See below for the full tour schedule
Today, I'm excited to be interviewing Isabel Gillies about her upcoming release Starry Night
Isn't that cover gorgeous?
Starry Night
by Isabel Gillies
Publishes: September 2, 2014 by Farrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR)
Book description: Sometimes one night can change everything. On this particular night, Wren and her three best friends are attending a black-tie party at the Metropolitan Museum of Art to celebrate the opening of a major exhibit curated by her father. An enormous wind blasts through the city, making everyone feel that something unexpected and perhaps wonderful will happen. And for Wren, that something wonderful is Nolan. With his root-beer-brown Michelangelo eyes, Nolan changes the way Wren’s heart beats. In Isabel Gillies's Starry Night, suddenly everything is different. Nothing makes sense except for this boy. What happens to your life when everything changes, even your heart? How much do you give up? How much do you keep?
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Welcome to Love is not a triangle, Isabel Gillies!
Isabel Gillies: A love story. New York. Teenagers. Family. Friends. School. Falling in love for the first time. Growing up.
Lauren: You have themes of friendship, first love, following your dreams, and heartbreak in your story, is there anything you wish you could tell your 15 year old self through Wren’s journey in this book?
Isabel Gillies: What I didn't know when I was 15 is that failing, making mistakes and getting it wrong are all GOOD things. I spent a lot of time in my life getting it wrong and it ends up being worth it. You learn tremendous amounts from failing.
Lauren: If you could use one word to describe your heroine Wren at the beginning of this story and then one word for the end, what would you pick?
Isabel Gillies: Love this question -- But I'm having a hard time answering! Okay, what changes, and it's a huge change, is that she goes from someone who has never been in love to someone who has. Is there a word for that? Wren is transformed by falling in love. Falling in love is like someone smacking you in the face, there is no question that it has happened to you. You might as well turn a different color once you have fallen in love. So maybe Wren is yellow at the start and blue at the end.
Lauren: Wren is an artist who is inspired by Vincent Van Gough and especially his painting Starry Night, is there a piece of art or artist who inspires you?
Isabel Gillies: The Unfinished Pieta by Michael Angelo. I saw that sculpture when I was 14 in Italy and it moved me to tears. As it's unfinished you can see the raw stone and the figures that he had begun to sculpt, so it's like life being born out of the rock. It's The Virgin Mary holding her dead son after he had been taken off the cross. I am not particularly religious, what you feel in this sculpture is humanity. A mother mourning her child. It kills you -- even at 14 I got it.
Lauren: Have you ever experienced any crazy weather events that made you think something was about to happen – like the wind that sweeps through the city when Wren meets Nolan?
Isabel
Gillies: For
my entire life! Almost every year, or a few times a year, the wind -- or a
storm brewing makes me think and feel that something big will happen. And lots
of times it does. Think of thunder, so romantic with it's rolling, strong
voice, but also ominous. I bet a thunder has sent many a couple in to a great
kiss or break up. Weather is close to us and it's extremely powerful, it
changes our days and bosses us around. In my first book (which was a memoir),
there were low, dramatic clouds in the place that I lived. I always thought
those clouds meant something, and it turned out they did, at least to me! I
always take note of the weather.
Thank you so much for talking to me today!
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About the author
Isabel Gillies, known for her television role as Detective Stabler’s wife on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, has published two memoirs,Happens Every Day (a New York Times bestseller) and A Year and Six Seconds (both Scribner). She graduated from New York University with a BFA in film. Isabel lives in Manhattan with her family. isabelgillies.com
- Learn more about Isabel Gillies and Starry Night.
- Add Starry Night to your to-read list on Goodreads.
- Join in on social media with #StarryNight
- Check out Isabel’s website, follow her on Twitter, ‘like’ her on Facebook, and follow her on Tumblr.
Upcoming Public Events
Saturday, August 30
Decatur Book Festival- Map of My Heart Panel (Decatur, GA)
Tuesday September 2
Barnes & Noble Upper West Side- Launch Event with John Searles (New York, NY)
Sunday, September 14
Books of Wonder- Debut Author Panel (New York, NY)
Saturday, September 27
The Voracious Reader- Reading/Signing (Larchmont, NY)
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Starry Night Blog Tour Schedule
Tuesday, August 26
Wednesday, August 27
Thursday, August 28
Green Bean Teen Queen
Friday, August 29
Paper Cuts
Saturday, August 30
Sunday, August 31
Gone With the Words
Monday, September 1
Mac Teen Books
Tuesday, September 2
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Giveaway
A FINISHED Copy of Starry Night
A FINISHED Copy of Starry Night
Policies:
Giveaway is for US/Canada residents only (Sorry, international readers!)
You must be at least 13 years old to enter
See my policies HERE
Just the name of this book alone makes me want to read it!
ReplyDeleteGreat interview with Isabel Gillies! I really enjoyed reading it (and I had no idea that Michelangelo did the Unfinished Pieta--learned something new as well today). The premise of this novel sounds really interesting; I always enjoy novels with a touch of magical realism going on (which sounds like this book has), so I'll be keeping a lookout for this book. Thanks also for the awesome giveaway :)
ReplyDeleteChristina R. in the rafflecopter
ReplyDeleteLOVE what she said about love transforming her! And that mistakes are good!
thank you :)
Really want to read this thanks for this giveaway:D
ReplyDeleteEnjoyed the interview, I love hearing about the authors. This book looks very good!! I also love the cover!!! It catches your attention!!
ReplyDelete(This is Darith L.)
ReplyDeleteLovely interview! Love the cover and the synopsis! Can't wait to read it for sure!
The cover is gorgeous and Starry Night sounds like a wonderful romance. I would love to read this book.
ReplyDelete1) Love the cover!
ReplyDelete2) A book primarily centered on romance would normally make me nervous, but I trust L, so.
3) I just looked up The Unfinished Pieta. WOW.
Aw, great guest post Lauren :D Thank you for sharing about this book. <3 I do love that cover. So pretty. Not sure about the book, but maybe one day :)
ReplyDeleteIt sounds like a wonderful story, I would love to find out how the rest of it goes. Thanks for having the giveaway.
ReplyDeleteThose are some excellent questions, L! I will have to remember them if I do an author interview in the future... ;)
ReplyDeleteGreat interview! I did appreciate the fact that the book showed what a lot of YA books don't -- that sometimes we make huge mistakes in the romance department and that can be a painful yet valuable experience....
ReplyDeleteThe cover is TO DIE FOR. I hope the plot will be as great as the front!
ReplyDeleteI immediately fell in love with the cover and title. Starry Night is my favorite Van Gogh painting. I like the romance aspect of the story too. I really want to read it. :)
ReplyDelete--Amber
Thank you for this amazing giveaway! I've heard so many people raving about this book and telling me to read it. :)
ReplyDelete