Houston author Chris Cander’s “Dispatches from Book Tour,” a multi-week blog series of reflections and updates along her 17-city U.S. book tour for her new novel 

Friday, February 1, 2019

My new friend and sales rep Jess Pearson and I made a pilgrimage to William Faulkner’s grave before starting our road trip from Oxford, Mississippi to Nashville via the peaceful, historical Natchez Trace Parkway. It was a long drive, so we stopped in Collinwood for a cup of coffee and some sugar-free fudge, and then at my editor Gary’s house in Franklin, where I got to see The Weight of a Piano lined up alphabetically next to Peter Carey and Raymond Carver and others on the wall of shelves containing all the books he’s ever edited. Swoon.

The reading at the legendary Parnassus Books was terrific, and impressively attended, especially for a Friday night in Nashville. I was thrilled to meet Karen Hayes, who along with Ann Patchett, owns the store. We and a couple of their terrific booksellers enjoyed a great conversation over dinner at a little place called Miel.

After several days of non-stop festivities, I thought I’d drop into a profound sleep, but here I am, awake at 1 AM, still thinking about all the old and new friends I’ve gotten to see, the bookstores and booksellers whose gracious hospitality and enthusiasm for the book are connecting it with so many readers, and the incredible opportunity to spend time talking about this book and these characters that I love so much. I’m not taking a second of any of this for granted.

The post Dispatch 7: Chris Cander and The Weight of a Piano go from Mississippi to Tennessee first appeared on An Open Book - The Inprint Blog.

Houston author Chris Cander’s “Dispatches from Book Tour,” a multi-week blog series of reflections and updates along her 17-city U.S. book tour for her new novel 

Thursday, January 31, 2019

Oxford, Mississippi is a true gem, “the cultural mecca of the South.” We stopped at the home of Richard and Lisa Howorth, owners of the renowned Square Books, where we’ll spend the night. I can already tell I want to be friends with them forever. (Gary and Richard and I were feeling the love for The Weight of a Piano in store’s Valentine’s Day-themed window display!) Over lunch at Proud Larry’s, I learned about Oxford’s literary history, including the fact that theirs is the only town square in the south with four bookstores.

After signing several hundred books for their Signed First Editions Book club—that makes a total of six stores who chose the novel for that honor—we went to Off-Square Books to record the The Thacker Mountain Radio Hour. It’s a weekly live radio show hosted by the fabulous Jim Dees and featuring author readings and musical performances. We’d arranged ahead of time to pair me with an amazing young pianist named Price Walden, who performed two pieces from the novel so beautifully the standing room only crowd was dazzled. Tonight’s episode will be broadcast on Mississippi Public Broadcasting on Saturday, February 2 at 7:00 PM.

We capped the evening with dinner and drinks at City Grocery, where the manager, Lenny Moon, slipped me their recipe for shrimp and grits. I’d love to share it with you, but I promised I’d keep it secret. When the tour is over, I’ll make a big batch for anyone who wants to try it!

The post Houston author Chris Cander and The Weight of a Piano go to Oxford, Mississippi first appeared on An Open Book - The Inprint Blog.