To Night Owl from Dogfish by Holly Goldberg Sloan & Meg Wolitzer
Full disclosure: Initially I skimmed this book's back cover and concluded that it was a remake of The Parent Trap. To be honest, I wasn't crazy about the movie. So, no. I wasn't interested. But... this middle grade novel was by Holly Goldberg Sloan and Meg Wolitzer. I reasoned that two extremely talented authors would write something more than a warmed-over Disney movie script. Once I started reading I was hooked. Reasons why I loved this book: Point one: The girls are interesting individuals, not plot contrivances. While they have a west coast vs. east coast point of view, they have enough unique traits to transcend the California and New York City stereotypes. Point two: The dads. These men are neither good guys nor bad guys. They are guys. They are dads. They make some good decisions, arrive at some conclusions based inaccurate assumptions. They make mistakes. They love their families. |
I Have Questions
- What inspired you to create this story of two girls being raised by single gay dads?
- Did you have the plot in mind from the outset or did the story evolve as you wrote?
- Was one of you the voice of Bett and one the voice of Avery?
- How did Gaga evolve? What inspired the creation of this character?
- What about camp? Were those two very different camps based on personal experience?
- What brought the two of you together to write this book?
- What are the advantages of writing a middle grade novel together?
- What are the challenges of writing a middle grade novel together?
Music of Love
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