First, a couple brief announcements … The talented Dave Tavani produced and directed a super-cute, enticing book trailer for Simply From Scratch. Thank you so much, Dave. And thank you to the lovely Lola Culp-Osborne for lending her voice as Ingrid. Turn up your volume & enjoy! If you’d like to read the first chapter of my book, visit the Book page of my website, and click “Excerpt.” And now,…
Simply From Scratch is a bestseller in Germany! Weiß der Himmel von dir entered the Spiegel Bestseller list at number 35 last week. Additionally, Thalia, a German bookstore chain, chose it as its Book of the Month for August. Simply From Scratch‘s official sale date in North America is August 5. To pre-order, click here. And to view the German trailer, click here. (The text reads, “Two happy people/An unhappy…
Recently a bookstore chain in Germany interviewed me, and one question really got me thinking: What is the role of the non-human character, the greyhound, Captain Ahab? Greyhounds are a little bit odd. They’re different than other dogs. Their affection is subtle; their presence is calm and cool; and they have many quirks (they rarely sit, for example). Like her dog, the grieving narrator of Simply From Scratch is a…
This week’s topic is “Promotion” … so I thought I’d announce one! To win a signed copy of my debut novel, Simply From Scratch (the real thing, not an ARC!) leave a comment below, before midnight tonight (Eastern time). A winner will be contacted via email and announced in the Deb Ball Sunday Newsflash. Please feel free to spread the word. Good luck! ~Alicia Bessette
In its July 1 issue, Kirkus calls SIMPLY FROM SCRATCH a “nicely wrought debut,” and “quietly charming, with a dash of romance.” Yeah!
A third of the way up Okemo Mountain in Vermont, you can spread a blanket in a field, recline on your back, and wait for fireworks, which are ignited from across a pond. They seem to spider across the sky much lower than other fireworks that I’ve seen; they seem touchable and more thrilling. And because you’re on a mountain, the noise booms and echoes and sometimes even makes your…
Hanging in my closet, wrapped in plastic, is a Montreal Canadiens jersey signed by famed Habs (and later Avalanche) goaltender Patrick Roy. I have the certificate of authenticity, too. Someday I’ll get that jersey up on eBay. I acquired it when I was 15 and a huge hockey fan. Patrick and a handful of other big sports stars appeared at a fundraiser at Boston College High School. My friend Andrea…
Happy Fathers Day! Here are some of the literary fathers whom I find very memorable: Atticus Finch in To Kill A Mocking Bird by Harper Lee Reverend Maclean in A River Runs Though It by Norman Maclean Matthew Cuthbert in Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery (not technically a father, but a close-enough father-figure, I think) Bull Meechum in The Great Santini by Pat Conroy Dr. Murry in A…
To win an advance reading copy of Simply From Scratch, leave a brief comment below addressing this week’s Deb Ball topic: Ereaders such as the Kindle, iPad, Nook, etc. I’ll choose a winner (perhaps more than one winner, depending on the number of responses) at random and announce it in Sunday’s Newsflash (June 20th). Good luck! ~Alicia Bessette
Each of the following five short descriptions comes from a book by a 2010 Debutante Ball author. Which Deb wrote which description? Answers later this afternoon …. A: Your husband will enter the room looking like a junkie who can’t wait for his next fix, and after being unable to quickly locate his object of desire, the search and rescue mission begins. Watch your husband toss the throw pillows haphazardly,…
