Friday, May 4, 2012
Book Feature: Barefoot Girls by Tara McTiernan with interview and giveaway!
BLURB
Barefoot Girls, by Tara McTiernan
When
her hometown newspaper reviews Hannah O’Brien’s newly released novel,
the nature of her book is called into question when the reviewer
suggests it is a memoir depicting her neglectful alcoholic mother –
Keeley O’Brien Cohen, the most beloved of the Barefoot Girls - a little
too accurately for fiction, citing rumors rather than sources.
Deeply
hurt and betrayed, Keeley cuts Hannah out of her life. Desperate,
Hannah does everything she can to apologize and explain, but her pleas
fall on deaf ears. Meanwhile, the rest of Hannah’s life starts to
unravel, pushing her to risk her engagement to Daniel, the one man who
had been able to scale the high walls around her heart. At the eleventh
hour, the Barefoot Girls are able to convince Keeley to send Hannah the
keys to the Barefooter house, the home and heart of their friendship.
Barred from their clubhouse since she was twelve, Hannah grabs the
chance to visit the little shack filled with memories and perched at the
tip of Captain’s Island in the Great South Bay on Long Island, New
York.
As
Hannah battles to come to terms with her equally blessed and troubled
childhood and understand her mother and her sister-close friends, she’s
confronted with the power of forgiveness and the dangers of holding on
to the past.
EXCERPT
Hannah’s
eyes were getting even heavier, too heavy for even her fingers. She let
them shut. A single early cricket starting singing nearby in the grass.
The back screen door opened with a squeak and then slammed shut. Hannah
rolled over and sat up, rubbing her pesky sleepy eyes hard to make them
wake up. “Momma?”
Her
mothers’ shuffling feet grew closer. Hannah finally got her eyes to
open. Sitting up helped. When she looked up at her mother who was
approaching the blanket, she was completely different.
Before
her mother had been jubilant, nearly dancing on her toes all day, a
wide grin never far from her lips. She had those she loved most, her
best friends and her beautiful baby girl, and she had been able to
answer a magical wish, one involving Tinker Bell’s help. Add to that
wine and margaritas and the Amaretto Sours she and the Barefooters drank
after dessert, and she was feeling more than fine.
This
new mother’s hair stood up in chunks, as if she’d been pulling it. Even
in the dark, Hannah could see something was different about her
mother’s beautiful face, something askew. Keeley was walking like one of
those zombies in the movie on television Aunt Pam let Hannah watch one
time when she was babysitting while Keeley was out on a date with
another maybe-father.
“Baby?” Keeley’s voice wobbled.
Who had been on the phone? What happened?
“What, Mommy?” Hannah asked, and then heard the wiggly fear in her own voice.
INTERVIEW
1. How do you take your coffee?
When
I drink coffee, I love it loaded with cream and sugar, like coffee ice
cream, only hot! Generally, though, I drink tea as well as copious
amounts of water.
2. Do you have any advice for aspiring authors?
Write
a lot before you try to publish any of it. The first five or six
million words will be pretty awful. Of course, you can count all of the
creative writing you've ever done, even the stuff completed as a kid.
It's all part of your journey to becoming a writer worthy of being read.
And if you're excited about the whole ebook revolution and believe your
first novel is worth publishing, you're sadly mistaken. Every single
writer out there can tell you of one or more "trunk" novels that should
never see the light of day, and they are almost always the early
efforts. Put in your time and learn your craft - you'll be glad you did.
3. Do you have a playlist for Barefoot Girls?
Yes,
indeed! While editing the book, it became clear that there were so many
songs perfect for this story, that we put them in at the back of the
book along with the reader's guide. I also wrote an article (here:http://taramctiernanfiction.blogspot.com/2012/03/barefoot-girls-song-list-bonus-tracks.html ) where I listed bonus tracks as well as why they belonged to the story. The original playlist is as follows:
Barefoot Girls Playlist
"Under the Boardwalk" - The Drifters
"Crystal Blue Persuasion" - Tommy James and the Shondells
"Running on Empty" - Jackson Browne
"It's Only Fear" - Alexi Murdoch
"American Pie" - Don McLean
"Here I am (Come and Take Me)" - Al Green
"It's Only a Paper Moon" - Nat King Cole
"The Way I am" - Ingrid Michaelson
"Don't Worry, Be Happy" - Bobby McFerrin
"Margaritaville" - Jimmy Buffett
"Sweet Caroline" - Neil Diamond
"Blue Bayou" - Linda Ronstandt
4. Which one of your characters do you identify with, if any?
All
of them, to a degree. I believe that part of storytelling is putting
yourself in the shoes of each character, and in that process, a little
of you rubs off. None of the characters is "me", though. I got that out
of my system years ago, thank goodness. I have to say that I absolutely
fell in love with the Barefooters, though, and wish they were real
people, so I could hang out with them and have a few Mean Greens and
some laughs!
5. Who is currently on your elevator list?
Don't
think I can answer that; my husband wouldn't take too kindly to it :) I
will say that the celebrities I find most attractive are those with
great personalities and a wry wit. For example: John Cusack in High Fidelity and Clark Gable in Gone with the Wind.
6. Where do you find your inspiration?
Everywhere! Seriously, I can't think of one thing that doesn't inspire me.
7. In a few words why should people read this book?
The people who would most enjoy Barefoot Girls are
women who enjoy reading about lifelong friendships or friendship in
general as well as those interested in the mother-daughter relationship.
I think it's a great story about growing up and taking responsibility
for our lives, love and loss, and the ties that bind us to family and
friends.
8. What has been your favorite book so far this year?
This
year has been an odd one as I usually have more hits - books I love -
than misses, but the last eight books I've read were either
disappointing or I had to abandon them halfway as I couldn't find any
enjoyment at all in them. However, the very last book I read was a hit: Silver Girl by
Elin Hilderbrand. I've always enjoyed her writing and she delivered
again, better than ever. She's clearly growing as a writer and the book
is, in my opinion, one of her best with great characters and a riveting
storyline.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Tara
McTiernan grew up in Greenwich, Connecticut and spent most of her
childhood summers on an island in the Great South Bay on Long Island,
New York - both of which has been the settings for her novel and short
stories. Her stories have been published in literary magazines including
Eureka Literary Magazine and Ultimate Writer. She currently lives in
North Carolina with her husband, Ash. Visit the author's blog at http://taramctiernanfiction.blogspot.com/.
LINKS TO PURCHASE
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