For a press release, book description, cover image, author bio, and author photo, please download this press kit:

Download the press kit (1.29 mb)

Interviews and media coverage

" A Childhood Writing Experience Leads to a Life of Writing," by Tricia McDonald, Authors of West Michigan column, Senior Perspectives magazine, November/December 2021
"Meet Nan Sanders Pokerwinski," Potions and Paragraphs, October 21, 2021
"interview w/ nan sanders pokerwinski," by Carol Smallwood, The Bookends Review, December 25, 2019
Radio interview with Shelley Irwin, WGVU Public Media, October 24, 2019
"Local author relives life in Samoa," by Ken DeLaat and Donna Kipp, Near North Now, October 17, 2019
'Mango Rash,' relates author's move from Stillwater to Samoa, The Oklahoman, October 6, 2019
"Mango Rash: Coming of Age in the Land of Frangipani and Fanta," article by LeAnn Barton, Stillwater News Press, September 15, 2019

Suggested interview questions

  • How did your family end up in American Samoa?
  • How did you feel about moving there in the middle of your high school years?
  • What led you to write this memoir, and how long did it take to write it?
  • Did you ever doubt you were capable of finishing this book? If so, what kept you focused and moving forward?
  • How did you remember so many things that happened more than fifty years ago?
  • When were you last in Samoa? What had changed since you were first there?
  • What advice would you have today for your sixteen-year-old self?
  • You've been a journalist and a university science writer, and now you're a memoir author. How have you changed as a writer over your career?
  • What has been most rewarding about publishing this book? What has been most challenging?
  • What lesson or insight do you hope readers will carry with them after finishing Mango Rash? Is there a single message for all readers, or do you want to convey different things to readers of different ages? 
  • What's next? Will you write more memoir or will you try your hand at fiction? Do you see yourself working on another book-length project, or will you focus on shorter pieces?
  • What have you learned from writing Mango Rash that you can use in future writing projects?