IN THE STUDIO – Cathie Beck and Cheap Cabernet
Wednesday at 12:00pm and Sunday at 6:00pm on 107.1lpfm Nashville and Streaming Live at http://www.clearstoryradio.com
Join us for a great visit down on the Gulf Coast with Sundog Books. Bob and Linda White the founders and owners spin tales of the past and recommend novels and stories that are must reads. Then author Cathie Beck steps into the studio to visit. And that’s just what it is. No interview. No book pitch. It’s a visit that includes book talk, funny stories, Russian literature, stolen stories, wine, and road trips.
It’s always about the Power of Story, the way it connects us and grounds us, centers us and helps us find common ground. Come join us and celebrate the written word in all its glory.
What People Are Saying About Cheap Cabernet
What They’re Saying About Cheap Cabernet
Cathie Beck’s “Cheap Cabernet” is a vintage tale, a female buddy story chock full of the stuff of life: tears, laughter and love in the darkest of times. You won’t put it down until the final page — at which time a box of Kleenex and a glass of cabernet, cheap or otherwise, would be wise to have on hand: the first to deal with the story’s denouement, the second to toast Beck’s triumph.
Cheap Cabernet is simply awesome, such a poignant story, and so very well-written.
— Patti Thorn, books editor,
Rocky Mountain News
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Some friendships survive beyond the final gruesome fight. Some last beyond the grave. Cathie Beck had that kind of friendship and she relates the roller coaster ride of that relationship in her memoir with a heavy dose of wit and a wine glass full of poignant reflection.
Beck’s writing is breezy, polished, and fun to read. Her vivacious personality comes alive on the page and draws readers into her world.
— ForeWord Reviews
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Cathie Beck’s wonderfully told and achingly poignant memoir will remind every woman to call her best friend right away to tell her how important their relationship is, and how she couldn’t survive without it And, by the way, to run out and buy the heartbreaking book, “Cheap Cabernet.”
— Iris Rainer Dart, author of Beaches
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All [of the chapters describing Cathie’s life and friendship with Denise] are sharply focused and grip the reader’s attention. . . . Compelling as both an account of a special friendship and, more generally, of the dynamics of women’s lives and relationships.
— The Washington Times
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The book is beautifully written and I could not put it down … what an adventure … this book will be read by many people. … and will make the rounds and stimulate some wonderful conversation about friendship, surviving the rough times and enjoying the hell out of the good times.
— Susan Gatschet-Reese, host, “Mid-Morning Jazz”,
KUVO Radio
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“Beyond wonderful — wickedly funny, poignant, and smart.
Anyone who’s a fan of Mary Karr or Annie Lamott will find Cathie Beck’s “Cheap Cabernet” both laugh-out-loud hysterical — and heartbreaking.”
— Best selling author, Elle Newmark,
The Book of Unholy Mischief
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“Cheap Cabernet is utterly seductive … a page-turner … impossible to put down.
Not since “Thelma & Louise” have women and friendship been so beautifully and powerfully painted. This hilarious, heartbreaking memoir is a joyful and exhilarating ride for the reader.”
— Sandi Gelles-Cole, host “Ask the Book Doctor”
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Cathie Beck’s Cheap Cabernet is a bracing story of a woman who took the crappy hand life had dealt her and turned it into a big win. With an awe-inspiring stamina, she kept going long past the point other people — like me — would’ve quit. I devoured this empowering and very funny memoir from the first page.
— Julie Klam, author of Please Excuse My Daughter
Michael Morris & The Long Arm of The Story
FROM THE VAULT – One of our Favorite Shows of All Time – Mr. Michael Morris and the Long Arm of the Story! Wednesday at 12:00 Noon and Sunday Night at 6:00pm
This week award winning author Michael Morris takes a break to share with us the new readers who are discovering and connecting with his work, his great ideas in the works, and a certain someone determined to rope in Clint Eastwood to play a starring role in his new novel. (Are you listening Mr. Eastwood?)
YOU Can listen to the entire program here at your Leisure - –Clearstory Radio Show, November 17, 2010
A great litchat, a real city where people read, some special advice from the Writer’s room and yes, that perfect mix of a few great tunes, special guests for writers they’ll actually love..
Be inspired on Clearstory
Join to Clearstory Radio Wednesday at 12:00pm or Sunday at 6:00pm (CST) at 107.1 Nashville or streaming at Clearstory Radio for a great visit with author, playwright, screenwriter and a very, spiritual man, Jeffrey Stepakoff. Raised near the Television to such wonderful influences as Happy Days, Welcome Back Kotter, and China Beach – Jeffrey decided that at ten or eleven years old the best thing he might become was a screenwriter so he began banging out some ideas on an old typewriter in the basement. We must tell you, the world is all the better for the fact that he was captured by story at an early age and never walked away from it.
We’ll also visit with a That Bookseller Around the Corner, feature a New Book Review, Best Hideaway Getaway, and talk a little bit about Writer’s Notebooks and Where They Write. All mixed in of course with those great Musical Interludes.
Jeffrey Stepakoff was raised in Atlanta, Georgia. He attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill where he received a BA in Journalism. In 1988, the day after getting his MFA in Playwriting
from Carnegie Mellon, he drove to Hollywood where he began writing for film and television.
Jeffrey has “written by” or “story by” credits on thirty-six television episodes, has written for fourteen different series and has worked on seven primetime staffs, producing hundreds of hours of internationally-recognized television, including the Emmy-winning THE WONDER YEARS, SISTERS, WILD CARD, HYPERION BAY, THE MAGIC SCHOOL, C16: FBI, ROBIN’S HOODS, LAND’S END, FLIPPER, SONS & DAUGHTERS, MAJOR DAD, THE YAKOV SMIRNOFF SHOW, BEAUTY & THE BEAST, HAVE FAITH, SIMON& SIMON, and DAWSON’S CREEK where he was Co-Executive Producer.
Stepakoff has also created and developed pilots for many of the major studios and networks, including 20th Century, Paramount, MTM, Fox and ABC. And he has developed and written major motion pictures, including Disney’s TARZAN and BROTHER BEAR, and EM Entertainment’s LAPITCH, THE LITTLE SHOEMAKER, Croatia’s selection for the 1998 Academy Awards.
A few years ago, Stepakoff returned to Atlanta, where he lives with his wife and three young children, and began writing fiction. FIREWORKS OVER TOCCOA, first published by St. Martin’s Press in 2010, is his debut novel. A Southern Independent Booksellers Alliance “Okra” Pick and an ABA Indie Next List Notable, FIREWORKS is available in hardback, trade paperback, large print, audio and digital forms. The novel was also an Avant Premiere (featured pick) for France Loisirs (the French Book club). Stepakoff’s second novel, THE ORCHARD, also a SIBA Pick, was released in North America in July 2011. READER’S DIGEST will release their version in October 2011′s SELECT EDITIONS. Stepakoff’s fiction is available in eleven languages, as well as in editions for all the major bookclubs, including The Literary Guild, Doubleday and Book-of-the-Month Club.
Presently, he speaks around the country, teaches dramatic writing at Kennesaw State University, and is hard at work on his third novel for St. Martin’s Press. In his spare time, he builds forts in living room with sofa cushions.
This week our special visit with that Bookseller Around the Corner features Eagle Eye Books in Atlanta and then Author/Journalist Alix Strauss steps into the Studio all the way from Manhattan to share news of her novels, new books, and some professional words about the Publishing Industry past, present and future. She’s in the know and on the streets in the heart of the city that loves book and offers a bit of advice for Publishers and new authors.
All featured of course with Great Musical Interludes so stay Tuned.
IN THE STUDIO
A Little More on Alix Strauss
A media savvy social satirist, Alix has been a featured lifestyle and trend writer on national morning and talk shows including ABC, CBS, CNN, and most recently, The Today Show. Her articles, which have appeared in the New York Times, New York Post, Time Magazine, Marie Claire, Entertainment Weekly, Self, Esquire, and Departures (among others), cover a range of topics from trends in beauty, travel, and food to celebrity interviews. She is the author of the award winning short story collection, The Joy of Funerals (St. Martin’s Press), and the editor of Have I Got a Guy for You (Adams Media), an anthology of mother coordinated dating horror stories. Her latest book, Death Becomes Them: Unearthing the Suicides of the Brilliant, the Famous, and the Notorious was released in 2009 by Harper Collins and has been optioned as a television show by a well known producer. Based Upon Availability, her second novel, is due to be released in June of 2010 (Harper Collins).
The Joy of Funerals won the Ingram Award, and was named Best Debut Novel by The New York Resident. Alixʼs essays have been anthologized – most recently in Sex, Drugs & Gefilte Fish… The Heeb Storytelling Collection. Her short fiction has appeared in the Primavera Literary Journal, Hampton Shorts Literary Journal, The Idaho Review, Quality Women’s Fiction, The Blue Moon Café III, and A Kudzu Christmas. Her short story, “Shrinking Away”, won the David Dornstein Creative Writing Award. She is the recipient of several awards and fellowships from programs such as the Wesleyan Writers Conference, the Skidmore College Writerʼs Institute, the Sarah Lawrence Summer Program, and the Squaw Valleyʼs Screenwritersʼ Summer Program.
Alix lectures extensively, having spoken at over 100 events and symposiums. She was chosen to speak at the National Jewish Book Festival, and is on the National Speakers Bureau for Israeli Bonds. In addition, she has spoken at numerous conferences and panels including: The Southern Festival of Books, The Northwest Bookfest, The New England’s Writer’s Conference, Wesleyan Writer’s conference, The 92nd Street Y, NYU, Center For Communications, Mediabistro, Columbia University, among others. She hosted a monthly event at Makor called Word of Mouth Thursdays, featuring readings of personal essays, works in-progress, and novel excerpts.
Alix received a degree in Educational Theater from NYU, and has taught Fiction, Creative Writing, Personal Essays, and Writing for Magazines for the past fifteen years.
Contact Alix at alixtjof@aol.com
THAT BOOKSELLER AROUND THE CORNER
Eagle Eye Book Recommendations This Week (with the approval of Gretel the store mascot)
Eagle Eye has been rubbing elbows with the Great Poet Billy Collins
Lisa Garner by Catch Me
The Breath of God by Jeffrey Small
BEST Connection from Today’s Story – Getting Help!
http://www.suicidepreventionlifeline.org/
Musical Interludes Provided by Artists
Bob Dylan – Lay, Lady, Lay
Elton John and Leon Russell
Grace Potter – Ain’t No Time
Jewel – Angels Watching Over You
The Four Seasons - Nicola Benedetti
UPCOMING GUESTS!
Jeffrey Stepakoff
Julie Cantrell
Daniel Blake Smith
Ping Wang
Cathie Beck
And more Musical Interludes, Literary News, And Book Reviews. Stay tuned.
Tune In to Clearstory Wednesday at 12:00pm Central or Sunday nights at 6:00pm in the Nashville area on 107.1lpfm or streaming through Clearstoryradio.com world-wide. (You can also subscribe to Clearstory Radio via Itunes and download for your Ipad/Iphone/ipod)
FAVORITE QUOTE FROM THIS WEEK’S SHOW
“ God’s Grace comes to you sometimes not in spite of tragedy but through tragedy.” Robert Leleux
(But don’t take it out of contexts – you need to tune in to the show to get the full impact of that conversation.)
Previous Shows
This week in the joy of Celebrating Story we visit with author Robert Leleux as he shares a story very close to his heart about his Grandmother, a wild and larger than life, movie star persona, her eventual journey into Alztiemers and his continuing relationship with her during that time. Heartwarming, funny, poignant and meaningful, The Living End showcases the love of relationships and how they may change in character but never in passion.
Author Pat Conroy had this to say about the memoir. “The Living End is Robert Leleux’s exceptionally moving memoir about his beloved grandmother and his heroic caring for her as she slipped into the grip of Alzheimer’s. The book is at times hilarious, tender, and heartbreaking–further proof that Mr. Leleux is ripening into one of the best prose stylists in America.”
Check out more great BUZZ on The Living END!
Tune in and listen to Robert share his story that you can be inspired and perhaps remember some of the many reasons we should treasure the simple moments we have in life with those we love.
And for more information the epidemic on Alzheimer’s, Caregiving, and General INFO please follow links to the Alzheimer’s Foundation of America.
On Book Tour Now! Robert Visits Nashville’s new Parnassus Books - Monday, January 30th, 6pm! See you there!
3900 Hillsboro Pike, Suite 14 Nashville, TN
37215. | Get Directions | 615.953.2243
JUST FOR FUN! VISIT THE INCREDIBLE SPREAD OF ROBERT’S APARTMENT IN NEW YORK VIA LONNY MAGAZINE
We also visit with That Bookseller Around The Corner and feature Blue Willow Books down Texas way recommending great books that should be, could be, on your reading list. They have 14 FOURTEEN! book loving booksellers reading from every genre of all types and have the special talent of matching a reader with a book they will be certain to love.
All Mixed in of course with a Great set of Musical Interludes!
This Week’s CLEARSTORY MUSICAL INTERLUDE PLAYLIST
A little Bit of Jazz – Show Opening
The Best Is Yet To Come – Frank Sinatra
Toot, Toot, Tootsie – Al Jolson
You Mean The World To Me – David Gray
And the Wind Cries Mary – Jimi Hendrix
I’m Your Captain/Closer To Home – Grand Funk Railroad
Russian Lullaby – The Blue Ribbon Healers
He’s A Son of The South – Louie Armstrong
Red Wine, Mistakes, Mythology – Jack Johnson
In the end it’s all about the story, where we find it, what inspires it, how to write it, and why our passionate celebration of the word must continue. Each Clearstory Studio session includes interviews with best-selling and newly discovered writing talents and has featured such notable authors as Clyde Edgerton, Terry Kay, Barry Eisler, Janis Owens, Joshilyn Jackson, JT Ellison, Tasha Alexander, Silas House and many others. Join us for Conversations that celebrate our life stories and the writers who live to tell them so well.
Join us for a fabulous show featuring a collection of authors sharing recent memories and impressions from the wild and wonderful Pulpwood Queen Girlfriend Getaway Weekend! Author views and musical interludes! Wednesday at 12:00 Central and Sunday night at 6PM 107.1lpfm Nashville and streaming world wide at Clearstory Radio.
The Pulpwood Queens Girlfriend Getaway Weekend – there is nothing like it. Nothing. It must be experienced to be even slightly understood. It is truly one of the greatest events on the planet for promoting The Power of Story. I will try to link a few sites for you to illustrate this.
Each year the founder of the Pulpwood Queens International Book Club, Kathy Patrick, hosts a gathering in Jefferson, Texas. Each year there are parties that go along hand in hand with the promotion of literacy and the written word. This past weekend featured a Pretty in Pink prom but it was all due to a BOOK. The Saturday night event was the Greatest Showon
Earth – or under the Big Tent and Circus. Take your pick. This meant lots of costumes and this is me with two of the most dedicated, wondrous rea
ders I’ve ever met. A mother and daughter team – Mary Yetta and Andrea – who dressed as a lion and a tiger. They make me beam. The list of participating authors every year is long enough to cover the equator, the list of readers even longer. 
And it’s the one event where the curtain between author and reader is torn down and cast aside. No dividing lines. No pedestals. Just real people being real with each other and celebrating story. And while yours truly was life boggled and didn’t get planned costume to the party you can see by photos other authors had no problem coordinating and getting their circus on!
This weeks Clearstory program celebrates those authors and readers, those wonderful book clubs, and the amazing force that isKathy Patrick. Long live the Queen.
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In the end it’s all about the story, where we find it, what inspires it, how to write it, and why our passionate celebration of the word must continue. Each Clearstory Studio session includes interviews with best-selling and newly discovered writing talents and has featured such notable authors as Clyde Edgerton, Terry Kay, Barry Eisler, Janis Owens, Joshilyn Jackson, JT Ellison, Tasha Alexander, Silas House and many others. Join us for Conversations that celebrate our life stories and the writers who live to tell them so well.
In The Studio – Cathie Beck and Cheap Cabernet (Feb 21, 2012)
IN THE STUDIO - Cathie Beck and Cheap Cabernet
Join us for a great visit down on the Gulf Coast with Sundog Books. More...
Into the Studio – Julie Cantrell Leads us Into the Free (Feb 15, 2012)
IN THE STUDIO - Julie Cantrell Leads Us Into the Free
Wednesday at 12:00pm and Sunday at 6:00pm on 107.1lpfm Nashville and More...
In The Studio-Michael Morris Discovers the Long Arm of the Story (Feb 8, 2012)
FROM THE VAULT - One of our Favorite Shows of All Time - Mr. Michael Morris and the Long Arm More...
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