In the opening pages of Michelle Brafman’s fourth novel, Draw Near to Me, Kristy Weinstein’s husband David has just learned about an affair Kristy had over a year earlier — a transgression that occurred near the end of Brafman’s previous book, Swimming with Ghosts, which is a companion to this novel. David’s discovery triggers a chain of events that lands Kristy in a coma and leaves her friends and family spinning.
Brafman’s narration is energetic and engaging, shifting between points of view to paint a complex portrait of a family in crisis. The voices include David, who tries to understand Kristy’s love addiction and find a way to forgive her; her half-brother, Patrick, who has addiction issues of his own; her daughter Mia, a college student who is trying to figure out not only who her parents really are, but also who she is herself; Michael, a gentle chaplain who works at the hospital where David is a surgeon; and Kristy herself who just wants to be reunited with her family. At the center of the family – and the story – is baby Rae, Kristy’s “whoops, ‘I thought I was in menopause’ baby.” Baby Rae is an unfailing source of joy, giving hope to the whole clan and bringing them together as they cope with the aftermath of Kristy’s accident.
Set in Northern Virginia and Rehoboth Beach, Draw Near to Me, captures the complex dynamics of a family with a legacy of secrets. Readers will not only recognize the references to boardwalk fries and the salty Atlantic breezes, but they will also see themselves in the characters as they face truths they would rather ignore.
Michelle Brafman gave us some insight into her writing process and the inspiration that led her to write Draw Near to Me.
Baltimore Fishbowl: This book ties into your novel Swimming with Ghosts. What made you want to revisit that setting and characters? What drew you back to Kristy in particular?
Michelle Brafman: After Swimming with Ghosts came out and I started visiting book clubs, readers wanted to know if the marriages featured in the book survived the affair between Kristy and her brother-in-law Charlie. Such a meaty question! I’d already written from the point of view of Charlie and his family in Swimming with Ghosts, so in Draw Near to Me, I wanted to focus on Kristy’s world. Once I clicked into the voices of Kristy’s husband and daughter, I was hooked.
BFB: You write from several characters’ points of view. Was there anyone you particularly enjoyed writing? Was there anyone who was particularly difficult to write?
MB: I loved writing from the point of view of the hospital chaplain, Rabbi Michael Pines. In addition to his mesmerizing voice, knack for showing up the exact moment he’s needed, and gift for spreading calm, he is deeply attuned to his “still small voice.” It seems that readers have connected with this idea of accessing our deepest intuitions. The hardest character for me to write was Patrick, Kristy’s alcoholic half-brother. He’d put so much work into his recovery, and I’m still not sure if he’s going to be okay.
BFB: Why did you choose to write from several perspectives?
MB: I wanted to understand the painful conflicts and chaos the Weinstein family was experiencing from multiple points of view. I spent a lot of time pondering the stakes for every party involved. In doing so, I began to see the family as an ecosystem which helped me avoid villainizing or heroizing its individual members. Hopefully this translated onto the page even if readers have strong feelings about some of the characters’ flaws.
BFB: Which character do you identify with most strongly and why?
MB: I identified most strongly with Kristy’s daughter, Mia, mainly because she’s that family member who asks all the pesky questions everyone else would rather sweep under the rug. Um, I’m that person in my family, and I’m guessing many of my fellow writers are too!
BFB: The novel takes on themes related to the destructive ways we can respond to trauma – anger, addiction, denial. Could you talk about why this topic interests you?
MB: As a human, I’m specifically interested in exploring how we can transcend our most crippling legacies. I’ve heard addiction referred to as a family disease, one that can ripple through generations, cropping up when the emotional waters run high. In both Swimming with Ghosts and Draw Near to Me, several descendants of Sebastian Norton, the alcoholic patriarch, confront a tremendous amount of upheaval. If they react by succumbing to their addictions, anger, or denial, they stand to lose the relationships that matter to them the most. As a writer, assigning my characters this brand of trouble generated a tremendous amount of narrative tension.
BFB: Faith and spirituality are important in the story, culminating in a Jewish naming ceremony for baby Rae. Why did you feel it was important to include elements of religion in the story?
MB: Faith plays a huge role in the plot, starting with title of the book. The line “draw near to me” comes from the story of Joseph (of the “technicolor dreamcoat” for those Webber and Rice fans). Joseph’s brothers threw him in a ditch and sold him to a slave trader and then later came to him for food during a famine that he had predicted. Instead of turning them away, Joseph said “draw near to me.” I heard this phrase shortly after I’d begun drafting Draw Near to Me and knew that I’d discovered the beating heart of the book. Over time, these words evolved into the central question for each of the five narrators, which in turn drives the plot: “What would it take to draw someone near when you have every good reason to push them away?” Rabbi Michael Pines guides the characters to the Joseph story and also this question. Regarding the Jewish naming ceremony, it felt like the perfect ritual to evoke one of the big themes of the novel. Redemption.
BFB: What do you hope readers will take away from these characters’ experiences?
MB: While writing the novel, when I thought about conflicts in my own life, I asked myself the question: what would it take to draw that person near? I don’t always have the answer, but simply asking the question softened my heart. I’m actually still asking that question, and my audacious hope is that the reader will be inspired to do the same.
Michelle appeared at the Ivy Bookshop last month, but has several events coming up in the Bethesda and DC area, listed here.
