And no, it’s not about skiing. But bear with me, because the people this happens to are few and far between.
My husband has a new book coming out on July 6, and IT’S BEEN SELECTED BY O MAGAZINE (that’s OPRAH’s magazine. Yes, THAT Oprah) as the lead pick on her summer reading list. You can see it on page 112 of the July issue.
Swoon. Faint.
The book is called KINGS OF THE EARTH, and I must say, it’s truly amazing. You can’t find it in the stores yet — as I said, the publication date is July 6 — though you can pre-order it from your favorite bookseller, online or off.
KINGS is about three elderly, semiliterate brothers who live in squalor on a farm in central New York. One morning one of them is found dead, and the book delves into the events that lead up to this event, as well as the things that happen after. Here’s part of what is says in O Magazine:
“The prismatic narrative shifts time and points of view, and Clnch easily slps into the voices of his diverse cast of characters — a nosy, good-hearted neighbor, a police investigator struggling to do the right thing, and the brothers’ drug-dealing nephew. Through evocative descriptions of the rural landscape — a ‘countryside full of that same old homegrown desolation’ — and by imbuing these old men with a gentle nobility and an ‘antique strangeness,’ Clinch has created a haunting, suspenseful story.”
Jon’s no slouch. His first novel, FINN, which came out in 2007, was selected one of the year’s best by The Christian Science Monitor, The Washington Post, and The Chicago Tribune, and was named a Notable Book of the year by the American Library Association. Plus it was shortlisted for the National Book Critics Circle’s first-ever Best Recommended List, as well as the Sargent First Novel Prize.
All the same, an endorsement from Oprah? Well, that’s sort of like being tapped for sainthood by the Pope.
We’re a little excited.
So if you’re looking for a great summer read, I know where you can find one in just a little more than three weeks (remember: July 6).
And if you want to read about skiing, well, maybe next time.
For more information on Jon, FINN, or KINGS OF THE EARTH, visit Jon’s website here.
