Love, Like Apples

Tiller Loomis grows up without a mother and has a cold, heavy-drinking father. He lives in the small town of Sawyer, Tennessee, during the 1960s. Most days, he works long hours on the family apple orchard. His only bright spot is his kind older brother, Smith. Smith teaches Tiller that kindness is a choice.

When Smith is drafted to serve in Vietnam, Tiller's life falls apart. Lost and confused, he ends up at a children's puppet show at a church and finds a surprising passion for puppetry. This dream eventually leads him to New York in 1977, where a group of artists is using puppets on a PBS show called Imagine Nation to give hope to teenagers. He discovers a new family among the cast, especially with Julie DiFrancesca, a woman who introduces him to a life he never expected.

The Story is framed as a present-day documentary about Imagine Nations, moving from the 1970s to now and following how one controversial, forgotten TV show and a complicated romance ripple out over decades.

Zentner has explained that Tiller reflects on how apples come from improbable circumstances, and love does too.

Is It Worth Reading?Yes, if you enjoy character-driven historical fiction that follows a person over many years and love a good "found family" saga that is both poignant and uplifting. And it will resonate with anyone nostalgic for 1970s New York or the era of public television and Muppets-style puppetry.

The publisher recommends it for fans of Taylor Jenkins Reid and Kristin Hannah, and those who liked Daisy Jones & The Six will likely enjoy the documentary style.

1. What lesson about kindness does Tiller learn from his brother Smith, and how does it influence him after Smith goes to war?

2. Tiller moves to 1977 New York City and connects deeply with the diverse artists of Imagine Nation. Compare this "found family" to his biological family in Sawyer, Tennessee. How does each environment influence his creative growth?

3. Tiller and Julie DiFrancesca have a long-lasting romance. What makes their relationship special, and how does Julie's energetic nature complement Tiller's quieter personality?

4. Why is Tiller drawn to puppetry after experiencing grief, and how do puppets help convey "radical empathy" to troubled teenagers?

5. Why do you think society neglects teenagers' emotional lives, and how does the show Imagine Nation address this? Can art save lives, or is that too sentimental?

6, How does Tiller's journey from a rural Tennessee apple orchard to gritty 1970s NYC illustrate the metaphor that love can grow from tough circumstances?

7. How did the documentary format of the story change your reading experience and affect your view of the characters' challenges in their youth?

8. Author Jeff Zentner described the book as a love letter to "artists who make art knowing it will probably be lost to time." What do you think about ephemeral art? Does a creative project lose value if it's eventually forgotten, or is its immediate impact what matters?

9. Looking at the story from the 1960s into the modern era, how did you feel about the way the novel handled aging, memory, and the enduring power of human connection?

"Jeff Zentner knows what a strange vessel the heart can be, and he articulates it perfectly when he writes, 'it can be full and broken all at once.' In Love, Like Apples, a powerful look at the hopeful act of making art, Zentner looks to the past, and it's a testament to his wonderful heart that he can write about love in ways that never shy away from pain but knows so intimately how it can save us. A wonder of a book." -Kevin Wilson, New York Times bestselling author of Run for the Hills

"This is absolutely Jeff Zentner's best novel yet. Written with extraordinary heart, Love, Like Apples is funny, tender, and the rare kind of story that leads you to a better version of yourself. What a wondrous ode to the undying power of art." -Amy Jo Burns, author of Wait for Me

"Love, Like Apples is an intimate epic of creators and creativity, culture and counterculture, love (of course) and loss, written-beautifully, I might add, sentence by sentence-with a heartfelt earnestness that I found utterly disarming right from the first pages. Jeff Zentner has persuasively brought back to detailed life the final decades of the twentieth century and peopled his novel with an array of characters you'll find yourself caring about and rooting for."-Benjamin Dreyer, New York Times bestselling author of Dreyer's English

"[A]n evocative look at 1970s New York and the creative process of developing a television show, as well as a heartfelt portrait of the power of found family and the enduring power of human kindness and connection." -Booklist

"Nashville-based novelist Zentner captures the zeitgeist well-both via pop culture and the gritty feel of late-'70s New York. Tiller's down-home sensibilities and soulfulness are steady, grounding the lyrical prose. Readers will like rooting for the ragtag creators of Imagine Nation. And Zentner handles the "deep emotional baggage" each character carries with care and heart. A tender novel about the transformative powers of storytelling and human connection. -Kirkus

"This novel traces how love and radical empathy ripple across decades. Zentner's lyrical prose and his deep roots in Appalachian storytelling bring both tenderness and grit to Tiller's story. VERDICT This novel will resonate with readers. Recommend to fans of Taylor Jenkins Reid and Kristin Hannah, and to anyone who believes in the transformative powers of art and love." -Library Journal

"A love song to the best of humanity-the lovers, the dreamers, and the creative hearts-and a rallying cry for art that illuminates life's darkest moments, Love, Like Apples will break your heart and gently stitch it back together. For anyone who's ever welled up during Rainbow Connection, get ready to fall in love with Imagine Nation." -Daria Lavelle, author of Aftertaste