An Author and His Books, J. Ryan Stradal

How a midwestern upbringing, a career in television production and his mother, set New York Times bestselling author J. Ryan Stradal on the path to becoming the writer he always wanted to be

Hi readers,

One of the things I enjoy most about writing this newsletter is introducing readers to books and the authors that write those books. In the past, I never paid much attention to the author other than to know I liked their books. During Covid, there were more Zoom author events than I had ever been exposed to before, and through those events, I learned that my enjoyment of the book was better when I listened to the author talking about the book. I know some readers could care less about the author, but for others, such as myself, learning more about them personally adds to the overall enjoyment of reading their books.

That’s why I created the “An Author and Their Books” series for this newsletter. So far, I’ve featured eleven authors and highlighted their books, and today I’m excited to introduce you to another author, J. Ryan Stradal. His first book came to me through the Modern Mrs. Darcy membership book club, and the author's interview was one of the best I’ve ever watched on Zoom.

J. Ryan Stradal (he says that the “J” is his given name) was born and raised in Minnesota, living in the small town of Hastings, from ages 5-18. He says he “loves his state,” but growing up, he was hungry to see the representation of his state in the books he read, and he couldn’t find much at all. He graduated from Northwestern University and tried his hand at music during this time, even though he says he can’t sing or play an instrument. He had always wanted to write a novel, but after being told that almost nobody makes any money doing this, this led him to Southern California, where he fell into an incredible career working as a “reality TV producer” for shows such as Top Chef, Bachelorette, Deadliest Catch, Storage Wars: Texas and others.

It was during his time as a story producer at the Bachelorette, crafting the narrative of an hour-long show from hundreds of hours of footage, that he learned the skill of “scrutinizing every line for its efficacy in either revealing character, entertaining and informing the audience, establishing a setting, advancing the holistic narrative, or hopefully, a combination of two or more of the above.” Gosh, that sounds like everything a writer needs to do to write a successful book. During his time at Storage Wars: Texas, he began writing his first book, and as they say, the rest is history. Stradal says, “when you write about things you care about, your writing gets better.” He has written shorter articles for many publications, has been a contributing or co-editor for magazines and other publications, and is currently a full-time writer.

• Kitchens of the Great Midwest - Stradal calls his first book his “letter to his mother.” He says that it helped him deal with her death and that in all his books, he writes for her. Do yourself a favor and don’t read the book description; the less you know going into it, the more you will enjoy it. From the Los Angeles Review of Books, “this is a book that made me want to have a more full and colorful life, a life with cookbooks and a well-used kitchen, and to delight at all the goodness that can be put in front of us.” Stradal wanted to see more Midwest culture, which led him to write Kitchens. This was the second book of his that I read, and I found it breezy, warm and comforting, emotional, and just a pleasure to read.

• The Lager Queen of Minnesota - Knowing or caring nothing about beer, I went into this thinking that this book might not be for me. Boy, I was wrong. This was the first book of his that I read, and he is now a must-read author for me because of it. Set in his home state, Stradal gives us more of the Midwest culture he found so lacking in his early years. A father sets up the conflict when he leaves the two sisters shared inheritance to only the youngest one. From best-selling author Jonathan Evison, “… is pure reading joy; warm, funny, informative, and full of heart. It is impossible not to root for Stradal's characters, who are so vivid, and relatable that you will miss them every time you set the book down; indeed, if you set it down at all.” The sisters are so different, and at times I found myself rooting for each one, but I definitely had a favorite. I love a good family drama where the best and the worst come out and where the characters are people I can relate to and see a little of myself in, and the Lager Queen does just that.

• Saturday Night at the Lakeside Supper Club - I have been anxiously awaiting his latest book on NetGalley, and finally, it arrived. I received an ARC, and I can’t wait to read it closer to the publication date. From the publisher, “a story of a couple from two very different restaurant families in rustic Minnesota, and the legacy of love and tragedy, of hardship and hope, that unites and divides them.” Early reviewers say this book “nails the supper club culture and vibe” and “has captivating characters in determined and strong women.” From what I’ve initially read about it, it reminds me of the vibes of The Last Summer at the Golden Hotel, and I really enjoyed that book. I have high hopes for this one.

Here are several links to interviews, podcasts, and videos.

• 🎧 In this short NPR podcast, Stradal talks about oversimplified caricatures of Midwestern women and how he writes to change that perception.

• 📝 In The NY Times (gift link) book review, author Wendy Smith discusses the book and the nuances of each of the characters.

• 💻 South Florida PBS show Between the Covers interviews Stradal dishing on the characters, beer and food, the Midwest, and writing from the female perspective.

• 📝 An article written for The Rumpus where Stradal recommends some older books about finding your family and families of choice.

• 📝 Another Rumpus article of an interview with Stradal about his first book. I found this article to be one of the best and most interesting of all I stumbled across while researching his life and books. It makes me appreciate the book even more.

• 🎧 I don’t listen to every episode of the Currently Reading podcast, but I did listen to this episode shortly after I read The Lager Queen. The twenty-minute mini-episode introduces the reader to his humor, mentors, and writing life. They even have a silly conversation about the “research” required to write a really good book about beer.

• 💻 In this thirty-minute video, speaker and author Holly Furtick interviews Stradal for her website “book club,” where they discuss how food and life can bring people together in unexpected ways.

I don’t read a lot of books written by men—not because I have anything against male authors, but because my preferred genres are usually written by female authors. In my experience and from what I’ve read, I think it’s also rare that a male author writes female characters as well as Stradal does. I think this is one of his talents and maybe “writing for his mother” is his secret sauce.

While he’s not as active on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter as some authors are, he does post and share more of his real life in addition to his books. You can find out more about his books on his website.

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Stradal’s books are “refreshing” and different from most books I usually read. His writing, in that respect, reminds me of Steven Rowley’s books I wrote about here. Given my enjoyment and success with both authors, I may need to read more male authors.

Until next week, happy reading!

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