I had a wonderful visit on Monday morning (April 15) to the Richard Wright Public Charter School i
n DC. Thank you to Ms. Harris and her two classes for such a warm welcome and interesting Q&A sessions about my novel. Lots of discussion about alcohol and sex! But as I said to the kids (who were 15 and 16), while I didn’t write this for teenagers, I believe this age group is mature and thoughtful enough to understand that the characters’ use of alcohol and sex were misguided ways of coping with (or escaping from) their problems. I felt honored to be welcomed so warmly and to have the kids listen so attentively, asking some great probing questions — I could tell this was a journalism school.
A big thanks to Ariel Martino and the PEN/Faulkner Foundation for arranging the visit as part of their Writers in Schools program. One of the students (Jordan) gave me this picture she had drawn as I talked. Isn’t it fabulous!
