Erick_Setiawan wrote:
I came to the States with my older brother. I was 16 (a junior in high school), he was 19 (a freshman in college). We came here in the summer of '91, and our parents had arranged for us to take an intensive English course at UC Riverside for three months. If anybody knows where that is, it's a desert town about two hours/an hour and a half away from LA. Blazing hot during the day, dead (and freezing) at night, everyone was a stranger, and not too much was happening except for the campus (and oh, we homestayed with a Mormon family).
Hey Erick,
I hope this highlighted part was a good experience for you with a good family! I am a Mormon too, so of course this stood out to me. This is why I am hoping it was a good caring family. By just telling people you are Mormon, they have preconceived ideas of who we are too! So the church is often judged by each member or family, for the good or bad. I suppose that is true of many religions, we all are either ambassadors for our religion or horrible examples lol. Please tell me it was not with one of the cults who use parts of our name, OH MY! 
vivico1 wrote:
Erick_Setiawan wrote:
I came to the States with my older brother. I was 16 (a junior in high school), he was 19 (a freshman in college). We came here in the summer of '91, and our parents had arranged for us to take an intensive English course at UC Riverside for three months. If anybody knows where that is, it's a desert town about two hours/an hour and a half away from LA. Blazing hot during the day, dead (and freezing) at night, everyone was a stranger, and not too much was happening except for the campus (and oh, we homestayed with a Mormon family).
Hey Erick,
I hope this highlighted part was a good experience for you with a good family! I am a Mormon too, so of course this stood out to me. This is why I am hoping it was a good caring family. By just telling people you are Mormon, they have preconceived ideas of who we are too! So the church is often judged by each member or family, for the good or bad. I suppose that is true of many religions, we all are either ambassadors for our religion or horrible examples lol. Please tell me it was not with one of the cults who use parts of our name, OH MY!
Thayer wrote:Erick,
Although this is not my usual genre of choice, I find that I am thorougly enjoying your wonderful debut novel.
This book has enabled me to "step out of the box" so to speak, and I realize that I must stop labelling (and therefore) limiting myself and become more unpredictable in order to not miss out on something unexpected and delightful such as your book.
As you mentioned that you have been reading our posts, you have found no doubt that we leave no stone unturned (i.e., we overanalyze EVERYTHING)
I am intrigued by your methodical use of numerical description. There are many references to numbers and values of time throughout the story. What is the significance of such precise detail?
Hi Thayer,
Thank you for your generous words. I hope you enjoy "stepping out of the box" and I urge you to do more in the future.
About the numbers . . . I hope I'm not the only in the world who's obsessed with numbers. I find myself constantly counting bathroom tiles, kitchen tiles, the number of tables in a restaurant, the number of books in a stack at a bookstore, etc. And what I find is that certain numbers occur again and again, either by chance or arrangement, and usually they're multiples of 3. We're all familliar with the number 3 being dominant in fairy tales and mythology: the three bears, the three sisters, the three tasks, the three suitors, the three goddesses (remember the Judgment of Paris?). And having attended Catholic schools for ten years in my early life, I am more than familiar with the Holy Trinity. I suppose that's why I tend to look for multiples of 3 in life. In Chinese culture, the luckiest number is 9, which is 3 x 3. (The unluckiest, by the way, is 4--si--because it's pronounced the same as the word for death.) My personal lucky number is 27, which is 3 x 3 x 3 (isn't that beautiful?). That's why you see a lot of 3's and 9's and 27's in the book. I wanted to create an atmosphere where, just as the dynamics between the characters and their resulting story lines have patterns, the numbers also repeat according to some patterns of their own. If you notice, I also used a lot of colors in the book. In life, numbers are as prevalent as colors, if not more so, even though fewer people are aware of this unless they're obsessed with counting like me.
LISA-BRYAN wrote:Erick-
I have another question regarding the cover -- On the back - lower right at the base of the yellow flower there seems to be a set of eyeglasses. These really come into view better when you look at them while rotating the book. However, when you look a the bases of other flowers -- it seems you are seeing the eyeglasses from the side.
Am I just seeing things (I am due for an eye appointment
Also I am one of those people who have seen the upside down and rightside up ghosts on the front cover -- it is very intriguing how they are in line with the pairs of eyes.
Lastly, it is also interesting how the vines form closed spaces -- boxes -- on the spine and on the front cover.
Thank you and Kerri for such a wonderful cover -- it really adds to the book!
Hi LISA-BRYAN,
Thank you for your detailed attention to the cover. Kerri posted a great message on her board about the ambiguity of the cover and what different people take from it. I'll let her have the definitive say on this. Just as reading is very much an individual interpretation, looking at that cover (or any cover) should be, too!
Dear Erick,
Thank you so much for sharing your wonderful book with us at First Look. I'm absolutely enjoying it!
Thanks too for answering the question about the numbers. That's one of the things I really wanted to know about. I even went to some websites for information on the meaning of numbers in Chinese culture.
I love the way you wrote: your words, images, numbers, colors, magic, etc. Everything fits so well together into one amazing story. I cannot wait to finish it!
Erick_Setiawan wrote:
Thayer wrote:Erick,
Although this is not my usual genre of choice, I find that I am thorougly enjoying your wonderful debut novel.
This book has enabled me to "step out of the box" so to speak, and I realize that I must stop labelling (and therefore) limiting myself and become more unpredictable in order to not miss out on something unexpected and delightful such as your book.
As you mentioned that you have been reading our posts, you have found no doubt that we leave no stone unturned (i.e., we overanalyze EVERYTHING)
Hi Thayer,
Thank you for your generous words. I hope you enjoy "stepping out of the box" and I urge you to do more in the future.
About the numbers . . . I hope I'm not the only in the world who's obsessed with numbers. I find myself constantly counting bathroom tiles, kitchen tiles, the number of tables in a restaurant, the number of books in a stack at a bookstore, etc. And what I find is that certain numbers occur again and again, either by chance or arrangement, and usually they're multiples of 3. We're all familliar with the number 3 being dominant in fairy tales and mythology: the three bears, the three sisters, the three tasks, the three suitors, the three goddesses (remember the Judgment of Paris?). And having attended Catholic schools for ten years in my early life, I am more than familiar with the Holy Trinity. I suppose that's why I tend to look for multiples of 3 in life. In Chinese culture, the luckiest number is 9, which is 3 x 3. (The unluckiest, by the way, is 4--si--because it's pronounced the same as the word for death.) My personal lucky number is 27, which is 3 x 3 x 3 (isn't that beautiful?). That's why you see a lot of 3's and 9's and 27's in the book. I wanted to create an atmosphere where, just as the dynamics between the characters and their resulting story lines have patterns, the numbers also repeat according to some patterns of their own. If you notice, I also used a lot of colors in the book. In life, numbers are as prevalent as colors, if not more so, even though fewer people are aware of this unless they're obsessed with counting like me.
Erick_Setiawan wrote:
Hi Thayer,
Thank you for your generous words. I hope you enjoy "stepping out of the box" and I urge you to do more in the future.
About the numbers . . . I hope I'm not the only in the world who's obsessed with numbers. I find myself constantly counting bathroom tiles, kitchen tiles, the number of tables in a restaurant, the number of books in a stack at a bookstore, etc. And what I find is that certain numbers occur again and again, either by chance or arrangement, and usually they're multiples of 3. We're all familliar with the number 3 being dominant in fairy tales and mythology: the three bears, the three sisters, the three tasks, the three suitors, the three goddesses (remember the Judgment of Paris?). And having attended Catholic schools for ten years in my early life, I am more than familiar with the Holy Trinity. I suppose that's why I tend to look for multiples of 3 in life. In Chinese culture, the luckiest number is 9, which is 3 x 3. (The unluckiest, by the way, is 4--si--because it's pronounced the same as the word for death.) My personal lucky number is 27, which is 3 x 3 x 3 (isn't that beautiful?). That's why you see a lot of 3's and 9's and 27's in the book. I wanted to create an atmosphere where, just as the dynamics between the characters and their resulting story lines have patterns, the numbers also repeat according to some patterns of their own. If you notice, I also used a lot of colors in the book. In life, numbers are as prevalent as colors, if not more so, even though fewer people are aware of this unless they're obsessed with counting like me.
Hi Erick,
That is so interesting! My daughter, Emily Anne (9 letters) was born on 9/9! A Chinese relative told us that was a very lucky number...we in no way planned this! It has served her well so far
Paula
dragonfly_yayn wrote:Erick,
You truly are a gifted writer. I too have had difficulty in putting this down and have read almost to the end when I finally forced myself to put it down so that I won't spill the dreaded spoiler. That said, I have enjoyed the cover almost as much and am thouroughly captivated by your responces. The insights into your life are so inspirational and the answers on the book are wonderful in the aspect that they answer the questions with a sense of humor without giving any of the book away, and yet you are still able to add more mystery for us (yes even those of us who read way to far ahead). Thank you
Erick_Setiawan wrote:Hi joyfull,
I'm glad you're having fun with the book. About the coupons . . . my mom is actually more similar to Ravenna: she rarely looks at the price tag when she buys anything. This, of course, causes my dad endless headache when he has to pay the bills. I actually didn't encounter the whole coupon business until I came to the States. In Indonesia, stores either had fixed prices or you had to haggle your way to the death (things have changed since I left, I assume). When I came to the States, I was fascinated by how many people were so eager to clip coupons and storm the grocery stores during double coupon days. I remember telling my mom to do the same when she came here for a visit and she just looked at me as if I'd gone insane.
Eva is based on my paternal grandmother. She had ten children (my dad was the second oldest), and she always set them at odds so that they would fight and bicker with each other. When this happened, they always ran to her for advice and comfort, and I think that made her feel needed, respected, important. She had eight daughters-in-law and she didn't get along with a single one of them. My mom, for one, had many an unpleasant name for her. As a child, I was both terrified and amused by the dynamics between them. I used a lot of their interactions to inform Meridia's relationship with Eva.
I'm so glad you like Ravenna! She is actually my favorite character (and my agent's, too). I know First Lookers said a lot of unflattering comments about her especially during the first segment, and I hope you'll change your mind by the end of the book. Bring her up again in two weeks and I'll let you in on the inspiration behind her.
Hi dragonfly_yayn,
Thank you for the compliments. I love a happy reader! And that book cover probably had triggered as much discussion as the book itself. I can't say enough good things about it.
