Moving, funny and insightful - the success of bestselling author Jojo Moyes’ books is a testament to her ability to tell stories that resonate with people on many levels. Earlier this year she released We All Live Here, described by fellow writer Marian Keyes as "the best book" Jojo has ever written. With 17 books and counting this is no small praise.
Part of what makes this novel all the more impactful is its focus on a vastly under-acknowledged section of society - the sandwich generation. So many people are balancing simultaneously caring for their ageing parents and their children and will no doubt fully appreciate Jojo’s determination to see their "complexities" represented in her book.
Appearing on Woman’s Hour in February, Jojo spoke passionately about how so many of the women she knows are "holding up the sky" with all they do.
"I look around me at the women I know and most of my friends are - I call it ‘holding up the sky - they are looking after elderly relatives, they’re looking after teenagers, they’re looking after young children, they are taking care of their friends, they’re trying to hold down jobs," she declared.
Jojo believes that for people managing all of these commitments there is a "kind of emotional and physical burden". In her view, this isn’t something that’s acknowledged nearly as much as it should be - "at least not with humour".
Although she won’t be the last novelist to write books exploring the lives of women of this ‘sandwich generation’ age, Jojo Moyes took a specific approach with We All Live Here and wanted to break away from a limited representation.
She told Woman’s Hour’s Clare Mcdonnnell, "I think often when women of this age are written about, it’s always rather kind of ‘victim-y’ or just miserable and, actually, there’s a lot of fun involved in it as well".
"Women of this age are also capable of being rude and silly and irresponsible and supportive and loving and, kind of, quite hard on each other and all the complexities are still happening even at this age," Jojo added.
Her nuanced depiction of Lila in We All Live Here epitomises this and it was lovely to see Woman’s Hour re-sharing a clip of Jojo speaking about her inspiration for the book as part of their Wednesday Wisdom segment.
Juggling the different multi-generational needs of parents and children, whether emotionally, financially or physically, isn’t new, but it does deserve to be in the spotlight far more than it currently is.
Speaking to woman&home Books Editor, Zoe West, for March’s In Conversation With feature, Jojo opened up a little more about how Lila is reflective of herself - and women everywhere.
"Lila, my main character, is younger than me, but she is me and every woman," she explained. "We are part of the sandwich generation, with children who bring their own challenges, managing elderly parents, trying to stay in a marriage, and doing all the things we’ve been told we should do just to be an accepted woman in this world. I wanted to write about those women, as I think they’re amazing."
