The First True Lie, Cartwheel, The Firecracker King, Cash: What I'm Reading

CASH by Robert HilburnWhat I love about this dark, gritty book is how it’s a picture of a whole career. People think of Cash as this icon, but his career had tremendous up and downs, and even someone like Cash struggled with failure. Just a towering book.






FIRECRACKER by Mark Bayan
Richly atmospheric and haunting, this coming of age tale, set against a 1965 backdrop, investigates the murder of a beautiful teenage girl. Fun fact: Bayan is the genius I relied on for all-things-gun research for my novel-in-progress.



THE FIRST TRUE LIE by Marina Mander
A young boy navigates life after his mother dies in his house, a fact he keeps secret. Unsettling, spare, and unforgettable.



CARTWHEEL by Jennifer DuBoisWho wasn’t fascinated by the Amanda Knox case? DuBois imagines the story as fiction in a novel that is all about how we believe what we believe--and why.