Was the most loathsome human quality for Sascha one that was also her mother’s fatal flaw, passivity?
Sascha’s mother wasn’t weak, but a too kind person. The problem for Sascha is that she sees the quality of a person compromised when they don’t defend themselves or the people they care about from things they don’t believe in. On the one hand, Sascha very much loves and respects her mother post-mortem. But on the other hand, she regrets what happened and replays the weaknesses that led to this tragedy. Who did you write this novel for? I wrote it for myself. If you asked me while I was writing it, I would have said that I imagined the reader to be somebody like me-how old was I, 27? So she would be not too wise, but a bright young woman. I didn’t think much of it. But then when the book was published and got picked up by the mainstream, it was being read by everyone-it was really something. At first it was adults, nobody thought it would fly for adolescents or teenagers. I would have readings and the audiences were comprised of people ranging in age from 25 to 80. Then, teachers someho
