Behind the Pages: Shannon Luders Manuel Reveals the Untold Inspirations Behind The One Who Loves You
MDH: At one point you see a psychological evaluation of your father obtained from an interview. In the interview, he makes up a slew of untrue things about his life. You write, “The truth was slippery for my dad, and he created a narrative that suited him, that cast him in a perennially positive light. But his doing so cost me an assurance of his life story and thus of my own.” Can you tell me more about this?
SLM: Growing up, I loved listening to my mom’s family tell stories around the dinner table at holidays and other events. I never had to question whether they were true. Even though they were hard to remember, they always felt like part of my own narrative, part of my own history. But I never felt that with my dad’s stories except when I was really little.
