Amanda Peters on The Berry Pickers: Fiction, Empathy & the Power of Storytelling

About this sermon

This month’s Jen Hatmaker Book Club pick, The Berry Pickers, is striking a powerful chord across reading communities—and today, we’re thrilled to welcome its author, Amanda Peters. A Nova Scotian writer with deep roots in Indigenous governance, Amanda shares how the novel draws from her father’s experience as a Maine berry picker, layered with the rich emotional complexities of Mi’kmaw family life. What began as a short story evolved into a full-length novel—now translated into 22 languages and winner of the Andrew Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Fiction. In this episode, we explore: • The real-life inspiration behind The Berry Pickers • How guilt, shame, and redemption shape the novel’s emotional core • Why fiction builds empathy and connects us through the human experience • Amanda’s love for the writing process and crafting a perfect sentence Quotes to Remember: • “Fiction readers are just better people because literature is about the human condition.” – Amanda Peters • “I love that high you get when a sentence does exactly what I want it to do.” – Amanda Peters • “I couldn’t have written this story when I was 21. I needed life experience first.” – Amanda Peters Perfect For: Lovers of literary fiction, stories rooted in cultural identity, and anyone exploring how past pain intersects with healing. Resources Mentioned in This Episode: The Berry Pickers: A Novel by Amanda Peters - https://amzn.to/4hAYfUM Waiting for the Long Night Moon: Stories by Amanda Peters - https://amzn.to/4hGNTTw John Steinbeck books - https://amzn.to/4c1B1pJ John Steinbeck Center - https://steinbeck.org/ Andrew Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Fiction - https://www.ala.org/carnegie-medals/2024-winners Pearly Everlasting: A Novel by Tammy Armstrong - https://amzn.to/420or5r All the Young Men by Ruth Coker Burks - https://amzn.to/420oT3D What Strange Paradise: A novel by Omar El Akkad - https://amzn.to/4kXs8l6 Guest’s Links: Website - https://amandapetersauthor.com/ Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/amandapetersauthor/ Twitter - https://x.com/amandapetersaut?lang=en Connect with Jen! Jen’s Website - https://jenhatmaker.com/ Jen’s Instagram - https://instagram.com/jenhatmaker Jen’s Twitter - https://twitter.com/jenHatmaker/ Jen’s Facebook - https://facebook.com/jenhatmaker Jen’s YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/user/JenHatmaker The For the Love Podcast is presented by Audacy.