JO PIAZZA & CHRISTINE PRIDE, co-authors of WE ARE NOT LIKE THEM

I Am Refocused Radio

ABOUT WE ARE NOT LIKE THEM
"Now these women, they can WRITE!" -Terry McMillan, New York Times bestselling author of It's Not All Downhill from Here
"We Are Not Like Them will stay with you long after you turn the last page." -Laura Dave, New York Timesbestselling author of The Last Thing He Told Me
Told from alternating perspectives, an evocative and riveting novel about the lifelong bond between two women, one Black and one white, whose friendship is indelibly altered by a tragic event-a powerful and poignant exploration of race in America today and its devastating impact on ordinary lives.
Jen and Riley have been best friends since kindergarten. As adults, they remain as close as sisters, though their lives have taken different directions. Jen married young, and after years of trying, is finally pregnant. Riley pursued her childhood dream of becoming a television journalist and is poised to become one of the first Black female anchors of the top news channel in their hometown of Philadelphia.
But the deep bond they share is severely tested when Jen's husband, a city police officer, is involved in the shooting of an unarmed Black teenager. Six months pregnant, Jen is in freefall as her future, her husband's freedom, and her friendship with Riley are thrown into uncertainty. Covering this career-making story, Riley wrestles with the implications of this tragic incident for her Black community, her ambitions, and her relationship with her lifelong friend.
Like Tayari Jones's An American Marriage and Jodi Picoult's Small Great Things, We Are Not Like Themexplores complex questions of race and how they pervade and shape our most intimate spaces in a deeply divided world. But at its heart, it's a story of enduring friendship-a love that defies the odds even as it faces its most difficult challenges.
ABOUT JO PIAZZA
Jo Piazza is a bestselling author, podcast creator and award-winning journalist. She is the author of many critically acclaimed novels and nonfiction books including Charlotte Walsh Likes to Win, The Knockoffand How to Be Married. Her work has been published in ten languages in twelve countries and four of her books have been optioned for film and television. Jo is also the creator, host and executive producer of the hit podcastsCommitted, Fierce and Under the Influence. A former editor, columnist and travel writer with Yahoo, Current TV and the New York Daily News, her work has also appeared in the Wall Street Journal, New York Times, New York magazine, Glamour, Elle, Time, Marie Claire, the Daily Beast, and Slate. She holds an undergraduate degree in economics from the University of Pennsylvania, a master's in journalism from Columbia University, and a master's in religious studies from New York University.
ABOUT CHRISTINE PRIDE
Christine Pride is a writer, editor, and longtime publishing veteran. She's held editorial posts at many different trade imprints, including Doubleday, Broadway, Crown, Hyperion, and Simon & Schuster. As an editor, Christine has published a range of books, with a special emphasis on inspirational stories and memoirs, including numerous New York Times bestsellers. As a freelance editorial consultant, she does select editing and proposal/content development, as well as teaching and coaching, and pens a regular column-"Race Matters"-for Cup of Jo. She lives in New York City.
Link to articles about We Are Not Like Them
: https://people.com/human-interest/voices-against-racism-jo-piazza-christine-pride-novel-inspired-by-their-own-interracial-friendship/
https://www.thebookseller.com/blogs/reading-cure-1275853
ABOUT JO PIAZZA'S PODCAST UNDER THE INFLUENCE
Under the Influence is a deep dive into the Mom Internet, a place haunted by aspirational marketing where it feels like every other mom is a social media influencer trying to sell you something, all while posed in white kitchens that never seem to get messy. with toddlers in cloth diapers that never ever leak; a bastion of carefully curated lives that are #blessed.And behind this airbrushed perfection is money, so much money. Billions and billions of dollars. Journalist and mom Jo Piazza looks at how we got here, what it all means and how the commodification of motherhood is driving mothers a little insane. And through it all she wonders whether or not she has what it takes to join the ranks of the momstagrammers, if she too can make thousands of dollars off beautiful photos of bath time, frolic-ing in fields of purple flowers and posing her newborn next to a beautiful latte.
Episodes here:
https://www.iheart.com/podcast/1119-under-the-influence-with-76687187/
Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/i-am-refocused-radio--2671113/support.