Q&A with Carolyn Mackler

 

Photo by Nicholas Lindsay

 

 

Carolyn Mackler is the author of the new middle grade novel Right Back at You. Her other books include Best Friend Next Door. She lives in New York City.

 

Q: What inspired you to write Right Back at You, and how did you create your characters Mason and Talia?

 

A: When I was 12, kids at my school made fun of me because my dad is Jewish. It destroyed my self-esteem for many years. And then, when my children were in middle school, I noticed that bullying is still rampant.

 

I loved the idea of an unlikely friendship between a girl in the 1980s who is being bullied and feels alone and a contemporary boy who realizes that–while many aspects of life are very different–their experiences are pretty universal.

 

Enter Talia from 1987 and Mason from 2023 and the closet portal that allows them to send letters to each other.

 

Q: How was the book’s title chosen, and what does it signify for you?

 

A: I chose the title Right Back at You. I love the homophone with write/right. Write back at you because Talia and Mason are writing back and forth. Right Back at You because it’s like, hey, I think we should be friends. Well, right back at you!

 

Q: Why did you choose 1987 for the year in which Talia's story is set?

 

A: I was in middle school in 1987 and, in Talia’s narrative, I was trying to capture some of the things I went through. I didn’t play baseball like Talia but I had a friend ditch me like Lyra does with Talia.

 

Also, when I was bullied, the teachers didn’t make it stop. In fact, teachers at my middle school turned a blind eye when children were cruel to each other.

 

It’s different now. There are many more anti-bullying measures in place. But as I said, bullying still happens. While there isn’t an easy solution, it feels important that we talk about that.

 

Q: The writer Gordon Korman said of the book, “In dueling messages that are sometimes heartbreaking and sometimes hilarious, Carolyn Mackler takes us across five decades as two irrepressible characters stand up to very different kinds of bullying.” What do you think of that description?

 

A: Perfect. Thank you, Gordon. He summed up Right Back at You better than I ever could.

 

Q: What are you working on now?

 

A: I’m working on a new middle grade novel and a new novel for adults. As much as it’s intimidating to have two novels going at once, I also love it because if I’m blocked on one, I can switch over to the other and it feels fresh and new.

 

Q: Anything else we should know?

 

A: I’ve always wanted to write a novel in letters. I love how correspondences can evolve and get deeper. It was so cool to do that throughout Talia and Mason’s story.

 

--Interview with Deborah Kalb