This engaging novel presents on first inspections as a quick read, perfect for a day at the beach; after all, it was written on a barrier island near the Holy City of Charleston, SC. Many of the women (and judging by the audience it is clearly aimed at women) who read this novel will begin to read it as a light, good story. But, it is more than that, as alluded to above. It contains depth and scope which make it a thought-provoking exploration of who we are and how we change over time. While it is clearly an exploration of the feminine quest, it contains instruction for men in their relationships with the significant women in their lives.
A question and answer session followed her comments and reading.
Q: Where did you get the idea for Pick's Disease? (Jessie's mother suffers from this.)
Kidd: I wanted a rare and terrible disease, so I consulted with a pathologist who provided me with the symptoms.
Q: What is your connection to Borges or Allende and the concept of magical realism?
Kidd: I'm simply trying to tell a beguiling story from the well of my creative life. I never consciously draw on them. From Kate Chopin's The Awakening, I found Jessie walking into the ocean.
A question and answer session followed her comments and reading.
Q: Where did you get the idea for Pick's Disease? (Jessie's mother suffers from this.)
Kidd: I wanted a rare and terrible disease, so I consulted with a pathologist who provided me with the symptoms.
Q: What is your connection to Borges or Allende and the concept of magical realism?
Kidd: I'm simply trying to tell a beguiling story from the well of my creative life. I never consciously draw on them. From Kate Chopin's The Awakening, I found Jessie walking into the ocean.
Q: How does your spiritual journey inform writing fiction?
Kidd: There are echoes of my nonfiction books in Chair. Heart Wakes explored a mid-life redefinition. Dance of the Dissident Daughter showed truth in my ability to live for myself.
Q: I am touched by your use of ritual, both personal and communal. What are some of your rituals?
Kidd: Simply put, I set a course for myself and function within my circle of women friends.
Q: Where did you come up with the idea to have Lilly (Bees) kneel on grits as a punishment?
Kidd: I've never met anyone who did this to a child or had it done to them. The idea came from a Filipino-American friend who was forced to kneel on rice. It just seemed appropriate that a Southern girl would be forced to kneel on grits. Since then, I've heard of comparable punishments across a number of cultures.
Q: Did you design the cover of Bees?
Kidd: That was a decision by the publisher. My husband did buy the original artwork for me, however.
Q: At what point did you decide on the ending of Chair?
Kidd: I knew it from the beginning of the writing process. I wrote toward this ending, a scene of Jessie marrying herself in the ocean. I thought I knew how Bees would end, but I was fooled.
Kidd: There are echoes of my nonfiction books in Chair. Heart Wakes explored a mid-life redefinition. Dance of the Dissident Daughter showed truth in my ability to live for myself.
Q: I am touched by your use of ritual, both personal and communal. What are some of your rituals?
Kidd: Simply put, I set a course for myself and function within my circle of women friends.
Q: Where did you come up with the idea to have Lilly (Bees) kneel on grits as a punishment?
Kidd: I've never met anyone who did this to a child or had it done to them. The idea came from a Filipino-American friend who was forced to kneel on rice. It just seemed appropriate that a Southern girl would be forced to kneel on grits. Since then, I've heard of comparable punishments across a number of cultures.
Q: Did you design the cover of Bees?
Kidd: That was a decision by the publisher. My husband did buy the original artwork for me, however.
Q: At what point did you decide on the ending of Chair?
Kidd: I knew it from the beginning of the writing process. I wrote toward this ending, a scene of Jessie marrying herself in the ocean. I thought I knew how Bees would end, but I was fooled.
Q: Is Bees going to be made into a movie?
Kidd: There is an option, and there has been some discussion of a cast, but nothing is final at this point.
Q: I'm writing a novel. What is the process by which you got published?
Kidd: I was in New York reading a short story and met an agent who told me that if I ever turned the short story into a novel, she would like to represent me. Three years later, I was ready.
Q: How do you work?
Kidd: Disciplined. Dogged. I get up and walk out to the dock and spend about a half hour trying to be inspired by the tides and the rhythm of the natural world. By 8:30 I'm at my desk, and I work all day, five days per week until my husband or my dog Lilly drag me out.
Q: Who are the writers who inspire you?
Kidd: Barbara Kingsolver. Jane Hamilton is really beautiful. Isabel Allende. For an upcoming anthology, I was asked to list the ten books which have had the greatest impact on me. They are The Awakening, A Doll's House, To Kill a Mockingbird, The Color Purple, Wuthering Heights, The Scarlet Letter, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, The Bell Jar, Oedipus the King, and 13 Stories by Eudora Welty.
Kidd: There is an option, and there has been some discussion of a cast, but nothing is final at this point.
Q: I'm writing a novel. What is the process by which you got published?
Kidd: I was in New York reading a short story and met an agent who told me that if I ever turned the short story into a novel, she would like to represent me. Three years later, I was ready.
Q: How do you work?
Kidd: Disciplined. Dogged. I get up and walk out to the dock and spend about a half hour trying to be inspired by the tides and the rhythm of the natural world. By 8:30 I'm at my desk, and I work all day, five days per week until my husband or my dog Lilly drag me out.
Q: Who are the writers who inspire you?
Kidd: Barbara Kingsolver. Jane Hamilton is really beautiful. Isabel Allende. For an upcoming anthology, I was asked to list the ten books which have had the greatest impact on me. They are The Awakening, A Doll's House, To Kill a Mockingbird, The Color Purple, Wuthering Heights, The Scarlet Letter, Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, The Bell Jar, Oedipus the King, and 13 Stories by Eudora Welty.
