Today I am thrilled to be joined by Debra Dean, the bestselling author of four critically acclaimed books, including, “The Madonnas of Leningrad” and “Hidden Tapestry.” Reading Debra Dean’s favorite novel felt like the perfect choice for this moment in time. It is a gentle, comforting book, with bigger themes that reveal themselves slowly. The main character only begins to understand his role in history in retrospect. It was a fascinating read, and Debra is an enthusiastic and wonderful reading partner.
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Host: Julie Strauss
Website/Instagram/Facebook
Guest: Debra Dean
Website/Instagram
Books discussed in this episode:
The Madonnas of Leningrad by Debra Dean
Hidden Tapestry by Debra Dean
The Remains of the Day by Kazuo Ishiguro
An Artist of the Floating World By Kazuo Ishiguro
A Pale View of the Hills by Kazuo Ishiguro
Nancy Pearl
The Writer’s Library: The Authors You Love on the Books That Changed Their Lives by Nancy Pearl & Jeff Schwager
Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck
Kate Atkinson (my personal favorite is this one. I’ll be talking about it with another guest in an upcoming episode!)
The Art of the Wasted Day by Patricia Hampl
Moon Jar by Didi Jackson
Powell’s Bookstore
Books and Books in Miami
(Here is the link to all of Debra’s books at her favorite bookstore!)
*Note: in the podcast, you will hear me mention that Debra was initially debating between four books. I asked her about the debating, but forgot to mention the other books! I thought you might be interested to know her other choices:
Continental Drift by Russell Banks
Beautiful Ruins by Jess Walter
Housekeeping by Marilynne Robinson
Discussed in our Patreon Exclusive Clip:
The Hermitage Museum, St. Petersbug, Russia
(Note: If you shop using my affiliate links, a portion of your purchase will go to me, at no extra expense to you. Thank you for supporting indie bookstores and for helping to keep the Best Book Ever Podcast in business!)
