COLOURS IN HER HANDS is a brand new Montreal novel from Alice Zorn (following 2016’s FIVE ROSES), a story of family, art, community and good intentions gone awry, and I was so pleased to speak to Alice about the book, and to learn how it all began with the 30+ year relationship she had with her late sister-in-law, Jo, who had Down syndrome. Jo’s own perspective on the world (and the limits imposed on her by those who were more concerned with that Jo couldn’t do instead of her talents and capabilities) turned into a narrative challenge for Zorn: how to write a book about somebody who sees the world the way that Jo did? And from that challenge, Mina and her brother Bruno were born.
In our conversation, Alice talks about getting permission to write Jo’s story, how feedback on early attempts resulted in the necessity of a complete rewrite with an entirely different narrative shape, and how she refused to read Mark Haddon’s THE CURIOUS INCIDENT OF THE DOG IN NIGHTTIME under after she’d finally written a draft of her own book. Once she did, however, she found that Haddon’s approach to writing his character Christopher (peeling away labels instead of sticking to them) affirmed many of the choices she’d made in writing Mina.
About COLOURS IN HER HANDS:
A witty, layered and compelling novel about a woman with Down Syndrome, exploring textile art, sibling relationships, friendships, and good intentions gone awry.
What is intellectual disability? Ask Bruno, who is at his wits' end trying to predict what his sister, Mina, will do next. Ask Iris, who is entranced by the wildly inventive embroidery Mina creates. Ask Gabriela, who loves Mina and disagrees when Bruno uses Mina's constant demands as an excuse not to have a child.
Meet Mina in her overstuffed Montreal apartment, surrounded by her treasures. She knows she is the best paper sorter at the recycling plant where she works. She is proud to be diabetic but equally happy to cheat on her diet. The colours she stitches hum with life.
Colours in Her Hands is a nuanced and thought-provoking novel about family, about art, about questioning the way the world treats those who are different. With an unforgettable voice, Mina navigates the labyrinth that society sets for her with dignity, inventiveness, and aplomb.
Alice Zorn is the author of two novels and a book of short fiction. Her novel Five Roses was translated into French and was a finalist for the Ontario Library Association Evergreen Award. Her collection Ruins and Relics was a finalist for the Quebec Writers’ Federation’s First Book Award. She has twice placed first in Prairie Fire’s fiction contest, won the Manitoba Magazine Award for Fiction, and has published stories in literary journals including The Fiddlehead and The New Quarterly. Originally from Ontario, she now lives in Montreal.
Season Two, Episode 3: Alice Zorn