Author Interview: Anna Levine, 'Freefall'

Hi everyone! I am so happy to welcome Anna Levine to my blog today. She's the author of the fantastic YA novel, Freefall. Check out our interview because she has a fascinating story!

1. Your books are set in Israel, and I have read that you live there. Are you originally from there, and if not, what brought you there? What is the most important thing people should know about life in Israel?

I came to Israel from Canada to try living on kibbutz, which is kind of like an agricultural farm. Only I soon realized that farming is a lot more romantic on paper than it is at 5:00 o’clock in the morning when you’re half asleep and you’ve got to stand on a ladder to pick apples off a tree. And then I fell in love with living in the country. I also am really connected to the history of the country and the people. I love it that I can stand in the middle of the Old City of Jerusalem, with walls that have been standing for the last 3,000 years and then my cell phone starts ringing and I’m back in this century.

2. What do you hope readers will take away from Freefall?

Universality. That no matter where you are in the world (almost) or what you’re doing some things like challenging family relationships, changing friendships and falling in love are the same for us all.

3. What has been your most exciting or rewarding moment as an author?

Being given the Sydney Taylor Honor’s Award for Freefall. The award is given by a group of librarians. The idea that a jury of librarians thought Freefall was worthy was very exciting for me. And then, not connected to Freefall, I wrote a short story called The Wednesday Club (it’s on my website www.annalevine.org) After it was published a reader wrote to me saying that she wished she had had a friend like Aaron to help her through when her mother was ill. The reader was really moved by the story which is a funny, romantic story about Ella, a girl whose mother has to go in for chemo treatments, who meets Aaron, a guy who is just finishing his treatments.

4. What's your favorite book? Movie? Animal?

I love poetry, and the anthologies by Billy Collins are fantastic. As for my favorite book, it’s usually the one I’m reading when I’m asked because I get so involved in it. But right now I’m reading Madam Bovary (Gustav Flaubert)…and that is definitely not a favorite novel! I’ve loved all of Alain de Button’s books and just finished reading The Romantic Movement. My favorite movie? “The Diary of Bridget Jones” or “You’ve Got Mail” and “Shakespeare in Love.” As for my favorite animal. I don’t have a pet right now but I do have a stuffed turtle and a stuffed beaver that I love.

5. What are three fun facts your readers might not know about you?

I love biking and seeing how fast I can let myself drive down the mountains. I love traveling by myself and getting lost. I always talk to strangers and try to draw them out so I can hear their stories.

Thanks again for being here today, Anna! I hope you'll all check out Freefall when you get a chance!