How does the writer weave the threads to tell their story? In this installment of the podcast, Larry sits down with author and friend of the podcast, Peter Blauner.  Peter and Larry discusses his latest book Picture in the Sand. Blauner discusses his research into the political situation of 1950s Egypt (and the surprising connection to the filming of The Ten Commandments), his interview with the remaining relatives of legendary director Cecil B. DeMille and his decision to frame the narrative as a grandfather telling his recollections of his immigration to America to dissuade his grandson from joining an anti-American group. 

After the break, Larry conducts a virtual interview with Irish author Vona Groarke about her book Hereafter: The Telling Life of Ellen O’Hara  , a fictionalized biography of her great grandmother. Groarke goes into detail about the disappointing lack of information about her grandmother and the process of reconstructing her story based on the breadcrumbs of data she did find as well as her research into lives of Irish immigrants in 1880s New York.