Car Con Carne is so called because, in better times, host James VanOsdol would interview folks from the Chicago area in his car and eat meat. Alas, we ate nothing succulent. On the bright side, the pandemic Zoom-style format made it a lot simpler for a Philly guy like me to join the show!
We had a fun conversation about where I got the ideas for my critically acclaimed political satire, what I like about the dystopian genre, why social media is overwhelming yet inescapable, and how I’m a really just a big comic book nerd.
You can watch the podcast recording in its full webcam glory below, or listen to the radio-style podcast wherever podcasts are podcast. (See below the video for a selection of links.)
The London Book Fair, Photo Credit: Combined Book Exhibit
The Wanderer and the New West presents a dystopian view of near-future America, but that doesn’t mean it’s only for readers from the States!
I was excited to display my novel at the London Book Fair in March. The book appeared in the New Title Showcase on a physical shelf and digitally. Actually, my book does have one English connection. Cover artist Ben Mcleod hails from Manchester!
Try to spot my novel in pictures below from the show, courtesy of Combined Book Exhibit.
ManyBooks promo and interview!
In other news, The Wanderer and the New West is featured today on ManyBooks, with a special $2.99 discounted price for the eBook all week long!
ManyBooks featured me as its Author of the Day. Please check out the full interview, where I talk about how I got the idea for my latest novel and whether I think America is going to end up in as dark a place as my book predicts! And I give a sneak preview of my couple next projects, so you don’t want to miss it.
Reviewed by IndieReader
IndieReader gave my novel a great review:
“THE WANDERER AND THE NEW WEST sports smart prose, entertaining dialogue and distinctive characters, and it reads at a breakneck pace,” wrote IndieReader. “Adam Bender’s novel is tight, literate pulp.”
I got the verdict as part of IndieReader’s annual book competition, which will reveal winners later this spring. Wish me luck!
Bid for a signed 3-Book set and support Writers for Hope
Iguana not included.
I’m donating a set of three signed novels to the Writers for Hope auction, supporting RAINN. Click here to bid. This event began in 2014 and is held every April in honor of Sexual Assault Awareness Month. 100% of the money raised by this event goes directly to the Rape, Abuse and Incest National Network (RAINN), the United States’ largest anti-sexual assault organization.
At your local bookshop…
What’s this?The Wanderer and the New West in my local Philly bookstore Shakespeare & Co? It wouldn’t have been possible if I hadn’t switched paperback distributors to IngramSpark. With more flexible terms for small businesses, the move is making my novel more accessible to libraries and independent bookstores.
If you know a great library or local shop, please ask them to order a copy! You can also benefit local bookstores by buying my book online from IndieBound.
Hey, listen up! Will Norman of AuthorReads, a podcast that features exciting books by indie authors, interviewed me recently about my novels WE, THE WATCHED and DIVIDED WE FALL.
I offered some thoughts on the government surveillance debate and what makes a great dystopian novel. I also read an excerpt from WE, THE WATCHED and — I have to say — my unique voice-acting talents must be heard to be believed.
You can listen to the entire thing below via SoundCloud!
Six years ago, I wrote a glowing review in The Eagle of a band called Downtown. Backed by all-star rock producers Flood, Alan Moulder and Toni Halladay, and featuring a melancholy sound that recalled some of the best alternative rock from the late 20th century, Downtown seemed destined for success.
But we didn’t hear much about them after that.
Now Eric Brendo, the band’s guitarist and co-songwriter, is striking out on his own. A debut EP, Over the Dunes and Into the Cave, was released this summer, and Brendo tells me a long-player is due next year. He is in the midst of an October tour and plans to tour again once the LP is released.
This month’s run of shows “has been great,” and “creatively is stronger than the last tour,” says Brendo. “I’ve met some incredibly talented musicians and filmakers along the way and [am] staying really busy.”
The chances of another Downtown collaboration are “pretty slim,” says Brendo. “We toured for a bit after the Downtown release and I was doing some solo shows on the side and trying to expand as a songwriter.” Initial Brendo gigs took place mainly in New York City, but “then the touring addiction kept haunting me,” he says. So Brendo, originally from Detroit, hit the road. He spent “a year or two in L.A. and wound up living in Austin somehow, which has been beneficial in many ways so far.”
On Over the Dunes, Brendo continues to show a knack for the kind of moody, bass-laden grooves that were so core to Downtown’s 2004 debut. He wrote the songs and plays most of the instruments, though co-producer Howard Wulkan played as well. Catchy opener “Hazy Love” could have been a Downtown song, while closer “Ashes” surprises with a rootsy, acoustic twist.
If there’s one thing that’s missing from the EP, it’s a clear single — that one sparkling number guaranteed to bring down the house. On his upcoming full length, fans “can expect a little more [beats per minute] on the tracks and I’ll just be sorting out whether to fit in some of the stripped down open-feel stuff and go for what serves the album,” says Brendo. He plans to issue “a wide variety of albums over the next 5 years” and also hopes to contribute work to films.
For more info on Eric Brendo’s record and tour, click here.
