Poppoff with Mary Jane Popp is a fast-paced magazine radio show dedicated to keeping you on the cutting edge of today’s hot button issues on KAHI Radio in California. We talked for thirty minutes about college life, the over-the-top parents trying to get their kids into elite colleges, and what it is like for someone from a poor developing company to come to school in this country. And, of course, we talked about The College Shrink.
Jim Aldon, Editorial Director of BookTrib, a well known literary review organization, put The College Shrink at the top of his annual list of The Top 20 Books of 2022 That You’ve Probably Never Heard Of But Probably Should Have. Given the large volume of books that BookTrib sees each and every year, this is a big deal. It it great to have the support and recognition from Jim and the BookTrib team. Many thanks!
See Jim’s comments here: https://booktrib.com/2022/11/28/20-favorites-from-2022-that-youve-probably-never-heard-of/
A lively discussion with host James How on The College Shrink story, the process of writing a novel, and mental health issues on college campuses.\
Turns out that Hollis is a former Division 1 football player who experienced some of the same uncomfortable emotions as Seth, the confused football recruit in The College Shrink, making for a great conversation. Seth is one of the many unique characters who regularly visits a therapist on campus as he struggles with the inconsistent messages of coaches, parents, teammates and young women he hopes to date.
It’s not often that you get to be on the morning radio show in little Amherst, Virginia, but more people should have the opportunity. What a privilege to visit with host Bob Langstaff and talk about The College Shrink. A Vanderbilt University grad and clearly someone who follows education at all levels, the discussion touched on privileged private high schools, parent doing whatever necessary to have their children accepted to elite universities, and the continuing increase of serious mental health challenges on college campuses. All topics that make for a great book!
Douglas is a musician turned book and music radio show host originally from Boston and now Las Vegas. Most of the forty-five minutes was spent comparing the process of writing music to that of writing a novel. A great learning experience.
A lively dialogue with a radio host who has been broadcasting his literature and music shows from North Carolina for 30 years. Great fun.
Live from Rhode Island with host Wayne Barber, a 45 minute discussion about many The College Shrink characters (Emily, Jelly, Seth, Mana, Elizabeth, Monk, Marionette, Saint Henry), where they came from, and where they might be headed.
A more than lively 90 minute evening discussion of The College Shrink with a zoom book club of ten alums from Williams College. Great questions and perspectives that continued with emails the following morning. Was college like this when we were students many years ago — or were mental health problems just better hidden? Who are the real people to admire in the story — Emily, Saint Henry, Mana, Jelly, Elizabeth? After all, they all have real flaws. How their challenges were not all that different from what the book club participants had experienced in their own lives? A lot of fun for a writer.
It never hurts when a book review begins with “This is a beautiful book.” Many thanks to Jim Aikon, Editorial Director of Booktrib for penning a wonderful review of The College Shrink. Click here to read the review. With more than 70,000 monthly visitors, Booktrib is “a website featuring under-the-radar authors that deserved to be noticed, and that readers would enjoy discovering – whether debut writers, midlist or even occasional bestsellers.”
