Introduction by Melissa Amster
I'm pleased to have Jennifer S. Brown at CLC today to celebrate the publication of her long awaited sophomore novel,
The Whisper Sister. I loved her debut,
Modern Girls, as you can see from my
review.
The Whisper Sister is in my kindle queue and I look forward to reading it soon! From visiting Jennifer's Instagram, I can see that we have some common interests: Broadway musicals and beagles. (I don't have a beagle now but I grew up with one and they're my favorite breed.) Jennifer just seems really cool and down-to-earth, as evidenced by our interview, and I'm glad you're getting the chance to know her too.
Thanks to Get Red PR, we have TWO copies of her latest novel to give away!
Jennifer S. Brown’s debut novel, Modern Girls, was a USA Today bestseller, a Massachusetts Book Award “Must Read,” and a 2016 Goodreads Choice semifinalist for Historical Fiction. Her writing has been published in Fiction Southeast, McSweeney’s, The Best Women’s Travel Writing, The Southeast Review, and the Bellevue Literary Review, among other places. She teaches writing, both in-person in the Boston area and online through the Loft Literary Center. The Whisper Sister is her second novel.
With a BFA in film and television from New York University and an MFA in creative writing from the University of Washington, Seattle, she is uniquely suited to write movie reviews, which would be great if she hadn’t stopped going to the movies when her kids were born. Now that they’re (mostly) grown, she’s catching up on the last twenty years of film. Jennifer grew up in Miami Beach, Florida, which makes people question, every winter, what she’s doing in New England. However, she finds northern winters fabulous for her two favorite activities: writing and drinking bourbon in front of a fire.
She lives outside of Boston with two beagles and a husband who pretends not to hear her when she says she wants to adopt more dogs. (Bio courtesy of Jennifer's website.)
Visit Jennifer online:
The streets of New York in 1920 are most certainly not paved with gold, as Minnie Soffer learns when she arrives at Ellis Island. Her father, who left Ukraine when Minnie was a toddler, feels like a stranger. She sleeps on a mattress on the kitchen floor. She understands nothing at school. They came to America for this?
As her family adjusts to this new life, Minnie and her brother work hard to learn English and make friends. When her father, Ike, opens his own soda shop, stability and citizenship seem within reach. But the soda shop is not what it seems; it’s a front for Ike’s real moneymaker: a speakeasy.
When tragedy strikes the Soffers, Minnie has no choice but to take over the bar. She’s determined to make the speakeasy a success despite the risks it brings to herself, her family, and her freedom. At what price does the American dream come true? Minnie won’t stop until she finds out. (Courtesy of Amazon.)
“Packed with tragic twists and stunning surprises, this Prohibition-era saga will have readers drunk on Jennifer S. Brown’s talent.”
—Lynda Cohen Loigman, bestselling author of The Matchmaker’s Gift
“Read this one with tissues because Brown’s characters are so real that you will feel their pain and victories as your own, and they will stay with you long after you finish reading this absolute gem of a novel.”
—Sara Goodman Confino, bestselling author of Don’t Forget to Write
“Readers will laugh, cry, and root for feisty Minnie, a heroine for all time! Brown’s latest dazzles!”
—Pam Jenoff, New York Times bestselling author of Code Name Sapphire
What is a favorite compliment you have received on your writing?
I can’t say what the true compliment was because it has too many expletives in it as well as some spoilers. But the gist of it is, when my first book, Modern Girls, was published, my then eleven-year-old son read it. He stayed up late one night to finish it and the next morning was really angry with me. “Why did [the character] do that? She should have done [something else]!” When I explained that it was the necessary decision for that character, he yelled back, “Mom, it’s not that hard! You’re the author. You could have made her [do something else]!”
The fact that he felt so strongly about the characters and was so invested in the story was the greatest compliment that I could receive.
How is Minnie similar to or different from you?
We, fortunately or unfortunately, have many of the same traits, such as a streak of obstinance and not always wanting to do as we’re told. Minnie has strong familial ties, which I also have (the novel is dedicated to my sister, as she was always the well heeled, studious one, just like Max). I’d like to think I have Minnie’s bravery and resilience, but let a rodent cross my path, and I’m running and screaming. I told my husband if we ever saw a mouse in the house, we’d be moving.
If The Whisper Sister were made into a movie, who would you cast in the leading roles?
I confess I’ve given more thought to the female characters than I have the male, probably because it’s such a female-driven story. I think Hailee Steinfeld would be a great Minnie. Her mom Feige would be perfect for Sarah Silverman or Natasha Lyonne. Minnie’s best friend who has a little devilish streak could be Maude Apatow. For the men? Maybe Timothy Chalamet for Minnie’s boyfriend, Duke, and Paul Rudd for her father, Ike.
What is your favorite autumn activity?
Walking the dog as the leaves turn. In the early morning it’s so peaceful out and I love the crispness in the air. A hot tea and cuddling with the dog while I write has to be one of the best things ever.
If your life was a TV series, which celebrity would you want to narrate it?
My life feels more like a comedy at the moment, with two college aged kids, a beagle who can howl like nobody’s business, and a husband who works from home and doesn’t seem to have an indoor voice in meetings. So I think Ilana Glazer would be the appropriate narrator!
If we were to visit you right now, what are some places you would take us to see?
I live outside of Boston, so one of my favorite places to go is Sleepy Hollow Cemetery in Concord, Massachusetts. It’s filled with some of the best American authors so it's beautiful to walk around, searching for the graves of beloved authors such as Louisa May Alcott, Ralph Waldo Emerson, and Nathaniel Hawthorne, among many others. Then perhaps we’d walk to the Old North Bridge, where the Battle of Lexington and Concord took place. I adore the history of this area; everywhere you turn you’ll find an important place in history. I’d encourage you, though, to save your visit until April. On Patriots Day, re-enactments occur all over Great Boston, including on the Battle Green of Lexington, where they re-enact the “shot heard round the world,” and you can also witness Paul Revere and William Dawes riding from Boston to Concord, along the way alerting the Minute Men that the “Regulars are coming!"
Thanks to Jennifer for visiting with us and to Get Red PR for sharing her book with our readers.
How to win: Use Rafflecopter to enter the giveaway. If you have any questions, feel free to contact us. If you have trouble using Rafflecopter on our blog, enter the giveaway here.
Giveaway ends September 8th at midnight EST.
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