Monday, January 10, 2011
Voices You Should Hear: Trent Reedy + Giveaway!
Please read to the end - I'll be giving away a copy of Words in the Dust to one lucky reader!
What I couldn't know was what an extraordinary novel it is. I'm reading it now, and it's wonderful. I'm delighted to feature Trent, one terrific writer.
Congratulations on the publication of your novel, Words in the Dust. Can you tell us a bit about the story and what inspired it?
Thank you, Janet. Because I was born and grew up in Iowa, I always thought my first novel would be about people living the adventure of growing up surrounded by the corn fields of home. I certainly didn't expect my first novel to be about a girl in Afghanistan. Words in the Dust was inspired by an experience I had while serving in 2004 and 2005 with the Army National Guard in the western part of Afghanistan. My unit encountered a girl named Zulaikha who suffered from birth from a horribly disfiguring cleft lip, crooked teeth, and a misshaped nose. My fellow soldiers and I knew we had to help her so we pooled our money to provide transportation to our main base in Afghanistan where an Army doctor volunteered to conduct the needed corrective surgery.
When Zulaikha returned to our outpost I was amazed at how she had been transformed! Only the smallest scar hinted that she had ever had a problem. Seeing her smile was one of my happiest moments in the war. Throughout it all, she possessed this sort of quiet courage and dignity, and for me, she began to represent the struggle of all of Afghanistan, particularly of Afghan women and girls. She had faced difficulties, but, like Afghanistan, she exhibited that indomitable spirit and proclivity for hope. The last time I saw Zulaikha, I watched her ride off of our base in the back of a truck, and although she could not hear me or understand my words, our eyes met and I promised her I would tell her story.
Read the rest of this interview at Through the Wardrobe
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