But if I did my job telling this story well, there will be some readers out there for whom it will resonate deeply, and you always hope for that.

This is why not all people love all books, because you can't write a book that's going to speak to the condition of every heart. My job is to tell a good story, and a reader is a very important part of the equation. LHA: I'm one of the writers who hesitates to think messages are ever a good thing if you're trying to be artistic. What do you hope readers take away from the story? A couple years ago, I was speaking at her school, and she said to me, 'Miss, are you ever going to write about a love story? Wouldn't it be nice to write something that wouldn't make you cry all the time?' That's what I tried to do with this one - it was a little bit of a different spin for me. Watching him try to reintegrate into civilian society really helped me understand my dad from a completely different perspective, and that got me thinking about the kids whose fathers and mothers were the new veterans from this war, and what kind of scars would they have that their kids couldn't see, that would make family life a challenge? The third part for me goes down to a little girl in Dallas, Texas. The second piece was when my nephew left the Army after several tours in Iraq and Afghanistan. My dad lived to be 86, and those memories were seared so deeply, they caused him pain for all of those years, and he became an alcoholic, and there were a lot of family struggles, like many families of veterans have struggles. One thread was growing up with a World War II veteran father who had PTSD from his experience. When you have some hindsight you can see exactly where it came from. Laurie Halse Anderson: With most books, when you're writing it, of course you think that the idea just hits you. On the inspiration behind The Impossible Knife of Memory: You can follow her adventures on Twitter,, and on her blog. When not writing or hanging out with her family, you can find Laurie training for marathons or rying to coax tomatoes out of the rocky soil in her backyard. She and her husband, Scot, plus dogs Kezzie and Thor, and assorted chickens and other critters enjoy country living and time in the woods. Mother of four and wife of one, Laurie lives in Northern New York, where she likes to watch the snow fall as she writes. Edwards Award given by YALSA division of the American Library Association for her 'significant and lasting contribution to young adult literature'. Laurie was the proud recipient of the 2009 Margaret A. Her work has earned numerous awards and accolades. Laurie is also a New York Times-bestselling author, known for tackling tough subjects with humor and sensitivity. Laurie Halse Anderson is the 2023 winner of the prestigious Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award.

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