One thing I’ve learned about book reviewing: It’s hard to know what to review. Obviously I can cover the top-sellers, throwing in my two cents on what everyone else has already trashed or praised. And I get a lot of review copies from aspiring authors, though sometimes, I must admit, it’s not the most appealing selection. If you’ve got to throw something at me, I’m already inclined to think I won’t love it.
And because I face this dilemma, I often wonder about who I’m missing. Who are the up-and-coming authors, the ones with real talent that have yet to be discovered? How do we find those writers who are capable to make it in the big leagues but choose to work with local printers and independent bookstores?
Well, thankfully, I’ve been in touch with someone doing it right. And that someone is Lee Noble, a novelist from Lancaster, Pennsylvania who has recently launched a campaign to develop and market his first book, Infidels. I had the privilege to read a major portion of the book before the campaign launched, and I can assure you that it is clever, thoughtful, and the stoner tragi-comedy of the summer. I loved it so much, I made sure to catch up with Lee and chat a bit about, not only the book, but why he’s chosen the road of self-publishing and what it’s meant to him as a first-time novelist.