San Diego Union-Tribune (Sunday)
Susan Meissner’s new novel is set against the 1906 earthquake
In ‘The Nature of Fragile Things,’ Susan Meissner writes about love and resiliency against the backdrop of the 1906 San Francisco quake
Local author Susan Meissner believes historical fiction can be immersive: “It has the unique quality of being able to transport a reader back into time.” Her new novel, “The Nature of Fragile Things,” does that through a depiction of the the 1906 San Francisco earthquake and its ramifications. “A well-written nonfiction can do that as well, but I find nonfiction to be largely detail-driven, and fiction is all about the human element,” she said. “Nonfiction can explain the details of a historical event and even tell you what it was like to live through it, but only a novel can let you feel what it was like.
“A great novelist will not only transport you to the past but put you into the soul and shoes of the characters who are at that moment experiencing it. Because it can do that, I think historical fiction serves as a better tutor. We learn best from history when we take the time to let it affect us experientially and emotionally.”
“The Nature of Fragile Things” revolves around Sophie Whale — a young Irish mail-order bride — a 1906 seismic event, mysteries, friendship and love.
Meissner’s books — which have been translated into 15 languages, with more than half a million in print — include “The Last Year of the War” and “As Bright as Heaven.” She’s also a writing workshop volunteer for Words Alive. Meissner will participate in two virtual events: Warwicks’ Facebook Live on Tuesday and Adventures by the Book’s Superbook II on Saturday, and a solo event today.
Q:
What happened on April 6, 1906, in San Francisco?
A:
In the prologue to Simon Winchester’s book “A Crack in the Edge of the World: America and the Great California Earthquake
of 1906,” he aptly summarizes what happened on this date in five words: “The planet very briefly shrugged.” For just a moment, two tectonic plates deep under the Pacific Ocean touched. The earth shuddered at that meeting, causing a less-than-aminute-long quake that was felt from Oregon to Los Angeles and as far east as central Nevada. Within minutes, ruptured gas lines in a now heavily damaged San Francisco sparked fire after fire.
Q:
What are your main themes?
A:
First, this is a story about female solidarity entwined around the power of a mother’s love. This is the first book of mine in a while to have a mystery thread at its core, with some significant twists and turns. I won’t expound in specifics on how this plays out other than this: In the early years of the 20th century, women had very little agency or independence. A second theme I strove to weave into the pages is the resiliency of love. Everything can indeed be swept away from us in an instant; everything except the love we have for the people we care most about.
Q:
Who are Sophie Whalen and Martin Hocking?
A:
Sophie is a young Irish immigrant in 1905 who is so desperate to get out of New York — for a host of reasons — that she answers a mail-order bride ad from a San Francisco widower who wants a new wife for himself and new mother for his 5-year-old daughter. She marries this man, Martin Hocking, at the San Francisco courthouse minutes after meeting him. He’s not mean or abusive, plus he’s a good provider — but there is something off about him.
Q:
What role does Belinda Bigelow play?
A:
Belinda is a stranger who rings Sophie’s doorbell on the eve of the earthquake. She’s looking for her husband, James, who she believes was last in Martin Hocking’s company. She’s also very pregnant when she shows up on Sophie’s doorstep. Belinda brings out strength and determination in Sophie that she’d forgotten she’d earned earlier in life.
Q:
What’s the importance of a red journal you received in second grade?
A:
The memory of getting it is foggy to me now, probably because it did not seem that amazing a thing at the time, although now I know it was. I don’t recall my second-grade teacher handing anyone else a little red journal that day — just me. I think she gave it to me because instead of playing during our class free time, I was writing down little stories and poems. I had a teacher at Poway High School for ninth-grade composition
who had had the same life-changing effect on me. Mr. Barone affirmed me as a writer, and a good one, well before I believed it was true.
Q:
How do you get through the rough days of writing?
A: It’s been said by other people that you can’t edit nothing. Before you can polish words that are weak into words that are beautiful, you first have to have the weak words. And that’s just simply how it is some days.