How does a novelist follow a critically acclaimed debut novel? Since publishing The Tiger’s Wife, Téa Obreht wrote and threw away two whole novels. Disconnected from the narratives, she didn’t feel they books answered any new questions. That all changed when she heard a history podcast about the American Camel Corps. From the moment she started writing Inland she felt connected to the story.

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Marie-Helene Bertino launched her debut novel, 2 A.M. at The Cat’s Pajamas last night at Greenlight Bookstore. Vintage jazz band Lapis Luna began the evening setting the mood for Bertino’s novel that takes place in The Cat’s Pajama’s, a Philadelphia jazz club. Bertino, who previously published the short story collection Safe as Houses (2012), celebrated the novel’s launch with a reading that included a dozen guest readers each sharing a portion of the opening chapter.

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