Kevin Maloney is the Portland-based author of “Cult of Loretta,” and his new novel “The Red-Headed Pilgrim” is out now from Two Dollar Radio. He talked to Michael Schaub about the book, which he says is “half true, half made up.”
Q. Is there a book or books you always recommend to other readers?
The book I recommend most, one that has a cult-like following of which I’m definitely a member, is “Jesus’ Son” by Denis Johnson. This year, I can’t stop recommending Bud Smith’s “Teenager,” Chelsea Martin’s “Tell Me I’m an Artist,” and Mike Nagel’s “Duplex.”
Q. What are you reading now?
I always find myself reading two or three books at the same time, usually two fiction and one non-fiction. Right now it’s Aaron Burch’s “Year of the Buffalo,” Kevin Wilson’s ”Now is Not the Time to Panic,” and “The Art of Happiness” by the Dalai Lama and Howard C. Cutler.
Q. Is there a book you’re nervous to read?
Every time Scott McClanahan puts a new book out into the world, I’m both nervous and excited to read it. He’s so talented and I respect his writing so much that I’m worried it will completely flip the way I think about books upside down and I’ll have to go back to whatever project I’m working on and change it completely. For similar reasons, I get nervous when I read books about mindfulness and Buddhism, because I know it’s going to kick my ass and I’ll end up renouncing bad reality TV for a while and try to live a more intentional, thoughtful life.
Q. Do you have any favorite book covers?
I’m obsessed with late ‘60s/early ‘70s Richard Brautigan covers, the ones that feature a black-and-white photo of Brautigan with one of his female friends or girlfriends. My absolute favorite is a paperback version of “In Watermelon Sugar” that shows a sinister-looking Brautigan next to a woman in a flower dress. There’s no title on the cover or author name, just a quote from the book: “In watermelon sugar the deeds were done and done again as my life is done in watermelon sugar.”
Q. Which books do you plan, or hope, to read next?
The books I’m most excited about reading over the next few months are “Aesthetica” by Allie Rowbottom, “Bad Thoughts” by Nada Alic, “Earth Angel” by Madeline Cash, and “Dispatches From Puerto Nowhere” by Robert Lopez.
Q. What’s a memorable book experience – good or bad – you’re willing to share?
There’s a scene in my novel that’s plucked straight from real life, where the protagonist is reading Kurt Vonnegut’s “Slaughterhouse-Five” while living in a tent perched in a cow pasture in the hills behind a Wild West-themed roadside attraction in Helena, Montana. There were cows standing around the tent chewing grass and mooing as I read, which I think Vonnegut would appreciate. It’s still probably my favorite book of all time.
Q. What’s something about your book that no one knows?
There are a couple of Easter eggs in my novel that old-time Portland locals will probably catch. The high school in the book is named after Tom Peterson, a Portland furniture salesman from the ’80s famous for his incredible TV commercials. The rival high school is named after Ramblin’ Rod, the host of a local TV show in the ’80s featuring Looney Tunes cartoons and a live studio audience composed of children, on which I appeared once as a child at age seven.
Oindrila Mukherjee’s debut novel is “The Dream Builders.” (Photo credit Amanda Pitts /Courtesy of Tin House)
Edifice wrecks
‘The Dream Builders’ offers a towering look at globalization and inequality. READ MORE
Author and rock music journalist Gary Graff’s new book, “Alice Cooper at 75,” out on Jan. 31, tells the story of the shock rocker through 75 career accomplishments, events and collaborations ahead of Cooper’s 75th birthday on Feb. 4. The book includes dozens of concert photos and candid offstage photographs, rare concert posters and memorabilia, vinyl record sleeves, ticket stubs and more. (Photo courtesy of Gary Graff; Book image courtesy of Motorbooks)
Spirit of 75
The new “Alice Cooper at 75” explores the legacy of the shock rocker. READ MORE
Matthew Salesses is the author of “The Sense of Wonder,” among other books. (Photo credit Grace Salesses / Courtesy of Little Brown)
Court drama
How a real-life basketball hero inspired Matthew Salesses’ “The Sense of Wonder.” READ MORE
“The Creative Act: A Way of Being” by music producer Rick Rubin is among the top-selling nonfiction releases at Southern California’s independent bookstores. (Courtesy of Penguin Books)
The week’s bestsellers
The top-selling books at your local independent bookstores. READ MORE
Bookish.
What’s next on ‘Bookish’
The next free Bookish event will be our second annual Noteworthy celebration, SCNG’s salute to 10 Southern California authors whose books made a mark. Expect to hear from our honorees along with host Sandra Tsing Loh, my colleague Samantha Dunn and me on Feb. 3 at 5 p.m.
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