Getting my kit bag ready to take The Orphanmaster on the road. I am almost finished preparing a slide show that I will unveil at certain book stores along the way. It features pictures that I found amusing and educative while researching the novel. Like a grand painting of Louis XIV vamping in a pair of high red heels, les talons rouge, that only the upper upper crust of courtiers were allowed to wear. Some of the characters in The Orphanmaster emulate the French fashion. And I have all kinds of other cool stuff, like the 1660 map that was the very first street plan of Manhattan, and a gentleman carrying a rather large fur hand muff. I know, I know, but it makes sense when you see it all together.
I will be gone to the West Coast and the Boston area for a week, then I will return to my hometown to give a talk at the Barnes and Noble at 82nd Street and Broadway on June 27 at 7 pm. I know it will be a tough crowd, but I think I can handle it.
Jean Zimmerman 