I finished up the last signing for The Ranger last Thursday in Jackson, Mississippi. But on Sunday I had a chance to speak to Francois Busnel, host of La Grande Librairie — an extremely popular show in France focusing on writers. Can you imagine a show in America talking to writers instead of Real Housewives or fifth rate celebrities attempting to dance?
I met Francois in Memphis on Beale Street to discuss race, music, and the complexities of the South. The French are endlessly fascinated with Southern culture. They also love classic noir. So in the last few years, my Nick Travers stories have enjoyed a nice run of success. Even though I haven’t written about Nick for seven years, a French audience is just discovering the books in translation. Francois and the wonderful crew from La Grande Librairie enjoyed a nice drink together at the Peabody bar before they headed to Jackson to speak to pal, Tom Franklin and then onto New Orleans to talk with James Lee Burke. This is all for a seven-part series on American authors and the regions they write about. Other authors highlighted on the show will be Jim Harrison, Pat Conroy, and Philip Roth.