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| photo by David Lowes |
LEC: For such a short book, Out of the Box has a lot going on. Let's start with Argentina. I understand you married your long-time Argentinian pen pal. Is this how you became interested in the country's history? How did the Disappeared find their way into your book?
MM: My husband loves history. Ever since we were pen pals, he has shared his passion for the history of his country. Inevitably, our discussions return to the Disappeared because no matter how much we discuss it, we can never understand how it happened. How does a country get to a place where its own government actively kills its citizens and goes unstopped year after year? And how do people pick up the pieces afterward? The Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo, whose children were disappeared over thirty years ago, still march every Thursday afternoon at three, demanding information. And countries around the world have similar situations. I think it’s important to know these stories and to think about them because they’re not just stories about other people: They’re stories about us, about humanity as a whole.
These are thoughts I’ve had for years, but when I started writing Out of the Box, I had no intention of writing about Argentina. I wanted to write a Canadian story about Ellie and her relationships with her parents. The more I wrote, though, the more I got bogged down in her stifling family situation. I had to give her an outlet, and the day I was trying to figure out what that escape should be, I was staring at my computer screen in my apartment, and our neighbour—a bandoneón player—began to practice for his next CBC concert. Strains of tango drifted down through the floorboards and wended their way into my story, and that was the day Ellie found a bandoneón in her aunt’s basement.
From there, the segue into Argentine history happened naturally. Ellie would want to know where the instrument came from, and as I wrote that part of the story, all the things I’d learned about the Disappeared and their lost children came flooding back to me. Facundo came into being. At first, I didn’t know what he was doing there, how he could possibly help Ellie feel better about the world when his own story was so tragic, but it all became clear when she realized that he had learned to smile despite the tragedy, something that her own mother, years after her difficult childhood, was still unable to do. In this way, Facundo’s story gave Ellie a key to the story of her own family, and the two fit together in a way I never could have planned.
LEC: Ellie's passion for tango music draws her towards the unusual instrument that's central to the plot. What kind of research did you do in support of the musical aspects of the book? Do you play the bandoneón?
MM: I love tango music for its history, its links to Argentina, and of course for its passion. So it seems incredibly lucky that one of Canada’s finest bandoneón players would move in next door, make beautiful music while I write, and give me wonderful pieces of this story. My neighbour and friend, Jonathan Goldman, was thrilled to learn that a bandoneón had made its way into my book. He’s been playing for years and jokes that his life’s mission is to educate people about this unusual instrument. He was incredibly generous with his time and knowledge and even played at the launch of Out of the Box here in Victoria.
LEC: Ellie's home situation has caused her to become older than her years, in terms of her decision-making processes and sense of responsibility. Tell us how you developed the character of Ellie's mother. Why is she larger than life, while Ellie's father fades a bit into the background?
MM: In some ways, Out of the Box includes elements of autobiography. While I was growing up, both my parents struggled with undiagnosed mental health issues. It took us years to understand that our family dynamics were unusual, and it took me still more years to give up looking for books that reflected my experience and to decide instead to write one.
I was terrified that I didn’t know how to write this book. I was terrified that my parents would hate me or that I would hate myself by the end of it, but in the course of writing, my parents gave me two enormous gifts. The first was permission to write. “This is your story,” they said, “and you need to tell it.” The second was their support and enthusiasm when they read the manuscript right before it went into print. To my enormous relief, they understood that I was not damning them for our difficult times but rather trying to write a book that might have helped me when I was thirteen: a realistic one that showed a kid learning to cope, setting boundaries, and doing what was necessary to feel strong, confident and healthy herself.
As you say, in the book, Ellie’s mother is larger than life and her father fades into the background a bit. Ellie’s father has his own troubles to deal with, but instead of overflowing or lashing out as his wife does, he recedes into the basement. I think this is the only way that Ellie’s mother and father could co-exist, and it adds to the complexity of the situation that Ellie faced. She was abandoned by both parents in different ways, left on her own to figure out who she was and how she wanted to fit into this family.
LEC: Is it wrong that Alison is one of my favorite characters? How do you think the story would the story be different without her? Do you think Alison, in some ways, forms a parallel to the deceased owners of the bandoneon?
MM: Yay! I love that Alison is one of your favourite characters. I like her, too, and I’m happy that she joined the story, even if her presence is marked primarily by her absence. She represents a worldview that’s very different from any that Ellie has experienced. Her optimism and childlike excitement about life encourage Ellie in new directions. We all need people like that in our lives.
You’re right that, in some ways, Alison parallels the deceased owners of the bandoneón. I hadn’t thought about that before, but, yes, all of them represent joy, love, and loss.
LEC: In addition to Out of the Box, you've written two books in Second Story Press's Kids' Power Series. These books are fiction, but based on the lives of real kids who've made a difference in the world. They also have a strong historical background. So does your previous middle-grade novel, After Peaches. What compels you to tell these kinds of stories?
MM: When I was growing up, I didn’t feel like I had much influence in my family, my school, or my community. I’d never heard of kids taking a political stand, and I’ve always admired kids who had the courage to stand up and be counted. I also think that more kids will stand up to be counted if the books they read and the stories they hear encourage them to do so. Story is powerful stuff, but stories can be lost, forgotten, or buried, and when nobody tells them, they lose their power. I like to help keep that power alive, and if I can tell a story that not only honours the people who were involved but inspires and empowers the people that hear it, then I’m happy with what I’ve written.
LEC: Thanks so much for joining us today!
MM: Thank you for your thought-provoking questions, Lindsey. It’s been a pleasure to chat with you.
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For more information on Michelle Mulder and her books, visit her website.
1 comments:
nice blog, good job done man! keep it up...
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