Leslie Connor is the author of All Rise for the Honorable Perry T. Cook.From her Q&A with Deborah Kalb:
Q: How did you come up with the idea for your new book, and for the idea of a boy growing up in a prison?--Marshal Zeringue
A: The little seed of an idea started with an article in The New York Times about a long-time inmate at Bedford Hills, which is a prison for women in New York state. It was a story of radicalism, violence, defiance, redemption, and surprisingly, excellence.
One very poignant part of the story was about how this woman had a young daughter on the outside and how she managed to be a good parent to her child from behind bars. That struggle gave me the child-centered part of the story.
Q: The book focuses on the idea of a home, and what a home can mean. What do you think readers might take away from the book?
A: I think it’s possible they will go away from this read with an expanded viewpoint on what...[read on]