Jim Shepard has published eight novels and six collections of short stories. He’s written for publications including The Paris Review, The Atlantic, Harper’s, Esquire, McSweeny’s and The New Yorker. For more than 30 years, he taught film and creative writing at Williams College. One of his novels was adapted into a movie. His wife, with whom he has three children, is a formidable author and educator in her own right. He has two dogs who he loves enough to include in his publicity photos.
Jim Shepard is one impressive guy.
On Thursday, Oct. 1, that impressive guy will talk about his newest collection of short stories, “The Queen of Bad Influences,” at the White Hart Inn in Salisbury.
Joining Shepard in conversation is Joe Donahue of WAMC Radio. Donahue is also an impressive guy, having spent more than 25 years talking to people — and, as he’s quick to point out, Muppets — on the radio.
“The Queen of Bad Influences” is one of 13 short stories in this collection of the same name and was originally published in The New Yorker. Many of the stories in the collection are drawn from historical events, including the Great Fire of 1910 in Idaho, the sinking of the Lusitania and the 1935 Labor Day hurricane in Florida. The collection also revives some classic tales, including Robert Louis Stevenson’s “The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde,” which Shepard tells from the perspective of the much-maligned Mr. Hyde.
Shepard’s writing is so lush and distinctive that taking on material already mastered by other writers seems more like a fun challenge than a daunting task. The tale of the Great Fire has been masterfully told in the New York Times bestseller “The Big Burn” by Timothy Egan. “The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde” is still relevant today, 140 years after its initial publication.
While Shepard has been lavished with praise for his inventive stories, most notably “Project X” and “The Book of Aron,” this collection implies that the story comes secondary to the style of this masterful writer.
Donahue is also a recognized master of his craft, having received awards for his interviews and analysis from the Edward R. Murrow Awards, The Associated Press and the National Press Club, to name just a few. He’s interviewed some of the most important writers of our time and hosts “The Book Show,” a weekly WAMC radio program exploring books and writers, as well as the general-interest program “The Roundtable” on the same station.
Familiar with Shepard’s work or not, anyone with an interest in writing and literature should jump at the chance to witness these two literary figures talk shop.
The event is made possible by Oblong Books, the White Hart Inn, the Scoville Memorial Library and WAMC On The Road. For tickets, visit https://bit.ly/4iRm3Io
Dick Hermans in the Oblong Bookstore on Millerton’s Main Street in 1985.Provided
Fall storage crop harvests amid soil building cover crops at Adamah Farm in Falls Village. Janna Siller 
