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FORMER Z107.7 REPORTER PUBLISHES SECOND BOOK

Former Z107.7 News reporter and Golden Mike Award winner David Haldane dropped by our studios recently to discuss the publication of his latest book of short stories. Reporter Heather Clisby caught up with David and has the scoop…

Entitled “Jenny on the Street: And Other Tales of Reverence and Revolution by a Very Young Man,” author David Haldane was not expecting much when he found the 13 short stories jammed in a drawer.

“They pretty much had been laid forgotten in a desk drawer for decades,” said Haldane. “I sent them to the publisher and much to my amazement, a few weeks later, I get a contract.”

As Haldane notes in the book’s opening disclaimer (“I did not write these stories. In fact, they were written by a much younger man who bears my name.”), the stories were written at a different time in his life. Now in his 70s, the book was penned by Haldane ages 20 through 30.

“These stories reflect a time in my life where I was in a very, very different place than I am now,” said Haldane. “These were written either in or about the ’60s and early ’70s when there was a huge counterculture going on. I was actively involved in it as an activist politically, socially and every way. And so, these stories kind of reflected that person. And so I thought, ‘Oh my god.’ It was a little embarrassing for me even because I thought, ‘Geez, these stories are not who I am today. These stories are who I was 40 years ago.’”

Haldane sees strong similarities between the counter-culture movement of the ’60s and the frustrations of today.

“What struck me is how similar in certain ways that era is to what we’re going through today. And that was a shocker to me because that was not intentional,” said Haldane. “But as I began reading the stories again and thinking about and as events began to evolve today, I just recognize so many similarities – emotionally, politically to some extent – in many ways. Even though I’m not an activist now, I’m not involved in this movement in the way I was in that one in any way, but emotionally, there still are some similarities and what I was expressing in those days is not that far off from what I, and I think many people, are feeling today.”

A former staffer of the Los Angeles Times and this news station, Haldane now divides his time between homes in Joshua Tree and the Philippines where he writes a weekly newspaper column called “Expat Eye.” Haldane’s first book, “Nazis & Nudists,” was a memoir.

“I just think, y’know, they’re some pretty good stories written by a somewhat confused but fairly articulate young man who I probably would’ve enjoyed meeting,” said Haldane.

The e-book version will be discounted to .99 cents on Amazon from March 1-7. To purchase the book, go to:

Listen to the full interview with David Haldane:

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