| Our Current Positive Pick |
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PVN asks: Ms. Hackett, we love this book! What prompted you to write a
book like this?
Ms. Hackett: Writing this book was a great surprise to me. I was a math major in college and my
career has been in business. When the idea for the book first came, I did my best to ignore it. My mind
did its best to discourage me – to stop me. However, the idea resonated so deeply in my heart that I
knew I had to try .To do that, I had to learn to listen to and write from my heart, not my mind. I made a
deal with my mind and told it to suspend its judgment while I wrote three one-paragraph beginnings.
When I started the first one, I immediately saw the beginning and the ending of the story.
That became Where the White Oak Speaks. I did not set
out to write a book for the world. I set out to fulfill
my hearts desire. I had no intention of publishing it.
Eventually I shared it with my family and friends.
Their enthusiastic responses and encouragement helped
me to have the courage to bring the book to the larger world.
Question: With what is going on in the world, do you
think your book may be more important than ever?
Ms. Hackett: Many people have said that. I think there
has always been an important place for stories that touch
our hearts, inspire us to believe more is possible and help
us to celebrate the simple and profound gifts of life
that surround us always and that are often visible only to
our hearts. Perhaps now we just appreciate it all the more. And perhaps now we need our internal
compass more than ever.
Our analytical minds are important, but we seem to have forgotten the power and wisdom of our
hearts. Our hearts enable us to discover possibilities that seem impractical to our minds. Our hearts
can see through to the goodness in people and situations even when it is not manifest in the moment.
Our hearts reveal what we have in common while our minds are busy documenting how different we
are from one another. It is important for children at these times to be able to see the goodness in the
world around them and to believe that more is possible. Images bombard their senses. Perhaps in
some small way, Where the White Oak Speaks helps children develop an awareness of their internal
compass and its importance in navigating an increasingly complex and interconnected world. And for
adults perhaps the book will liberate the wisdom of the child within to be a force in our thoughts, lives
and world.
Question: How did writing this book impact you?
Ms. Hackett: The book has been an eight-year journey of joy, wonder, frustration, miracles, self-doubt
and patience. Although my mind came up with lots of good reasons to give up along the way, I didn’t.
It has helped me to realize how often we stop ourselves from reaching our own dreams and in doing so
limit what is possible. We are each unique and can only be who we are. Success is not about external
manifestations. It is about becoming all of who we are. Daring to try is the first big step. Not stopping
ourselves is the last.
Question: What kept you going?
Ms. Hackett: In fact there were many times when I wasn’t sure I would complete the book. Fear of
failing was probably the force within me that came the closest to stopping me. And yet each time
something kept me from giving up. My heart kept me connected to the larger inspiration.
Question: It is interesting that one of the main characters is a boy who is in a wheelchair and cannot
speak or engage with the world around him. How have your readers reacted to this character,
especially children?
Ms. Hackett: Many people have asked how I dreamed up Christopher James and my only response is
that as I was writing the story, he walked onto the pages. My job in creating the book was to listen
well within myself. People have in general been quite taken with Christopher James. I have received
many letters and emails from children and adults alike saying how important Christopher James is to
them as a character. I think the reason people are drawn to Christopher James may lie in the fact that
each of us harbors a thought that some part of us is “imperfect”. It is somehow reassuring to embrace
the idea that even the “imperfect” part of us is worthy of and capable of love and, with love and
understanding, can be liberated. What the mind thinks of as “imperfect”, the heart sees through to the
truth of perfection and wholeness within. To me that is the symbolism and broad appeal of
Christopher James.
Question: How about Mr. Brewster, the elderly gentleman who has a magical way of knowing things –
how have readers reacted to him?
Ms. Hackett: Mr. Brewster is a favorite for many people. I think he is part of the reason that the book
has turned out to have such cross-generational appeal. Here is an elderly man who is not “old”. He is
wise, humorous, vital and relevant in the world. At a time when the elderly in many parts of our
society are not honored but hidden, Mr. Brewster holds out
different possibilities. I have been deeply moved by the letters from
grandparents and parents who have written to tell me how the book
reconnected them with their childhood – that time in their lives when
they knew more was possible – and caused them to reminisce about
the real life “Mr. Brewster’s” who had been important at various stages
of their lives.
Question: One is left with a feeling of perfection about life when you
finish the book that often eludes us in real life. What is your perspective?
Ms. Hackett: I appreciate the question because it drove me to a deeper insight about life, revealed
symbolically in the book. In the story, there actually are important elements that are far from
“perfect”: as the book opens, Jacob’s best friend has just moved away, leaving a large, lonely hole in his
life; Christopher James is hardly “perfect” in conventional terms; and in the end of the book, Jacob is
confronted with profound loss. However, it is also true that one is left with a feeling of peacefulness; a
feeling that all is well. The resolution of these apparently disparate views may lie in the fact that in the
book we see the world through Jacob’s eyes, a child’s eyes. His journey is laced with potential
challenges, obstacles and despair – just like real life. However, Jacob’s innocence and open heart allow
him to discover new possibilities and larger truths. He brings this perspective to apparent difficulties
and in doing so transforms his experience of the situation into one of perfection. The reader
experiences this well; that all is as it needs to be in every moment. Perhaps the power of children’s
literature lies in its ability to remind us of the true possibilities of life; possibilities that need not evade
us as adults in the “real”world. Our experience may depend more on us than we realize.
book like this?
Ms. Hackett: Writing this book was a great surprise to me. I was a math major in college and my
career has been in business. When the idea for the book first came, I did my best to ignore it. My mind
did its best to discourage me – to stop me. However, the idea resonated so deeply in my heart that I
knew I had to try .To do that, I had to learn to listen to and write from my heart, not my mind. I made a
deal with my mind and told it to suspend its judgment while I wrote three one-paragraph beginnings.
When I started the first one, I immediately saw the beginning and the ending of the story.
That became Where the White Oak Speaks. I did not set
out to write a book for the world. I set out to fulfill
my hearts desire. I had no intention of publishing it.
Eventually I shared it with my family and friends.
Their enthusiastic responses and encouragement helped
me to have the courage to bring the book to the larger world.
Question: With what is going on in the world, do you
think your book may be more important than ever?
Ms. Hackett: Many people have said that. I think there
has always been an important place for stories that touch
our hearts, inspire us to believe more is possible and help
us to celebrate the simple and profound gifts of life
that surround us always and that are often visible only to
our hearts. Perhaps now we just appreciate it all the more. And perhaps now we need our internal
compass more than ever.
Our analytical minds are important, but we seem to have forgotten the power and wisdom of our
hearts. Our hearts enable us to discover possibilities that seem impractical to our minds. Our hearts
can see through to the goodness in people and situations even when it is not manifest in the moment.
Our hearts reveal what we have in common while our minds are busy documenting how different we
are from one another. It is important for children at these times to be able to see the goodness in the
world around them and to believe that more is possible. Images bombard their senses. Perhaps in
some small way, Where the White Oak Speaks helps children develop an awareness of their internal
compass and its importance in navigating an increasingly complex and interconnected world. And for
adults perhaps the book will liberate the wisdom of the child within to be a force in our thoughts, lives
and world.
Question: How did writing this book impact you?
Ms. Hackett: The book has been an eight-year journey of joy, wonder, frustration, miracles, self-doubt
and patience. Although my mind came up with lots of good reasons to give up along the way, I didn’t.
It has helped me to realize how often we stop ourselves from reaching our own dreams and in doing so
limit what is possible. We are each unique and can only be who we are. Success is not about external
manifestations. It is about becoming all of who we are. Daring to try is the first big step. Not stopping
ourselves is the last.
Question: What kept you going?
Ms. Hackett: In fact there were many times when I wasn’t sure I would complete the book. Fear of
failing was probably the force within me that came the closest to stopping me. And yet each time
something kept me from giving up. My heart kept me connected to the larger inspiration.
Question: It is interesting that one of the main characters is a boy who is in a wheelchair and cannot
speak or engage with the world around him. How have your readers reacted to this character,
especially children?
Ms. Hackett: Many people have asked how I dreamed up Christopher James and my only response is
that as I was writing the story, he walked onto the pages. My job in creating the book was to listen
well within myself. People have in general been quite taken with Christopher James. I have received
many letters and emails from children and adults alike saying how important Christopher James is to
them as a character. I think the reason people are drawn to Christopher James may lie in the fact that
each of us harbors a thought that some part of us is “imperfect”. It is somehow reassuring to embrace
the idea that even the “imperfect” part of us is worthy of and capable of love and, with love and
understanding, can be liberated. What the mind thinks of as “imperfect”, the heart sees through to the
truth of perfection and wholeness within. To me that is the symbolism and broad appeal of
Christopher James.
Question: How about Mr. Brewster, the elderly gentleman who has a magical way of knowing things –
how have readers reacted to him?
Ms. Hackett: Mr. Brewster is a favorite for many people. I think he is part of the reason that the book
has turned out to have such cross-generational appeal. Here is an elderly man who is not “old”. He is
wise, humorous, vital and relevant in the world. At a time when the elderly in many parts of our
society are not honored but hidden, Mr. Brewster holds out
different possibilities. I have been deeply moved by the letters from
grandparents and parents who have written to tell me how the book
reconnected them with their childhood – that time in their lives when
they knew more was possible – and caused them to reminisce about
the real life “Mr. Brewster’s” who had been important at various stages
of their lives.
Question: One is left with a feeling of perfection about life when you
finish the book that often eludes us in real life. What is your perspective?
Ms. Hackett: I appreciate the question because it drove me to a deeper insight about life, revealed
symbolically in the book. In the story, there actually are important elements that are far from
“perfect”: as the book opens, Jacob’s best friend has just moved away, leaving a large, lonely hole in his
life; Christopher James is hardly “perfect” in conventional terms; and in the end of the book, Jacob is
confronted with profound loss. However, it is also true that one is left with a feeling of peacefulness; a
feeling that all is well. The resolution of these apparently disparate views may lie in the fact that in the
book we see the world through Jacob’s eyes, a child’s eyes. His journey is laced with potential
challenges, obstacles and despair – just like real life. However, Jacob’s innocence and open heart allow
him to discover new possibilities and larger truths. He brings this perspective to apparent difficulties
and in doing so transforms his experience of the situation into one of perfection. The reader
experiences this well; that all is as it needs to be in every moment. Perhaps the power of children’s
literature lies in its ability to remind us of the true possibilities of life; possibilities that need not evade
us as adults in the “real”world. Our experience may depend more on us than we realize.
| PVN Interview with Ann Fritz Hackett, business woman, modern philosopher and author of Where the White Oak Speaks |
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