Lady in the Lake author Laura Lippman puts a YA Easter egg in every book
Laura Lippman is a prolific and award-winning crime novelist, and her new noir Lady in the Lake (out July 23) follows in its predecessors’ footsteps in every way. In celebration of the summer thriller, the author sat down with EW to discuss her biggest pop culture influences, from ABC sitcoms to highbrow literature.
My Favorite Book as a Child
I would say one of my favorite books as a child was a book by Edward Eager called Knight’s Castle. I keep waiting for him to have his moment; I thought maybe after everyone’s finished Harry Potter they’d read Edward Eager, but he’s never had quite as much attention as I wish he would.
The One Book I Still Read Over and Over Again
I read Marjorie Morningstar [by Herman Wouk] every year, and my current novel was inspired by one of those rereads. I also reread the work of a young-adult novelist named Lenora Mattingly Weber — every book I have ever written has a Lenora Mattingly Weber Easter egg inside.
The Movies and TV Shows I Watch Over and Over Again
I watch the movie Shattered Glass and I watch the TV show Slings & Arrows. And I think there’s only one element that is common to both of those, and it is the actor Luke Kirby.
The Classics I’ve Never Read
I’m pretty sure I’m never going to make it to [Marcel] Proust because I took the first volume of Remembrance of Things Past to Mexico with me when I was 30, and lived there for three months while studying Spanish. I had access to almost no books in English, and I still couldn’t read it.
The Book I Read in Secret as a Kid
I first read Lolita when I was 11 or 12 years old because I had heard it was really a dirty book. I had it hidden under my bed, and my mother knew that and thought it was hilarious.
The Last Book That Made Me Cry
There’s a book I reread every year called Emma Who Saved My Life, and I think it just has one of the best last lines. It’s very melancholy and it’s very wise, and I choke up a little bit every time. I’m choking up now just thinking about it.
The Last TV Show I Binged
I’m in the middle of a St. Elsewhere binge. I really love and admire it, but it was really hard on its women. I can’t help noticing how much punishment the female characters were put through.
The TV Show That Is My Guilty Pleasure
I don’t feel guilty about anything. But right now I’m always looking for something I can watch with my 9-year-old daughter, and we are squarely in the ABC sitcom camp. It’s so unfashionable now to watch network sitcoms, but we really like American Housewife and The Goldbergs.
The First Record I Bought With My Own Money
Sonny & Cher, “The Beat Goes On.” It was a gift [for] my sister, and it cost $2.98 at Korvette.
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