Stephen Jordan co-hosts “Wednesdays Are for Writers”

Stephen Jordan, author of "Tatiana and the Russian Wolves" will talk about his new novel as co-host of “Wednesdays Are for Writers,” at the Eastgate Café, 102 Harrison Street, Oak Park on July 10 from 6:00 to 8:00 PM.

“Wednesdays Are for Writers,” is a bi-monthly series of presentations that support the literary and performing arts community in the Oak Park. These events give authors an opportunity to meet each other, share their work, get advice from their peers and feedback from their readers while ordering from the gourmet menu and full bar of the Eastgate Café.

"Tatiana and the Russian Wolves" is a psychological thriller and historic romance set in San Francisco. The protagonist of the book, Alexander Romanovsky, is an international l banker with an artistic bent who is the only survivor of two aristocratic Russian families. Alexander adored his mother, Tatiana, an exotic and magical woman. Tatiana’s imagination kept her past at bay until insanity—the Russian wolves of the title— overwhelm her and cause Alexander to suffer a mental breakdown early in his career. Although he leads a comfortable life in San Francisco, he is always aware of a certain fragility in his makeup. When he is blackmailed over an unconventional relationship and loses his job, he must find the inner strength to explore the truth behind his mother’s suicide and family secrets. Will he withstand the gales that are sweeping through his life? Or will he too, succumb to the Russian wolves?

Stephen Jordan’s fiction is inspired from living overseas combined with a passion for history. He grew up in the Napa Valley in the 1950's in a family of readers where conversations often centered on books. Stephen says, of all his parents’ gifts, love of literature is his most cherished. He took art history at Stanford and considered a career in the arts. Instead, he opted for a career in international banking and his career involved assignments in San Francisco, Jakarta, Singapore, Chicago, London and Tanzania.

Inspired by Paul Theroux’s Asian collection, "The Counsel’s File," Stephen has written a collection of short stories centered in Southeast Asia; he won an award from Negative Capability for “Prince Charles and the Texans,” set in Singapore. “Snake Charmed” appeared in Gem Street, an anthology of short stories published in Ireland. Other stories have appeared in East Lit, an online journal promoting English literature on South and South East Asia. EastLit published two of Stephen’s stories in 2014: “Raju” and “A Complete Overhaul” (which made EastLit’s list of Top Thirty of Asian popular literature).

Stephen and his wife, Susan, reside in Elmhurst with their cats, Lucy and Muffin. Previously, they resided in Oak Park and Stephen is still active in the Oak Park Writer’s Group at the Oak Park Library. "Tatiana and the Russian Wolves"is his first published novel.

Writer or reader, we hope you’ll join us for a dinner meeting, Wednesday, July 10 at the Eastgate Café for Stephen Jordan’s intriguing presentation on "Tatiana and the Russian Wolves."