Kamala Nair's "The Girl in the Garden"

Kamala Nair was born in London and grew up in the United States. A graduate of Wellesley College, she studied literature at Oxford University and received an M.Phil in Creative Writing from Trinity College Dublin in 2005.

Her she shares some ideas for lead and director of an adaptation of her new novel, The Girl in the Garden:

If The Girl in the Garden were to be made into a movie, I would be interested to see what Alfonso Cuarón would do as director. I’m a huge fan of his work, and in particular, I love how he captures the dark magic of beloved novels, such as A Little Princess and Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. In A Little Princess in particular, Cuarón beautifully conveys the emotions of childhood, and the juxtaposition of the wild beauty of India, where Sara Crewe is surrounded by love and joy, with the drab world of New York where she is cruelly treated, is perfectly rendered. In terms of casting, I loved Nandita Das’s performance as the Ayah in Deepa Mehta’s film, Earth. Her portrayal of the character and the quality of her beauty reminds me of Amma.

Learn more about the book and author at Kamala Nair's website and blog.

The Page 69 Test: The Girl in the Garden.

Writers Read: Kamala Nair.

--Marshal Zeringue