Ask the Author: Kate Andersen Brower
Answered Questions (10)
Kate Andersen Brower
Working by Robert Caro
Educated by Tara Westover
Animal Farm and 1984 by George Orwell
The Only Plane in the Sky by Garret Graff
Fleishman Is In Trouble by Taffy Brodesser- Akner
Educated by Tara Westover
Animal Farm and 1984 by George Orwell
The Only Plane in the Sky by Garret Graff
Fleishman Is In Trouble by Taffy Brodesser- Akner
Kate Andersen Brower
I tend to read fiction set in depressing worlds, like The Handmaid's Tale, The Revenant, and Sophie's Choice. So it's not easy to think of a fictional place I'd actually like to visit! It's silly, but I loved the Madeline books growing up, and I enjoy reading them to my daughter now so I guess I would like to spend a day or two in that enchanted world. And I'd like to save Madeline from falling into the seine or getting appendicitis.
Kate Andersen Brower
Thanks so much. It's under wraps but I've been really enjoying working on it so hopefully that's a good sign!
Kate Andersen Brower
There are too many real life couples who I admire to think of a fictional couple honestly. Aside from my own parents, who are truly partners, I think John and Abigail Adams had a tremendous love story documented in their letters to each other. There is so much mutual admiration and respect in their words. Happy Valentines Day!
Kate Andersen Brower
Hi Sylvia, I haven't heard that before but that makes me very happy. It also sounds like you have a precocious teenager! I hope you both enjoy it - once you get a chance to read it, that is. I've written two books and I'm not sure which one you're referencing here but if it's THE RESIDENCE, now is a very interesting time to be thinking about what it feels like for the butlers, maids and other members of the White House staff. They told me each time a new president and his family move in it's exciting but also bittersweet because they come to love the families they serve.
Kate Andersen Brower
Hi Erin - I'm sorry I somehow missed this. Two toddlers and a new book project have made me less active on this wonderful site than I should be. Thanks for your message and yes, there are absolutely things sources told me that I didn't feel confident enough on, or didn't deem appropriate, to put in either this book or The Residence. Thanks so much for your question!
Kate Andersen Brower
I really enjoy talking with people and reporting, like I did when I was a White House correspondent. The Residence and First Women are like a combined forty or fifty feature stories strung together. Each story is linked thematically and I think that helps me as a writer and, hopefully, it helps the reader too. People sometimes would avoid reading about a certain president or first lady but when it's organized thematically you'd be surprised at how interesting some of the people are who you might not naturally be inclined to read about. It keeps it interesting.
Kate Andersen Brower
I'm going to be promoting my new book First Women that comes out April 12. Think the flip side of The Presidents Club, I wanted to explore what relationships the first ladies have with each other.
Kate Andersen Brower
The best thing about being a writer is getting to delve into people's lives and ask them questions. I'm endlessly fascinated by how other people live and what they've experienced and writing history allows me to explore that. (It's so much fun to hear stories that no one has heard before.)
Kate Andersen Brower
I got this idea while working on my first book THE RESIDENCE and so many of the staffers told me about their unique relationships with the first ladies. I wanted to explore what it's really like to be first lady and whether there is a "First Ladies Club" in the same way that there's a "President'd Club."
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