Cross Currents (42 page)

 

 

A. I wanted Yai to surprise readers. For so much of the book she makes fun of herself, lamenting her shortcomings. Yet at the end, she's remarkably strong-willed and brave. Her experience mirrors what I've personally witnessed. Sometimes people who seem weak on the surface have vast reserves of strength and resolve. When it came to Ryan, I gave him plenty of flaws, but wanted to show that he also has the capacity to be redeemed. He begins the book as self-centered and selfish, but ends up making the ultimate sacrifice for others.

 

 

A. I've spoken with dozens of people who survived the tsunami, and I've read many firsthand accounts of the disaster. People went to great lengths to rescue each other, regardless of their nationality. Countless lives were saved by such selfless acts. Moreover, in the weeks and months that followed, Thais and tourists continued to work together, rebuilding the infrastructure on Ko Phi Phi and cleaning out the bays. I've read that seven thousand tons of debris were removed, by hand, from the bays and the beaches.

 

Q. What did it feel like to return to Ko Phi Phi after the tsunami? With whom did you talk? And how did those conversations influence
Cross Currents
?

 

A. It was a bit surreal to return to the island. So many things had changed, and yet so much had remained the same. All of the physical beauty was still there, but almost everything man-made was either gone or newly rebuilt. Sitting on a beach where several thousand people had died a few years earlier was both haunting and a source of hope. I did a lot of thinking on that beach, about how our lives are just small ripples in a vast ocean, yet we each have significance, and we each can impact the lives of our loved ones, total strangers, and the world around us. As far as the conversations I had about the tsunami, I spoke with fishermen, hotel owners, masseuses, and children. These people helped me get a feel for how the tsunami struck the island, how waves came from either side, and the mayhem that resulted from their collision. I also learned how people survived—by clinging to trees, to pieces of lumber, to each other. Many of them had lost family members. Some still hadn't been able to go back into the ocean. Some had brought new babies into the world. These conversations were invaluable.

 

Q. Are you trying to impart certain messages to readers through
Cross Currents
?

 

A. No, not really. Some writers write with a specific message in mind, but for the most part, that's not how I go about the process. If there are messages in my novels, they're mostly unintentional offshoots of the stories I'm trying to tell. I will confess that one of the reasons I wrote
Cross Currents
is that I think it's important that we all think about global events. The world is becoming such a small place. We can help strangers and we can be helped by strangers. It's important to keep this notion in mind, because as the population around the globe continues to boom, and people live together in greater concentrations, we're going to see increasing numbers of human casualties from natural disasters.

 

Q. In your last novel,
The Wishing Trees
, your characters went on a journey that spanned eight countries on two continents. Now, with
Cross Currents
, you've taken readers to a little island in Thailand. Where will your next novel be set?

 

A. I'm working on a historical novel set around Angkor Wat, the amazing temple located in present-day Cambodia. Angkor Wat was built over a forty-year period in the twelfth century, when a sophisticated society flourished in the region. But conflict with a rival group led to a series of wars that changed the course of civilization in Southeast Asia. I'm fascinated by the history surrounding Angkor Wat and am deep into imagining a story involving a cast of high- and lowborn characters. It's going to be an epic novel, in some ways similar to my first book,
Beneath a Marble Sky
.

1. Where were you when the Indian Ocean tsunami struck on December 26, 2004?

 

2. What was your reaction to the catastrophe?

 

3. Some novelists avoid real-life subjects that are bound to evoke powerful negative emotions in readers. Do you think John Shors brings the story of the disaster to life in a way that honors those who suffered and died?

 

4. The author traveled multiple times to Ko Phi Phi before and after the tsunami struck. Do you think it's important for writers to have such personal connections with the places they write about?

 

5.
Cross Currents
explores the relationships between locals and tourists. In real life, do you think each set of people understands the other?

 

6. How do you think people from different cultures best learn from one another?

 

7. What do you think of Patch's initial decision to flee Thailand, rather than to turn himself in? If you were a member of his family, would you try to convince him to take another path?

 

8. Lek and Sarai assume a significant amount of risk when they let Patch stay with them for such an extended time. Do you think they make the right decision?

 

9. Why do you think Brooke decides to share her past with Patch? By doing so, does she knowingly or unknowingly bring them closer together? Why do you think John Shors chose to handle the issue this way?

 

10. What aspect of the changing romantic relationships in the novel do you find most interesting?

 

11. What do you think about the relationship between Ryan and Dao? What is each character looking for?

 

12. Lek and Sarai depend on their children to help draw business to their resort. Discuss their distaste at having to exploit their children in this way. Can you think of times when you might have exploited your children, in small or large ways, or incidents when you've seen other parents exploit their children?

 

13. Which character faces the greatest challenge and rises to the occasion most impressively?

 

14. If you had lived on Ko Phi Phi, and endured the tsunami, would you have left afterward?

 

15. Imagine that many years have passed since the tsunami. What do you think life is now like for Lek and his family? Do you think Patch kept his promise to make his life count?

Beneath a Marble Sky
Beside a Burning Sea
Dragon House
The Wishing Trees