Ask the Author: Therese Walsh
Answered Questions (3)
Therese Walsh
Hi Deborah,
Thanks for reaching out. I'm so glad that your club chose and enjoyed The Moon Sisters as your group read.
To your excellent questions:
One way to dip into Orin’s perspective is to remember that he was an exceptionally successful investment expert. It’s his first impulse to think in terms of “return on investment,” and minimizing risks, and “time is money.” We also know that Orin had a history of cutting former loved ones out of his life completely once they’d betrayed him; we saw that through his behavior with Beth's mother, Suzanne. When Beth started to mimic Suzanne’s risky behavior—resulting in an unplanned pregnancy—it was easier for Orin to process this “betrayal” of his teachings using the lessons of economics, which had never failed him. Pouring more time and money into Beth would be a waste. She was not a good return on investment; in fact, she had become a risk. Was this a defense mechanism? Do you think it shielded Orin from the wound of Beth’s “choice” of Suzanne’s path? Is it possible Beth was the one person Orin had ever invested himself in, and she disappointed him so completely, that he considered parenting and such personal investment in others a failed venture for the rest of his life? Would such a man change his will after spending half a lifetime committed to a different choice? Would he risk a lifetime’s worth of earnings on anything other than a sure thing? Or could he have doubt? What if it was Orin who called Beth on his last birthday, perhaps in a weak moment—or a strong one—and said nothing? What, if anything, would that reveal about him?
Why did Beth hope so desperately for a reunion? As a motherless child, Beth developed a deep attachment to her father, and his early lessons—“be a good girl, never like your mother”—rooted deeply within her. Her punishment was swift and severe when she left his chosen path for her, and she was left doubly scarred by it. She felt genuinely rootless and often hollow without Orin, even though she loved Branik, Jazz, and Olivia. She hated that couldn’t seem to move beyond losing her dad, but his early programming of her—the “good girl”/“bad girl” dynamic and idea that he was the one person she could count on—had worked too well. And so Beth lived much of her adult life believing that once she proved her “bad” choices had lead to the type of success Orin believed in, she’d be able to approach him, and he’d forgive her. Is that why she never finished her book? Because keeping a spark of hope alive was more important than testing the theory and potentially being wrong?
An author’s prerogative: Ask readers more Book Club questions rather than provide clear answers! But I do hope this gets your group talking even more about what may have been going on under the surface.
All best,
Therese
Thanks for reaching out. I'm so glad that your club chose and enjoyed The Moon Sisters as your group read.
To your excellent questions:
One way to dip into Orin’s perspective is to remember that he was an exceptionally successful investment expert. It’s his first impulse to think in terms of “return on investment,” and minimizing risks, and “time is money.” We also know that Orin had a history of cutting former loved ones out of his life completely once they’d betrayed him; we saw that through his behavior with Beth's mother, Suzanne. When Beth started to mimic Suzanne’s risky behavior—resulting in an unplanned pregnancy—it was easier for Orin to process this “betrayal” of his teachings using the lessons of economics, which had never failed him. Pouring more time and money into Beth would be a waste. She was not a good return on investment; in fact, she had become a risk. Was this a defense mechanism? Do you think it shielded Orin from the wound of Beth’s “choice” of Suzanne’s path? Is it possible Beth was the one person Orin had ever invested himself in, and she disappointed him so completely, that he considered parenting and such personal investment in others a failed venture for the rest of his life? Would such a man change his will after spending half a lifetime committed to a different choice? Would he risk a lifetime’s worth of earnings on anything other than a sure thing? Or could he have doubt? What if it was Orin who called Beth on his last birthday, perhaps in a weak moment—or a strong one—and said nothing? What, if anything, would that reveal about him?
Why did Beth hope so desperately for a reunion? As a motherless child, Beth developed a deep attachment to her father, and his early lessons—“be a good girl, never like your mother”—rooted deeply within her. Her punishment was swift and severe when she left his chosen path for her, and she was left doubly scarred by it. She felt genuinely rootless and often hollow without Orin, even though she loved Branik, Jazz, and Olivia. She hated that couldn’t seem to move beyond losing her dad, but his early programming of her—the “good girl”/“bad girl” dynamic and idea that he was the one person she could count on—had worked too well. And so Beth lived much of her adult life believing that once she proved her “bad” choices had lead to the type of success Orin believed in, she’d be able to approach him, and he’d forgive her. Is that why she never finished her book? Because keeping a spark of hope alive was more important than testing the theory and potentially being wrong?
An author’s prerogative: Ask readers more Book Club questions rather than provide clear answers! But I do hope this gets your group talking even more about what may have been going on under the surface.
All best,
Therese
Therese Walsh
Hi Bonnie, I'm so sorry that I'm only now seeing this! YES, I am working on a new novel. I know I'm the slowest ever writer, and I appreciate your interest!
Therese Walsh
Thanks for the question, Andrew. I began writing novel-length fiction in 2002. Before that, I wrote some short children's stories (not published), and plenty of nonfiction articles (published). Beyond even that, I remember typing stories on an old typewriter as a child and forcing my friends to act in my plays on the playground.
So I suppose I've been writing all my life.
So I suppose I've been writing all my life.
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