Andrew Smith, whose latest book is Grasshopper Jungle, spoke about the story behind his novel, the end of the world, and his next project.

Grasshopper Jungle explores the events of the end of the world, which comes in the form of giant praying mantises. It’s about Austin, a boy who struggles with his sexuality, who struggles with being a teenage boy, and who, naturally, struggles with the idea that the end of the world is happening right now. Read our review.

An interview with Andrew Smith

Tell us five random facts about yourself.

If it weren’t for an unexpected golf game with a friend, I would have moved out of California. If not for an unexpected challenge from a dear friend, I would have never attempted to publish a book. If not for an unexpected email from an aspiring author friend, I would have never met my current agent. One more unexpected thing: I agreed to sell Grasshopper Jungle on Valentine’s Day. Also, I wear a silver medallion of St. Casimir.

What inspired you to write Grasshopper Jungle?

Um. This is a long story. I was very unhappy with my life and writing, after publishing five or six (I can’t remember) novels. So I decided to quit the business part of writing, which always made me feel like a whore. Okay, that said, I am also a runner, and I live in a very remote area where I run on trails in the wilderness every day. One section of trail gets really choked with grasshoppers every year, around late summer. I call it “grasshopper jungle,” and one day while running, I thought it would be a good title for a novel. So there you go. Running through bugs. Also, I have this thing about history. I’ve always wondered why we humans have never received the BIG PAYOFF to history–how we expect to make rational decisions about our present based on the mistakes we’ve made in the past. But we keep doing dumber and dumber things. So there must be something missing in our history, and that’s what drives Austin (our narrator) to record a history about everything and how it connects to him, and how he connects to everything–even to the end of the world.

Do you relate to any of the characters in this book more than others?

Of course I do. All my protagonists are iterations of myself, as messed up as that might sound. So, Austin Szerba. He’s an amazing and terribly sad kid.

Do you think there is a worse way for the world to go down than at the hands (claws?) of giant praying mantises?

Oh sure there is a worse way, and I have complete confidence that we will discover it relatively quickly.

If you knew the world was going to end, what is the one thing you’d want to make sure you’d get done beforehand?

Um. I do know the world is going to end. Who doesn’t know that? Knowing that, I think I’ve done just about everything I want to do. The rest is up to my kids. I want to walk my daughter down the aisle one day, and I want to hold my grandkids in my hands.

What has been the toughest criticism given to you as an author?

The worst thing–the thing that made me actually decide to quit writing–was the op-ed piece in the Wall Street Journal that said that I harmed children with my writing. I love children, and I think I’m a good father, but that piece (and I never responded to it) made me really depressed. I couldn’t sleep for weeks. It was terrible. And here I thought the WSJ was in the business of advising people to buy low and sell high. Who knew they were also experts on Young Adult literature, and ruining people’s lives?

What has been the best compliment?

Well, going back to Grasshopper Jungle, when I wrote it (when I had QUIT as a writer), it was a particularly tough year for me. My son, whom I am very close to, had just moved away for his first year at college. I could not stand being without him. He sent me an email, asking if I had anything for him to read. So I asked him if he wanted to read this insane book I wrote, one which I’d never intended to publish. I also asked him if, after reading it, he thought I needed to go see a therapist. I sent him Grasshopper Jungle. He read it in one day. Let me say this kid is a fantastic reader. We share and discuss books all the time. Anyway, he sent me back an email that said, “Dad, that isn’t only the best book I’ve read all year. I think it’s one of the best books I have ever read.”

What is easier to write, the first line or the last line?

I love first lines. First lines say everything about the book. The last lines are much easier to write, assuming you’ve done your work at the beginning.

What one YA novel do you wish you had when you were a teen?

Besides anything written by me–probably The Crossing, by Cormac McCarthy. He’d probably want to punch me for calling it YA, but I’d let Cormac McCarthy punch me any day of the week. It is the most beautiful prose I have ever read.

What are you working on now?

At the moment, I am writing my next book for Julie Strauss-Gabel, my editor and publisher at Dutton/Penguin. It’s called (currently) The Alex Crow, and it is every bit as big and wild as Grasshopper Jungle.

You can find Andrew Smith on his website, Twitter, Amazon, and Goodreads.