When masquerading as someone else, one should never be sloppy. One must become a master of the alternative facts. Dress, for instance, as the other man would dress, practice his diction, and know his history as well as you know your own. The guide in these matters should probably be Tom Ripley, the hero of […]
Original source: https://www.nybooks.com/articles/2024/02/22/the-talented-mr-santos-the-fabulist-chiusano/
In November 1881 Friedrich Nietzsche wrote to his sister from Genoa: “The day before yesterday I heard ‘Carmen,’ an opera by a Frenchman named Bizet, and was thunderstruck! So strong, so impassioned, so graceful, so Southern!” He went to hear it again and was even more impressed: It is the very soul of passion and […]
Original source: https://www.nybooks.com/articles/2024/02/22/rebel-without-a-cause-carmen/
What is the radicalizing potential of motherhood? This was a central question in Adrienne Rich’s Of Woman Born: Motherhood as Experience and Institution, published in 1976, when the concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere was 332 parts per million and feminism’s second wave was cycling toward its third. Her answer: The mother’s battle for […]
Original source: https://www.nybooks.com/articles/2024/02/22/a-new-environmental-canon-soil-camille-dungy/
Michael Mann’s attachment to Ferraris is well known. In his 1980s television series Miami Vice, Don Johnson played Sonny Crockett, an undercover narcotics agent who drove Ferraris that the Metro-Dade Police Department had seized from drug dealers. In Mann’s 2006 film version of the show, Crockett, now played by Colin Farrell, drove a dark gray […]
Original source: https://www.nybooks.com/online/2024/02/03/objects-in-space-at-a-moment-in-time/
In A. S. Hamrah’s review of Michael Mann’s Ferrari, published this morning on the NYR Online, he describes the Italian Futurist Filippo Tommaso Marinetti’s 1909 paean to machines: He demanded glorious deaths in car crashes, and lauded war and destruction. “Time and space died yesterday!” Marinetti screamed. “We declare that the splendor of the world has been enriched by […]
Original source: https://www.nybooks.com/online/2024/02/03/crash-a-s-hamrah-ferrari/
Tutti and the Terrible Yellow Leaves follows a frustrated raccoon who awakens to find his favorite green leaves have all turned yellow. What was the inspiration for your story?
The idea for this book came to me when my son was about 4 years old, and we were going through a period of frequent tantrums and aggressive behaviors. Since I had studied developmental psychology, I knew the roots of this behavior and how to deal with it. At the same time, as a parent coach, I noticed that this problem is one of the biggest concerns among parents with kids aged 2-5 years. They would come to me completely devastated and lost: “I don’t know what I did wrong and why my sweet boy became so aggressive recently! He never saw violence in our family or elsewhere. I have no idea where he learned it and how to teach him to express his emotions in a peaceful way. So far, nothing has worked.”
At some point, I realized that I could create a story that could be therapeutic and teaching for both parent and child. This is how Tutti came into my mind.
The art in this book is fantastic. What was the art collaboration process like with illustrator Katerina Azarkina?
Since the idea for this story came to me, I knew it had to be a picture book. Illustrations can be very helpful in evoking emotions, helping kids and their parents tap into these emotions while reading a book. That is why, when I was searching through illustrators on different platforms, I not only looked at their style and the colors they use, but I also paid attention to my own feelings. I was looking for a specific response in my body. This is how I recognized ‘my illustrator’ when I came across Karerina’s profile. She also loved my story when I sent it to her, and this is probably another reason why the illustrations came out so beautifully.
What were some educational aspects that were important for you to include in this children’s book?
I wanted to lead parents and their kids through a whole cycle of frustration and help them see that different responses we can choose in different situations. Tutti, the Raccoon, was frustrated because he didn’t like how leaves on the trees changed their color. He wanted to hit a tree, he demanded it to become green again, he was pleading and threatening… But the tree remained unchanged; nothing happened. Throughout our lives, we will have to deal with many situations that don’t go the way we want them to go. Our ability to process our feelings and choose the healthiest response is crucial for our emotional well-being. Sometimes it’s time to fight for what we want, and sometimes it’s time to cry and grieve. I wanted to show that tears are not something we should avoid by all means but rather one of the best ways to overcome situations which we can’t change.
Is this the first book in the series? If so, when is the next book coming out, and what can your fans expect in the next story?
While my illustrator was working on this book, the ideas for the next ones started bombarding me. When I wrote the fifth story about Tutti, I had to say ‘STOP’ to my inner author! It was simply too hard and too expensive to self-publish so many books, considering that I made them in multiple languages.
By now, there are five books in this series. Each one is designed to help parents and their kids solve some of the most important problems in families with kids under 7 years old:
Tutti and the Terrible Yellow Leaves: A story about the ability to cope with aggression, frustration, and accepting situations that don’t go the way we would like them to. It’s about tears and tantrums. And at the same time, about the ability to find the good in any situation.
Why Tutti Doesn’t Like to Go to Bed: A book that creates a sense of connection with mom and helps to overcome bedtime anxiety so your child can fall asleep with a smile on her face.
Tutti Goes to School: It’s not just about school but about any separation. This book can help the child not to feel lonely in separation and to part with loved ones more easily when there is a need to do so.
Tutti, the One and Only: A therapeutic story about competition, believing in oneself, and the ability not to give up even when at first something does not work out. It’s about unconditional acceptance and self-love.
Tutti and the Vanillaberries: This is a story about one of the most difficult emotions – defensive alienation (in other words, ‘resentment’). It teaches how to repair connection when conflicts, upsetting situations, or long separation happen in relationships, or when we unwillingly hurt feelings of our loved ones.
Author Links: Goodreads | Amazon
Every one of us encounters situations where something doesn’t go quite the way we wanted it to.
Young children can get frustrated a 100 times a day which causes them a storm of emotions. They start fighting, screaming, falling on the floor, throwing tantrums, calling names and biting!
We can try to punish them for this, try to explain that this is not the way to behave. We can even threaten them with “natural consequences”… But we quickly learn that it simply doesn’t work.
This book can help a child understand their emotions and express them in a civilized way.
Find out what helped Tutti not to hit the tree when he had an impulse to do it, and how the wise forest elf helped him to overcome his frustration.
Original source: https://literarytitan.com/2024/02/03/choose-the-healthiest-response/
My Unexpected Life: Finding Balance Beyond My Diagnosis is your memoir and call to action for accessibility and inclusivity after receiving your diagnosis of Friedreich’s Ataxia (FA). Why was this an important book for you to write?
There are a few reasons, but I’ll stick to two:
I wanted to show a positive representation of living with a disability. For too long, it’s been described as a tragedy and something that needs to be fixed. But that is not always the case. Being disabled has its challenges, no doubt, but living a fulfilling life is possible.
Secondly, I wanted to show people going through similar things that they are not alone.
What were some ideas that were important for you to share in this book?
Some ideas include that the ability to walk does not equal happiness, and disabled people have value and are capable.
What is one piece of advice someone gave you that changed your life?
The neurologist who diagnosed me told me not to let FA stop me from doing what I had planned with my life.
What is one thing you hope readers take away from your story?
Living a fulfilling life with a disability is possible, and don’t assume disabled people aren’t intelligent or capable to do a job.
Author Links: GoodReads | Facebook | Website | Amazon
Jennifer Gasner is seventeen when her dreams are shattered overnight.
Receiving a diagnosis of Friedreich’s ataxia, a rare genetic neuromuscular disease, means she must prepare herself for a life of loss. When she starts college, she can still walk on her own, but as her disease progresses, she spirals further into sadness, denial, and alienation. She turns to alcohol and a toxic relationship to distract her from what she refuses to accept—that her body, her self-esteem, and her hope for her future are failing.
When Jennifer develops a friendship with rock star Dave Matthews, her outlook changes. She begins to understand that using a wheelchair doesn’t mean her life is over. In fact, when she discovers disability culture, she realizes it’s not her body that needs to be fixed but her assumptions about being disabled.
In her captivating memoir, My Unexpected Life: Finding Balance Beyond My Diagnosis, Jennifer invites you into her world, where she must learn to view her changing body with compassion and choose gratitude over anger as she finds strength and acceptance in a whole new way of moving through life.
Original source: https://literarytitan.com/2024/02/03/living-a-fulfilling-life/
Louis Mie and the Trial of Hautefaye follows a lawyer in 1870 France who is tasked with defending an accused murderer in a high-profile political show trial. What was the inspiration for the setup of your story?
As with many extraordinary events in history, true life can be stranger than fiction. I
stumbled upon the story of the mob murder in Hautefaye as I was doing other research on the same area of France. As I delved further, I came across Louis Mie, the real-life lawyer who defended multiple accused, though I chose to focus on only one of his clients, Leonard Piarrouty. It was in researching Louis Mie and reading some of his own writings that the inspiration took hold to not only cover the tragic and drastic event itself but to focus the story on this intriguing real person. I wanted the trial to anchor the progression of the main plot, but I knew readers would need more to fill in the context of the characters and the events. After all, the Franco-Prussian war and Napoleon III aren’t frequent topics in historical fiction. As the readers deepened their knowledge about the heinous events of the crime, I wanted them to deepen their emotional understanding of Louis and his world in parallel. I, therefore, decided to intersperse flashbacks from multiple points of view to fill in the world and its colors around him.
Louis struggles with a rocky marriage and advancing his career while navigating a case where the truth could be deadly. What were some driving ideals behind your character’s development?
What struck me initially about Louis was his idealism that he retained despite his many years of practicing law, the nearly two decades under Emperor Napoleon III’s government that he was opposed to, and his personal hardships. His writings were so passionately devoted to the principles of a republic, to equality and social justice, even when he could have become more tempered, complacent, or even cynical. I knew I needed to make sure his character retained that fire and commitment to his ideals, but I also spent a lot of time reflecting on how one can go through life so unbent and uncompromising in one’s views. Does it mean that he must have had blinders on in other areas? How difficult must it have been to live in a world of gray turmoil when he saw things so black and white? These qualities may have been both a strength and a flaw and I leaned into that as I put together the facts of what happened as well as what I conjectured he might have been like.
What kind of research did you do for this novel to ensure you captured the essence of the story’s theme?
I love the research part, so I could go on about this for a while. Once I understood the broad strokes of the event and time period, I tried to immerse myself in primary and secondary sources. My most important primary sources were the newspapers covering the trial at that time, as well as Louis Mie’s own writings and his family-related documents that the Departmental Archives in Dordogne were so helpful in providing for my research. Georges Marbeck is also a preeminent source on this event and put together a book of primary source examples from the event, in addition to his excellent book on the topic. I was even able to use a copy of the original crime scene map as my guide when I visited Hautefaye in person and traced the steps of the event. Visiting the locations was also key for me. I had many other secondary sources about the Third Republic, Napoleon III, and even the Périgord region under the Second Empire, but it would take up way too much space to talk about all of these great resources as well.
What is the next book you are working on, and when will it be available?
The next book will pick up where Louis Mie and the Trial of Hautefaye leaves off, but this time with Vincent as the protagonist as he navigates the dangerous and devastating events of the Paris Commune, covering February to May 1871. Louis Mie will also be making appearances in this next book. In addition, I’ve started working on a book that will focus on Louis’ wife, Anne Mie, and her transition from her youth in India where she was orphaned, and eventual move to France and meeting Louis Mie. Chronologically, it would be more of a prequel, though I see all of these as interconnected standalones. As I’ve been working on both, I’m hoping to release one later in 2024 and the other fairly soon after that.
Author Links: Goodreads | Amazon
France, 1870. A frenzied mob brutally murders a man they believe to be a Prussian spy and a threat to the cult of Emperor Napoleon III. Louis Mie, a republican lawyer, finds himself entangled in a web of political intrigue and moral dilemmas when he is tasked with defending one of the murderers: a political show trial that could send his career to new heights.
But as Louis delves deeper into the high-profile case, he quickly realizes that defending the enigmatic Leonard Piarrouty is far more complex than he ever imagined. And now his entire life is about to fall apart as his obsession with his work takes his strained marriage to the brink of collapse.
In a gripping race against time, Louis must confront the blurred lines between justice, loyalty, and the pursuit of power, risking everything to unearth the truth: secrets that ruthless men will kill to protect.
Will Louis be able to save his client… or his own family?
This evocative historical novel, based on true events, holds the answers…
Original source: https://literarytitan.com/2024/02/03/heinous-events-of-the-crime/
Make the Dark Night Shine follows a gay Japanese ambassador who has a relationship with another man and a woman he meets in Constantinople, creating a chosen family. What was the inspiration for the setup of your story?
One of the blessings of writing this novel is that every day it gave me a reason to reflect on my Aunt Nina Friedberg Uchida, who died in 2016. Nina was with me from the moment I was born and there was not a world without her love, her smile, her restless energy, and her optimism that we shall overcome some day. She engaged with everyone wherever they were and sought out those that were alone, needed help, or wanted to change this world. With all our current uncertainty, I feel strengthened by her guidance, commitment to the movement and struggle and her ever ready activism.
Nina never knew her Japanese father, but during a visit when she was 91-years-old, she told me that her children had discovered that in the 1930s her father had traveled from Japan to NY where she had been living with her mother. With a gleam in her eyes, she said, “I know he was looking for me.” Instantly, I had a vision of his story and why despite this journey, he did not find his daughter. I told Nina that I wanted to write this story and she unsurprisingly replied, “Alan, men are always appropriating women’s stories. I have tried to write my own story for many years. But it’s too late now, and I know I will never do it. You are a good writer, and so please do it.”
Little did she or I know the journey this story would take me on. And unfortunately, she died later that year before I had a chance to begin writing. Inspired by the little I or other family members knew about Nina’s parents’ life, I threw myself into research and the history of the times in such disparate places as Constantinople, Paris, Japan, New York, and London (Clapham) between the two world wars.
Kenzo undergoes many changes in the novel, both in his career and in what he values. Was there anything from your own life that you put into the characters in your novel?
I think all characters in my novels reflect my experience in some way; certainly, my values are reflected throughout. In terms of Kenzo, I had a career working overseas for the US government, and although I did not become a Zen priest, I have been a Zen student for over a decade now. We often want to believe that spiritual leaders, like Kenzo, live impossibly perfect lives and are other than human. I wanted to show a spiritual character is continually searching, continually confronting the issues that arise for them, and is very human in their suffering, reactions, and trauma. My understanding from my Zen practice is that we all are enlightened but generally are not aware of that. For me, that means the problems of life do not stop, but my response and ability to see clearly through them brings me a peace that I did not have earlier.
The settings of the novel are places that I have visited, including Eiheiji Monastery where I participated in a meditation retreat and got a glimpse of a monk´s life.
What were some themes that were important for you to explore in this book?
The heart of Make the Dark Night Shine is a search for family and connectedness. In my book tour, many people, straight and queer, tell me stories of their families of choice—the people with special bonds that they can count on, with whom they celebrate and grieve. I learned this from Nina, who created her own inter-connected family when she had virtually no blood relatives.
Another important theme is how do we face the ever-present existence of wars and violence in our lives. Despite their persistence, I wanted to explore what each of us can do to bring peace and love into the world. Right now in Ukraine, a Zen priest is planting trees each day, then going back to Odesa, he tends to the direct consequences of the war. He does not know if the trees will live and what the country will be like in the future, only that trees will heal the earth and give comfort to other beings.
A final important theme is queer life that is not encumbered by shame. I want to visualize a world where queer people can live out their lives without questioning their queerness.
What is the next book you are working on, and when will it be available?
My next book will be about a gay Ukrainian bootmaker from the last century, with the boots themselves giving voice to their own version of the story.
Author Links: GoodReads | Instagram | Facebook | Website | Amazon
Returning to the growing militarism in Japan, Kenzo finds an unexpected path in Zen Buddhism. Yet no teachings prepare him for the revelations to come — about his life, his loves, and the events around him. On the eve of WWII, he discovers that he has a daughter living with Elisa in New York. He leaves the monastery on a perilous mission to promote peace with a secret plan to reunite with his daughter Nina.
Cinematic in scope, this novel lyrically captures the world on the brink of war. As Kenzo builds — and fights for — his chosen family, larger forces threaten all. Sweeping, meditative, and achingly beautiful, Make the Dark Night Shine explores the many worlds a life can inhabit, and the hidden worlds we find in ourselves.
Original source: https://literarytitan.com/2024/02/03/bring-peace-and-love/
In Recycled Lives, Anyez G. Lorenzi crafts a narrative centered around the tumultuous life of Selvaggia Fedele, an artist of Italian descent grappling with profound personal tragedies and destructive choices. Selvaggia’s life, marred by the early loss of her mother and her father’s subsequent suicide, spirals further into chaos due to her involvement with drugs, neglecting her responsibilities as a mother and wife. Despite her husband Luca’s best efforts, Selvaggia seems irretrievably lost to him.
The story intensifies when a drunken Selvaggia causes a fatal accident, leading to a potential criminal charge and pushing Luca to the brink of seeking a divorce. However, his commitment to their daughter and lingering feelings for Selvaggia hold him back. The accident triggers an unexpected twist: Selvaggia loses her memory, setting off a series of events that lead to the resurfacing of old wounds.
Recycled Lives delves into themes of spirituality and redemption, weaving intense emotional undercurrents throughout the narrative. Initially, I believe Selvaggia’s character might strike readers as somewhat unsympathetic, but a deeper understanding of her past sheds light on her complexities, making her more relatable. The novel’s pace is measured, focusing more on character development and emotional depth than fast-paced suspense. This slower rhythm allows readers to fully engage with the intricacies of the relationships and the characters’ evolutions. The book’s spiritual dimension enriches the narrative with a unique depth, and while it presents a distinctive flavor that might not align with every reader’s taste, Lorenzi’s masterful characterization and the novel’s emotional depth are sure to captivate those drawn to modern fiction with a spiritual twist.
Recycled Lives, by Anyez G. Lorenzi, is a meticulously crafted journey into the human spirit’s capacity for change and resilience, offering a compelling experience even as some characters naturally recede, allowing the central story to shine in a novel of substantial, engaging length. It is a recommended read for those who appreciate a journey through the complexities of the soul and the consequences of life’s choices.
Pages: 539 | ASIN : B0CPVRF3TD
Original source: https://literarytitan.com/2024/02/03/recycled-lives/