www.BPODigest.com i-Vortal

Susanna Moore's One Last Look

'You must have passion and curiosity'

Susanna Moore's One Last Look, a story of conflicting desires and folly of well-meaning people, is set in the Calcutta [now Kolkata] of the first half of the 19th century. Though some critics found the book too ornate, The Washington Post gave it an excellent review. 'How marvelous is a book that educates but does not preach!' wrote Carolyn See. 'One Last Look is a cautionary tale for smart women... and dumb men... but the beauty of the prose and the complexity of the narrative here far outweigh any edifying messages.'

What was your inspiration for writing this novel?
I have visited India half a dozen times and I lived in Calcutta for five months four years ago. While I was there, I visited many bookshops. Whenever I travel, I collect maps, books, diaries in towns and cities. In Calcutta, I read many journals, diaries, collections of letters and histories. While reading Up The Country by Emily Eden, who traveled to India in 1836 with her sister Fanny, her nephew, brother George Eden and Lord Auckland, I began to wonder what her life would have been. I suspected she was not telling the whole truth. I didn't know if she even knew the truth herself. Most likely she did not. I began to think about Calcutta in 1836. What would it have been like for Emily Eden and her younger sister Fanny? That is how I began to write One Last Look. I also began to look at the impact of imperialism and colonialism.