A Book and a Chat with Frances Gilbert

Another returning guest on today’s “A Book and a Chat” in the form of fellow CT (CAPA) author and also fellow ex Brit, Frances Gilbert. Previously Francis was on the show mainly chatting about her children’s books including the wonderful “The Cookie Thief”, a book that I know firsthand is extremely popular with children and schools.

Today though, we were mainly talking about the other side of Frances’s writing, perhaps her “darker” side and her wonderful psychological thriller “Where Is She Now?”

Set in set in a fictional amalgam of two small English towns, the book is full of intrigue and mystery, full of twists and turns to keep any reader wanting to turn the page.

I will shamelessly share parts of a terrific review by Nina Sankovitch as she describes the book better than I ever could…

“… Gilbert’s writing is lyrical and clear. She does an excellent job portraying the fear and anxiety of someone shaken to the core by trauma, by guilt, and by helplessness in the face of very real danger. Gilbert takes her time creating Rosemary and her space in the world. Slowly, details accumulate and surely, the reader is drawn into the mystery of Rosemary’s child, the question of Rosemary’s sanity or insanity, and the struggle for Rosemary’s survival.

The final unraveling of the truth is unexpected, believable, and riveting. Kindness comes in the form of strangers while treachery begins at home. Where Is She Now left me gasping and roiling, breathless and blown away. This is a wonderful novel.

About “Where Is She Now?”: (Taken from Francis Gilbert’s Web Site)

Rosemary wants only to feel the calm promised in the hymns of her childhood, she wants to 'lay down her burden and enter in.' Cradling her green pocket book wrapped in an old green shawl, she wanders through her daily life with her husband Brian, her traumatized self, and her alter ego, the bossy and competent Anna. Something has happened in the past, centering on her baby, but Rosemary can't quite remember what it was. And where is the baby now?

As she oscillates between rational and delusional spells she seeks validation and support from the inanimate objects around her, the cups on the shelf, the knobs on the bedposts, the books in the bookcase, and the houses lining the streets. In her conversations with them we see a Rosemary who is not quite as deranged as she seems, and a Brian, not quite as supportive as he would like to have you believe.

We also learned during the show not only about a second thriller “She Should Have Come for Me” but also about a third “Murder in the Gun Room” which is currently under way.

Of course the question about about her much wanted flock of sheep as well as the collection of teacups also came up during the show, as well as is next for this talented Connecticut author.

So listen now and share an interesting, and entertaining show as I chat with my special guest today on A Book and a Chat with Frances Gilbert

Barry

Direct link to the show
A Book and a Chat with Frances Gilbert

or you can download the mp3 file of the show from
"Frances Gilbert"

You can find out more about my guest and their books at:
"Frances Gilbert - Where Is She Now?"

Barry Eva (Storyheart)

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A Book and a Chat with Frances Gilbert

When you have a person who lives in the same area as yourself, is a fellow anglophile, collects tea cups and whose ambition is to own a flock of sheep, then you know that person is a must for “A Book and a Chat”

Frances Gilbert from a very early age, often necessitated by long stretches of war time boredom in bomb shelters, listened to family stories, and created her own. Later the sharing of stories with her four children and reading with them beloved books from her own childhood became an ongoing family activity.


It wasn’t until she passed a signpost birthday that she began to write for publication, encouraged by her daughter, Sarah, also a writer, who is the illustrator for the first two books. Frances has published seven children’s books: Turtle on a Summer’s Day, Celeste and Regine in the Rain Forest, To Know the Sea, and A World of Numbers, all with GreeneBark Press; and Goodnight World Outside, Elephant Blue for her own company Frances Gilbert Books.

Her latest children’s book is “The Cookie Thief” written after she retired from her career as teacher, and illustrated by Ben Quesnel who was just starting his teaching career. Although separated by fifty years, the two have made a great team, and “The Cookie Thief” is a book that children will love to read and have read to them.

About “The Cookie Thief”

The Cookie Thief is meant to be enjoyed by parents and kids. It is a delightful story that leads children on the hunt to find the cookie thief.

Thomas is visiting Granny's house when he hears a patter, a swoop and a rush and oh no. "Cookie thief! Cookie thief," Grandma shrieks. Cookies are disappearing, the whole family is in a state of shock. There are no more cookies to be had. People take precautions and start hiding them, "No cookie thief is getting my cookies!" they say. Even the animals are put to work and placed on guard. There are no more cookies to be found anywhere.

It is not just children’s books that Frances produces, her debut adult novel a psychological suspense novel, Where Is She Now? has received some great reviews and is being followed by a second mystery novel “Murder In The Gun Room”

Frances’s books have also been produced by Calibre tapes for blind children in the UK and now she has embarked on a new venture is CDs for children. The first is the wonderfully narrated Stories for Listening, which reveals the truth behind the Loch Ness Monster legend.

So listen now and share an interesting, and entertaining thirty minutes with my guest Frances Gilbert

Barry

Direct link to the show
A Book and a Chat with Frances Gilbert

or you can download the mp3 file of the show from
"Frances Gilbert"

You can find out more about my guest and their books at:
"Frances Gilbert - The Cookie Thief"

Barry Eva (Storyheart)

My Blogs:

Book Information and Things UK - Across the Pond

Book and a Chat Radio Show Guests - A Book and a Chat

Funny, Weird Or Just Interesting News From Around the World - Laugh I Thought My Trousers Would Never dry