This book shook me! It is never best to go into books with preconceived outcomes because what I hoped for certain storylines did not play out how I anticipated and it completely wrecked me! A thug even shed some tears on this one, which has never happened before! It’s not because this story is extremely sad, because it is heartbreaking, but I guess I was more so empathetic to the fact that stories like this continue to exist even to this day.
This is my first title by Angela Jackson-Brown. I had always wanted to read “Homeward” and never got around to it. I guarantee you I will read it soon because I enjoyed her writing style and I’m a sucker for historical fiction.
I was given the opportunity to share a few questions with the author, Angela Brown-Jackson. Check out our interview below.
What inspired this story, particularly the foster care and veteran storylines?
When I was a child, I was in foster care from birth until I was adopted by my daddy at the age of 2.5. I have always been interested in the system and how it works (or doesn’t) for certain segments of the population. I wanted to write a story that centered young Black males and present a picture of what it looks like when they receive love and attention, even when society says they don’t deserve it. I have always been interested in the Vietnam War. My daddy fought in WWII, and as racist as society was, was still treated, by and large, like a hero. On the flip side, those soldiers who served during Vietnam struggled with so many things when they returned. I wanted to illustrate the PTSD they endured, even before the word was used to define their condition. I also wanted a POW storyline that paid homage to people like my Uncle M.J. and my second dad, Joel Hall.
Please explain the importance of telling this story against the backdrop of the Civil Rights Movement and how that impacted the story?
I didn’t lean into the Civil Rights Movement as much as I did in Homeward. I wanted to illustrate that their were Black people who simply lived their lives. They weren’t removed from the Movement, but they were not the activists that you witnessed in Homeward. The Black community was divided when it came to the Movement. I didn’t address it in my book, but I would venture to say that my characters supported Dr. King from afar, but probably didn’t do anything specific that was related to the Movement.
Pee-Wee was absolutely my favorite character. I am curious if there was a specific reason why Pee-Wee had a speech impediment?
I wrote a short story years ago with a character who stuttered. Several people who did stutter reached out to me and thanked me for showcasing their story in a thoughtful and respectful manner. I always try to highlight people and stories hat often don’t get amplified in literature and stutters are just one of many groups I don’t see in books very often, and if so, seldom in an empathetic fashion.
I thought it was interesting to see Pee-Wee and Chad have this brotherly relationship while we see Marcus longing for the returning of his brother from Vietnam. Was this an intentional parallel?
Yes it was. I wanted to show how brothers can be by blood or by choice. Family is such a slippery word for me. Throughout the years, I have created family with people who have entered into my life for various reasons. I thought Pee Wee and Chad could both benefit from having each other as friends and then quasi-brothers. Of all of the relationships I have written about over the years, theirs has touched me the most because they both have endured so much in their short lives.
Why did Katia constantly push Mr. Seth Taylor away despite her feelings for him? Why couldn’t she lean into love during all the chaos?
As confident as Katia comes across, she has never felt true love. She has been so busy taking care of everyone else, that she has struggled to take time for herself. She needed time to trust the love and affection Seth was showing her. She needed to be able to believe that in spite of the fact she couldn’t biologically have children that she was still a prize for any person. But in order for her to believe that, she had to first become a prize to herself.
Without spoiling it for those that have not read the book, could you share your thought process when crafting Chad’s story? My biggest question being WHY?
Not sure what your “why” is about, but I’m assuming you mean the end of the book. Just like all of us, Chad had a purpose to fulfill. I never shy away from difficult storylines. Life is complicated and fraught with injustice and many times unfair. I would be doing a disservice to my readers if I simply shielded my characters from all pain and suffering. Readers come to my work again and again because they know I am giving them real life stories. I did not want this book to be any different.
I have my own thoughts on why this book is titled ‘Untethered’ but if you could share your perspectives on the book title and why it best fit this story?
This book is about Katia’s journey of breaking free from the weight of familial and societal expectations. This book symbolizes Katia’s freedom from all things that weighed her down. This book is about any person who has ever been EVERYTHING for other people and now has decided to be EVERYTHING for themselves.
Nina Simone could be viewed as another pivotal character in this story. How did you settle on that artist to be the soundtrack of Katia’s life?
I love Nina Simone and her complicated life. Katia saw Nina Simone as this beautiful, free songstress who was everything she wasn’t. However, for those who followed Simone’s story, we know that she was everything but that. I wanted to illustrate how we can believe another person has it all together, but in reality, everyone is struggling. No one has figured everything out. I wanted the astute reader who knows Simone in ways Katia didn’t, to put those pieces together and see the irony and the beauty of Katia’s love and admiration for Nina Simone.
I also found it interesting that this story was situated around two of the biggest holidays, Thanksgiving and Christmas. Did this serve any importance to the overall telling of this story and why?
Holidays are always big deals in families but particularly Black families in the south. There was no better time than Thanksgiving and Christmas to position the book. I wanted Chad and Pee Wee to experience the holidays in ways they never had before. I wanted Katia to know how important she was to her family. AND I just love these two times of the year. It’s the time I get to cook my family’s favorite meals and speak my love language to them.
Katia was self-less, offering love and guidance to everyone before herself. If you could offer Katia a message of love or encouragement, what would you say?
I would say to Katia what I say to anyone who has lived a totally self-less life – choose you sometimes because through the choosing of yourself, you make it so that you can be a better support for those you love.
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