In this podcast, BCB volunteer Barbara Golden interviews Linda Phillips, who is the author of “Crazy“, a young adult (YA) novel written in free verse.
Ms. Phillips will be talking about her debut novel at Eagle Harbor Books on Sunday, October 26th at 3pm.
Linda grew up in an idyllic Oregon community, but like the heroine of her novel, her home life was less than ideal. The novel is set in 1963, during a tumultuous time in American history, when Linda Phillips, like her main character, Laura, was a high school girl with a secret.
Whether we or someone we know has been touched by mental illness, we can all appreciate how societal attitudes toward mental diseases have changed in a positive way.
In the book “Crazy,” Laura’s mother is frequently hospitalized. But she is never diagnosed with what was then called manic depression and is now labeled bipolar disorder. The family is at the mercy of the mother’s illness, with Laura seeking refuge in her art, a passion she shares with her mother. Their shared passion for art also scares her. What if she, too, begins to exhibit signs of being “crazy”?
Of her childhood, Linda Phillips writes: “I was born and raised in Oregon, something I will never get over. I grew up in Klamath Falls, a mill town with an elevation of just over 4,000 feet on the east side of the Cascades, touting an average of 300 days of sunshine a year. Humidity is nonexistent, there are no household bugs that needed exterminating…”
And she could not wait to leave.
This is a brave debut novel by a writer who uses her own life to tell a story of despair and ultimately, hope. Listen to the podcast to learn more about Linda, to hear her read an excerpt from the novel, and her explanation of the controversial title.
For more information about Linda Phillips, the author of “Crazy”, visit her website
Credits: BCB host and text author: Barbara Golden; BCB audio editor and social media publisher: Barry Peters.
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