Back from Tucson

Just returned to Iowa from the Tucson Festival of Books, which drew upward of 70,000 readers to the University of Arizona campus for a weekend of panels and performances. Strange TribeHaving just survived my first Midwestern winter, my favorite part was toasting in the sun, but the events were pretty fabulous too. I was especially engrossed by novelist Aurelie Sheehan’s interview with John Hemingway, grandson of Ernest, who recently published a memoir called Strange Tribe. Bipolar disorder has wreaked serious havoc on at least four generations of his family, claiming the lives of not only his famous grandfather but his great-grandfather as well, plus two of his grandfather’s siblings (all by suicide). Meanwhile, his father, Dr. Gregory Hemingway, was a cross-dresser who had a sex change and, as one might imagine, a stormy relationship with Ernest. I was impressed by John Hemingway’s grace and composure as he read excerpts of fiery letters exchanged between the two. John took refuge in the road at an early age, living in Italy as an expat for many years before starting a family in Canada. His memoir must make for some scintillating reading.

I also enjoyed hearing Curtis Sittenfeld, author of American Wife, a novel based on the life of Laura Bush. Having briefly met and interviewed the Former First Lady myself (when she was in the Texas Governor’s mansion and I was an AP reporter), I share Sittenfeld’s fascination for the subject. What was it like to be married to a President American Wifewhose policies you obviously didn’t agree with? Sittenfeld, who burst on the literary scene with her best-selling boarding school novel Prep, is a staunch liberal herself, but apparently has created wholly lovable characters in her First Couple–no small literary feat! I was especially fascinated to learn that, when Laura Bush was 17, she ran a red light and crashed into a truck driven by a popular boy from her high school, who died. How did I miss that detail during those long and weary campaign years? Regardless: American Wife just landed on my summer reading list as well.

One Comment

  1. Thanks for the heads-up about these 2 books, Stephanie. Both sound fascinating!

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