A few weeks ago, I had the absolute honor and pleasure of chatting with Susie Finkbeiner, author of such amazing books as Stories That Bind Us and All Manner of Things. She had reached out to me after discovering that her latest book, The Nature of Small Birds, and If It Rains share a book birthday and wondered if I’d like to settle in for a chat.

What Susie didn’t know was how influential her Dust Bowl novel A Cup of Dust was during my planning for If It Rains all the way back in 2015. She was actually, literally giving me a chance to sit down and talk with someone who had, not only greatly enriched my Dust Bowl research, but also created one of the best Depression Era trilogies in existence.

Would I like to sit down and chat? ABSOLUTELY!

For almost two hours, we nerded out together over Dust Bowl stories, Steinbeck, and the Christian literary historical fiction genre. She even let me fan girl for a bit without making me feel like too much of a goof. If you’d like to see a snippet of the interview, head on over to Susie’s Facebook page to hear us talk about If It Rains as well as discuss our favorite characters from The Office. Because, well, of course.

And don’t forget, Susie’s book, The Nature of Small Birds, will be released by Revell Publishing on July 6, 2021. So if you’re at your favorite bookseller’s website preordering If It Rains, go ahead and add Susie’s newest novel to your cart. You won’t be disappointed.

July 6 is going to be a killer book day, you guys.

Thank you again, Susie, for the lovely chat and your enthusiasm for my debut.