Author Interview: Pick the Lock by A.S. King
A.S. King is known for her surrealist stories that reach into reader’s hearts and minds and never let go. Pick the Lock is no different, exploring toxic families through music. Check out our interview with A.S. King below and pick up Pick the Lock, out now!
Pick the Lock
by A.S. KingPublished by: Dutton Books for Young Readers
on September 24, 2024
Genres: Contemporary, Young Adult
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From Michael L. Printz Award winner A.S. King, a weird and insightful new novel about a girl intent on picking the lock of her toxic family.
Jane Vandermaker-Cook would like her mother back. As Jane's mother tours the world to support the family, Jane lives and goes to school in a Victorian mansion with her younger brother and their mendacious father who confines Jane's mother to a system of pneumatic tubes whenever she's at home. And then there's weirdly ever-present Aunt Finch, Milorad the gardener, and his rat, Brutus. For Jane, this all seems normal until she suddenly gains access to the files for a lifetime of security-camera videos--her lifetime.
A.S. King's latest surrealist masterpiece follows Jane's bizarre and brilliant journey to reconnect with her mother by breaking out of her shell and composing a punk opera. rediscover and reconnect with her mother through punk rock and opera.
Interview with A.S. King
The story has many elements – musical genres, a Victorian home, social issues. What was the hardest part to write?
The hardest part to write were the relationship dynamics and the interactions between the adults. Vernon and Finch were so creepy and weird. But on a whole, I don’t really have much control over my books. They tend to write me, and not the other way around. That in itself is hard. There are days I truly can’t find the story because it hasn’t been shown to me yet. Those days are hard when deadlines are looming.
Of all the music genres, why punk rock and opera?
Mina, Jane’s mother, is a punk musician, so the punk came naturally, as Vernon dislikes everything about Mina; and Jane is rebelling–rightfully, but it’s still rebellion, so again that makes punk the obvious choice. The opera is just what Jane called it when it started coming out of me. It tells a story alongside the story that’s in prose. There are details in the opera dialogue or action paragraphs that add information to piece the puzzle of the book. Opera was a clear choice because they are literally singing the whole time and Vernon would hate that. But mostly, I love a lot of old punk and that genre is perfect for the creepy feel of the novel.
One reviewer said Pick the Lock made her think about her own relationship with her mother. What are you hoping readers find in this story?
Oh, I’m so happy to hear this! That’s one of the things I’d like readers to walk around with after they’ve read the book. It’s time we notice the rules the patriarchy has for women and mothers. They are bogus rules and the things people say to successful women are so ingrained, internalized, and ignorant–but that’s a reflection of the popular and political views toward women in our society. I really just hope readers get whatever they need from it, whether it be validation, catharsis, or an entertaining read.
