Devan talks with Kate Fagan about her debut fiction novel The Three Lives of Cate Kay!

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Kate Fagan is an Emmy-award winning journalist and the No. 1 New York Times bestselling author of WHAT MADE MADDY RUN, which was a semi-finalist for the PEN/ESPN Award for Literary Sportswriting. Her first book was the coming-of-age memoir THE REAPPEARING ACT, and her third book, ALL THE COLORS CAME OUT, was released in May 2021 from Little, Brown. In March of 2023, her fourth book — HOOP MUSES: an insider’s guide to pop culture and the (women’s) game — a collaboration with WNBA legend Seimone Augustus and artist Sophia Chang was released by Twelve.

Kate previously spent seven years as a columnist and feature writer for espnW, ESPN.com and ESPN The Magazine. She was also a regular panelist on ESPN's Around the Horn and host of Outside the Lines. Kate covered the Philadelphia 76ers for three seasons and played college basketball at the University of Colorado. She lives in Charleston, South Carolina with her wife, Kathryn Budig, and their dog, Ragnar.

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About The Three Lives of Cate Kay (bookshop.org)(libro.fm):

The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo meets First Lie Wins in this electric, voice-driven debut novel about an elusive bestselling author who decides to finally confess her true identity after years of hiding from her past.

Cate Kay knows how to craft a story. As the creator of a bestselling book trilogy that struck box office gold as a film series, she's one of the most successful authors of her generation. The thing is, Cate Kay doesn't really exist. She's never attended author events or granted any interviews. Her real identity had been a closely guarded secret, until now.

As a young adult, she and her best friend Amanda dreamed of escaping their difficult homes and moving to California to become movie stars. But the day before their grand adventure, a tragedy shattered their dreams and Cate has been on the run ever since, taking on different names and charting a new future. But after a shocking revelation, Cate understands that returning home is the only way she'll be a whole person again.

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Thank you for supporting Friendly City Books by listening to our podcast. Shop with us in store and online at friendlycitybooks.com/shop or through bookshop.org and libro.fm.

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Host: Devan Torrance

Guest Author: Kate Fagan

Music: Rear Projection by Hartle Road

Production Assistance: Neon Newt Media LLC

Friendly City Books Inc.

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Beth Kander joins Emily in the FCB studio to celebrate her debut novel, I Made It Out of Clay, a darkly funny Jewish holiday romance.

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Beth Kander is a USA Today best-selling writer with tangled roots in the Midwest and Deep South. She is the author of the novel I MADE IT OUT OF CLAY and several books for younger readers. The granddaughter of immigrants, her work often explores how worlds old and new intertwine—or collide. Described as a “genre-defying author and playwright” (Oxford American), her work has been called “riveting” and “habit-forming.”
Beth earned an MSW from the University of Michigan and an MFA in Creative Writing from Mississippi University for Women, where she now serves as visiting faculty. She currently calls Chicago home, and is lucky to live there with her very favorite characters: her heroic husband, their two hilarious kids, and a giant rescue dog named Oz. Right this moment, she’s probably revising a scene while drinking too much coffee. Representation: Allison Hellegers, Stimola Literary Studio.

Beth's debut novel, I Made It Out of Clay (bookshop.org)(libro.fm) is a darkly funny and surprisingly sweet novel, where a woman creates a golem in a desperate attempt to pretend her life is a rom-com rather than a disaster.
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About I Made It Out of Clay:

Nothing's going well for Eve: she's single, turning forty, stressed at work and anxious about a recent series of increasingly creepy incidents. Most devastatingly, her beloved father died last year, and her family still won't acknowledge their sorrow.
With her younger sister's wedding rapidly approaching, Eve is on the verge of panic. She can't bear to attend the event alone. That's when she recalls a strange story her Yiddish grandmother once told her, about a protector forged of desperation...and Eve, to her own shock, manages to create a golem.
At first, everything seems great. The golem is indeed protective--and also attractive. But when they head out to a rural summer camp for the family wedding, Eve's lighthearted rom-com fantasy swiftly mudslides into something much darker.
With moments of moodiness, fierce love and unexpected laughter, I Made It Out of Clay will make you see monsters everywhere.

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Thank you for supporting Friendly City Books by listening to our podcast. Shop with us in store and online at friendlycitybooks.com/shop or through bookshop.org and libro.fm.

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Host: Emily Liner

Guest Author: Beth Kander

Music: Rear Projection by Hartle Road

Production Assistance: Neon Newt Media LLC

Friendly City Books Inc.

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Patrick Dean talks with Boyce Upholt, author of The Great River: The making and Unmaking of the Mississippi, his debut book.

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Boyce Upholt is a journalist and essayist whose writing has appeared in the Atlantic, National Geographic, the Oxford American, and Virginia Quarterly Review, among other publications. He is the winner of a James Beard Award for investigative journalism, and he lives in New Orleans, Louisiana.

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About The Great River: The making and Unmaking of the Mississippi bookshop.org:

The Mississippi River lies at the heart of America, an undeniable life force that is intertwined with the nation's culture and history. Its watershed spans almost half the country, Mark Twain's travels on the river inspired our first national literature, and jazz and blues were born in its floodplains and carried upstream.
In this landmark work of natural history, Boyce Upholt tells the epic story of this wild and unruly river, and the centuries of efforts to control it. Over thousands of years, the Mississippi watershed was home to millions of Indigenous people who regarded "the great river" with awe and respect, adorning its banks with astonishing spiritual earthworks. The river was ever-changing, and Indigenous tribes embraced and even depended on its regular flooding. But the expanse of the watershed and the rich soils of its floodplain lured European settlers and American pioneers, who had a different vision: the river was a foe to conquer.
Centuries of human attempts to own, contain, and rework the Mississippi River, from Thomas Jefferson's expansionist land hunger through today's era of environmental concern, have now transformed its landscape. Upholt reveals how an ambitious and sometimes contentious program of engineering--government-built levees, jetties, dikes, and dams--has not only damaged once-vibrant ecosystems but may not work much longer. Carrying readers along the river's last remaining backchannels, he explores how scientists are now hoping to restore what has been lost.
Rich and powerful, The Great River delivers a startling account of what happens when we try to fight against nature instead of acknowledging and embracing its power--a lesson that is all too relevant in our rapidly changing world.
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Thank you for supporting Friendly City Books by listening to our podcast. Shop with us in store and online at friendlycitybooks.com/shop or through bookshop.org and libro.fm.

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Host: Patrick Dean

Guest Author: Boyce Upholt

Music: Rear Projection by Hartle Road

Production Assistance: Neon Newt Media LLC

Friendly City Books Inc.

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Emily talks with Minrose Gwin, author of Beautiful Dreamers, her fourth novel and ninth book.

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A native of Tupelo, Mississippi, Minrose has been a writer all of her working life, starting out as a newspaper and wire service reporter and working in Mobile, Atlanta, Nashville, and Knoxville. She has taught as a professor at universities around the country, most recently at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She has spent many summers leading creative writing workshops at the University of New Mexico Writers' Conference in Taos and Santa Fe. She lives in Austin, TX, and Albuquerque, NM.

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About Beautiful Dreamers bookshop.org:

From Minrose Gwin, award-winning author of The Accidentals, comes Beautiful Dreamers, a story of a precocious teen and her mother, their gay best friend, and the con man who unravels their family.

It's 1953 when Memory Feather and her mother, Virginia, are welcomed back home to the Mississippi Gulf Coast community of Belle Cote by Virginia's childhood friend Mac McFadden, whose verve and energy buoy the recently divorced Virginia to embrace this new chapter. Memory ("Mem") is unlike other girls: she is attuned to the voices of plants and animals and is missing two fingers on her twisted left hand. The three of them knit their lives together and become a close, though unconventional, family.

While Mac's wealth, brains, and good humor have allowed him to carve out a niche in Belle Cote, his position as a gay man active in the burgeoning Civil Rights Movement exposes him to censure, harassment, and even brutality. When the unscrupulous and charismatic Tony Amato arrives in Belle Cote as Mac's "guest," he sets in motion a series of events that will shatter familial bonds and forever change Mem's life. Now, an adult Mem recounts the story of the scars Tony left in her teenage years, confronting her culpability in the disastrous events of that final summer.

Sweeping, dramatic, and vividly rendered, Beautiful Dreamers is a novel of innocence and betrayal, love and intolerance, and the care and honesty we owe the families we choose.
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Host: Emily Liner

Guest Author: Minrose Gwin

Music: Rear Projection by Hartle Road

Production Assistance: Neon Newt Media LLC

Friendly City Books Inc.

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American gothic author and artist Brom joins Rachel in the FCB Studio to discuss his newest book, Evil in Me - available now!

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Over the past few decades, acclaimed dark fantasy artist Brom has lent his distinctive vision to all facets of the creative industries, from novels and games to comics and film. He is the nationally bestselling author of Slewfoot, The Child Thief, Krampus, The Lost Gods and the award-winning illustrated horror novels The Plucker and The Devil's Rose. Brom is currently kept in a dank cellar just outside of Savannah.

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About Evil In Me (bookshop.org)(libro.fm):

Evil in Me is bestselling author Brom's newest novel of possession, damnation, and rock 'n' roll, where one woman must get the world singing in order to save her soul.

Aspiring musician Ruby Tucker has had enough of her small rural town and dysfunctional family. But a falling out with her best friend and bandmate has killed her dreams of escaping and making it big in the Atlanta punk scene.

While helping her eccentric neighbor organize his religious artifacts, an ancient ring clamps down on her finger--possessing her with the spirit of a blood-thirsty demon. There's no exorcizing it unless hundreds of people chant a spell to set Ruby free. And what's worse, the ring is a beacon for evil, drawing an unimaginably wicked mob straight to Ruby, hungry for her flesh.
If Ruby can get her band back together, she has a shot at salvation. It's time for her to face the music and put her whole soul into a song--one powerful enough to raise some Hell.

This devilish tale includes nearly two dozen of Brom's immersive paintings and brilliant endpapers.

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For a video version of this interview, check out the Friendly City Books Youtube

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Thank you for supporting Friendly City Books by listening to our podcast. Shop with us in store and online at friendlycitybooks.com/shop or through bookshop.org and libro.fm.

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Host: Rachel Derise

Guest Author: Brom

Music: Rear Projection by Hartle Road

Production Assistance: Neon Newt Media LLC

Friendly City Books Inc.

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Caroline talks with Dale Gray, author of South of Somewhere and creator of The Daley Plate! Don’t miss Dale Gray at the Possumtown Book Fest in Columbus, MS on August 24th!

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Dale Gray was born in South Africa. After graduating from Stellenbosch University, she moved to South Korea to teach English and spent six years there. In her last year in South Korea, she met a soldier from Mississippi, and they fell in love. They moved back to the United States, and that's when Dale began to experiment with both Korean and South African flavors, along with the Southern dishes she was introduced to.

She began to share her recipes on TheDaleyPlate.com and on social media platforms such as Instagram, and she now has hundreds of thousands of followers. Her work was featured in Martha Stewart, Saveur, Food 52, Cooking Light, Food & Wine, TheKitchn, Bake from Scratch, and more. She lives in Mississippi with her husband.

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About South of Somewhere (bookshop.org):

NAMED A BEST COOKBOOK OF 2023 by TASTING TABLE and LOCAL PALATE

A one-of-a-kind recipe chronicle of Dale Gray's life in the south--from South Africa to South Korea to the American South.

South of Somewhere is a unique culinary tour of beloved food blogger Dale Gray's life to date. Her journey goes way back to South Africa on the outskirts of Cape Town. Dale grew up with a close-knit family who has resided in her hometown for generations, but it's almost impossible to encapsulate her heritage in a few words. She describes the people of South Africa as a product of centuries of colonization, enslavement, apartheid, and intermarriage between people from Asia, Africa, and Europe--now compromising a colorful blend of Eastern, Western, and African heritage.

After growing up in South Africa, Dale taught English for six years in South Korea, and she later moved to the American South where she resides now with her husband. The result of her travels is a one-of-a-kind cookbook with dishes including Porch Party Shrimp with Mississippi Comeback Sauce, Salmon Ssam Feast, and Garlic Peri-Peri Roast Chicken.

Dale Gray is best known for creating delicious dinner recipes for her blog and Instagram that look as good as they taste, but this book delves far deeper into her story and food with delicious creations like these and more which you'll return to time and time again.

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Dale Gray will be joining us in Columbus, MS for the Possumtown Book Festival on August 24th! Join us for a day of bookish fun with author panels and book signings, a local author showcase, kids programming, and a book fair for adults and kids! Visit friendlycitybooks.com for more information.

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Thank you for supporting Friendly City Books by listening to our podcast. Shop with us in store and online at friendlycitybooks.com/shop or through bookshop.org and libro.fm.

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Host: Caroline Barbee

Guest Author: Dale Gray

Music: Rear Projection by Hartle Road

Production Assistance: Neon Newt Media LLC

Friendly City Books Inc.

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Thomas Easterling sits down with NYT Bestselling author, Ace Atkins to discuss his thrilling new book, Don’t Let the Devil Ride. Don’t miss Ace Atkins at the Possumtown Book Fest in Columbus, MS on August 24th!

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Ace Atkins is an award-winning, New York Times bestselling author who started his writing career as a crime beat reporter in Florida. Don’t Let the Devil Ride is his thirtieth novel. His previous novels include eleven books in the Quinn Colson series and multiple true-crime novels based on infamous crooks and killers. In 2010, he was chosen by Robert B. Parker’s family to continue the iconic Spenser series, adding ten novels to the franchise. He lives in Oxford, Mississippi with his family. 

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About Don’t Let the Devil Ride (bookshop.org)(libro.fm):

Addison McKellar isn’t clueless—she knows she and her husband Dean don’t have the perfect marriage—but she’s still shocked when he completely vanishes from her life. At first Addison is annoyed, but as days stretch into a week and she’s repeatedly stonewalled by Dean’s friends and associates, her frustration turns into genuine alarm. When even the police seem dismissive of her concerns, Addison turns to her father’s old friend, legendary Memphis PI Porter Hayes.

Porter and Addison begin to dig deeper into Dean’s affairs and quickly discover that he was never the hardworking business owner and family man he pretended to be. As they piece together the connections between a hook-handed mercenary, one of Elvis’s former leading ladies, and a man posing as an FBI agent, it becomes clear that Dean was deeply enmeshed in a high-stakes web of international intrigue, and Porter and Addison aren’t the only ones looking for him.

Dean angered some very dangerous people before he disappeared—people who have already killed to get what they want—and they won’t hesitate to come after his family to even the score.

Don’t Let the Devil Ride is a thrilling adventure about what can happen when you pull back the curtain on your life. Ace Atkins, long known for gritty Southern noir with a witty edge, has crafted an ambitious, globe-hopping story that comes home to Memphis in explosive fashion.

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Ace Atkins will be joining us in Columbus, MS for the Possumtown Book Festival on August 24th! Join us for a day of bookish fun with author panels and book signings, a local author showcase, kids programming, and a book fair for adults and kids! Visit friendlycitybooks.com for more informations

For a video version of this interview, check out the Friendly City Books Youtube

Thank you for supporting Friendly City Books by listening to our podcast. Shop with us in store and online at friendlycitybooks.com/shop or through bookshop.org and libro.fm.

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Host: Thomas Easterling

Guest Author: Ace Atkins

Music: Rear Projection by Hartle Road

Production Assistance: Neon Newt Media LLC

Friendly City Books Inc.

Friendlycitybooks.com

Author and animator-extraordinaire Rob Renzetti joins Rachel again to discuss his newest middle-grade novel, The Twisted Tower of Endless Torment! This is the second time Rob Renzetti has joined us, Listen to the first episode we did with Rob Renzetti last year!

Rob Renzetti is a multi-talented author and veteran of TV animation whose work on Cartoon Network’s Foster’s Home for Imaginary Friends earned him an Emmy. He created the Nickelodeon show My Life as a Teenage Robot, acted as the supervising producer for Disney’s Gravity Falls, and served as executive producer on the first two seasons of Disney’s Big City Greens, among other projects.

He is the author of several books:

• The Twisted Tower of Endless Torment (bookshop.org) (libro.fm)
• The Horrible Bag of Terrible Things (bookshop.org) (libro.fm)
• Gravity Falls: Dipper's and Mabel's Guide to Nonstop Mystery and Fun! (bookshop.org)
• Onward: Quests of Yore (bookshop.org)

Rob's newest book, The Twisted Tower of Endless Torment, a continuation of the story from The Horrible Bag of Terrible Things, The Twisted Tower of Endless Torment is a thrilling and spine-chilling fantastical adventure sure to delight kids and adults alike and is perfect for fans of Coraline, the Spiderwick Chronicles, and Small Spaces.

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Rob's favorite books:

• The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas (bookshop.org) (libro.fm)
• The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams (bookshop.org) (libro.fm)
• Geek Love by Katherine Dunn (bookshop.org) (libro.fm)
• Pet Sematary by Stephen King (bookshop.org) (libro.fm)
• Foundation by Isaac Asimov (bookshop.org) (libro.fm)

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Thank you to Rob Renzetti for being our first ever repeat podcast interviewee! We had so much fun discussing his books, animation, and horror with him. For a full audio and visual version of this interview, check out the Friendly City Books youtube channel.

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Thank you for supporting Friendly City Books by listening to our podcast. Shop with us in store and online at friendlycitybooks.com/shop or through bookshop.org and libro.fm.

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Host: Rachel Derise

Guest Author: Rob Renzetti

Music: Rear Projection by Hartle Road

Production Assistance: Neon Newt Media LLC

Friendly City Books Inc.

Friendlycitybooks.com

Rachel and Lauren celebrate Hot Possum Horror's return with a crossover episode of HPH and Make It Gay! Tune in to discover their favorite Queer Horror books!

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List of recommendations to come!

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Thank you for supporting Friendly City Books by listening to our podcast. Shop with us in store and online at friendlycitybooks.com/shop or through bookshop.org and libro.fm.

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Host: Rachel Derise

Cohost: Lauren O'Connell

Music: Rear Projection by Hartle Road

Production Assistance: Neon Newt Media LLC

Friendly City Books Inc.

Friendlycitybooks.com

Make It Gay! is a series that celebrates queer stories and authors in different genres. This week Lauren is joined by University of Mississippi's Pip Gordon to explore Mississippi's queer literary legacy.

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Philip "Pip" Gordon was born in Memphis, Tennessee, and grew up just north of Faulkner's Yoknapatawpha County. Pip is a Visiting Assistant Professor of Gender Studies at the University of Mississippi, and the author of "Gay Faulkner: Uncovering a Homosexual Presence in Yoknapatawpha and Beyond" (bookshop.org)(libro.fm).

Most recently, Pip Gordon worked to preserve Mississippi author Hubert Creekmore's work, The Welcome (bookshop.org).

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Thank you for supporting Friendly City Books by listening to our podcast. Shop with us in store and online at friendlycitybooks.com/shop or through bookshop.org and libro.fm

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Host: Lauren O'Connell
Cohost: Pip Gordon
Music: Rear Projection by Hartle Road
Production assistance by Neon Newt Media LLC

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