Steve Bertrand on Books

Djamel White is being called a powerful new voice in Irish literature. His debut novel, All Them Dogs, takes a look inside the crime underworld of west Dublin, focusing on a lost young man looking to be found. Unfortunately for him, his search for male guidance only brings more struggle. Djamel talks with Steve about the book and about his own struggles in west Dublin: dropping out of school, finding his way back with the help of the legendary Roddy Doyles foundation, and, now, the toast of Irish literature.

Hannah Thurman’s smash debut novel is set in Raleigh, North Carolina, mostly at an under-pressure mental institution. At the center of Mercy Hill is a family of four daughters, their dad, and the mom who is the force fighting to save the hospital. The family grows up in the shadow of the institution, much in the way Steve grew up in the shadow of the Manteno State Mental Hospital.

Charles Schutt is a former Chicago priest who left the Church after 17 years and then successfully moved to the world of corporate recruiting. And he wants you to know why. He’s got a new book out called “A True Story of a Catholic Priest: Why I Got In, Why I Got Out, and What I Learned Through It All.”

Maybe it’s in our 30s that the rubber finally meets the road and it’s time to confront life, maybe accept the fact that you can’t be anything you want to be after all. In a way, that’s a way to read Rachel Khong’s short story collection. It’s called “My Dear You.” Rachel says each short story is like a song. Well, this collection sings.

Sometimes a small story can help to paint a much bigger picture. That’s the case with The Feather Wars by James H. McCommons. Actually, his is not a small story at all, it’s a remarkable accounting of America’s assault on birds around the Gilded Age. McCommons writes about flocks of birds more than a hundred miles long: birds, the passenger pigeon in this case, that were hunted into extinction. Through McCommon’s stories, we learn more about the Gilded Age overall…and that, you might say, is a feather in his cap, though, in this case, that is not a good thing.

Clay Cane has written a pretty remarkable book in a personal, novel way. Burn Down Master’s House is a fictional account of a variety moments of resistance by several separate slaves in the days before the civil war. He fictionalizes the stories into one strand that stands as its own narrative. As a descendant of slaves, he also uses the names of some of his ancestors. But there’s more here than 19th century men and woman freeing themselves of their changes. Burn Down Master’s House is calling on us all to unchain ourselves as well.

When you think of Bob Dylan, what comes to mind? A cultural revolutionary, right? Lyrics, musicianship, even painting. But did you know Bob Dylan was a filmmaker? Fellow filmmaker Michael Glover Smith did….and his book Bob Dylan as Filmmaker: No Time to Think is out.

Irish writer Tana French joins Steve to talk about her Cal Hooper Series. Hooper is a retired Chicago police detective who settles into life in small town Ireland. It’s not as easy as it is sounds. And, don’t tell Steve, but the latest book The Keeper is the last in what turns out to be a trilogy. Tana talks about small town life with Steve, along with many of the major issues facing Ireland today.

Irish writer Colm Tóibín is a master, whether it’s his novels like Brooklyn or Nora Webster or The Testament of Mary, he has a settled style of writing that brings you not just to a place but to a specific moment.

It’s the same for his short stories. His latest collection of stories is The News From Dublin. I’m thrilled to have him on this edition of Steve Bertrand on Books.

Colm is something special. He makes this podcast special, too.

Alright, it’s time to move to the edge of your seat. Nick Petrie joins Steve to talk about his new thriller, The Dark Time. It’s the ninth book in his acclaimed Peter Ash series. The book takes on the threat of rapidly expanding Artificial Intelligence in a way only Peter Ash can.