Book Club Kit
A Conversation with
BETH MORREY
What inspired you to write The Love Story of Missy Carmichael? Is Missy Carmichael based on anyone you know?
Back in 2015, I had a vague idea about a lonely old widower who got a dog, and how the dog would help him find friends. So originally, my protagonist was a man. But then I felt more comfortable writing in a woman’s voice, particularly as a first-time writer. I always wanted to have an elderly figure, though—there’s a poignancy, stoicism, and wisdom to be found in old age. Missy was partly inspired by Barbara Covett from Notes on a Scandal—she is such a wonderfully waspish narrator, but I was interested in a version of Barbara who was redeemable. So Missy has a similar prickliness and pride, but it’s taken in a different direction. Tell us a bit about your own background and your work in television. Why did you decide to write a novel? What was different about writing fiction from directing TV shows? Did anything surprise you?
It was always novel writing I was passionate about, from a very young age. I had a yearning to see my name on a spine—to have a physical thing to hold. I kind of fell into TV, and it was really good fun—I was involved in some great programs, and producing treatments honed my skill as a writer—but my ultimate ambition was to be an author. The main difference between TV and publishing is that as a factual development producer, I could design a whole TV show
and never see my name anywhere on the credits—development is rather unacknowledged in the UK. But with a book, although all sorts of other people are involved in its creation—agents, editors, designers, etc.—it’s only my name on the cover. That feels weird— I’m not sure it’s fair either way round. But the creative process is actually quite similar—thinking of ideas, starting points, and seeing if they could yield a rich and enticing story. You have to be aware of the zeitgeist: What are people talking about? What are the trends? How can they be turned into an accessible narrative? Do you have a background in the classics? How do the classics play a role in your novel?
I’m afraid I don’t have a background in classics! My degree was in English literature, and I originally intended Missy to study English too—but when it came to it, it didn’t feel right. It was like
she was telling me she was a classicist. So I knuckled down and did a load of research, pestering my classicist friends for advice. As the book developed, it felt right, because the story is about different types of love, and I started reading about the definitions of love according to the ancient Greeks—eros, philia, pragma, etc.—so I was able to explore that, and add in a few extra. One Greek word comes to represent much of Missy’s journey: oikos. Tell us about oikos and how it relates to Missy.
Not being a classicist, I am relying on oikos being open to interpretation, because my take on it is that it’s different things to different people. For me, it’s your sense of home, and that might be anything—a person or a place or a building. It relates to love and security and comfort. Missy thinks of it as a rock, or anchor—the thing that grounds you. For much of her life
“THERE’S NO REASON TO THINK ANYONE SHOULD EVER STOP LEARNING AND GROWING, OR THAT IT’S EVER TOO LATE TO MAKE A LEAP.” she’s felt untethered—not quite loved enough, not quite loving enough—but the novel is about her finding acceptance, finding her place and feeling secure there. What other research did you do to write The Love Story of Missy Carmichael?
I went back to my old Cambridge college to find out more about the St. Botolph’s party where Missy and Leo meet. This is the same party where Sylvia Plath met Ted Hughes, so I talked to my former director of studies, who was there that night, and read some of the archives in Newnham’s library. I also scoured old newspaper articles about the Cambridge Garden House riots. And finally, I quizzed Stoke Newington residents about the fish-stunning that took place in Clissold Park. It was a very bizarre real-life event. Missy worked for many years as a librarian. Do you have a connection to libraries?
Only in the sense that I love them and want us to cherish them. I spent a great deal of time in my local library as a
child and now take my own children to our local library in London. There are a lot of funding cuts in the UK and many libraries are being closed. It makes me incredibly angry and sad that we’re losing this vital resource. There are so few indoor places that you can go for free. And they’re full of books—what more could you want? The novel spans much of the twentieth century, as we watch Missy grow into her roles as a mother and a wife, and then into the Missy we meet in the present day. Why did you choose to explore so many different historical time periods? Were there any sections of Missy’s past that you found harder to write than others?
It happened naturally, because I realized if Missy was approaching eighty, then she would have lived through some fascinating periods in history. I was particularly intrigued by the idea of a personal narrative touching on events of public record, both large and small. So Missy’s story incorporates the Second World War, the suffragette movement, the introduction of the pill, Brexit. . . I liked the idea of one woman’s life
playing out against that bigger backdrop. The hardest chapter to write was the crucial episode from 1956, because I wanted to get the tone right; but generally, the flashback scenes were somehow easier than the present-day ones—as if they’d happened already and I was just recounting them. You’ve referred to Missy’s journey as a “coming-of-old” story. What do you mean by that?
Usually coming-of-age stories are about young people growing into adulthood, but mine shifts the genre to a much later generation. We’re living longer lives, with people active well into their eighties and beyond. There’s no reason to think anyone should ever stop learning and growing, or that it’s ever too late to make a leap. I designed a TV show called 100-Year-Old Drivers, and was astonished by the energy and verve of the centenarians we featured—one woman drove herself to yoga classes every day at age 105. Grannies going on roller coasters, octogenarians swimming in the sea, one-hundred-year-old brides—I love it. It says I’m not finished. That feels fantastically uplifting to me. Missy’s life is changed when she agrees to care for a dog, Bobby. Did you always know her story would involve a dog? Do you have a dog of your own?
I have a dog whom I adore, and she’s taught me so many things. She greets everyone enthusiastically, pulls me into the path of strangers, comforts and calms me. She’s such a benevolent presence, and it struck me that someone’s life could improve through the simple addition of a dog. They are great levelers—you meet
all sorts of people in the park, and they all have poo bags in their hands. So it was a good way to bring an unexpected group together. What do you hope readers will take from Missy’s story?
There was a reviewer who said that the book gave her hope that there are decent people out there who are willing to help, and that really touched me. I also set out to make people cry in a happy way, and hope the book achieves that. Finally, that love in all its varied, flawed and overlapping forms is essential. Without giving anything away, did you always know how the novel would end?
There are two crucial things that happen at the end of the story, and I always knew they would happen, but I didn’t quite know how they would happen. I started writing the book while I was still working it out, walking round and round the park with my dog until it finally came together. What’s next for you?
I am writing my second book, which is a story about learning in its broadest sense—wanting to make life better for yourself, widen your horizons, open up your world. And why, for some people, that might be difficult or daunting. I feel very lucky to be able to go to my writing café every day and add a little more to it. I am also recording a podcast series where I interview women about giving birth. It’s pretty graphic and eye-opening, but hopefully funny as well.
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS 1.
Did you like Missy Carmichael when you first met her? Why or why not? How about at the end?
2. Missy’s life is entirely transformed by her chance meeting with Sylvie and Angela. Why doesn’t Missy like Angela at first? Does Missy’s opinion change as she gets to know her? How do these two women reshape the way Missy understands her community?
3. Is there someone in your own life who has forced you to step out of your comfort zone? How did you feel about this person at first? Did your opinion change over time? What did you learn when you took a risk?
4. Why doesn’t Missy want to take Bobby? What changes? How does the dog help Missy to see her life differently?
5. Were you surprised by the choice Missy makes in 1956? Why doesn’t she tell Leo? How does this choice affect the rest of her life? What does she think about this choice now that she’s eighty?
6. Discuss Leo’s character. How does Missy see him? Do you think this is how others see him too? How did he change over the course of his marriage to Missy? Was he a good husband?
7.
Missy thinks about the concept of oikos [p. 47]. What does this concept mean? Why is it important to Missy? Do you feel oikos plays a role in your own life? Why or why not? Why don’t Missy and Mel get along? How do Sylvie, Angela, Otis, and Bobby help Missy to see her daughter in a new light? Is there someone in your own family you’ve struggled to connect with more than the rest? What might you do to reframe your relationship?
8. On p. 41 Missy thinks, “Sometimes the loneliness was overpowering. Not just the immediate loneliness of living in a huge house on my own, loved ones far away, but a more abstract, galactic isolation.” What does she mean? Do you think there are different kinds of loneliness? Was there a time in your life when you felt this more abstract loneliness? What helped you to reconnect?
9. Why does Missy dread her seventy-ninth birthday? Do you agree with the saying that “age is just a number”? Why or why not? What do you think is different about looking for a fresh start in “old age”? How does Missy’s story change the way you think about finding love?
“THE LONELINESS WAS OVERPOWERING. NOT JUST THE IMMEDIATE LONELINESS. . . BUT A MORE ABSTRACT, GALACTIC ISOLATION.”
“SHERRY HAS ALWAYS BEEN MY NEPENTHE, THE ANTI-SORROW DRUG OF CHOICE, TO QUIET ALL PAIN AND STRIFE.”
Sherry Pimm’s Cup Cocktail Recipe INGREDIENTS 1-inch-thick unpeeled cucumber slice 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice 1 teaspoon sugar
PREPARATION 1. Gently muddle the unpeeled cucumber slice, lemon juice, and sugar in a cocktail shaker to release the juice.
2 ounces Pimm’s No. 1 1 ounce club soda
2. Add Pimm’s No. 1 and fill with ice.
½ ounce Amontillado sherry
Cover; shake until the outside of the
1 cucumber spear
shaker is frosty, about 30 seconds.
Mint sprigs 1 lime wedge
Strain into a large goblet filled with fresh ice. 3. Top with the club soda and the
SERVES 1
sherry. 4. Garnish with cucumber spear, mint sprigs, and lime wedge.
Credit: www.epicurious.com
Sherry-Garlic Soup with Smoked Paprika INGREDIENTS 2 tablespoons olive oil 10 cloves garlic, finely chopped 1 tablespoon smoked paprika
PREPARATION 1. Heat the olive oil in a deep 4-quart pot set over medium heat. When the oil is hot, add the garlic and turn
1 cup Amontillado sherry
the heat to low. Cook very slowly for
6 cups turkey broth
about 10 minutes, stirring frequent-
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
ly. Don’t let the garlic brown. Add
Roughly chopped Marcona almonds, to serve
the smoked paprika and cook for another minute or two, stirring until the garlic and paprika form an oily red paste.
SERVES 6 2. Add the sherry and turkey broth, and turn the heat to medium-high. Whisk until combined, and bring the soup to a simmer. Turn down to low, and simmer for 15 minutes, or until ready to eat. Taste and season, if necessary, with salt and pepper. Serve sprinkled with chopped almonds.
Credit: www.thekitchn.com