the debut novel from BOBBIE CALHOUN

A forty year rivalry, spanning countless battlefields…

Folio opens on the battlefields of WWII, where a dangerous rivalry unfolds between two ambitious war photographers. American Terry Tusley refuses to gloss over the violence. His British rival, Cameron Plumb, creates elaborate, visual illusions of drama at the front in service to a propaganda machine. Complicating matters is Terry's wife Francine, an undercover operative for the Allies who has more passion for espionage than motherhood. Left behind to raise two young brothers alone, their daughter Katie Tusley is the unsuspecting psychological casualty of events beyond her control.

Folio is an exciting, challenging journey that weaves historical fiction with deep character development and intricate storytelling.

Available Now • Nouveau Literary • Paperback • $16.99 • 9798992737301

Buy Now

PRAISE FOR FOLIO

“An epic tale of passion, manipulation, and obsession.”

—WHITNEY OTTO, New York Times bestselling author

MEET THE AUTHOR

Novelist • Essayist • Playwright • Poet

Bobbie Calhoun is a member of the Dramatists Guild and the Authors Guild. She is a graduate of The Attic Institute fiction workshop, studying with bestselling author Whitney Otto.

Calhoun’s work has appeared in Medium and Storied Stuff. She has been published by Belgrave House and Nouveau Literary.

Follow Bobbie on social media:

Make Folio your next book club pick.

Download the Free Book Club Kit!

    1. Why does Tusley begin his story with a reflection on the meaning of “home”? What do you think “home” means to Tusley at the beginning of the novel? At the end?

    2. Katie tells her side of Tusley’s story throughout the novel. Whose point of view is Katie really expressing? What does she think of her father’s life work? Does she hold her mother Francine accountable for her own addictions? Why or why not?

    3. Harry is deeply affected by his father’s photographs. Do you think Tusley explained his work’s purpose sufficiently to his son? Did Tusley make the right choices when it came to Harry, or any of his three children?

    4. What was Francine’s motivation in using Terry as her courier? Do you think her first priority is the happiness of their long marriage, or is Katie correct in saying they were never together, and barely had anything to celebrate?

    5. What do Cameron Plumb, Daniel Ivers, Trombone, and Vivienne have in common, if anything? Do their actions affect Tusley, or is he on a mission with no partners? Does Tusley see everyone as a rival? Do others feel that way about him, or are the friendships these characters develop truly heartfelt?

  • For further reading, please consider the following works referenced by the author during the development of Folio.

    Acheson, Dean. The Korean War.New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 1971.

    Ayed, Nahlah. The War We Won Apart. Canada: Penguin Random House, 2024.

    Addario, Lynsey.It’s What I Do. New York: Penguin Press, 2015.

    Ang, Tom. Photography: The Definitive Visual History. New York: DK Publishing, 2014.

    Bergman, Ronen. Rise and Kill First. New York: Penguin Random House, 2018.

    Capa, Robert. Slightly Out of Focus. New York: Random House, Inc., 1999.

    Chapnick, Howard. Truth Needs No Ally. Missouri: University of Missouri Press, 1994.

    Collins, Douglas. The Story of Kodak. New York: Harry N. Abrams Inc., 1990.

    Crickmore, Paul F. Lockheed Blackbird. New York: Osprey Publishing, 2016.

    Darman, Peter. Deception Tactics of World War II. New York: Metro Books, 2017.

    Fischer, Julene. The Vietnam Experience—Images of War, Combat Photographer. Boston, Massachusetts: Boston Publishing Company, 1986.

    Gustavson, Todd. Camera. New York: Sterling Publishing Co., Inc., 2009.

    Jones, Berard E. Encyclopedia of Photography. New York: Arno Press, Inc., 1974.

    Karnow, Stanley. Vietnam: A History. New York: Penguin Books, 1997.

    Leekley, Sheryle and John. Moments: The Pulitzer Prize Photographs. New York: Crown Publishers, Inc., 1978.

    Sebba, Anna. Les Parisiennes. New York: St. Martin’s Press, 2016.

    Taft, Robert. Photography and the American Scene. New York: Dover Publications, Inc., 1938.

    The Canadians at War, Volumes 1 and 2. Reader’s Digest Association, 1969.

    The Vietnam Wars 50 Years Ago. New York: Life Books Time Home Entertainment, 2014.

    WWII. New York: Prentice Hall Press, 1989.

    Ward, Geoffrey C. and Burns, Ken. The Vietnam War. New York: Alfred A. Knopf Penguin Random House, 2017.

  • Item description

  • Would you like to invite Bobbie to speak to your Folio book club? Click here to get in touch.