. This multilayered domestic thriller explores family secrets, identity, the meaning of motherhood, and the search for happy endings. The story centers on two sisters, Eliza and Bea Ramsey, the sole survivors of a plane crash that killed their parents. When Bea disappears on the 11th anniversary of the tragedy, Eliza must find Bea while caring for her 11-year-old niece, Piper. The book was inspired by Hank reflecting on lying to her mother as a...
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Shari Lapena: Getting Away With Murder
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Shari Lapena joins Carol Fitzgerald to talk about her latest thriller, GETTING AWAY WITH MURDER, which is an instant New York Times and USA Today bestseller, as well as a “number one” library hold and a Goodreads “most wanted to read” title. It also is a Bookreporter Bets On selection. For Carol, Shari's books are always “one-sit reads,” meaning that once she starts them, they are propulsive enough that she does not stop until they have been read in full. GETTING AWAY WITH MURDER centers on Jill and Ted, a privileged Manhattan couple who live in a Brooklyn...
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