I was pleased to attend Roxana Robinson’s excellent reading last week. Her introduction to her new novel, COST, was so enticing that I dove into the book this weekend. I’m halfway through and am itching to finish. It’s a beautifully layered story of a family in crisis: Thinking she would spend the summer tending her mother, who is in the early stages of Alzheimer’s, and mending her relationship with her repressive father, Julia instead confronts her son’s heroin use. The writing is absolutely luscious, and the complex interplay between the generations is remarkable. Set in Maine during the waning summer days, this is a great choice for your summer reading…
…and now you can see for yourself with this opportunity to win a free copy! Thanks to the generosity of independent publicist Lauren Cerand (whose immense p.r. expertise I wrote about here), I am able to give away one copy of this fabulous book. All you need to do is send me an email with the word “COST” as the subject line and your name and full mailing address in the body of the email by 5 pm EST Wednesday, June 18. My husband Steve will pick a random, lucky reader to receive the book.
More info:
Read more about COST.
Roxana Robinson is the author of three earlier novels and three short-story collections, as well as a biography of Georgia O'Keeffe. Four of these were named Notable Books of the Year by The New York Times. Her work has appeared in The New Yorker, The Atlantic, Harper's Magazine, The New York Times, Best American Short Stories and Vogue, among others. She has received Fellowships from the Guggenheim Foundation, the National Endowment for the Arts, and the MacDowell Colony. She teaches at the New School in New York.
Lauren Cerand is an independent public relations representative and consultant in New York. Her clients are a purposefully eclectic mix of creative professionals, and she specializes in generating initial buzz and building sustained attention for projects and individuals. She is often asked to share her innovative perspective on publicity and has spoken to audiences at Book Promotion 101, Mystery Writers of America, NYU's Center for Publishing, The (Downtown) Omaha Lit Fest, Penguin UK, Virginia Festival of the Book, Word of Mouth, Women's National Book Association, and the 20th Annual Independent and Small Press Book Fair (December 2007). In 2004, The Village Voice included her in its "Best of New York" issue.
She is the vice chair of the board of directors of Girls Write Now, "a nonprofit volunteer mentoring organization that has been matching bright, creative teenage girls from New York City's public high schools with professional women writers in the community since 1998." A Cornell University graduate, Lauren compiles "The Smart Set," a weekly round-up of cultural happenings for www.MaudNewton.com, and writes about art, politics and style at www.LuxLotus.com.
