Posted by BEN BEAUMONT – Bestselling spy novelist Alan Furst, who writes espionage tales set in WWII Europe, stopped by the Clinton School on Tuesday to promote his latest book, “The Spies of Warsaw,” which was recently released in paperback.
More than 100 fans came to hear Furst discuss his craft and sign copies of the book. Furst also say down with the Associated Press for a story about his work:
Furst, 68, who is touring to promote the paperback edition his 2008 novel “The Spies of Warsaw,” said Tuesday the emotional connection some readers have with his ten books is striking since he fell into writing “historic espionage.” It was the type of book that he wanted to read, and his aim is to write stories a traveler would take on an airplane.
“These novels are entertainment,” Furst said. “I’m a commercial entertainment novelist.”
A native New Yorker, Furst taught in southern France as a Fulbright teaching fellow, giving him a connection to Arkansas — the state that Sen. William Fulbright represented in Washington. Furst was scheduled to read Tuesday night at the Clinton School of Public Service, which is attached to the Clinton Presidential Library near downtown Little Rock.
On tour, he said, he likes stopping by independent bookstores to help them through what’s become an extended difficult period. Since he’s promoting a paperback, he’s able to stop in smaller cities than when promoting a hardcover. While in Arkansas, he said he hoped to see Central High School in Little Rock, scene of the 1957 integration crisis in which nine black students needed the protection of federal troops to enter the school.
CLICK HERE for the full article. Video of Furst’s Clinton School lecture will be posted in the coming days at www.clintonschoolspeakers.com.
