This is a New Book Review first! I've never run interviews before, partially because I worry about getting reliable permission from both the interviewer and the author to reprint/repost them, so this is a trial. I'd also like to know how it's received by my New Book Review subscribers. So leave comments. Let me know what you think. I liked this review because it isn't canned--it truly has a personal touch.
Interview of Lance Johnson, author of What Foreigners Need To Know About America From A ToZ: How ToUnderstand Crazy American culture, people, government, business, language and more by Donna M. McDine
“Lance, I
am in awe of your vast accomplishments. I’ve spent quite a bit of time learning
about you through your website at www.AmericaAtoZ.com . I’d like to transform
myself into a “pocket person” and experience your travels first hand. I’m
delighted to interview you and to have an opportunity to introduce you to my
blog readers and network of colleagues. Welcome!
LJ: As I point out in the book’s intro, I’ve been in 81
countries, taught overseas, and experienced firsthand the difficulties my
immigrant friends in the US have understanding our crazy culture. I’m not sure
there’s a perfect guide that you refer to above because it is such a broad
complex topic. But I’ve simplified it with 26 fundamental chapters. For
example, the chapters on grammar and speech simply address the errors commonly
made by foreigners and how they can overcome them…I keep it simple and the
language easy and fun.
DMc: One of your travel tips abroad is to ask people
“what they would like to know about America that they were always afraid of
asking for fear of offending.” What is the most common question, the most
unusual?
LJ: Oh boy, that
really varies. For example, when I taught Chinese teachers of English near
Shanghai using my book as a text, the chapter on religion brought the most
interest. This is not surprising, given China’s opposition to religions. Next
in line was the chapter on film and the movie stars they knew a lot about.
A German
couple wanted to know why we all get along so well here, given our various
minorities. I explained that we didn’t do well at it, then we analyzed why they
had that perception. A common question is about our food and table manners, a
topic discussed in an entire chapter on food and dining. I think the most
revealing questions come from foreigners who probably know more about what is
going on in Washington than the average American. I recently met an Italian and
his wife who surprised me with endless questions and observations about Obama,
Romney, and our government, which reveals foreigners are indeed aware of what
is happening here; they wanted my comments on their comments. That is why I
have an entire chapter on government.
As a side
note on this topic, throughout the book I stress the importance of free speech,
individual rights, and religious freedom that are chiseled in the cornerstone
of our society, which in turn define how we behave. Because of the recent
crudely-produced video that incited Muslim hate of America, it comes as no
surprise because in those countries they are told what they can do and say.
Thus, it is my guess they think our government and people support saying bad
things about their religion, which of course is not true. They don’t realize
this was one man’s film and the expression of his opinion, and that in America
we are free to express our opinions. (In Thailand I learned that expressing
negative comments about the king can land you in jail.)
As I’ve
learned in all my travels, if America were a business, it would need a better
public relations department…we‘re continually fighting a bad image, another
topic in my book. It has an entire chapter on what foreigners think about
America, and in many cases they say the same thing: from their firsthand
knowledge, America is not as bad as most foreigners think.
DMc: What, if any was your biggest obstacle in
writing and publishing What
Foreigners Need to Know About America from A to Z?
LJ: This is easy.
I wasn’t sure the book would ever be published. Halfway through the 24-month
writing process, I started sending queries to literary agents and publishers
around the world. The response was generally the same: There’s never been a
book like this so there’s not a need for it. Finally, a foreign agent for all
the big publishers in the US said he wanted rights to it. I signed a contract
and he found a publisher who gave me an advance. Lesson: follow your own North
Star and keep plugging away.
DMc: What has been your most exhilarating travel
experience?
LJ: “Exhilarating”
has multiple connotations, including frightening/exciting/stimulating. Frightening: Last year on a cruise ship from
Singapore through the Suez Canal to Rome, as we approached Yemen and the Red
Sea, we had to close our curtains a night and the ship ran without outdoor
lights because of pirate activity in that area. During the day the captain
spotted suspicious ships nearing us and broadcast an alert. Also, during the
day we saw an armada of battle ships from different countries along the
shipping lanes, which gave us some comfort. Exciting: I’ve traveled the Panama Canal
multiple times and still marvel at this engineering wonder that is 100 years
old and still working as designed. Stimulating: Visiting Israel, walking where Christ
did, witnessing all the Biblical sights that I learned about as a youngster,
and learning firsthand that Israel is much less the monster portrayed in the
press regarding Arabs there. Like the US, they need a better PR Dept.
DMc: What’s next?
LJ: Would love to
take the Orient Express, travel the Silk Road, and take the train across scenic
Canada and write about that. (As an actor, I did some filming in Kunming,
China, the exit from the Silk Road.) In my travels I send a travelogue to my
friends with pictures and brief daily commentaries. In the last one when I
sailed from Australia to San Francisco, this was the closing comment I made:
“I’ve now been in 81 countries on 6 continents, but the more I travel the more
I realize how little I know about the world and all that inhabits it, including
peoples, cultures, vegetation, wildlife, and geology. What an eye opener it is
to travel. If I were the Creator of Earth, I wouldn’t change a thing. What a
magnificent place, and we’d better darn well take better care of it. This is
also what astronauts say as they view Earth as a tiny speck cradling mankind.
LJ”
I also
point this out in the book’s intro: With all of our cultural differences
though, you’ll be surprised to learn how much our countries—and we as human
beings—have in common on this third rock from the sun called Planet Earth.
After all, the song played at our Disneyland parks around the world is “It’s A
Small World After All.”
DMc: A signature request I like to ask every author,
illustrator, editor, etc., I interview is for the individual to share with us a
tidbit from their lives that the reader will find either humorous or
surprising. Lance, can you please share one with us?
LJ: Perhaps the
most surprising thing related to my book was receiving endorsements from the US
Ambassador to China and the ambassadors to the US from China and Singapore in
response to my requests for them. As my grandfather taught me ages ago: You’ll
never know if you don’t try, will you?
Lance,
thanks for taking the time out to chat with me. I’ve enjoyed getting to you
know you! Best wishes for your continued success.
Interviewer
bio: Donna McDine is an award-winning
children's author, Honorable Mention in the 77th and two Honorable Mentions in
the 78th Annual Writer’s
Digest Writing Competitions, Literary Classics Silver Award & Seal of Approval Recipient Picture Book Early Reader, Readers Favorite 2012
Honorable Mention, Global eBook Awards Finalist Children’s Picture Book Fiction,
and Preditors & Editors Readers Poll 2010 Top Ten Children’s Books ~ The Golden
Pathway.
Her stories, articles, and book reviews
have been published in over 100 print and online publications. Her interest in
American History resulted in writing and publishing The Golden Pathway. Donna has four more books under contract with
Guardian Angel Publishing, Hockey Agony,
Powder Monkey, A Sandy Grave, and Dee and Deb, Off They Go. She writes,
moms and is the Editor-in-Chief for Guardian Angel Kids and owner of Author PR
Services from her home in the historical hamlet Tappan, NY. McDine is a member
of the Children’s Literature Network, Family Reading Partnership, and SCBWI.
Visit www.donnamcdine.com and www.donna-mcdine.blogspot.com.
Buy Information:
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The New Book Review is blogged by Carolyn Howard-Johnson, author of the multi award-winning HowToDoItFrugally series of books for writers. Of particular interest to readers of this blog is her most recent How to Get Great Book Reviews Frugally and Ethically (http://bit.ly/GreatBkReviews ). This blog is a free service offered to those who want to encourage the reading of books they love. That includes authors who want to share their favorite reviews, reviewers who'd like to see their reviews get more exposure, and readers who want to shout out praise of books they've read. Please see submission guidelines on the left of this page. Reviews and essays are indexed by genre, reviewer names, and review sites. Writers will find the search engine handy for gleaning the names of small publishers. Find other writer-related blogs at Sharing with Writers and The Frugal, Smart and Tuned-In Editor.
