Over the years that I have been hosting this program I have met some authors in unusual ways. I interviewed a writer who I knew when we were playing Little League baseball in Des Moines. I have done interviews with writers I initially got to know as we were attending boarding school together in Delaware. I have met writers in coffeehouses and restaurants who I have gone on to invite to appear on the program. I think the strangest way I ever met an author who I ended up interviewing has to be the time I met this fellow on eBay.
Here's how it happened. Now and then I'll sell an item on eBay. Mostly, I buy stuff on the eBay platform. That's where I get most of the Richard M. Nixon memorabilia that I collect. I had tried to sell a record album one time and nobody ever bid on it. I gave up and decided to keep it. A few months later I got an eBay message from somebody who asked if I still had that record and if I did would I still like to sell it? That was unusual. I rarely have anybody contact me after the fact to ask about buying something I had previously been trying to sell. We conversed via eBay messages as we arranged our transaction. This gentleman mentioned in one of his messages that he had written some books. I asked him to tell me more. To my amazement I had actually been aware of the books although I was not familiar yet with this guy I had met on eBay. His name is Joe Garden and for many years he was a writer for THE ONION.
After that we stayed in touch. He sent me his books. We talked about doing an interview. This went on for quite some time. Then the other day he told me that he would be driving from Wisconsin to New York and he offered to drop by the station to tape a show. And that is what we did. I hope you enjoy this interview. I think it is pretty special.
BOOK NOOK BONUS SEGMENT
"God is a Bullet" by Boston Teran
(original recording made in 1999)
In 1999 I interviewed the most mysterious writer I have ever interviewed. Boston Teran had just published his first book, "God is a Bullet," and we did this interview by telephone. 22 years later Boston Teran remains a mystery. Google him, you'll be amazed. It has taken 22 years for this incredible book to finally get turned into a movie. They just finished shooting the film in New Mexico.
The Book Nook on WYSO is presented by the Greene County Public Library with additional support from Washington-Centerville Public Library, Clark County Public Library, Dayton Metro Library, and Wright Memorial Public Library.
