Milestones That Call for Celebration
- Jann Alexander
- Feb 16
- 3 min read
I celebrated my birthday in January. And Valentine's Day followed. Which called for champagne! Paired with two terrific books I loved about (you guessed it) champagne.
[WARNING: These books are bound to require champagne when reading]
Nonfiction That Reads Like a Thriller:
Champagne: How the World's Most Glamorous Wine Triumphed Over War and Hard Times by Don and Petie Kladstrup
The hidden history of champagne is filled with larger-than-life vintners and imbibers, and its birthplace has been the site of more battles and wars than any place on earth. All for the love of a sparkling wine with the power of magic.
Pairing Suggestion: Piper-Heidsieck Cuvée Brut
A Tribute to the Success of The Widow Clicquot:
The Champagne Letters by Kate MacIntosh
If you can't pop a cork and pour a glass of bubbly as you read this new historical novel about the trials of the remarkable Veuve (Mme. Clicquot), and featured in Book Bub's Bookworthy for must-read historical fiction picks . . . when would you?
Pairing Suggestion: Veuve Clicquot Brut
But my celebration did not end there! In light of two stellar Advance Reviews UNSPOKEN received, I've got plenty more champagne chilling.
An Advance Review for UNSPOKEN
"Jann Alexander's blazingly alive novel Unspoken asks how do we keep a family intact? Especially during a time of upheaval and betrayal in the 1930s Dust Bowl? Here, in a story told by both a mother and her daughter, two people struggle to both understand their world and each other."
—Caroline Leavitt, New York Times bestselling author of Pictures of You and Days of Wonder
Ever wondered how an author gets her big break? The Writers on Writing podcast answered just that in an interview with Caroline Leavitt, the New York Times bestselling author of thirteen novels, most recently, Days of Wonder. As she'll tell you, sometimes it takes a dozen books under your belt for an author's big break to arrive!
Leavitt was very influential in teaching me how to structure my novel, Unspoken, while it was taking shape. Now Leavitt is long-listed for the Joyce Carol Oates Literary Prize. Hear the interview about her early fiction experiences, her story structure process, and breaking out in the publishing world — her path to success was as daunting as it is fascinating:
High Praise From the Dean of Texas History
"The novel reminds me, in tone, of Texas classics like The Time it Never Rained and Giant. I loved it. Alexander is a great new talent in the genre of Texana."
—W.F. Strong, author, Stories From Texas, and radio commentator for NPR Texas
There's no one whose storytelling method rivals that of the cowboy poets and has a better grasp of Texas history, including its little-told minutiae, than author and NPR radio commentator W.F. Strong.
I've been a fan of the Texas tales he tells on air from the start. So I was immensely grateful for his kind praise of Unspoken. Catch up on his weekly NPR podcasts from the Texas Standard, and read his two volumes of Stories From Texas — Some of Them Are True, for a straight shot of the Texas state of mind. In Strong's most recent NPR commentary, he tells of the travels in Texas by author John Steinbeck — who coined “Texas is a state of mind." Pick any tale: You'll enjoy Strong's vivid storytelling in his deep, resonant voice:
You're Invited on Thursday July 3, 2pm CST
Join me for the Zoom launch of my new historical novel, UNSPOKEN, in a book club discussion format
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