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WORK TITLE: The Reluctant Fortune Teller
WORK NOTES:
PSEUDONYM(S):
BIRTHDATE:
WEBSITE: https://keziahfrost.com/
CITY:
STATE:
COUNTRY:
NATIONALITY: American
RESEARCHER NOTES:
| LC control no.: | no2018031437 |
|---|---|
| LCCN Permalink: | https://lccn.loc.gov/no2018031437 |
| HEADING: | Frost, Keziah |
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| 001 | 10693907 |
| 005 | 20180514005149.0 |
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| 010 | __ |a no2018031437 |
| 035 | __ |a (OCoLC)oca11235738 |
| 035 | __ |a (DLC)10693907 |
| 035 | __ |a (DLC)no2018031437 |
| 040 | __ |a IAhCCS |b eng |e rda |c IAhCCS |d DLC |d HU |
| 053 | _0 |a PS3606.R6545 |
| 100 | 1_ |a Frost, Keziah |
| 372 | __ |a Humorous fiction |2 lcgft |
| 374 | __ |a Authors |2 lcsh |
| 375 | __ |a Females |2 lcdgt |
| 377 | __ |a eng |
| 670 | __ |a Frost, Keziah. The reluctant fortune-teller, 2018: |b title page (Keziah Frost) about the author (Keziah Frost holds master’s degrees in English and counseling. She developed the Reluctant Fortune-Teller while enrolled in the Faber Academy online course. This is her first novel.) |
PERSONAL
Female.
EDUCATION:M.A.
ADDRESS
CAREER
Writer. Psychotherapist. Worked formerly as a college English teacher, bilingual elementary school teacher, portrait painter, counselor, and birth doula.
WRITINGS
SIDELIGHTS
Keziah Frost is a writer and a psychotherapist. She received masters degrees in both English and counseling. She has worked as a college English instructor, a painter of pet portraits, a bilingual teacher, a birth doula, and a bilingual counselor. The Reluctant Fortune-Teller is Frost’s first book.
The Reluctant Fortune-Teller tells the story of 73-year-old Norbert Zelenka, a quiet, solitary man who must turn to some unusual schemes when he falls into financial troubles. Though not financially irresponsible himself, Norbert has fallen on tough times due to his needy and mooching relatives, who have all but dried up his savings. Though Norbert has enough money to continue living in his upstate New York home, he must cut back in other ways. This only bothers him when it affects the quality of life of his pet Chihuahua and only companion. He can no longer afford the dog’s veterinary appointments, so when local busybody Carlotta invites him to take on an unusual new career, he cannot refuse.
Norbert knows Carlotta, the aggressive leader of a three-woman older ladies club, because he sees her and her three friends periodically at The Gibbon Corner Art League and Gallery. Norbert, a shy man, has no interest in befriending the women, but when Carlotta learns of Norbert’s financial situation she comes knocking at his door. Carlotta sees Norbert’s natural empathetic abilities, and informs him that he will be the local fortune teller at Carlotta’s niece’s failing cafe. Norbert resists, but the three women persuade him, assuring him they will teach him how to read cards and that there will be a profit for his work.
When Norbert actually sits down at the cafe to read cards, it turns out he has a knack for the craft. His quiet observational tendencies grant him the ability to listen attentively and provide appropriate feedback. Carlotta, who always wants to be the authority in the room, dislikes Norbert’s success and decidedly wants to refocus the attention on herself. Norbert has finally found a way to solve his financial problems and is enjoying coming out of his shell, so he is not going to let this new career slip away without a fight.
Biz Hyzy in Booklist wrote, “The Reluctant Fortune-Teller will charm any reader looking for a sweet, witty, zany read,” while a contributor to Kirkus Reviews described the book as “charming, warm, and wittily told.” Ceillie Simkiss in Culturess website wrote: “From making new friends to gaining new confidence, it makes for a unique older coming-of-age story.”
BIOCRIT
PERIODICALS
Booklist, February 15, 2018, Biz Hyzy, review of The Reluctant Fortune-Teller, p.26.
Kirkus Reviews, January 1, 2018, review of The Reluctant Fortune-Teller, p.26.
ONLINE
Culturess, https://culturess.com/ (February 9, 2018), Ceillie Simkiss, review of The Reluctant Fortune-Teller.
Keziah Frost
It has been my happiest dream to write novels ever since I was in fifth grade and my dear white-haired teacher, Mrs. Kean, told me I would. She told me not to worry that I couldn’t seem to get the math, because I had a flair for writing, and when I grew up, people would enjoy the books I would write. At that moment, my own favorite books were Alice through the Looking Glass, Beautiful Joe, and Charlotte’s Web.
In the decades following Mrs. Kean’s prediction, I went on to explore many diverse paths in my life, always feeling that I was “supposed to be” writing novels. I earned masters degrees in English and Counseling. At various times I have taught college English, painted pet portraits, and worked as a bilingual elementary school teacher. I am now a psychotherapist in private practice.
Like Carlotta in The Reluctant Fortune-Teller, I have been constantly on to the next Project. And like Norbert, I believe that we grow into ourselves, throughout our whole lives.
I have always been a voracious reader. My strongest influences are British humorous writers of the 1920s and 1930s: P.G. Wodehouse, E. F. Benson, D. E. Stevenson, Stella Gibbons, and Elizabeth Von Arnim.
It is my greatest pleasure to sit quietly, get in the zone, and let the characters that come to me live out their dramas and comedies on the page. Especially their comedies. I hope that you enjoy reading my books as much as I enjoy writing them.
Pictured here are my animal muses: five little dogs and one audacious cat.
The three amigos: Margaret, Twinkle and Teddy Bear
The author with Callie, the sweet and elderly poodle mix
Chico, My right-hand man
Jack, the audacious cat
For inquiries about events and appearances, please contact Emer Flounders, Publicist, at Emer.Flounders@HarperCollins.com
Telephone: 212-207-7944
You can contact Keziah Frost by using this form:
Jungle Red Writers
8 smart and sassy crime fiction writers dish on writing and life. It's The View. With bodies.
Sunday, February 18, 2018
Life Lessons in The Reluctant Fortune-Teller @KeziahFrost
LUCY BURDETTE: You met debut author Keziah Frost in the fall when she wrote a terrific post for JRW on editing. But now her new book, THE RELUCTANT FORTUNE-TELLER, is almost out and I asked her to return and tell us more about it. Welcome Keziah!
KEZIAH FROST: We all have more than one career in us.
That’s what my protagonist Norbert, a retired accountant, learns in his seventy-third year as he launches into an occupation he never could have predicted for himself: that of town fortune-teller.
My debut novel, The Reluctant Fortune-Teller, is said to be witty. I hope it is! We need laughter now more than ever. It is also about many things – among them, how people reinvent themselves – to their own delight and peril.
Norbert is having trouble making ends meet. He is a practical man, and doesn’t believe in card reading or anything to do with the psychic world. But when three forceful women he knows from his art league show up on his door step and insist that he can solve his financial crisis through telling fortunes—and that they can teach him how to read cards…, well, you’ll have to read the book to find out all about his delight and his peril.
And just maybe, Norbert’s journey to create a new version of himself will inspire you, as well. I hope so!
In elementary school, a kind teacher told Norbert’s class that each child has a special gift to share with the world. We all have heard this claim. It seems that some people know just what their gift is, while others wonder if they’ll ever find theirs, or if they even have one at all. Norbert was in the second category, wondering in his later years if he had any gift at all. He doesn’t feel special or gifted in any way. He certainly isn’t a person that anyone notices or listens to…. That is, until he goes into business reading cards for the tourists and residents in his quaint lakeside town.
As “Norbert Z, the Amazing Psychic,” Norbert suddenly becomes interesting. People make appointments to listen to him and they press money into his hands to show their faith in his abilities.
As Norbert’s new career takes shape, his confidence grows; he comes into a new sense of himself; he changes.
We live in a time of continuing education, mid-life career changes, and post-retirement careers. In my own life, I’ve been a college English instructor, a painter of pet portraits, a bilingual teacher, a birth doula, a bilingual counselor and now: a psychotherapist and a novelist. Each new career identity has benefitted from lessons learned in all the previous ones.
And what about you? Have you had more than one career, or more than one identity in your life? Do you believe you have at least one more gift in you that is asking to be developed? Do you dare to open that gift?
The Reluctant Fortune-Teller will be released by HarperCollins/Harlequin/Park Row on March 6, 2018. It is Keziah Frost’s first novel. In the back of the book is a fortune-telling guide, so you can get together—perhaps with your book club—and read fortunes using Norbert’s method. There are also questions for discussion. And if your book club would like to
Skype with Keziah Frost to discuss The Reluctant Fortune-Teller, you can just contact her through her website.
Keziah Frost is a psychotherapist who has felt she was “supposed to” write novels since she was in fifth grade. That was five decades ago, and she is thrilled to see her first novel ready to go to print. She had so much fun writing this one, she hopes to write many, many more. (Says Lucy: And check out her blog, which includes Norbert's readings of various book people, including Lucy herself...)
Posted by Lucy Burdette aka Roberta Isleib at 12:30 AM
Labels: debut author, Keziah Frost, psychic, reinvention, The Reluctant Fortune-Teller
Biography
Keziah Frost
Keziah Frost holds master’s degrees in English and counseling. She developed THE RELUCTANT FORTUNE-TELLER while enrolled in the Faber Academy online course. She shares her life with five little dogs, one audacious cat and her encouraging human family. THE RELUCTANT FORTUNE-TELLER is her first novel.
Keziah Frost
Website: https://keziahfrost.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/authorkeziahfrost
Twitter: https://twitter.com/keziahfrost
Blog: https://keziahfrost.com/blog
Books by Keziah Frost
The Reluctant Fortune-Teller
by Keziah Frost - Fiction, Humor
At 73, Norbert Zelenka is broke and alone except for the company of a Chihuahua. But when “Carlotta’s Club” --- three strong-willed seniors --- decides to make Norbert their latest project, he reluctantly agrees to their scheme: establishing himself as the town’s fortune-teller. Soon his life begins changing in unexpected ways. It turns out that years of observing other people make Norbert an excellent card reader. As Norbert’s lonesome world expands with new friendships and a newfound self-confidence, he finally finds himself in a place where he belongs. But when a troubled young woman goes missing after a bad reading, Norbert must find a strength beyond the cards to bring her home safely.
The Reluctant Fortune Teller
Biz Hyzy
Booklist.
114.12 (Feb. 15, 2018): p26. From Book Review Index Plus. COPYRIGHT 2018 American Library Association http://www.ala.org/aboutala/offices/publishing/booklist/
Full Text:
The Reluctant Fortune Teller.
By Keziah Frost.
Mar. 2018.336p. Park Row, paper, $15.99 (9780778312819).
In a lakeside tourist town, 73-year-old Norbert has no way to pay the bills, thanks to mooching relatives. When self-appointed leader and busybody Carlotta learns of Norbert's downtrodden lifestyle, she makes him her latest project. Engaging Norbert's natural observational and empathic abilities, her ladies club teaches him bow to read cards. As he tells fortunes for a small profit, he-- against his better judgement--realizes he might have the supernatural gift, after all. Frost's cast of senior citizens shine in her comical debut, especially dear, lonely Norbert, who just wants to give advice to those that need guidance, and persnickety Carlotta, who desperately strives to be the most powerful and knowledgeable person in the room. As Norbert's readings force his clients to address their depression, secrets, and fear, the whole crew learns about friendship, honesty, and the importance of healing. For extra detail and fun, every chapter begins with a card description that foreshadows coming events. The Reluctant Fortune Teller will charm any reader looking for a sweet, witty, zany read.--Biz Hyzy
Source Citation (MLA 8th Edition)
Hyzy, Biz. "The Reluctant Fortune Teller." Booklist, 15 Feb. 2018, p. 26. Book Review Index
Plus, http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A531171530/GPS?u=schlager&sid=GPS& xid=ed56f9cc. Accessed 19 May 2018.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A531171530
1 of 2 5/19/18, 4:11 PM
http://go.galegroup.com/ps/marklist.do?actionCmd=GET_MA...
Frost, Keziah: THE RELUCTANT FORTUNE-TELLER
Kirkus Reviews.
(Jan. 1, 2018): From Book Review Index Plus. COPYRIGHT 2018 Kirkus Media LLC http://www.kirkusreviews.com/
Full Text:
Frost, Keziah THE RELUCTANT FORTUNE-TELLER Park Row Books (Adult Fiction) $15.99 3, 6 ISBN: 978-0-7783-1281-9
An unassuming older man finds an unexpected new direction for his life in this debut novel.
Seventy-three-year-old Norbert Zelenka has been a quiet person his whole life and assumes he'll live out his days thusly in a quiet tourist town in upstate New York. His first surprise, as the novel opens, is that he's caught the attention of Carlotta's Club, a tightknit group of three older women he sees often at The Gibbon Corner Art League and Gallery. More surprising is their suggestion that he become the town fortuneteller. It is such a ridiculous and invasive idea that Norbert would never consider it, not unless he was broke and needed to pay veterinary bills for his miniature Chihuahua and sole companion, which happens to be the situation. The club teaches him everything they know from earlier dabbles in the psychic arts, and Carlotta, their forceful leader, installs him at her niece's floundering cafe. It turns out that Norbert has a knack for the art of card reading or, more accurately, the art of attentive listening and incisive feedback. A lot of the fun of the novel is eavesdropping on his many sessions (which hint that he has real psychic abilities, but keep the jury out on the issue). His success is welcome to all except Carlotta, who had planned to use him more as puppet than protAaAaAeA@gAaAaAeA@. The two butt heads, and Norbert repetiti fears that he has too much responsibility for the lives of others. But this is padding before the book gets to its real question: will Norbert be able to help Carlotta's granddaughter, Summer, who is in a real psychological crisis?
Holding more surprise for its characters than its readers, this novel is nonetheless charming, warm, and wittily told.
Source Citation (MLA 8th Edition)
"Frost, Keziah: THE RELUCTANT FORTUNE-TELLER." Kirkus Reviews, 1 Jan. 2018. Book
Review Index Plus, http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A520735829/GPS?u=schlager& sid=GPS&xid=da68cf46. Accessed 19 May 2018.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A520735829
2 of 2 5/19/18, 4:11 PM
Review: The Reluctant Fortune-Teller, Keziah Frost
by Ceillie Simkiss2 months agoFollow @CandidCeillie
The Reluctant Fortune-Teller is an unusual coming-of-age story about a 73-year-old accountant finally feeling visible after he learns to read people’s cards.
Norbert Zelenka is a retired accountant who has spent years fading into the background in every setting. When three strong-willed senior women realize he’s not making ends meet for himself and his pet chihuahua, Ivy, they come up with a plan.
They turn Norbert into their next project for their group called “Carlotta’s Club.” He becomes “Norbert Z,” the next hit fortune teller in their small town. He turns out to be pretty good at it, having spent the last 73 years doing more people-watching than interacting and reading Reader’s Digest every chance he gets.
I really enjoyed seeing Norbert grow into himself throughout The Reluctant Fortune Teller. From making new friends to gaining new confidence, it makes for a unique older coming-of-age story.
Unfortunately, I didn’t enjoy the character Carlotta in The Reluctant Fortune Teller. She’s painted as a busybody who wants to have control over everything in her life, which makes a great catalyst for the story, but she never changes. I think we were supposed to sympathize with her during the parts of the story from her point of view, but I couldn’t.
She lost her son and daughter-in-law, but she wanted to control everything and everyone in her life throughout The Reluctant Fortune Teller. Even at the end of the book, Carlotta and Norbert are still butting heads about how much control he should have over her and Summer.
Reading The Reluctant Fortune-Teller also felt like it was the third or fourth book in a series where you haven’t read the rest of the books. It made sense, for the most part, but it would have worked better if the other subplots had been expanded in other series.
There was one quote that I really loved, though. I think it really encapsulates Norbert’s philosophy in The Reluctant Fortune-Teller, and is something we can all learn from.
You basically have two options. One — keep up this grudge against yourself and bring more negativity into the world, make yourself self physically or mentally and live a life of dark self-absorption. Or, option two — acknowledge that people do grow and change and do better. Let your apology be a life worth living.
Related Story: Take a trip to Lowryland in Seanan McGuire’s latest InCryptid novel Tricks for Free
You can read more about the Frost’s research process for her latest book on her website.
The Reluctant Fortune-Teller is available for purchase now at Barnes & Noble, Amazon and more.