West of Sunset Review from NY1

ny1

Patrik Henry Bass of Essence Magazine reports on newly released book titles and the world of publishing in The Book Reader.

While writing “The Last Tycoon,” his fifth and final novel, author F. Scott Fitzgerald famously scribbled the line: “There are no second acts in American lives.” Stewart O’Nan, one of the best living American novelists, mines the final years of the famed Great Gatsby storyteller’s life and turns up literary gold.

“West of Sunset” offers a far different Fitzgerald than the glittering and dazzling chronicler of the Jazz Age many of us envisioned when reading classics such as “Tender Is the Night” and “This Side of Paradise.” In fact, “West of Sunset” could’ve easily been titled The Other Side of Paradise.

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The California Leg of the Tour

Today begins the California part of the West of Sunset tour.  To start things off, here are two photos from an event last year.  They were taken at Musso and Frank Grill, which is one of the locales that makes an appearance in West of Sunset.  Next to the restaurant was Stanley Rose’s bookstore (in operation from 1935 to 1939), where folks like Fitzgerald, Nathanael West, John O’Hara, and William Faulkner went to talk and drink in the back room!

In attendance: Stewart O’Nan, Holly Watson, Sales rep Tom Benton, Sales Rep Amy Comito; Booksellers Ed Conklin, Chaucer’s (Santa Barbara); Allison Hill, Vroman’s and Book Soup; Adrian Newell, Warwick’s (San Diego); Julie Slavinsky, Warwick’s (San Diego);  Steve Salardino, Skylight (LA).

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From left to right: Ed Conklin, Adrian Newell, Holly Watson; Julie Slavinsky, Tom Benton, Steve Salardino, Allison Hill. Photo credit: Amy Comito.

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Left to right, seated: Steve Salardino, Stewart, Allison. Left to right, standing: Tom Benton, Julie Slavinsky, Adrian Newell, Ed Conklin, Amy Comito, Holly Watson.

Stewart will be in the great state of California this coming week, starting tonight at Rakestraw Books.  Come on by!

Danville, CA
Rakestraw Books, 1/23/2015
http://www.rakestrawbooks.com/upcoming-events

Sonoma, CA
Reader’s Books, 1/24/2015
http://readers.indiebound.com/

Berkley, CA
Books, INC, 1/26/2015
http://www.booksinc.net/event/2015-01

Los Angeles, CA
Diesel Books (Brentwood), 1/27/2015
http://www.dieselbookstore.com/brentwood-staff-recs-events-bestsellers-and-more

Pasadena, CA
Vroman’s Books, 1/28/2015
http://www.vromansbookstore.com/event

San Diego, CA
Warwick’s, 1/29/2015 7:30pm
http://warwicks.indiebound.com/event/stewart-onan