Robert L. Shuster's Blog: News and Thoughts from Robert L. Shuster

I'm thrilled to report that my novel, To Zenzi, won the 2022 McLaughlin-Esstman-Stearns First Novel Prize ($3000) from the Writer's Center. An honor!

Writer's Center Announcement

I'm happy to report that my novel, To Zenzi, is the winner of the 2021 Foreword Indie Gold Award in War Fiction.

I'm happy to announce that To Zenzi is a 2021 Foreword INDIES Book of the Year Awards FINALIST in both the Historical Fiction and War Fiction categories. Winners announced in June.

Please join me tomorrow, Saturday December 11th, 4pm EST, for a celebration of the latest anthology from Great Weather for Media. A number of contributors, including me, will be reading, each for no more than 8 minutes. I'll be reading from my short story "The Toy" (which is very different from my novel!).

You can watch via GWM's Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/great.weather) or via zoom at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/paper-te...

Here's a recent review of To Zenzi from Jill Marshall at Historical Novels Review (https://historicalnovelsociety.org/re...)

Through the eyes of 13-year-old Tobias Koertig, To Zenzi describes the hellscape that was Berlin in the waning days of World War II. The book begins with Tobias’s parents’ death during an air raid. From there, Tobias is recruited to join the army to go to the eastern front in a futile attempt to stop the Russian advancement. At this point, it is clear the Germans have lost, but they continue to recruit children as soldiers.

After being mistaken for someone who performed heroically in battle (when he actually hid in a trench), Tobias returns to Berlin, is awarded a medal by Hitler himself, and becomes Hitler’s eyes on the ground—his illustrator of the devastation of Berlin as the dictator remains underground in the infamous Führerbunker.

There are moments of levity throughout the book and a wry, dark sense of humor appropriate for the subject matter. For instance, the general at the front has a bulbous, allergic nose that eventually gets shot off his face, and Hitler is a ridiculous, paranoid character whose life in the bunker is one of filth and absurdity. But there’s also some hope: What keeps Tobias going through everything is his love for the titular character, Zenzi.

Please join me via Zoom, Sept. 1st, noon-1pm EST, in a reading and discussion of my novel, To Zenzi, about a boy navigating his way through the madness of ruined Berlin in the spring of 1945. The talk is co-sponsored by the Worcester Institute for Senior Education (WISE) and the Worcester JCC. Worcester, MA is where I went to high school.

I'll be reading a short passage, and then, with slides of historical photos, discussing the background of the story. The Zoom link is here:
https://assumptionwise.zoom.us/meetin...

I'm very happy to have a short story of mine included in the latest anthology from Great Weather for Media. Here's the announcement from the editors:

We are proud to announce the publication of Paper Teller Diorama, our latest collection of poetry and prose.

Why a paper teller? As we say in the anthology's introduction, the recurring themes of self-examination and magical thinking in this year’s work, the frequent reminiscences of childhood at a time fraught with anxiety, the burden of past and present social injustice, the almost overwhelming sense of uncertainty, led us to the title. The anthology itself is like the paper constructions of childhood: based on chance and play, hiding secrets … and hope. And how intriguing is the cover? Taken from a series of interactive art by sculptor Amy Brier, the carved stone sphere creates new stories as it rolls through pristine sand.

Paper Teller Diorama contains work from sixty-six amazing writers and we are also thrilled to include an interview with San Francisco poet laureate Tongo Eisen-Martin. Every page contains a treasure, a surprise.

Paper Teller Diorama, great weather for MEDIA, August 1, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-9981440-9-2
$19.00

We highly recommend purchasing directly from our online store: www.greatweatherformedia.com/store or via our Bookshop.org store: www.bookshop.org/shop/greatweather

Many thanks to all those who entered the Goodreads giveaway, and congrats to the winners. Books will be sent this week.

A reminder that you can see a video preview of To Zenzi here: https://vimeo.com/543166405

Also, on my website, www.robertshuster.com, you can watch my reading of the novel's opening section, and find background info on the story, including an interview I did for The Rumpus, an essay about the novel's format, and a list of books used for research.

Happy reading,
Robert

For those interested in WWII novels told from the German side, here's my list of six books:

https://bookshop.org/lists/wwii-novel...

I'm thrilled to have my Borgesian short story, Caro's Return, be on a podcast for PenDust Radio. The pitch-perfect narration is by TV and stage actor/Broadway producer Mark Johannes. Have a listen.

https://pendustradio.com/fiction/caro...