Welcome to the very first episode of the Sarah’s Book Shelves Live podcast!

In this episode, bestselling author of We Were the Lucky Ones, Georgia Hunter, joins me to share her (mostly) historical fiction book recommendations, talk about the impact her novel had on her life and her family, and go behind-the-scenes of her recent book tour!

Highlights

• Georgia’s discovery at age 15 that she was ¼ Jewish and that her grandparents’ were Holocaust survivors…and then, recently discovering that she’s actually ⅓ Jewish.
• Georgia’s grandparents’ decision to put the past behind them and not talk about their experience in the war.
• Georgia’s family’s reaction to having huge gaps in their personal histories filled through her research. 
• Georgia is beginning work on a sophomore novel!
• What it’s like to blurb another author’s book (and her approach to writing blurbs).
• An All the Light We Cannot See read-alike.
• Georgia’s book she didn’t love is one I recommended!
• Two of Georgia’s historical fiction recommendations are books she blurbed!

Georgia Hunter’s (Mostly) Historical Fiction Recommendations

Two OLD Books She Loves

• The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver | Buy from Amazon [24:15]
• Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life by Anne Lamott (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [26:34]

Two NEW Books She Loves

• The Winter Soldier by Daniel Mason (All the Light You Cannot See read-alike) | Buy from Amazon [30:02]
• You Think It, I’ll Say It: Stories by Curtis Sittenfeld (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [31:59]

One Book She Didn’t Love

• Dead Letters by Caite Dolan-Leach (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [34:47]

One Upcoming Release She’s Excited About

• The Age of Light by Whitney Scharer (Release Date: February 5, 2019) | Pre-Order from Amazon [38:10]

Other Books Mentioned

• We Were the Lucky Ones by Georgia Hunter (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [3:12]
• Grit by Angela Duckworth (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [13:00]
• The Great Believers by Rebecca Makkai (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [17:25]
• As Bright As Heaven by Susan Meissner | Buy from Amazon [20:31]
• And After the Fire by Lauren Belfer | Buy from Amazon [21:08]
• Unsheltered by Barbara Kingsolver (her most recent book) | Buy from Amazon [26:24]
• All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr | Buy from Amazon [30:23]
• Z: A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald by Therese Anne Fowler (My Review) | Buy from Amazon [40:17]
• Loving Frank by Nancy Horan | Buy from Amazon [40:28]

Other Links

• My thoughts on We Were the Lucky Ones and Q&A with Georgia
• Georgia’s Tips on How to Research Your Ancestry
• E.L. Doctorow Quote:
  

  Writing is like driving at night in the fog. You can only see as far as your headlights, but you can make the whole trip that way.

• Article about author Daniel Mason in New York Times Magazine: If This Book Is Not Expressing Everything, What Am I Doing With My Life?

About Georgia Hunter

Author Website | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram

For as long as I can remember, I’ve loved to write. I penned my first “novel” when I was four years old, and titled it Charlie Walks the Beast after my father’s recently published sci-fi novel, Softly Walks the Beast. When I was eleven, I pitched an article—an Opinion piece on how I’d spend my last day if the world were about to come to an end—to the local newspaper. Since that debut in the Attleboro Sun Chronicle, my personal essays and photos have been featured in places like the New York Times “Why We Travel,” in travelgirl magazine, and on Equitrekking.com. I’ve also taken on the role of freelance copywriter in the world of adventure travel, crafting marketing materials for outfitters such as Austin Adventures and The Explorer’s Passage.

In 2000, a family reunion opened my eyes to the astounding war stories of my grandfather and his family. Eight years later, armed with a digital voice recorder and a moleskin notebook, I set off to unearth and record my family’s story. I spent nearly a decade traversing the globe, interviewing family and digging up records from every possible source I could think of, eventually piecing together the bones of what would become my novel, We Were the Lucky Ones.

Next Week’s Episode

Special Episode
Winter 2019 New Release Preview with Catherine of Gilmore Guide to Books (airing January 9)

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Have you read any of the books Georgia recommended (or didn’t recommend!)? Share your thoughts in the comments!