1. What drew you to working with Classical Mythology in Halfway Normal? 

As I considered the "halfway" quality of life after cancer, when you're no longer ill but also not quite well, it led me to thinking about Persephone returning to earth. Even when she was back to her regular life, she couldn't (or wouldn't) let go of her experience in the Underworld--despite Demeter's best efforts. The myth just seemed like the perfect metaphor for the "halfway" nature of what doctors call "re-entry."  

2. I was struck that D'Aulaire's Greek Myths is the collection that Norah refers to.  What led you to focusing on that particular collection? 

It was the book I shared with my three kids when they were little. Beautiful retellings of the myths, ethereally illustrated. 

3. The parallels between Norah's journey into illness and out again and Persephone's journey into and out of the Underworld are very striking, and indeed moving. What challenges did you face in drawing on that myth, and how did you overcome them?

The biggest challenge was accounting for Persephone eating the pomegranate seeds. If the myth is a way to account for life-threatening illness, how do you explain Persephone's willingness to eat the food of the dead, and return to the "underworld" of disease? It's not as if Persephone initially visited the Underworld by choice, so why would she choose to return after she was rescued? What I realized is that the myth is about wanting to validate all of one's experience – the good and the bad. Norah's parents, some adults at her school, and several friends and classmates keep trying to get Norah to move past her cancer, act like "it's all behind her." But that cruel and unfair descent into illness is part of who she is now, so she wants it to be present in her life on earth, even as she moves forward. As she says in her speech at the end: "The underworld is real. It's not like it goes away just because you're back on earth. It's always there, part of the whole big universe. And now I knew that." Through no fault of her own Norah, like Persephone, has had a brutal experience that stole her innocence, but also exposed her to darker truths others can't comprehend.

4. Do you have a background in Classics (Latin or Greek at school, or classes at University?) What sources did you draw on?  Are there any books (besides the D'Aulaires) that made an impact on you in this respect? 

I was an English literature major in college, but I also read Ancient Egyptian and Mesoamerican myths for pleasure.

5. We usually ask 'Did you think about how Classical Antiquity would translate for young readers,' but it seems to me that you handled this very carefully in presenting the myths through Norah's interest and Ms Farrell's classroom discussions.  How did you strike the balance between inspiration and education? 

It's always tricky to present material for a young audience that may not have had prior exposure. You never want to be didactic, or you'll lose them, but you can't assume they'll follow along without some explanation or context-setting. I had a similar challenge with Star-Crossed (2017), which relied heavily on Romeo & Juliet. But working with D'Aulaires, I didn't have to explain (or translate) Shakespeare's language, as I needed to do with Star-Crossed. One of the pleasures of working with myths is that they're often written very simply. 

6. Many writers present the Persephone myth as expressing a teenager's desire to experience things her mother would rather she not think about just yet (love, sexuality, independence), and present Hades as an alluring shy-guy.  I'm wondering what you think Norah would make of that interpretation?  Did you think about the different aspects of the myth as you worked on presenting it to young readers? 

Once many years ago I heard a child psychologist describing a particular boy's journey into the remote, moody world of adolescence as a version of the Persephone myth, so I think I probably had that description percolating somewhere in my mind. It's such a resonant myth, isn't it? Every kid who grows up and separates from a parent is Persephone, and every anxious, loving parent desperate to reconnect is Demeter. 

7. Are you planning any further forays into Classical material?

Not at the moment, but the myths are always there, waiting to be rediscovered.

Prepared by Elizabeth Hale, University of New England, ehale@une.edu.au