Boyt is the daughter of Lucian Freud and great-granddaughter of Sigmund. The Small Hours is a psychological drama about Harriet, a brash but troubled woman who opens the nursery school of her dreams.
From the author's Q & A with Lucy Scholes at the Observer:
Read the complete Q & A.Harriet is a captivating character. Where did you find your inspiration for her?
I joined a Henry James reading group about the time I started writing the novel and I became fascinated by his sister, Alice. She was outlandish, outspoken and just too much in a rather brilliant way. I wanted to write about someone like her.
Do you see Harriet in the tradition of English schoolteacher heroines?
There are references to both Jean Brodie and Lucy Snowe in the novel, but I was thinking about other influences too. Someone described the novel as The Turn of the Screw meets The Nanny Diaries and I was quite pleased about that.
Learn more about the book and author at Susie Boyt's website.
The Page 99 Test: My Judy Garland Life.
--Marshal Zeringue