“I hated that dog…his inability to fetch, to take a joke, to find the humor in sudden air horns.”
Murder, seduction, mysterious suitcases and vengeful, zombie dogs? Topics that came up during Ron Hansen’s reading last Tuesday evening? Yes, indeed!
Hansen read the first chapter from his upcoming novel that, not unlike his previous novel The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, roots itself in historical events and infamous characters. Based on the figure of Ruth Snyder—the original femme fatale whose real-life trial inspired James M. Cain’s crime serial Double Indemnity and Billy Wilder’s 1944 screen adaption-–A Wild Surge of Guilty Passion unearths the story behind facts that include a dead husband, adultery, a lover and a willful woman who wanted out.
The audience also had the pleasure of hearing a humorous short piece called “My Kids’ Dog” that, while maybe not as serious, still managed to stick to the night’s theme of murder and loyalty. This, we were thankful to find out, was fiction and seemed to be based on a popular “true story” that usually happens to a friend of a friend of a friend. Click on the video to watch Ron Hansen read “My Kids’ Dog!” Plus, an interview with Hansen coming soon! ~Leslee Chan
Special thanks to Matt Weinkam for his video and editing prowess!
Reblogged this on Ms.Bartlett's World.