"People in Strange Lands," EP #314

Episode #14                        “People in Strange Lands”

Broadcasting Feb 10^th, 2014. on LIFE 25 (channel 25 on TWC)

This week Frank Debonair investigates the fascination that some crime writers have with dark psychological characters.  What does it mean to write about the dark corners of the human mind?  Are these new grounds to gain a better insight into our psyche?  Do they say something about our true nature? Or are they a reflection of society at large?

Crime authors Andrew Gross, Mark Rubenstein, T. Jefferson Parker, Linwood Barclay, and Jon Land undergo extensive cross-analysis under Frederic Colier's razor-sharp curiosity.

The last Pick Of The Week of the season takes a different turn and showcases books by authors whose characters are trapped in existential and moral dilemmas: Daniel Woodrell, “The Maid’s Version.”  Martin Fletcher, “Jacob’s Oath.”  Andre Dubus III, “Dirty Love.”  And Javier Marias, “The Infatuations.

As always thank you for your support.

The Book Case Team

"In the Dustbin of History" EP#313

Episode #313                        “In the Dustbin of History”

Broadcasting Feb 3, 2014, NYC Life at 9:30 pm

We are resuming our series for the first time this year with an episode on historical thrillers. Frank Debonair notices that the dustbins of history are replete with losers, merely because the winners of conflicts get to write the history books and dispose of their opponents in the dustbins of history.  But Frank is interested in history writers, their weight, how their narration shapes consciousness and society, and how it becomes the material for countless thrillers.  What right do they have to question the past? Can their audacity teach us something? Or can history first of all teach us anything?

 The Interview segments shot at Thriller Fest include Steve Berry, Alan Topol, Greg Dinallo, and Michael Gear and Kathleen O’Neal, and Andrew Kaplan.

For the Pick of the Week, Frank Debonair settles for an anthology special.  He features Elena Shubina, editor of “Read Russia;”  Otto Penzler, for “Kwik Krimes,”  Gardner Dozois,  for “The Year’s Best Science Fiction,” and David Henry Sterry & R.J. Martin Jr., for “Johns, Marks, Tricks, and Chickenhawks.”

The Book Case Team