A Dream Within A Dream: Jeff Hirsch

July 1, 2016

Black River Falls Blog Tour: Author Interview + Giveaway

BLACK RIVER FALLS

Author: Jeff Hirsch

Release Date: July 5, 2016

Publisher: HMH Books for Young Readers

Format: Hardcover, eBook, audiobook

Pages: 336

Find it: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | iBooks | Goodreads

Description:

Seventeen-year-old Cardinal has escaped the virus that ravaged his town, leaving its victims alive but without their memories. He chooses to remain in the quarantined zone, caring for a group of orphaned kids in a mountain camp with the help of the former brutal school bully, now transformed by the virus into his best friend. But then a strong-willed and mysterious young woman appears, and the closed-off world Cardinal has created begins to crumble.

1. Where did you get the idea/inspiration for BLACK RIVER FALLS?

I got to thinking about a school bully. Let’s call him Keith for the sake of discussion. Clearly some series of events made Keith into the lunch money stealing, freshman menacing jerk he is. Well, what if one day the memories of those events were wiped from his mind? What if he forgot everything that made him the way he is? What if he forgot he was supposed to be the bully? Would he still be one? Who would any of us become if we forgot everything that made us who we are?

2. What's the hardest part of being an author, in your opinion?

It’s probably the feeling that your aspirations are always a step or two beyond your abilities. That’s probably as it should be since you always want to be pushing yourself, but it can occasionally make for a frustrating work day.

3. Favorite book/author?

Can’t really say I have either. I just like too many of each for too many different reasons. I’d say the book that was the most influential on me though was Susan Cooper’s The Dark is Rising. It was the first book I read where it didn’t feel like I was reading it so much as it felt like I’d slipped into another reality. It’s a big reason why I became a writer.

4. Any suggestions or tips for aspiring writers?

Nothing too complicated. Write a little something everyday and have fun with it. Writing is the biggest and best game of pretend there is. Treat it as such. Eventually show your writing to a few smart people and listen close to what they have to say. Be in it for the long haul. Also, pursue other interests. It gives you stuff to write about.

5. What's up next for you?

So much! I’ll be self-publishing a novella length follow up to The Darkest Path later this summer as well as working on my 2017 book, Unnatural Disasters, and trying my hand at a middle grade adventure story.

Here are some things about me.

I live in an extremely Brazilian section of an extremely Greek neighborhood—Astoria, Queens, which is just to the right of Manhattan. (That's as you face Manhattan. If you were, say, lying on your back in the middle of Central Park with your head in a northerly position, we would be to your left) I live there with my wife who has a blog and our two cats who do not. One day I hope to have a very large dog that I can name Jerry Lee Lewis.

I used to write plays (I actually have an MFA in it, which is currently number 8 on US News and World Report's annual list of the top twenty most useless masters degrees) and now I write books for teens. I've written two. One was about a girl who wanted to be a rock star and could graciously be called a learning experience.

The second, is The Eleventh Plague and it comes out Sept. 1, a fact I still find pretty amazing.

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(3) Winners will receive a finished copy of BLACK RIVER FALLS - US Only!

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Tour Schedule:

Week One:

6/27/2016- The Cover Contessa- Interview

6/28/2016- Lisa Loves Literature- Review

6/29/2016- BookCrushin- Guest Post

6/30/2016- A Gingerly Review- Review

7/1/2016- A Dream Within A Dream- Interview

Week Two:

7/4/2016- Michelle4Laughs: It's in the Details- Review

7/5/2016- One Night Book Stand- Guest Post

7/6/2016- Just Commonly- Review

7/7/2016- She Dreams in Fiction- Review

7/8/2016- Curling Up With A Good Book - Interview

September 25, 2013

The Darkest Path Blog Tour: Review, Dream Cast + Giveaway

Welcome to my stop on the official blog tour for The Darkest Path! Today I have a dream cast by the author and my review of the book. Don't forget to scroll to the bottom of the post to enter the tour wide giveaway! To follow along with the rest of the tour, click HERE.

The Darkest Path
Author: Jeff Hirsch
Genre: YA Dystopia

Release Date: September 24, 2013
Publisher: Scholastic Press

Description:

USA TODAY bestselling author Jeff Hirsch once again creates a futuristic world with stunning, dramatic realism.

A civil war rages between the Glorious Path--a militant religion based on the teachings of a former US soldier--and what's left of the US government. Fifteen-year-old Callum Roe and his younger brother, James, were captured and forced to convert six years ago. Cal has been working in the Path's dog kennels, and is very close to becoming one of the Path's deadliest secret agents. Then Cal befriends a stray dog named Bear and kills a commander who wants to train him to be a vicious attack dog. This sends Cal and Bear on the run, and sets in motion a series of incredible events that will test Cal's loyalties and end in a fierce battle that the fate of the entire country rests on.

Dreamcast

Callum Roe played by Dane DeHaan - You guys seen him in Chronicle? I was on the fence about the movie but thought he was awesome, vulnerable and tortured at the same time, kinda like our friend Cal

James Roe played by Eddie Redmayne - Don't know a lot of this work but he was pretty darn good in Les Miserables. He seems to have the intensity but seeming innocence of James.

Nat Whitaker played by Elizabeth Olsen - Man, she was great in Martha Marcy May Marlene. Hard to believe she's Mary-Kate and Ashley's sister! She can do super tough and intense and shattered and vulnerable just as well.

Nathan Hill played by Henry Ian Cusick - Come on, who doesn't love this guy? Besides looking almost exactly like Hill to my mind he's charismatic and projects this incredible decency, two things that would be pretty darn handy to a megalomaniac like Hill.

Bear played by Rosie - No contest here. Bear is bases exactly on my dog Rosie who I got right before I started writing the first draft. Ain't she cute?

The Darkest Path is a young adult dystopian novel that follows main character Callum "Cal" Roe as he goes about his life at a camp for the Glorious Path - a militia type religious group that dedicates themselves to the teachings of Nathan Hill, a former US soldier. The Glorious Path and what is left of the US government have been at war for years, trying to gain control of the country. Cal and his younger brother, James, were captured and taken in by the Glorious Path six years ago. After Cal murders his superior, he decides to attempt to escape the clutches of the Glorious Path and try to find his way home to Ithaca, NY. Along with Bear, the dog that he rescued, Cal must find his way across the country without being caught by the Path. Little does he know that his actions have set in motion a series of events that will have Cal relying on instinct and his loyalties - and ending in a battle that will effect the entire nation.

This was a gripping and intriguing dystopian novel that had me hooked from the first pages. The story line is definitely a dystopian one, but it doesn't seem that far fetched. That was one of the scarier parts for me - that this could actually happen in our country some day. The story line kind of reminded me of the TV show "Revolution" with the militia fighting what's left of the government to control the land. Cal was a great main character for the book. He was brave, strong, smart, dedicated, and loyal - even when it cost him dearly. I loved the addition of Bear into the story as well - his doggie character made things seem a little bit easier to handle and helped to keep Cal safe and sane as he made his way across the country. I was totally rooting for both of them the entire time - right from when they met and Cal rescued him. The writing was captivating and had such vivid imagery and detailed descriptions of everything that I felt I was right alongside Cal throughout the story. Overall, this was a creepy and very realistic dystopian novel that will have fans of the genre begging for more.

I live in upstate New York with my wife and a small passel of animals. I used to write plays (I actually have an MFA in it, which is number 8 on US News and World Report’s list of the top twenty most useless masters degrees) and now I write books for teens. I’ve written three, The Eleventh Plague, Magisterium and The Darkest Path.
A few random facts about me:

I’m incredibly superstitious.
I believe in baking as the ultimate stress reliever. I mean, sure, I write pretty good books but have you tasted my Triple Chocolate Espresso Cookies?
I’m deeply obsessed with the work of Joss Whedon, Stephen King, Bryan K. Vaughn, Prince and Tom Waits.
I started writing because of two women—Susan Cooper, author of the Dark Is Rising Series and Denise Stewart, my 7^th grade English teacher.