The Russians and the Greeks.

How can someone like me pass up a headline like this in a Greek Newspaper:  “Greece earns third place in Russian tourists’ list of favorite destinations.”

Yep, that’s right out of Wednesday’s Ekathimerini.  Being in third place on any Russian list might cause concern to some students of history, and I’m not sure how much better one might feel knowing that this week Crimea has likely taken over as Russia’s most popular destination, but be that as it may, it’s good news to many in the tourist business that the “Russians are coming.” 

To most Greeks, and certainly Cypriots, that comes as no surprise. They’re not only visiting, they’re buying up properties everywhere that suits their fancy.  According to the article, travel by Russians to Greece was up 70%, with more than a million Russians visiting in 2013.  Overall, 54 million Russians left their homeland to travel abroad in 2013. (There is no figure for how many returned.)

I know, to some it may seem I’m taking cheap shots for easy laughs.  But how can you blame me when the 50-billion dollars of Russian cash tossed at the Olympics for pure PR purposes was as good as flushed down a toilet by Putin’s highly publicized homophobia, invasion of the Ukraine, and off-his-meds televised interview.

If you can’t find a way to laugh through all this geopolitical tragedy, how are you ever going to handle the 2014 US Congressional elections?

Which reminds me. Note to Democrats: Beware, the Republicans look to be claiming Will Rogers’ famous line as their own for the upcoming midterm elections, “I belong to no organized party. I am a Democrat.” 

Will Rogers (1879-1935)

That great American humorist had so many insightful things to say in the days of the  (first) Great Depression, that it’s frightening how on the mark they remain today.  Here are just a few others plus a link to even more:  

“This would be a great time in the world for some man [or woman] to come along who knew something.”   

“This country has come to feel the same when Congress is in session as when the baby gets hold of a hammer.”

“There is no trick to being a humorist when you have the whole government working for you.”

One of his thoughts I think particularly appropriate for our world today is:  “There is one rule that works in every calamity.  Be it pestilence, war, or famine, the rich get richer and poor get poorer.  The poor even help arrange it.” 

That’s as true today in the US and Russia as it is in Greece—just check to see who’s benefitting from Greece’s Troika mandated privatization of state assets program for evidence of that.  

But I digress.  This post is about Greece’s popularity among the Russians.  China, Thailand, and Spain rank behind Greece in the Russians’ holiday plans.  Why, I have no idea, other than that Russia and Greece share Eastern Orthodox roots and Greece’s Ministry of Tourism is working very hard. 

But here’s who ranks ahead of Greece: Turkey and Egypt.  Turkey I can understand, but in its current political climate Egypt surprises me, though the two countries have a long history together going back to the days of Russia’s support for the (Greek) Orthodox Church in Alexandria and Russians are historically Egypt’s largest tourist block.

Alexandria

Westerners seem scared off by all that’s happening in Egypt. The Russians apparently are not.  Is it because Russians are so used to visiting Egypt that the unstable situation over there does not alarm them?  Or is it something else.  Perhaps in crises Russians see opportunities of the sort once recommended by Will Rogers: “Buy land. They ain’t making any more of it.”

We shall see.

Za Vas!

Jeff—Saturday

The Game Of The Name...

I do a lot of research for the MIE blog. This week’s has been awful; I had to sit down with three friends drinking latte and eating huge slices of lemon and lime marble cheesecake.

                              

I hope you appreciate the depth of my endeavour and the way I suffer for my art.

Backstory- At the moment I am auctioning off a character’s name for the Clic Sergeant charity to help children with cancer.

                                            

                              

 A nice enough thing to do, but it can be fraught with all kinds of difficulty because, for me anyway, the name has to fit the character.   So I don’t know which character is going to be renamed. I can’t leave a character blank and write them in called ‘anon’ then just stick the name in, in case the name is not a good fit.  It needs to fit.  A name says so much more than just the label for that character. It has to suit the character, like a well chosen hat.  

Confused? Well, what do these hats say about these guys??

      

There are some stereotypes that the reader feels comfortable with. Sometime, in a complicated story, it’s better to name within some ‘boundaries’.

In Scotland we have a weird class of society who wear tracksuits but never go to the gym. They tend to have tattoos and pit bulls. Some have tattooed pit bulls. And spiky hair. They are typified by a banner my lawyer friend saw hanging out a window, it said ‘Happy Thirtieth Birthday Granny!’

                                     

Their children will be called Nike, Luca, Princess, Pocohontas, Chantelle, Savannnah, Tyrone, Jasmin. The infamous Yehudi McEwan is an example of this.

Folk with a bit more money are doing the Olivia, Andrew, Niven, Owen, Elizabeth, Jessica thing at the moment. Trendy folk will call their kids anything but spell it the Gaelic way sentencing their kids to a lifetime of spelling it out.  True Gaelic speakers are called Donalda (daughter of Donald), Hectorina (daughter of Hector) etc. The ‘Ina’  is pronounced as in line.

I have no idea where Chinaide came from. The person came from Dundee but I have idea where the spelling came from.

Folk with loads of money are still with Findlay, Angus, Douglas, Callum, Alistair for their kids.

Here a stripper called Gladys would not sound right unless she is Welsh. Effie is a cleaner, not a neuro surgeon.   Mavis would be over 60. Colins make good librarians.  

Did that help? No.

It depends on where you are in the world of course as to whether a name is common place or exotic but it does matter to the story. My cop, Vik Mulholland is spelled that way just to remind readers he has a Russian mother. Which came in very handy in book four but there has been that wee reminder there since book one.

The last time I auctioned a name off, it was bought by a lawyer. I then had to write a sex scene for the character. I emailed him to make sure he was ok with that and explained that the sex scene was very short. He emailed me back and told me that any sex scene with him involved would be very long indeed, many pages, 50 shades indeed. 

So I killed him.

When I do workshops I put a name in front of the class and get them to list what the name suggests. For this blog I got three friends together and asked them to describe the person that went along with the names of my fellow bloggers. The friends were female, two are sane and the other is a beauty therapist (BT). They all read, but not crime fiction so had no idea who they were talking about.  I have just listed their comments as I jotted them down. Some of it is uncanny. Some of it was unprintable.

                                        

                                              The other Ramsay....

Caro Ramsay; They know me of course. Nobody is actually called Caro. You just chopped your name in half. And the Ramsays were a load of sheep stealing murderers.  The blonde ones swear a lot.

Verdict; No great fictional depth to any of that

Zoe Sharp; Young? Sounds dangerous?  Bright. I mean Zoe Blunt would be quite different, wouldn’t she. She sounds about 12. Is she a snow boarder? If not, she should be. BT thought she was a fashion designer, edgy, size 6. But all agree, she’s a Brit.

Verdict; precocious, very thin fashion designer who designs winter sports gear.

Lisa Brackmann; BT- did she not sing ‘self control’ (Laura Brannigan?).  She’s an American?  Downhill skier? Swimmer, something athletic.  Yeah, if she’s a librarian or a secretary or something she’s only doing that because she’s a spy. Way too young to be mumsy. All Lisa’a are young.  Tall, slender, long black hair. Cindy Crawford.

Verdict; supermodel discovered in a library and models swim wear for Zoe above.

                                       

                                             Stanely Trollip being 'nicked'?

Stanley Trollip; A real cockney geezer. Probably in the Sweeny. He’d say ‘watch it guvner’ a lot. Lovable rogue.

The other one disagreed.  Stanley to her was wearing flannels, a brown suit, hiding in a  courtyard at Oxbridge with some kind of secret formula.  He’d be really intelligent but might not manage to tie his shoe laces properly.  He’d be there in the 1930’s, in the golden age.  But English for definite.

Verdict; Stanley Trollip belongs in The 39 steps. 

                                               

Yrsa Sigurdardottir; She must be Lithuanian (BT).  Supermodel. Sexy smouldering. Swedish blonde, (??)   Or is that an Icelandic name?  She could be something to do with volcanoes. Or fish. She could wear a white coat and hold a clipboard, letting her hair tumble down at the right moment. A love interest for defo.  Big blockbuster American film…. She’ll be stopping a meteor in her lunch hour saving the planet from destruction. While having an affair with Michael Fassbender. (BT- she has a thing about Fassbender.)

Verdict; Hollywood’s next big thing!  

                                        

                                      Saving a planet from an Icelandic meteor??

Annamaria Alfieri. (BT thought she was at school with Annamaria, her dad owned a café on the Govan road) but the other two are now well in the swing of it.  Mafia moll! Voluptuous, dangerous, probably has a stiletto knife down her stocking top. Or an Opera singer, does Tosca.  She lives in the foothills of Rome to protect her voice. She  will have lots of wee dogs that have ribbons in their hair.  Handsome young men run about after her. She’ll have a lot of tantrums. 

Verdict; an opera singer in trouble with the mob who throws herself off the tower in Tosca and somebody has sabotaged the landing. Colin Dexter will write a book about it, Morse will solve the crime. The music to the film will be fab!

ls he pulling her hair?

 

Jeff Siger. (BT)Did he sing Hollywood nights?  An incredibly handsome young man, square jawed defo American. Actor. He’s cleaning tables waiting to be discovered.  Been known to sing hits from the musicals in the kitchen when they are quiet. The other girl didn’t agree, thought he sounded more like a naturalist. Thought he would spend his time elbow deep in rhino dung while whispering at the camera so as not to disturb his subjects.

Verdict- Johnny Depp lookalike - he can be in the film with Yrsa. Looking at strange dung on the meteor and save the planet too. And the rhino’s.  

                                         

                                                  CUTE!!!

Michael Sears; Has loads of money. Old money.  ‘Mickey’ Sears has money but is younger. Both wear handmade shoes. Very tastefully cut suits. Cufflinks. He’d take you out and treat you to a nice dinner. He knows how to use cutlery.  He’ll have his own jet (a Sears jet no doubt). Nothing flashy about him, all very understated money. Both my pals would like to meet ‘Michael’. BT is already googling him on her phone.

Verdict- A bit like the Ewings of Dallas but smaller shoulder pads.

                                

                                         The Sears Family annual lapel competition 

Cara Black - Exotic dancer. Must be.  Something fiery about her.  Or a romantic heroine who struts around in a crinoline getting stroppy. She will have a Spanish or Latin American father.  Or might be a very beautiful gypsy girl who looks after the horses. She will enchant the landowner and marry him against all odds. ( She reads Mills and Boon I think!)

Verdict- Catherine Zeta Jones in Zorro?

                                  

                                       The chin hold. Three submissions or a knock out.

                              

No comebacks!  Remember I might come and steal your sheep…

"Caro Ramsay"  07 03 2014 GB

This will be a short blog this week – trying to finish the fifth Kubu mystery this weekend.  Two chapters to go!

There were four items in the South African news this week that attracted my attention. 

On top of the list is, of course, the Oscar Pistorius trial.  I think of it as OJ2.  All that appears to be missing is a glove.  The trial is the first to be televised in South Africa, and I remain very ambivalent as to whether that promotes or hampers the process.  There are some restrictions on what may be shown, but for the most part it is the same media circus that surrounded OJ’s trial so many years ago.  For the record, I am not watching it, nor am I watching any reruns of it, nor am I tuning in to hear daily summaries.  However, since every news channel in the world is carrying it, it’s hard not to see something.

Oscar Pistorius (Getty Images)

Second, was the cricket series against Australia, South Africa’s arch-rivals in everything.  Australia thrashed South Africa in the first 5-day test match.  South Africa thrashed Australia in the second.  And the third, which ended yesterday, was a nail-biter, with Australia deservedly triumphing with only minutes to spare.  What is of interest to me is how many people I spoke to think, given the huge discrepancy of performances between the first and second test matches, that the bookmakers are also part of the series.  How sad.

Tempers flare at the end of match 3

Third was the fact that at a friendly football (soccer) match yesterday, Brazil thumped South Africa’s Bafana Bafana (The Boys The Boys) team by 5 goals to 0.  Nobody expected South Africa to beat Brazil, but few people anticipated that the country’s president Jacob Zuma would be booed when he walked onto the field to present the trophy and various commemorative plaques.  This is the second time it has happened – the first was at the commemoration of Nelson Mandela.  This is interesting stuff because our general election are in a couple of months.  For the first time since South Africa became democratic 20 years ago, the ruling ANC party is coming under a great deal of criticism from both left and right.

President Zuma under siege

Finally, there is another court case, barely noticed by many and probably ignored by most whites.  In it, Julius Malema, the leader of the newest political party – the Economic Freedom Fighters – is challenging a ruling by the Independent Electoral Commission that his party would have to pay between R500,000 and R800,000 ($US$ 50,000 and US$80,000) to participate in the election.  He is arguing that such high fees discriminate against parties that represent the poor.  Personally, I think he is right, even though I think he poses a danger to the stability of the country.  I would like to see the EFF field candidates in the upcoming elections.  It would really shake up the ANC some more.  It’s always good to have ruling parties shaken up.

Protesters at the Independent Electoral Commission hearings

Julius Malema

So there!  There is always something interesting going on in this country.

Stan – "And that's the way it is," Thursday, March 6, in Cape Town, where it is hot and sunny.

The Great Wall

I had planned to write about the Winter Olympics in Sochi. Then the Ukraine crisis and invasion of the Crimea happened. I still wanted to write about the Olympics but struggled with how to put that all in context.

Then something happened that I really don't want to write about, but feel that I must: The Kunming train station killings.

If you have somehow missed this dreadful story, between 8 and 10 armed attackers (accounts vary) dressed in black and wielding long knives descended on the Kunming train station and began to indiscriminately attack people waiting to buy tickets, killing 29 and wounding more than 130. Four attackers, three men and one woman, were shot dead by police and one was captured (a woman).  The attackers were immediately identified as Uighurs, a Turkic people who primarily live in China's northwestern Xinjiang Province.

It is a shocking, horrible thing (This is a good roundup of eye-witness accounts and a range of Chinese viewpoints on the attacks). I've been to Kunming a few times. I've been to that train station. Kunming's nickname among Chinese is (or used to be, the first time I visited in 1980) "The city where it's always spring"— a place known for its good weather, a pleasant city that's becoming a regional powerhouse, in one of China's poorer but most beautiful provinces, diverse in terms of its landscape and its people. Imagining that kind of violence there is hard. Particularly violence committed by Uighurs, whose homeland is very far away.

But there has been a history of conflict between China's Uighurs and the Chinese state. It has mostly been confined to Xinjiang Province. The most significant incident in recent years were the riots and subsequent crackdown that began in Urumqi, the capital of Xinjiang, in July 2009. The inciting incident was a demonstration to protest the deaths of two Uighur migrant workers in far away Shaoguan, a demonstration that turned violent (whether the demonstrators or the police provoked the violence is up for debate). The resulting casualties were mostly Han Chinese, attacked by Uighur mobs, but this too is a matter of some debate: Uighur advocacy groups claim that the Uighur arrest and death toll was greatly undercounted, and it is true that the Chinese government's reporting on these matters is, shall we say, far from transparent.

Why the violence?

One of the things I found upsetting in the aftermath of the Kunming train attacks were the knee-jerk comments by Americans and other westerners that this was another manifestation of global Islamic jihad, with plenty of cracks about "the religion of peace" thrown in. Yes, a majority of Uighurs are Muslims. Most are moderate Sunnis. Yes, there are Islamist organizations in Xinjiang, and yes, odds are the attackers were Islamic extremists (though we don't know this for certain). And I want to say very clearly: there is no excuse or rationalization for this horrific act of terrorism. It is criminal, it is inhuman, and the only causes it advances are hatred and fear. But reducing the conflict between Uighurs and the Chinese state to "Islamo-nazis!" is dangerous and just wrong.

Questions of who "owns" Xinjiang, the legitimacy of Uighurs' claims, and so on are complicated, at times murky, and far from my area of expertise. What I can say is that this an ethnic conflict that is multi-faceted, where religion is just one factor, where the larger issues are self-determination, cultural suppression and economic justice.

On a very basic level, Uighurs look very different than the Han, who make up some 92% of China's population. They are visibly "Other."

All of this has been greatly exacerbated by recent Han migration into Xinjiang. For the last couple of decades, the Chinese government has been encouraging this migration, to the extent that the Uighurs are now a minority in areas where they used to be the majority. This has caused a considerable amount of resentment, especially among the majority of Uighurs who are not fluent Han speakers and who are not doing as well overall economically as the recent Han migrants and who do not hold the majority of government positions and political power (that, again, would be the Han).

There is a lot to be said about Chinese government policy toward Uighurs and "ethnic minorities" (the Chinese government's terminology) but rather than me trying to badly paraphrase it, I'll offer some links to articles written by experts.

Check out this piece by Evan Osnos written for the New Yorker: "After the Kunming Massacre: The Dangers of China's Ethnic Divide."  For background, see James Palmer's "The Strangers." For a more personal response, read long-time Xinjiang resident Josh's "5 Questions about Xinjiang and the Kunming Terror Attack." 

And for an example of how the Chinese state's policies persecute exactly the sort of people who might serve to help bridge this divide, see this BBC article about China Uighur scholar Ilham Tohti, who has been arrested on separatism charges.

I also recommend this short film about Uighur life in China's cities, which is often marked by alienation and prejudice. See this post, "Dispatches From Xinjiang: Battle' And Uyghur Life In Chinese Cities' for background.

ETA: Here is a NYT piece, "Opposing Narratives in Piecing Together Kunming Attackers' Motives" with some new information and good background.

A few words about my own brief experiences in Xinjiang. I visited there in February 2009, just a few months before the riots. I was astounded by the place. The landscape was beautiful (I made it up to Yili, not far from the Kazak border). The mix of cultures, fascinating. The people I met, from many ethnic backgrounds, some of the warmest and most welcoming folks I've ever encountered. There was an epic drinking and dancing night that…well…some other time.

It's a place that I long to return to.

But there were hints of trouble if you looked for them. Here's an experience I had that might explain what some of the conflict is about, from a post I wrote in March after my return to the US. For background, I was visiting a friend who taught at the university in Yining. I called the post "Ethnic Dances":

********************************************************

The students - and the teachers - here don't encounter a lot of Western foreigners, so my coming was seen as an opportunity to meet a real, live American and get some English practice with a native speaker. I'd done this kind of thing thirty years ago, but this was one of the only places I'd been to in China recently where I was really a rarity, a novelty.

I loved the students. They were enthusiastic, sweet, a little shy but not so shy that it stopped them from asking questions, excited to have a foreign guest and to share their culture with me.

I went to their "English Corner." They'd arranged a presentation with me, all about Xinjiang, about the local foods and customs, and the particular cultures of Xinjiang's "ethnic minorities."

This was a mixed group of students. Most were Han, but there were Kazaks and Uighurs as well. Now, everyone seemed happy and excited to participate. But...the MCs, the kids doing the explanations and introductions, were Han. "And now this Kazak girl will show us the Kazak dancing!" The Kazak girl did, with a big smile. A Uighur couple did a traditional dance, acting out the roles, having fun with it. All the performers were really good - I learned later that they were either enrolled in the arts school at the University or were at members of the dance club or the music club. Then, a young Kazak man played a song on the dombra, the Central Asian lute. He was dressed head to toe in black, his hair spiked like an early 80s punk, his collar turned up. He played with fierce concentration. No pro-forma smiles here. When he finished, he made a little, abrupt bow, stone-faced, and left shortly after. Elvis has left the building, I thought.

It was just a little strange, hearing these Han kids talk excitedly about the quaint local customs, introducing the "ethnic minorities" to perform in front of me.

There was one particular Uighur girl there, outgoing, a live wire, wearing a sweater with some slogan spelled out in sequins, I forget what it was. Regardless, she sparkled. After an explanation from the MCs about several aspects of Uighur culture, she stood up and explained things from the perspective of an actual Uighur. "This is why we make the chuanr on iron and not wood." "This is why we eat this dish with our hands." She laughed a lot, seemed to be close to many of the other, Han students. But she was not shy or apologetic about explaining her own culture in front of them.

When it came time for questions, she stood right up. Her first question I couldn't exactly understand. It had something to do with how young Europeans were portrayed in films and television that she'd seen. The gist of her question was, were they really as sexually active as they appeared? Did they kiss and do such things on busses, in public?

Perhaps, I said, it's true that Europeans are more sexually active at a younger age than most Chinese, but I am not an expert. Perhaps they are more demonstrative in public as well. But different European countries have different cultural norms in this area. And of course, films and television tend to exaggerate.

Her second question: "Is it always true that the more powerful people in a country will always cover up the less powerful? Will the less powerful always lose their culture? How do you solve this problem?"

I paraphrase, but this was the gist.

The other kids in the class reacted, but I wouldn't say they overreacted. No one passed out in astonishment; I didn't get the sense that anyone was running out to inform the local Party representative (though who knows, really?). Still, I was impressed by her fearlessness. There's no more loaded an issue in China than anything smacking of "splittism."

As a member of the majority culture in my own country, what could I say? Well, that, to start. I'm in the Han position, you know?

And: "It's a very difficult problem. And it's really up to you and your children, how much you can preserve your culture, what's really important to you." I couldn't say, "too bad the Chinese government doesn't support an official bilingual policy, so if you have to learn Mandarin to advance in education and government and business, maybe the Han should have to learn Uighur or Kazak too." I don't know, maybe I could have said that, but I didn't think of it then. The whole issue of whether Xinjiang was "Chinese" or whether it should be something else, East Turkistan, maybe, well, I wasn't going to get into that.

What I did think of to say was this: "You know, it goes both ways. In America, African Americans are a minority, but African Americans' contributions to culture are so significant that African American culture really is a huge part of American culture - all Americans' culture." I talked about Chinese people in California - "that cultural influence is a part of our larger culture as well. Maybe here in Xinjiang, it's a little similar. Maybe Han people are also influenced by Uighur culture and by Kazak culture - maybe you are creating a new culture, that is a blend of all the people here."

*******************************************************

It was the best I could do at the time: Sadly optimistic, uninformed and naive, especially now, when that cultural gulf seems wider than ever.

Lisa…every other Wednesday...

Bonjour, Murder in Pigalle

Aimée Leduc's 14th investigation in the red-light district of Paris pubs today.  Right now I'm on the road on book tour - would love to see you + here's a link to upcoming events http://carablack.com/events/ 

To give you a taste of Murder in Pigalle, here's an interview by my lovely editor Juliet Grames on where the story for Pigalle sprung from.

Juliet:  You told me when we first started working on Murder in Pigalle that the inspiration had come from a real-life case. Can you tell us a little bit more about the real case? 

CB: Yes, it came from a case that had stymied the flics for a time. They were quite open about it. By chance, having lunch with a retired Brigade Criminelle officer, his friend joined us. His friend headed what we’d term Crime Invesigations against Juveniles division. Quite a striking guy, very nice and he looked like he’d walked out of a medieval tapestry. I can only describe it as a 14th century face and tonsure-like hairstyle. Anyway he gave me his card. Not one to pass up any opportunity I called and he invited me to visit him and tour his branch. I had no intention of writing about crimes against children but it’s a good rule to visit a policeman who invites you to their office to get the feel and see how they really work. Unknown to me at the time, his unit had cooperated with a filmaker who’d just made a hit movie about their Juvenile  division. So he was quite open. His office, on the Seine, and the whole floor of the unit’s suite was lighter and airier than most police branches I’ve seen. His second in command, a youngish female Commandant, toured me and showed where their pyschologically trained investigators talk to child victims in colorful rooms with toys. Another woman explained about her work with investigating and suppressing the trafficking of young children. I confess it struck me how hard this job would be to do and not get emotionally involved. How could one leave it at home at the end of the day especially if you had young children the age of the victim’s in your case? The units professionalism, compassion and down-to-earthness really struck me. Out of curiosity I asked the young Commandant if there were any specific crimes they’d dealt with in June 1998 when I was setting my next book - it could be background material or an issue my character would be aware of. Yes, exactly, she said. In June 1998 there was a notorious case and she showed me the file - that of a serial rapist preying on young girls home alone after school. All the girls lived in the same arrondissement and attended schools near each other. The flics hadn’t put the attacks together and the frustrated parents of the quartier went vigilante. Unfortunately it was the wrong guy. The flics did find the serial rapist, he was tried, convicted and sent to prison. He didn’t last long, since the young Commandant told me prisoners don’t like pedophiles. 

Juliet:  One of your characters, Monsieur Lavigne, a connoisseur of the Pigalle area’s history and culture, has an impressive collection of art done by great quartier artists. Who are some of those great visual artists? What about musical composers? What brought them together in this area of Paris

CB:  Pigalle, long a nightlife area - Moulin Rouge, le Chat Noir, and nearby Follies Bergere all still going strong are in the 9th arrondissement. Theater thrived here and still does in the 13 theaters with performances every night. Maybe it’s an artistic sensibility fostered by those who lived here: artists like Degas, Toulouse-Lautrec, Vuillard, writers such as Emile Zola, George Sand. Composers and musicians including Liszt, Chopin, Berlioz who visited each other often, found inspiration in congregating in salons and ateliers fermenting a literary, artistic and musical scene. Where Monsieur Lavigne lives, is in what’s still called la Nouvelle Athenes, an upscale area where the wealthy followed Greek designs in architecture and promoted ‘new thinking’ based on Hellenism and Greek ideals and thought. I’m not sure if that’s still around. 

Juliet:  In this book, detective Aimee Leduc is pregnant. It’s a big change for her character! What inspired you to lead Aimee down that street? 

CB:  It’s never easy for Aimée, she’s always attracted to bad boys but I felt it was time for her to grow up. Well, a little. My Parisian friend Anne-Françoise that I’ve known for years - first as a singleton who I’d go out dancing with - now who has two girls, 3 + 7. Anne’s a career woman, too but I’ve watched (and sometimes helped on visits) since their births how she raises her girls and works full time. Paris, btw, has an amazing affordable childcare system for working parents and subsidies for childcare. Of course, it’s not easy and Anne relies a lot on her partner these days and a wonderful shared nanny. But when I visit I can do the fun stuff and take them to the circus or read a story. I don’t have diaper duty any more, but volunteer for after school pickup and boulangerie stops on the way home. I’ve learned a lot from watching her.

 Juliet:   She is wrestling with lots of questions about motherhood: for example, will she be a good mother, even though she doesn’t have a good relationship with her own mother? How can she balance her baby with her career? Cara, you are a mother yourself—did you channel any of your own experience or thought processes into Aimee for this book? 

CB:  Integral to Aimée’s character is a yearning for family, one she’s never really had. She has  abandonment issues over her mother who left her, whether to truly protect Aimée as a young child, remains to be seen. Her American mother, is on the World Watch list. Aimée’s starting to see that ‘family’ can be those around you ie. René, her partner at Leduc Detective, Morbier her godfather and Martine her best girlfriend. Without her own mother, Aimée feels the loss of a role model and wants an instruction booklet on having a child. But she doesn’t and there isn’t one. I became closer to my own mother when I had my son, our relationship became different, which I think it does for many women. I could ask her things, I was lucky she only lived 30 miles away. It’s hard to explain but watching the relationship grow between my son and mother, how she became part of his life, made me feel more bonded to the world.  I’ve seen Anne’s relationship with her own mother deepen after having children. Family, important in French society, and everywhere in the world, takes on a new meaning when you have a child. It’s not just about you anymore, and it never will be again. Aimée suffers doubts, fears about her capability to raise a child and balance a career. She wonders if she’ll turn into her mother, maybe we all do. 

Cara—Tuesday on the Road