Five Author Interviews for Great Summer Reading

William Gibson

Neuromancer

If you're a fan of science fiction - this is going to blow you away. If you're not...but you loved "The Matrix," then listen on - because I talked with the man who's mind spawned that gritty, cyber-savvy style.

His name is William Gibson, and I first discovered him when he began publishing in the late '70's. As a child of fairly open mined parents, I was allowed to read science fiction without the warnings that it would "rot my brain." I zoomed through the classic, Jules Verne, Arthur C Clark, Ray Bradbury, and later, Larry Niven. Like many other fans - to me it all started to run together and my palate got a little jaded with interstellar empires hanging in the balance, only to be saved from evil aliens by ray wielding, bare chested, heroic space ship captains who stoically enduring the mind bending gravity flux field of the enemy to rescue the scantily clad and technically hopeless heroine...with the help of his crusty engineer friend and possibly a robotic dog.

Read the rest of the interview here.


Alan Furst

The Spies of Warsaw

In Alan Furst's newly published espionage novel, "The Spies of Warsaw," he paints a convincing portrait of Europe in 1937, told in part through the eyes of a French military attaché. That Mr. Furst's book is atmospheric, convincing and filled with twists and turns will hardly surprise readers of his nine earlier spy books such as "Night Soldiers" and "Kingdom of Shadows."

Mr. Furst, 67 years old, turned to espionage after writing four earlier novels that didn't sell. A Manhattan native, Mr. Furst lives in Sag Harbor, N.Y., and periodically in Paris. He estimates he has lived in France for roughly 10 years of his life.

Booksellers say Mr. Furst has created a loyal following. "What he excels in is recreating the pre-war and World War II period," says Barbara Peters, owner of The Poisoned Pen bookstore in Scottsdale, Ariz. Ms. Peters suggests that what separates Mr. Furst's work is that readers believe they are "really in the mental, physical and cultural landscapes" of the countries in which he sets his works. "These aren't classic thrillers in the James Bond sense," she adds. "Rather, he's psychologically astute."

Read the rest of the interview here.


James Kelman

Kieron Smith, boy

Forget the blockbusters, and take a chance this week on a low-budget, black-and-white comedy about two people walking around Los Angeles, reckons our film critic Alistair Harkness.

ANYONE trying to sum up the huge appeal of the hip new black-and-white Los Angeles love story, In Search of a Midnight Kiss might be tempted to do a roll-call of its likely reference points. Manhattan would probably warrant a mention. Ditto Before Sunrise and Before Sunset. Swingers? Maybe. Classics from the French New Wave? Why not? How about gritty, working-class Glaswegian Booker-winning author James Kelman? Erm … Yes, as it happens. "He was really important to me in my development, "elaborates the film's effusive 32-year-old writer/director Alex Holdridge over the phone from Los Angeles. "He came to the University of Texas when I was a student there and ended up being my creative writing teacher. I really liked him and really bonded with him."

Read more here.


Moying Li

Snow Falling in Spring: Coming of Age in China During the Cultural Revolution

Once upon a time in faraway China, a little girl lived with her father and grandparents in a house with a courtyard in Beijing. She was happy, playing with her schoolmates and little brother. Then hard times came. She lived through them safely, grew up, and came to America to study. Now she lives happily with her husband in a house with a courtyard on Beacon Hill.

That's the story of Moying Li, 53, author of the just-published "Snow Falling in Spring: Coming of Age in China During the Cultural Revolution." Published in the young-adult category, the book is written in a style that could appeal as readily to adult readers. It begins with China's disastrous Great Leap Forward in 1958 and ends in 1977, with the 26-year-old English student crossing the Luohu Bridge into Hong Kong en route to a flight that will take her to a new life in America.

There are many accounts of the Cultural Revolution, which ravaged Chinese society from 1966 to 1976. What sets Li's witness and memory apart is its simplicity, lack of clutter or moralizing. It is almost entirely about relationships, with little of politics or history. She does not look back in anger. "I see it in a Taoist way," she said in an interview at her home. "The good and the bad are part of each other, somehow. Even though I and my generation went though hard times, without it I wonder if we would have gained maturity and reflection. In one sense, the experience of the Cultural Revolution has become to me a strength."

Read the rest of the interview here.


Gary Moore

Playing with the Enemy: A Baseball Prodigy, World War II, and the Long Journey Home

First-time author, Gary Moore, has written the story of his father Gene’s life. Gene Moore was known as a country boy who could hit a baseball a country mile. Drafted by the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1941, he was on track to have a long career as a major leaguer, that is, until WWII broke out and Gene was drafted into the Navy.
While stuck on guard duty of some captured German sailors, he decided to teach them how to play baseball. It was a decision that changed Gene Moore’s life.

Gary Moore’s book is now being turned into a major motion picture starring his son, Toby, who will play the role of his grandfather.

Gary: My father, Gene, was part of “the greatest generation,” having grown up in a small town called Sesser, in Illinois, on a small lot where his father raised some pigs and worked part-time at the local sale barn. There were seven kids in the family and Gene grew up with an absolute passion for baseball. His parents didn’t understand it, didn’t like baseball and didn’t approve of his playing baseball.

Read the rest here.

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