Author Interviews

Come with Me, Let’s Pick the Lock, an interview with Award Winning Author A. S. King

Regular readers of TLT know that the Jensen household is an A. S. King household. King is hands down our favorite Middle Grade and Young Adult author. When news that a new A. S. King book, PICK THE LOCK, was coming out, Riley and I argued over who got to read it first. I won and I am here to tell you that PICK THE LOCK does not in any way disappoint and is, in fact, one of her best works to date. Compelling, fascinating, timely, and thought provoking in all of the best ways, as King does.

Today, I am honored to present to you and interview with A. S. King.

Let’s start with a brief overview of the book PICK THE LOCK, which comes out on April 24th.

Jane Vandermaker-Cook would like her mother back. As Jane’s mother tours the world to support the family, Jane lives and goes to school in a Victorian mansion with her younger brother and their mendacious father who confines Jane’s mother to a system of pneumatic tubes whenever she’s at home. And then there’s weirdly ever-present Aunt Finch, Milorad the gardener, and his rat, Brutus. For Jane, this all seems normal until she suddenly gains access to the files for a lifetime of security-camera videos—her lifetime. A.S. King’s latest surrealist masterpiece follows Jane’s bizarre and brilliant journey to reconnect with her mother by breaking out of her shell and composing a punk opera.

In your new book, Pick the Lock, the main character, Jane, believes she has to rescue her mother from an abusive situation. It made me think of how online I often see adults say some form of, “The young people will save us.” I was wondering what you think about this type of statement and how it relates to your novel and your advocacy work with teens and mental health.