Author Brian Schaefer (Town & Country): "I'm Very Excited That It's A Physical Thing Now That's On My Own Bookshelf"

Show Notes

Dennis is joined via Zoom from Manhattan by Brian Schaefer to talk about his wonderful debut novel Town & Country. The book is about a congressional election in a small rural town called Griffin between Chip Riley, a conservative bar owner who's lived in Griffin for decades, and Paul Sands, a young ambitious liberal gay man who bought a house in Griffin with his rich husband about a year earlier. Brian talks about taking inspiration from the Hudson Valley town where he and his husband have had a second home for 12 years, the long road to getting the book published and how it feels to finally have it out there. Brian also talks about why it was important to him to explore the themes of addiction, marriage equality and economic hardship in the book, the 2-person book club he's in with his mother and how it impacted Town & Country and Dennis has him read a scene from the book involving the 19 year-old recently out local boy Will, a gaggle of rich, sexy city gays and a borrowed turquoise Speedo. Other topics include: Brian's appreciation for dance, the years he lived, worked and studied in Tel Aviv, Israel and the moment in the book that made Dennis cry.