About - Tsvi Jolles

Hi, I’m Tsvi Jolles—author of Leo and the Magic Guitar of the Ozarks and Tangerines.

Tsvi Jolles is pronounced ‘Tz-vee Jah-luhs’—Tsvi with a soft ‘Tz’ sound like in pretzel, and Jolles rhymes with flawless—strictly in pronunciation, not in lifestyle!

Here’s a clip of me pronouncing it, since it’s not the easiest to guess, even with that nice explanation above.

And here’s one by Casey Montgomery, the narrator of Tangerines.

Okay, I think we’ve got it covered. What’s next?

I love writing, and when I’m not doing just that, I’m probably thinking about what to write tomorrow morning, or enjoying other things like meditating, stretching, swimming, walking, or making lunch (if someone else doesn’t beat me to it).

This site is where I share parts of my journey as a writer. I already said I love writing, but since this is my very personal (and totally official) site, I’ll say it again. I love writing. I also like breaking rules—mostly literary ones.

This picture was actually taken in Tennessee.

And for the fun fact in this section, here’s a little secret: I don’t read books. After a long day of putting words on the page, I’d rather listen to stories than read them. So, thank you, Audible, Chirp, Everand, and my local library (shoutout to Libby) for keeping my stories flowing.

Speaking of local, I live in Cumming, Georgia, with my wife and our son.

While most of my readers are from the U.S., Canada, the U.K., and Australia, I truly appreciate those who find my books in places like Norway, Ireland, India, and beyond. I hope my stories can travel across as many languages and cultures as possible.

I guess this is where I should add that languages fascinate me. I’ve picked up different levels of proficiency in English, Italian, Hebrew, Arabic, French, German, and Spanish—some fluent, others deeply studied, and one native.

And finally, if you’re curious about what I’m up to, here are some social networks where I hang out.