The Embassy Ball Book Launch/Reading, January 17

This collection of short stories & flash fiction was published on July 4, 2020, but a planned book signing at a local library had to be cancelled for the same reason that everything was cancelled in 2020. But John persisted & here we were but without the customary stack of books to sign & sell. The event was on Jitsi, an online platform that is very similar to Zoom & easy to use. 

John had been a frequent reader at the 2nd Sunday @ 2: Poetry + Prose Open Mic formerly held at the Arts Center of the Capital Region in Troy, & is the author of a number of works of prose fiction. He began his reading with the Preface to the book in which he talked about the power of the word, & how he likes to launch his books on dates of historical significance, thus the July 4 release date.

He described the book as containing 38 stories, &, to a later question, that the earliest was written about 3 years ago, that he likes to capture the inspiration when it arises, rather than engage in a scheduled writing practice. Later he also talked about the value of learning other languages, he is fluent in French & a student of French literature.

The title story, “The Embassy Ball,” is his favorite he said, a short tale of 2 lovers one in the US, the other in Europe, with an ending worthy of O. Henry. Among the other stories he read were “Professor Sneiderman’s Discovery”, a meditation on immortality, & the international fable, arising from John’s interest in international politics, “The Mayor of Strasbourg.” 

The Embassy Ball by John R. Teevan III is available from the usual corporate suspects, but ask you independent bookstore to order it for you.