Anna Ellory's "The Puzzle Women"

Anna Ellory is the author of two novels, The Rabbit Girls (2019) translated into 14 languages and The Puzzle Women (2020).

She has always been an avid reader and after becoming a mum she started writing too. Prior to this she worked as a nurse. In 2018 she completed an MA in Creative Writing at Bath Spa University. The Puzzle Women was written, in part, on this course.

She lives with her family, including a dog called Seth, and writes in pockets of borrowed time. She is currently working on her third novel.

Here Ellory dreamcasts an adaptation of The Puzzle Women:

If they make my book into a movie (which would be amazing as I see the whole scene before I place a word on the page so I can already see it) here’s who I’d like to play the lead roles.

Lotte – a young actress with Down Syndrome there are so few actresses with Down syndrome, I believe this should change, a younger Sarah Gordy (who is exceptional) – someone who can capture the joy and happiness Lotte exudes even in her darkest moments.

Rune – A 20 something guy, tall and handsome in a quirky way, very insecure. I love Manchester by the Sea (one of my favourite films) and Lucas Hedges would make an incredible Rune.

Mama – Carey Mulligan as I was writing Mama I had Carey Mulligan in mind, that never changed through three years of writing. She has a unique strength in her tone and I watched Suffragette and her role as Maud Watts was powerful and cemented my image of Mama in The Puzzle Women.

To have the power to cast a director … (I love this game) my dream would be Andrea Arnold. She offers images of loneliness, not only what does it look like, but as a viewer you get under the skin of this isolation, it’s uncomfortable because it’s real. Her female characters are strong and flawed and utterly human and she doesn’t shy away from trauma, the power of her work is in the raw truth of facing up to the captivity of our lives. I would love to see what she could do with the landscape of Berlin in The Puzzle Women too.

Visit Anna Ellory's website.

The Page 69 Test: The Puzzle Women.

--Marshal Zeringue