Unforgettable follows three young women who were adopted by a doctor and his wife as children as they celebrate his life and accomplishments on the anniversary of his death. What was the inspiration for the setup of your story?...
David Cook Author InterviewUnforgettable follows three young women who were adopted by a doctor and his wife as children as they celebrate his life and accomplishments on the anniversary of his death. What was the inspiration for the setup of your story?
Having some regrets about not having children later in my life, this story came from different fantasies I have had of having children.
This novella pays tribute to the women and girls whose lives were ended by gun violence and other tragedies. What were some goals you set for yourself as a writer in this book?
While channel surfing, I came across last year the Parkland School Shooter sentencing trial. The grief of the parents whose children were murdered openly expressed in the court affected me. One had to be made of solid stone not to be deeply touched by the parents talking about the wonderful children they lost. I found writing this story helped me deal with those very sad feelings. In my story the children survive. They lose their birth parents but find themselves in a new family with a childless couple eager to be their parents who give them a firehose of love and support to grow into thriving adults.
What were some themes that were important for you to explore in this book?
I was drawn to the bittersweet conflicting feelings of the adopted children of their feelings of grief, painfully missing their deceased mothers versus their love, loyalty, and appreciation of each other and their adoptive parents in their new family.
The story also allowed me to express my strong opinions on many of the political and social issues of these times. These include teaching our children tolerance of others different from ourselves, the tragic consequences of DWI and reckless driving, child abuse and gun safety. Dr. Ross struggled to save his daughter from a long-term debilitating terminal illness. I wanted to bring attention to the fact that there are real genetic illnesses like Sanfilippo Syndrome that don’t get the attention they need to find cures because they are rare where a child literally wastes away over ten to fifteen years leading ultimately to death.
Where does the story go in the next book, and where do you see it going in the future?
Charles Dickens, starting in the 1840, popularized issuing his classic books chapter by chapter in installments in the many weekly and monthly magazines of the day. Not being grandiose, I wanted to do the same, having this story continue in installments. In the coming ones, more detail about all the characters will be filled in. I would also like to use these stories to have the adoptive parents teach these children the values I would want to teach my children. The three ten-year-olds will be followed into adulthood as they struggle with choosing careers, finding their lifetime loves, and having their own children. All of this will be against the backdrop of dealing with the trauma they all experienced in losing their birth mothers. Their fierce love, loyalty and support of each other remain a central theme of their relationship.
David Cook embraces powerful topics that will leave many readers ready to take action for more mental health interventions and against gun violence. His novella serves to save three girls before they die young and pays tribute to the girls and young women whose lives were ended by gun violence and other tragedies. Cook provides a list of names of bright young people who weren’t able to spread their light and intelligence after their untimely deaths, and readers will shed tears as they learn about the sad events that ended their lives. The author’s words give a voice to the young women whose lives ended too soon, and Gabrielle, Althea, and Stephanie demonstrate great qualities, making them good role models. Readers who enjoy young adult stories will love Unforgettable, and everyone could benefit from researching the girls and young women who inspired its creation.