PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — A Philadelphia-based author’s latest work has a coveted spot on former President Barack Obama’s summer reading list.
Liz Moore, an associate professor of creative writing at Temple University, published her fifth novel, “The God of the Woods,” in July, and it quickly received a lot of praise.
“President Obama never announces in advance. He never tips anybody off about which books he’ll include on his list, so I found out just from texts from friends,” she said. “My phone blew up, and that’s how I found out, and I was of course thrilled and honored.”
Obama revealed his picks for his annual reading list on Tuesday, and Moore’s book was one of the 14 selected.
The former president has been releasing annual book lists, almost every year, since 2009. They are met with anticipation by publishers and readers, alike. And authors may hope for a sales bump from the publicity.
Many of Obama's recommendations explore the topics of history, culture and democracy. Moore describes “The God of the Woods” as a “double mystery.” It follows a wealthy American family in the 1970s whose daughter vanishes while at summer camp — but she’s not their first child to go missing.
“It has kind of an upstairs-downstairs theme,” she said. “Lots about class in there and income inequality and gender dynamics in the 1970s that I think also relates to some issues today.”
Moore is no stranger to national recognition for her work. In 2020, she wrote “Long Bright River” — a book also tapped by Obama for his list that year. The novel follows the very different lives of two sisters in a Philadelphia neighborhood rocked by the opioid crisis.
Now, “Long Bright River” is being made into a limited series on Peacock, slated for next year. Moore is working on the project as a co-creator and co-executive producer.