PTBOCanada: Will we see a movie adaptation some day of your books? In many ways, it was a tremendously difficult and sad time, but it was also a period of rebirth and renewal-and that’s what I’ve tried to capture in Charlotte’s story. Robson: I’m feeling cautiously optimistic about After the War is Over, but I’ll hold off making any predictions for a few weeks! It takes up where Somewhere in France leaves off, in the early months of 1919, and follows the experiences of Charlotte Brown, Lilly’s best friend, as she carves out a new life for herself in the post-war period. Tell us more about this one, and how you think it will do. The book was just released and is getting a lot of hype.

PTBOCanada: Okay, speaking of After the War is Over, this is your second novel-and the sequel to Somewhere in France. Hence my decision to make Lilly, the heroine of Somewhere in France, an ambulance driver-and Charlotte, the heroine of After the War is Over, a nurse. Women didn’t actually fight in the war, but many were very close to the fighting, nurses and ambulance drivers among them. I didn’t want to simply create a fictional version of Brittain’s life, but rather create an original character that experienced the war as directly as possible. After reading Vera Brittain’s memoir Testament of Youth many years ago, I had often thought of writing a novel set during the Great War with a woman as its central figure. Robson: Somewhere in France tells the story of a young English aristocrat and her experiences during the First World War. PTBOCanada: Can you give a quick synopsis of Somewhere in France, and what the inspiration was? I also benefitted from tremendous word-of-mouth support: people not only read and enjoyed Somewhere in France, but then made a point of telling their friends and family members about it. I think it was partly because interest in the Great War has never been higher, and people who love historical fiction are keen to read narratives set in that period.

Needless to say, I was astonished when it hit the bestseller lists here in Canada right away and stayed there for six months! As to why it caught on, I can’t say for sure.

There really are no guarantees in publishing-great books come out all the time that don’t do as well as expected-so I was careful to temper my expectations.

Robson: I absolutely was shocked by its success, and to a certain degree I still can’t quite believe it. Were you shocked by how well it did? Why do you think it caught on? PTBOCanada: Tell us about the runaway success of your first novel, Somewhere in France.

Somewhere in france by jennifer robson