AVALON — As the sun set on Surfside Park, a crowd sat in beach chairs and on blankets to listen to author Sara Goodman Confino talk about her latest novel, “Off the Record.”
“We’re thrilled to have author Sara Goodman Confino here with us this evening,” Avalon Free Public Library assistant director and head of programming/engagement Kara Buono said. “Her books are often described as humorous and heartfelt.”
Book discussions and signings are part of the library’s annual Summer Spotlight Series, hosted at Surfside Park, 2901 Avalon Ave.
The author lineup kicked off with Confino, who is a women’s fiction author of six novels, including “Off the Record,” “Good Grief,” “Behind Every Good Man,” “Don’t Forget to Write,” “She’s Up to No Good” and “For the Love of Friends.”
The Summer Spotlight Series lineup includes:
— July 20: Katherine Center (Romance)
— July 27: Meg Donohue (Fiction)
— Aug. 24: Marie Benedict (Historical Fiction)
— Aug. 31: Melissa Clark (Cooking and New York Times Food section writer)
Books are available for purchase at the events, with a signing following the talk. Attendees should bring chairs and blankets to the park. In case of inclement weather, the events move inside the Community Hall.
Confino on ‘Off the Record’
Confino’s newest release, “Off the Record,” is set in 1962 and follows recent college graduate and aspiring reporter Judy Greenburg. Opportunities for women in the newsroom during that era were typically limited to the typing pool and to secretarial roles.
Judy, anything but the typical Jewish girl, is aiming for journalistic greatness. She takes a job in the typing pool, hoping to write stories rather than just type them. When Judy answers her boss’s private office line, she hears a cryptic message delivered by a man with a Russian accent.
Newspaper reporter Jack Fields can tell Judy is anything but a typical woman in the typing pool. Judy trusts Jack enough to tell him about the mysterious phone call, and they decide to work together to track the story down.
“Off the Record” thrusts the reader into the Cold War Era, a time when young women were not considered “real reporters.” Confino illuminates the audience on the standards expected of women at the time: get married, have kids and stay home to raise them.
Buono asked what inspired the story of a strong Jewish woman navigating the male-dominated journalism field.
“In the 1960s, women were still being told that they couldn’t do a lot of things,” Confino said. “I liked the idea of a character who got turned down, being able to find a story.”
Confino was a journalism major at the University of Maryland before deciding she wanted to become a teacher.
“I realized I didn’t want to be a journalist,” Confino said. “I had some very jaded professors and part of that was I wanted to make some better journalists.”
Inspired by her high school journalism teacher, Confino spent years teaching high school journalism and English.
Finding the inspiration for “Off the Record” came during a Peloton ride, when the instructor mentioned Marilyn Monroe. Confino, who typically writes historical stories, thought about President John F. Kennedy and a story she had heard while at a bar in Washington, D.C.
“Some guy was trying to impress me, and he was telling me that JFK used to send people to this bar to pick up girls to bring back to the White House,” she said. “I was thinking about this on the Peloton, while I’m trying to avoid how hard my ride is, and I thought that was an interesting story.”
A quick Google search revealed to Confino that the timeline did not align with the bar’s opening, but her husband’s friend mentioned a bar named Off the Record at the Hay-Adams hotel.
“I want to be crystal clear that there is no evidence that Kennedy or Johnson sent anybody to pick up women at a bar,” Confino said.
She does not name the president or vice president in “Off the Record,” to allow for creative liberties. The idea for the novel grew from there, along with the addition of a spy element to the story.
“I fell in love with that era because everything looked so bright and happy and colorful in the early ’60s,” Confino said. “Underneath it, there was a lot going on that wasn’t, [I’m] talking about the Civil Rights Movement and women’s rights and a lot of that is still relevant today.”
On why she likes writing books set in the 1960s, Confino said she can write about issues still going on today without seeming preachy or political, as they might in a modern setting.
“I didn’t mention the words Democrat or Republican once, because setting it in the 1960s, you didn’t have to, it isn’t as bitter as it is today,” Confino said. “The other thing, and this is actually me being ridiculous, I hate writing cell phones with a passion.”
When writing her books, Confino draws on family anecdotes and asks her extended family for details about the period’s history.
“I spend a lot of time Googling really random stuff, and my search history is probably very interesting,” Confino joked. “This story was really my favorite one to write, partially because of the journalism knowledge but I loved the story so much. It just poured out of me.”
Library offerings
The Avalon Free Public Library has a robust events calendar, including exhibitions and programs with the Avalon History Center (part of the library).
The library offers a summer reading program for children, teens and adults. Entrants can receive badges and special prizes upon completion.
Additionally, the library has several activities and book clubs, including ones for romance and literary books, Italian culture, a knitting group and twice-monthly Scrabble events.
Avalon and Cape May County property owners can sign up for a library card by visiting the library and sharing ID and proof of local residency. Visit avalonfreelibrary.org for more information.
By RACHEL SHUBIN/Special to the Star and Wave
