Toxic love, a well-established subject in our time, is rarely discussed in children's literature. Yet he spares no one, regardless of age. Best-selling writer Alexandra Larochelle changes the game by publishing Until it Makes a Bang, a shock novel in which a 17-year-old girl, who loves her lover madly, realizes that love and attachment may take on a very dark color.
Maélia, 17, discovers the world from unexpected angles when she leaves her remote region to follow a study program in Quebec. She adores her lover, Olivier. But there are things that are wrong, little red flags that are waving...
Alexandra Larochelle talks bluntly about the less beautiful side of romantic relationships and the psychological devastation that can be wrought.
In an interview, she explains why she chose to write about the toxic relationships that are formed even at a very young age, and which then taint the entire emotional life of the people concerned.
"I think it's during adolescence and early adulthood that we build ourselves at this level. Indeed, it leaves traces for life, toxic relationships. I think the more you are exposed to this young reality, the more you hear about it, the more bad examples you see, I imagine it becomes easier to detect it as you get older. It is important for me to approach this theme, and especially with young people of this age. »
Traps
Alexandra Larochelle had this story in mind for four or five years, but waited for the right moment to write it.
"She just wasn't ready to come out yet. It's something that concerns me, but which also concerns my best friend, but it can also be your cousin, your sister, your guys. I wrote it from a woman's point of view, but obviously there is no gender, no age to fall into this trap. »
She thinks that her story will reach many people... unfortunately.
"I don't wish that on anyone. I hope that, in fact, it will allow some people to realize certain pitfalls in which they are bogged down, or to avoid them when they arise later in their lives. »
Toxicity sets in at a young age in behaviors.
“It is very insidious and it settles insidiously, in many spheres of the relationship. I illustrate it a bit throughout the book, but it can take different forms. We think a lot about physical violence, but this is not necessarily the case. I think it is even more difficult to detect when there is no physical violence. »
“It can start very young, but it will mark a person forever. So if my story can save some people from falling into this, well, my job is going to be done. »
Words, too, can hurt. Even Olivier, a character in the novel, devalues himself.
"It's something that is progressive and that you don't see going... Sometimes these are small behaviors that are all excusable, which are not so serious in themselves when you take each event in isolation and you don't take any recoil. But when you look at the overall picture, it doesn't make sense, in the end. »
It describes the influence.
"That's what I wanted to convey through this story and I wanted the reader to be trapped too. Oli is charming and we want to love him. With each thing that happens, we tell ourselves that it's not that bad... Finally, we realize that it doesn't make any sense. »
“A little later, when I was six or seven years old, I attended the wedding of my cousin Marie-Pierre, tsé, the one who lives in Saint-Siméon by the water? It was my first wedding and I remember being a little shocked during the exchange of vows. I knelt on the pew to whisper to my mother:
"Aren't they really going to stay together until they die?"
This made Carole laugh, who leaned over to tickle my ear with her mint breath.
– Yeah, honey, that’s right, a wedding.
– They won't be tired of seeing each other, in the long run? »
