NEWS & EVENTS
Standing-room only event launches Shadows of Vietnam
The book launch for Shadows of Vietnam was a standing-room only event at Edmonds Bookshop. Alice talked about the book’s themes and gave a brief reading, which was followed by a very animated discussion. Fifty years later, the Vietnam War still brings up a lot of emotions—and the resonances with issues facing us today were evident.
Set in the United States and post-war Vietnam, Shadows comprises three linked novellas about an America bitterly divided during the Vietnam War and the long reach of those conflicts in the decades afterward. From 1968, when Toby Woodruff saw refusing to fight as the way to serve the America he believed in, to Sarah Shepherd, who finally makes peace with her brother’s death and her own turbulent history when she visits Vietnam in 1993, the stories trace the struggles of those who served, those who resisted, and those who loved them.
Formerly published in 2012 by Standing Stone Books as Collateral Damage, the book won an IPPY Award for literary fiction in 2013. This new edition from Firefly Ink Books is available in paperback locally at the Edmonds Bookshop, Third Place Books Lake Forest Park, and Third Place Books Ravenna, as well as through bookshop.org and bookstores with online sales. An ebook edition is available from Amazon.
From Bruce Springsteen and The Beach Boys to Bob Dylan and Bach, get in the mood with a playlist of songs that inspired or are mentioned in Shadows of Vietnam!
Kirkus Reviews calls Shadows of Vietnam “stirring and engrossing”
In a recent review, Kirkus Reviews described Shadows of Vietnam as an “engaging and moving collection about the tragic consequences of war.” Praising the writing as “simple but redolent,” it goes on to say that the three linked novellas are “stirring and engrossing, never shying away from uncomfortable subjects.” The full review is available here.
In addition to the review, Shadows of Vietnam will be featured in Kirkus‘s monthly online magazine in August.
“Writing a mystery: it’s more than whodunnit” on YouTube
In November, Alice gave a Zoom talk on writing a mystery for the Sno-Isle County Libraries in Washington. In this program, she described not only her own process for writing and revising a mystery, but also discussed the genre and the fact it remains the most popular after romance. And why is that? Because everlasting love is the only story more beguiling than the mystery, which assures us that no matter what bad things happen, good can triumph and order will be restored. You may view the program on YouTube now.
Zoom with me!
Since the Zoom era began, Alice has participated in events from California to Connecticut, as well as in England, France, India, and Pakistan. It’s an any time, anywhere world now, so if your book club or other group would like to chat with her about her books, reading, or writing, please feel free to contact her at alicekboatwright@gmail.com.
Recent/forthcoming events
No new events are scheduled at this time.
Interested in having Alice Zoom to your book club or writers’ group?
For Zoom (or Skype, or Facetime) author visits, contact alicekboatwright@gmail.com