Consummate Storyteller: Christina Baker Kline

Thanks to her runaway hit Orphan Train, Christina Baker Kline’s first four novels have been re-released compete with snappy new cover artwork. Sweet Water was first, followed by Bird in Hand, Desire Lines and The Way Life Should Be.

“Giving my older novels new life has been a thrill,” says Christina who writes her novels in longhand. Yet, despite all her accomplishments including selling more than 1.5 million copies of Orphan Train, and spending many weeks on the New York Times best seller list, her most famous book — about a modern foster child and an orphaned Irish immigrant — has resonated deeply with readers many of whom have experienced similar situations. Their passion for the book has accounted for the astounding 180 Orphan Train promotional events Christina has participated in.

The experience has left Christina encouraged about the state of publishing. A drastically changed industry, she feels a new energy in the novel, noting that books are being enjoyed in a variety of forms and there many exciting independent publishers such as She Writes Press, a platform for female writers. “It feels like there’s all this creative synergy around reading,” says Christina. “People are craving good books to read.”

Christina’s success, which continues to amaze her, came at a particularly important time: soon after the death of her mother and her own treatment for breast cancer.

Her next novel, an ambitious work based on Andrew Wyeth’s painting, Christina’s World, is scheduled for release in spring 2015.

http://christinabakerkline.com/