For generations, soldiers have read books while stationed overseas. Now one author has built a literary supply chain connecting these soldiers directly with publishers and authors.
Today’s guest on the Morning Media Menu was Paul Malmont, novelist and founder of Operation Warrior Library. After finishing his first novel, Malmont (pictured, via James M. Graham) discovered that men and women serving overseas loved to read, often pooling their own money to buy books. During the show, Malmont explained how he used literary connections (and mediabistro.com’s GalleyCat) to send 2,000 books to soldiers.
Here’s an excerpt from the interview: “Last week we got a call from the Colonel’s wife, and she told us that audiobooks were really what was needed right now. When somebody gets injured on the battlefield, they get shipped right to a medical center and then evacuated right that day to a big hospital in Germany. They can’t bring anything with them…There’s nothing for them to do, once they are in the hospital while they are rehabilitating.” Keep reading for a list of all the participating authors…
Jon Fasman * Tess Gerritsen * Meg Gardiner * Jason Pinter * Charles Bock * Daniyal Mueenuddin * Trish Ryan * George Mastras * Bob Drury and Tom Clavin * Lewis Robinson * Tiffany Baker * Jon Guenther * Robert Buettner * Angie Fox * Chris Ryan * Lily Burana * Lawrence Goldstone * Valerie Malmont *
* Seth Mnookin * Brad Meltzer * Tom Mullen * Glen David Gold * Alice Sebold * Charlie Huston * Dean Lorey * Jim Cherry * Random House * Ellen Shanman * Jon Fasman * M. Glenn Taylor