Far from home, in a picturesque Costa Rican fishing village, a man glimpses the heart of the book he’s struggled to write in the captivating stories of a young woman.
Narrated by a novelist forced to earn his living as an exterminator, STRANGE LOVE (Open Road Integrated Media; May 18, 2021) tells a story of disappointments, unusual desires, and the things people do when their dreams haven’t materialized in the ways they had hoped.
Photo – Fred Waitzkin’s archive ©
While vacationing in a remote village, the narrator becomes obsessed with a young Costa Rican woman. Mesmerized by her beauty, the details of her past, and the way she describes them, the man finds himself hinting that he is in fact the wildly successful author he once dreamed of being—and that he has the power to change her life.
“Fred Waitzkin effortlessly recreates a singular world with uncanny insight and humour,” said actor and director Gabriel Byrne. “This is like sitting by a fire with a master storyteller whose true power is the realm of imagination and magic.”
In an interview, Fred Waitzkin can discuss:
– The intersection of real-life characters and fiction in his novels.
– How his displacement by the COVID-19 pandemic led to the inspiration for STRANGE LOVE.
– His writing process after decades of honing the craft.
– Collaborating with Sofia Ruiz, a brilliant painter who illustrates STRANGE LOVE.
– Fathering a prodigy, why Searching for Bobby Fischer became #1 best-seller on the list of books about parenting and chess.
The New York Times once said of Searching for Bobby Fischer that “Mr. Waitzkin stokes a fire in the basement of his book that will end up making us sweat and squirm.” In STRANGE LOVE, Waitzkin crafts the same tension, this time evoking the pathos of lost lives until the most unlikely love affair tantalizes with the last chance.
STRANGE LOVE is illustrated by the captivating paintings of the Costa Rican artist, Sofia Ruiz. Ruiz has won many national and international awards, and her work has been displayed the world over. Ruiz’s paintings suggest what lies behind apparent normality. Her characters are often beautiful on the surface, but almost always are haunted, incomplete, and fractured.
