We are so excited to have Pintip Dunn at Rich in Color today! Pintip’s new book, GIRL ON THE VERGE, came out last month, and we’re thrilled to be able to interview her. If you haven’t heart of GIRL ON THE VERGE, you should definitely check out the summary before you read the interview.
From the author of The Darkest Lie comes a compelling, provocative story for fans of I Was Here and Vanishing Girls, about a high school senior straddling two worlds, unsure how she fits in either—and the journey of self-discovery that leads her to surprising truths.
In her small Kansas town, at her predominantly white school, Kanchana doesn’t look like anyone else. But at home, her Thai grandmother chides her for being too westernized. Only through the clothing Kan designs in secret can she find a way to fuse both cultures into something distinctly her own.
When her mother agrees to provide a home for a teenage girl named Shelly, Kan sees a chance to prove herself useful. Making Shelly feel comfortable is easy at first—her new friend is eager to please, embraces the family’s Thai traditions, and clearly looks up to Kan. Perhaps too much. Shelly seems to want everything Kanchana has, even the blond, blue-eyed boy she has a crush on. As Kan’s growing discomfort compels her to investigate Shelly’s past, she’s shocked to find how it much intersects with her own—and just how far Shelly will go to belong…
Tell us more about Kanchana and her relationship with her family—and with Shelly.
Kanchana is a Thai-American girl who is caught between cultural worlds. She doesn’t feel quite Thai enough, but she doesn’t feel quite American enough, either. She has one foot in each world, and she wants desperately to belong — somewhere. Although her personality and situation are not remotely similar to mine, her feelings of otherness are inspired from my own experiences as a Thai-American girl. She loves her family with all of her heart — but she doesn’t feel understood by them.
When she meets Shelly, she feels understood for once in her life — before it all goes horribly wrong, since Shelly approaches the problem of not fitting in from a wholly different perspective. Girl on the Verge may be a thriller, but at its core, this novel is really a story about the intense loneliness of not having a place in this world.
I think it’s neat that Kanchana designs clothes! Why did you give her that trait?
I wanted Kan to have a passion that doesn’t fit in neatly with what is revered in Thai culture. Her mother immigrated to the U.S. for a reason: so that her daughter can have a safe and secure life with a safe and secure income. The creative field of fashion design — and the risks that come with it — do not fulfill this requirement.
The synopsis says that she has difficulties fitting into her two worlds. Can you tell us more about that?
Kanchana was raised by her Thai mother and grandmother — but in America, which means that she’s not like all the other girls in Thailand. At the same time, she’s really not like the other girls at her predominantly Caucasian school in a small town in Kansas. Whether she is in Thailand or America, she’s look at as different. (She’s bigger than most Thai girls because of her American diet; she has the Asian features that cause her to stand out in Kansas, etc.) But the differences are internal, too. Kan is shaped by both cultures, which can either mean she belongs to neither or both. As the story progresses, she gradually swings from one side to the other.
What have been the most challenging aspects of writing Girl on the Verge? The most rewarding?
This story is very important to me. While every book I write has parts of me in it, this novel might have the most of me. Like I said, while Kanchana’s situation is not remotely mine, her feelings are directly inspired from my own. I have to admit, it was scary to put these words on paper, and it is still really scary now to think about people reading them. The difference between this book and my other books is that I’ve always hidden the part of me that I had to tap into to write this story. In the Forget Tomorrow series, for example, the part of me that I put into the stories is the intense love I have for my sister. I don’t mind if everyone knows this fact about me. In contrast, I’ve never really talked about the loneliness that comes from not belonging. If I’m being honest, I still don’t feel like I belong, even now.
The most rewarding thing about writing this novel is that I get to publish a book about a girl who looks just like me. I’ve wanted to be an author ever since I was six years old, but I grew up believing that if I wanted to be published, I had to write a story about Caucasian characters. If my story helps even one person feel less lonely,…then, to quote Hamilton, that would be enough.
It looks like you have another series starting in October 2018. What can you tell us about it?
Fit To Die is a book I wrote with pure passion burning inside me, and it was the very first book I sold. For a long time, it was also my favorite book that I’ve written (although I don’t think I’m supposed to admit that!), but now there are several others competing for that spot.
Fit To Die is set in a world where food is scarce and calories can be transferred between people via a pill. Society is split into Eaters and Non-Eaters. The Eaters have been genetically modification to convert food into energy more efficiently, and they consume food for the rest of the people. The heroine is the daughter of the king. Her father is ailing, and she has been tasked to find the person who is fit to die for the king. However, the one who emerges as the best candidate turns out to be…the boy she loves. She can only save one: her father or her one true love. Who will she choose?
What 2017 books by or about people of color or people from First/Native Nations are you looking forward to reading? Which ones would you recommend to our followers?
I just finished Want, by Cindy Pon, which I thought was fantastic, and The Hate U Give, by Angie Thomas, was absolutely stunning. I loved, loved, loved November Girl, by Lydia Kang, which comes out this November. It was so unique and mesmerizing. I’ve never read anything quite like it, and I can’t recommend it highly enough.
I’m really looking forward to reading The Education of Margot Sanchez, by Lilliam Rivera; When Dimple Met Rishi, by Sandhya Menon; Hollywood Homicide, by Kelleye Garrett; Forest of a Thousand Lanterns, by Julie Dao; and A Distant Heart, by Sonali Dev.
Is there anything else you would like to tell us about Girl on the Verge or your other work?
I’m so thrilled that Girl on the Verge is out in the world, and I hope that readers will enjoy Kan’s story. It has — and will also have — a special place in my heart. My next book, Seize Today, comes out in October of this year. It is the conclusion to my Forget Tomorrow trilogy, and I’m so pleased with how Olivia and Ryder’s story turned out. You know the other books competing for the favorite book title? This is one of them.
Pintip Dunn is a New York Times bestselling author of YA fiction. She graduated from Harvard University, magna cum laude, with an A.B. in English Literature and Language. She received her J.D. at Yale Law School, where she was an editor of the YALE LAW JOURNAL.
Pintip is represented by literary agent Beth Miller of Writers House. Her novel, FORGET TOMORROW, won the RWA RITA® for Best First Book. In addition, it is a finalist for the Grand Prix de l’Imaginaire, the Japanese Sakura Medal, the MASL Truman Award, and the Tome Society It List. THE DARKEST LIE was nominated for a Romantic Times Reviewers’ Choice Award. Her other books include GIRL ON THE VERGE, REMEMBER YESTERDAY, and the forthcoming SEIZE TODAY.
She lives with her husband and children in Maryland. You can learn more about Pintip and her books at www.pintipdunn.com.
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