FFWD Weekly
Copyright © 1998 All Rights Reserved.
| BOOKS "Down-to-earth, grounded, rooted, natural...." Gail Anderson-Dargatz lists off the typical adjectives used to describe her as if she's heard them a thousand times. And, she probably has. Since the overwhelming success of her last novel, The Cure for Death by Lightning, and the early promise of her most recent, A Recipe for Bees, she has been continually linked by critics, readers and media alike with the rural life. "I'm not a farmer!" she says emphatically. "I am a writer." The rural focus of much of her work is undeniable, but she does not see herself as part of the "sentimental" rural tradition of W.O. Mitchell or Harrowsmith. Rather, her farm settings are stark and realistic, and the backdrop for such issues as adultery, lesbianism, racism and abuse. She simply finds more to play with in a rural setting. "Cities are very predictable... outside the concrete, life is unpredictable." She comments that The Cure for Death by Lightning is often incorrectly described as "magic realism" when it just relates the bizarre and inexplicable aspects of everyday farm life. Still, she hints, her next novel will have a more urban focus. A Recipe for Bees explores some of the dark aspects of the farm - isolation, hardship, poverty and prejudice - through the eyes of an old woman reflecting back on her life. Augusta Olsen's story of adultery and an illegitimate child is based loosely on the experiences of Anderson-Dargatz's own parents and this has raised some issues of privacy. While she has been very open about her mother's affair and her own illegitimacy, she draws a firm line around her family's private life. "People have even asked to interview my mother but I tell them 'No.' She doesn't want to talk about it." When asked why she has chosen to talk, Anderson-Dargatz claims, "By talking about my private life, I keep control of the information. I choose what I put on the table." Although she clearly revels in the attention her books have garnered her, there is a touch of resentment as well. "People seem to think they own you when you have a book out," she says, after relating an incident where her local library gave out her unlisted phone number to a fan. She prefers to keep her public and private lives separate, and carefully restricts access to her home and family. That said, she seems more than willing to talk about all aspects of her personal life... more so, in fact, than about her book. She brushes aside questions about the book and focuses on herself and her husband, Floyd Anderson-Dargatz, who has also become her literary partner since his brain surgery a couple of years ago (an experience that figures largely in her writing). Unable to operate the heavy equipment needed to run their Alberta farm, he is now more involved in her work, instead. He arranges much of her media as well as helping out with her research. "He's actually better than I am at interviewing people," she admits. "I tend to jump to conclusions." As for what the future holds, she's looking forward to getting back to writing once this media tour is over. "Unless, of course," she laughs, "I get nominated for some awards. Then it starts all over again." |