We Are Okay
Author: Nina LaCour
Publication Date: February 14th, 2017
Publisher: Dutton Books for Young Readers
Synopsis: Marin hasn’t spoken to anyone from her old life since the day she left everything behind. No one knows the truth about those final weeks. Not even her best friend Mabel. But even thousands of miles away from the California coast, at college in New York, Marin still feels the pull of the life and tragedy she’s tried to outrun. Now, months later, alone in an emptied dorm for winter break, Marin waits. Mabel is coming to visit and Marin will be forced to face everything that’s been left unsaid and finally confront the loneliness that has made a home in her heart.
Some Nifty Book Links:
About the Author and Interview
Nina LaCour is the author of the award-winning Hold Still and widely acclaimedThe Disenchantments. Formerly a bookseller and high school English teacher, she now writes and parents full time. A San Francisco Bay Area native, Nina lives with her family in Richmond, California. Visit her site at www.ninalacour.com.
.
.
.
Interview with Nina LaCour
Where did you come up with the idea for We Are Okay?
I knew that I wanted to write a book that took place in a very specific setting over a short period of time because I was interested in examining the meaning behind small routines and observations. Focusing in on quiet moments is often difficult in faster-paced stories where a lot happens. My wife is the one who suggested the premise of a teen girl who was raised by her grandfather, though. My grandfather had recently passed away and was (and still is) often on my mind, so as soon as she mentioned the idea I knew it was something I wanted to explore.
What is one of your favorite scenes in the book?
There is a scene that comes late in the book but was one of the first that I wrote. Marin and her best friend Mabel getting ready for bed in the bathroom of the college dorm where Marin lives. It’s a quiet scene where they simply brush their teeth, but Marin watches their reflections and realizes some things about herself and her life and who they are to one another. I like it because it is true to that initial concept I had for the book, which is that sometimes the most everyday moments are filled with the most wonder.
When you were writing We Are Okay, did you find any of the characters resembling anyone you know in real life?
Well, my grandfather told many jokes and loved to play cards and was a delightful and loving person. So in those ways, he and Gramps are similar. But those are the only similarities end between them. The character who is most taken from life is Ana, Mabel’s mother, who is modeled after a former teaching colleague of mine who is also an artist originally from Mexico City. Just like the character in the book, the real Ana is warm and loving and passionate about the work she creates and things she believes in.
The relationship between Marin and Mabel is a difficult one. What was it like to write about the confrontation between them?
Their relationship is a complex one for sure! They are best friends who also were romantically involved for a brief time before Mabel left for college and Marin’s life as she knew it fell apart. Now a few months of total estrangement have passed and they are seeing each other again in the most intimate of settings: an empty dorm room during a snowstorm. I loved writing about them coming back together as friends because I knew that underneath the layers of anger and abandonment and hurt was a rare loyalty that would be able to withstand all of the hurdles and complexities of the past months.
How do you avoid distractions when writing?
I like to write at a clear table or in a café. Visual clutter bothers me to no end when I’m trying to work. I need to turn off the wifi on my computer or else I refresh my email every time I finish a sentence, purely out of habit. I also almost always listen to a single song on repeat because it helps me to tune out the world and stay focused.
Giveaway!
Enter for a chance to win one (1) of five (5) copies of We Are Okay by Nina LaCour (ARV: $17.99 each).
NO PURCHASE NECESSARY. Enter between 12:00 AM Eastern Time on February 13, 2017 and 12:00 AM on February 27, 2017. Open to residents of the fifty United States and the District of Columbia who are 13 and older. Winners will be selected at random on or about February 29, 2017. Odds of winning depend on number of eligible entries received. Void where prohibited or restricted by law.
Tour Schedule
Week One:
2/13 – ButterMyBooks – Review
2/14 – Here’s to Happy Endings – Interview
2/15 – The Paige-Turner – Review + Favorite Quotes
2/16 – Read Sleep Fangirl – Playlist + Photoshoot
2/17 – Tales of the Ravenous Reader – Interview
Week Two:
2/20 – Lost in Lit – Review + Book Look
2/21 – YA Wednesdays – Like/Try/Why
2/22 – Pop! Goes the Reader – Guest Post
2/23 – Good Books & Wine – Review + Favorite Quotes
2/24 – Bookworm Everlasting – Review
This sounds really interesting, and the cover is amazing! Thank you for the contest!
Of course! Thanks for stopping by!
What a lovely interview! I really enjoy books that are multi-generational and it sounds like LaCour has dug deep to write this one. Sounds like a book that I would really enjoy. Thank you so much for sharing this. 🙂
This is definitely a book for you if you’re a fan of Nina LaCour’s writing (prior to reading this, I hadn’t read anything else by her, so I’m hooked now), and it’s shockingly beautiful, as well. I love how friendship and family are both such a deep part of this novel.
I adore friendship stories and i love that the author’s grandfather figured in so much with writing this story. Can’t wait to read this book!
It’s such a powerful book about friendship and loss, and I have to recommend it!
I love reading author interviews, and since I have heard only good things about this book this one was especially interesting!
I loved Nina’s last answer because I am mostly the same. I really should disconnect wifi because I find myself refreshing emails and Twitter over and over again just to see what’s going on. And it takes up so much time because I do it every time my mind wanders a little bit! My writing table is super cluttered, though, but I don’t mind that too much.
After reading this interview I am super keen on reading this book! I love the sound of it being about friends coming back together, and that it’s set in a short time frame. I don’t think I’ve read books with either of those things before!
Chiara @ Books for a Delicate Eternity recently posted…To Re-read or Not to Re-read
I agree with you – I spend too much time on trivial matters like Twitter and other forms of social media that sometimes I forget what it’s like to actually disconnect for a while and just spend time doing what actually matters, like work or reading books. This book was incredibly powerful and full of emotion. I really hope you like it when you read it!
This book broke my heart but I am very hopeful for Marin. This is such a lovely post.
I have to agree with you, this book was such a difficult book to read, but it was so beautiful at the same time. Thanks for stopping by!
I loved reading this interview so, so much, and your questions are on point! I added this book to my TBR a little while ago, I loved the cover and was mainly curious about the story, though I haven’t read any other book by this author. I love how she says that “sometimes the most everyday moments are filled with the most wonder.” I definitely agree with this. I can’t WAIT to read it now! Thank you so much for sharing this 🙂
Marie @ drizzleandhurricanebooks recently posted…My blogger aesthetics
Thanks for stopping by! I haven’t read any other book by this author, either, although I do have copies of Hold Still and Everything Leads To You. After reading this book, though, I’m definitely wanting to read the rest of her novels!
This book sounds really interesting. I love how the idea of the book came about. I love the idea of a book that has a short time span that focuses closely on every day happenings.
Usually I find books that take place over such a short time span to be a little slow paced, but this book was simply amazing!