J a n c e e D u n n: Texas Book Festival

Read the Books

Dunn does a good job of keeping the reader wanting to know ‘What’s next?” in this crazy, yet oh-so typical family’s life....When a reader can connect with an author’s words, a book suddenly becomes magical – and there is magic here. Sacramento Book Review
Click to buy Why Is My Mother Getting a Tattoo? And Other Questions I Wish I Never Had to Ask: Amazon| Borders| Indiebound.com | BN.com | Powells.com
In her early forties, Jancee Dunn began to wonder why she still felt like a 13-year-old around her family. Talking to her friends, she found the same was true for them—despite successful jobs, marriages, and families of their own. Do we ever really grow up, she wonders? Why is the slow, sticky process of prying ourselves free from our parents and childhoods so difficult? In Why Is My Mother Getting a Tattoo?, Dunn examines the phenomenon, with scenes ranging from a "haunted Savannah" tour gone wrong to a visit to a tattoo parlor with her sixty-ish mother, who is dying to get a raven inked on her wrist. Finally, Dunn and her sisters arrange a visit to the house where they grew up, a bittersweet but comic experience that answers her questions and puts her at peace with her parents—until the next tattoo parlor visit, at least.

"I want Jancee Dunn to make me a pie. Actually, I want to sit around and listen to her entire family argue about what type of pie. Such is the extreme charm of her world. No matter the subject, Dunn's gimlet eye for all of life’s minor infractions and daily quirks is superbly addictive."
—Sloane Crosley, I Was Told There'd Be Cake

Click to Buy Don't You Forget About Me from Amazon | Booksense.com | BN.com | Powells.com
The hysterical debut novel from former Rolling Stone writer Jancee Dunn features the humor of Laurie Notaro or Merrill Markoe combined with the music-induced nostalgia of Rob Sheffield’s Love Is a Mix Tape.

Lillian Curtis, a 30-something New York City television producer, finds her past and present colliding when she moves back in with her parents, where time seems frozen in 1988 – in her room, there’s a Rick Springfield tape on her dresser and Duran Duran posters hanging on the wall. Back in New Jersey after twenty years, she is forced to confront not only her 80’s nostalgia, but also all the people she thought she’d left behind – including her high school boyfriend.

"Steeped in 80s-era references (Rick Springfield cassettes, Duran Duran posters, and Anais Anais perfume, anyone?), the flashback elements of Lily's life are breezy, reliably tacky fun. But unexpected moments of tenderness...give the story heart."
—People

"Dunn's deft sense of pacing and her old-fashioned niceness make "Don't You Forget About Me" a breezy, entertaining summer read that never insults the reader's intelligence. This is a seemingly modest achievement that should not be underestimated."
—The Los Angeles Times

"In addition to being an impressive treasure trove of cultural references both high and (frequently) low, Jancee Dunn is also a tenderhearted novelist. DON'T YOU FORGET ABOUT ME is wistful, graceful, and seriously funny.
—Meg Wolitzer, The Ten-Year Nap

One of the "top upcoming summer reads..."
—Daily Candy

Click to buy But Enough About Me: Amazon | Booksense.com | BN.com | Powells.com

When the girl next door lands a dream job interviewing celebrities and rock stars at Rolling Stone, the result is Almost Famous meets Working Girl: A hip and funny true story of the pleasures and perils of the red carpet.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

"I loved this book from start to finish ... Jancee Dunn is a wonderful storyteller."
Curtis Sittenfield, author of Prep

"Jancee has "dunn" (pun intended) a spectacular job ... I am so proud to be a part of it.."
Dolly Parton

"Hilarious -- you won’t be able to keep from reading the whole thing." Matthew Klam, author of Sam the Cat

Don't You Forget About Me: The Playlist

What the Critics Are Saying

Meet the Cast of Characters

Bonus Book Chapters!

November 2009

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Texas Book Festival

...I spent Halloween there and had a good old time - and thank you, readers, for all of the food tips, because I ate my way through that town, from Torchy's tacos to the cake balls (I had one in every flavor.)

Back to the books: I was on a panel called 'Mama Dramas' and now I have three new friends. One is Katherine Center ("The Bright Side Of Disaster") who gave me a great tip on instilling a love of books in your child: books on tape.

Here is her blog post on it, plus her very helpful Top Five audiobooks (who knew Cherry Jones narrated 'Little House On The Prairie?")

November 09, 2009 | Permalink

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Comments

I loved meeting you and I'm officially a huge fan of yours now. You couldn't possibly have been more charming or funnier on our panel. Come back next year and we can eat our way across Austin together!

Posted by: Katherine Center | November 10, 2009 at 07:44 AM

VIVA CAKE BALLS!

glad you got to try them... ALL of them! :)

Posted by: poshdeluxe | November 10, 2009 at 01:01 PM

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Meet the Author

Jancee Dunn grew up in Chatham, New Jersey. She was a writer at Rolling Stone from 1989-2003, where she wrote twenty cover stories for the magazine. She has written for many different publications, among them the New York Times, Vogue,GQ (where she wrote a monthly sex advice column for five years) and O: The Oprah Magazine, where she writes a monthly ethics column entitled "Now What Do I Do?" From 2001-2002 she was an entertainment correspondent for Good Morning America. Prior to that she was a veejay for MTV2 from 1996 until 2001. Her memoir "But Enough About Me," about her life as chronically nervous celebrity interviewer, came out in 2006. Her novel "Don't You Forget About Me" is out in July 2008. She and her husband live in Brooklyn, New York.

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What Do I Do Now?

Each month in O, the Oprah Magazine, I ask a panel of ethics experts to answer readers' ethical dilemmas both big and small.

You Can Help Me Out by Suggesting Your Own

Contact Jancee Dunn

Editorial inquiries for
Jancee Dunn:
David McCormick
McCormick & Williams Literary Agents
37 W. 20th Street
New York, NY 10011
mccormickwilliams.com

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The Affected Provincial's Companion, Vol. I: A Bounteous Selection of Essays (Hardcover)

The MTV2 Years

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A Collection of Outtakes, Highlights, And Other Assorted MTV2 Madness

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More favorite books

Childhood favorite books

Nice mention in the Dallas Morning News

Texas Book Festival

My writing process

Cassettes From My Ex

Two cheery e mail forwards from my father

One of my favorite blogs

My Austin itinterary

Betsy-Tacy (and let's not forget Tib)

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