Andrew Joseph White is a fearless writer—Kirkus’ reviews have described his previous titles as “gloriously ferocious” and “visceral and vindicating.” His latest, Compound Fracture (Peachtree Teen, Sept. 3) is no exception. Set in rural West Virginia, the book follows a transgender autistic teen, Miles, as he seeks to reveal deep-seated political corruption—which goes back a century and involves his own great-great-grandfather. Our editors named it one of the best YA books of 2024, and White answered our questions via email.

What was the original idea that started you working on the book?

Compound Fracture came to me when I was a freshman in college, watching Kill Bill on my laptop in my dorm room late one night. I was struck by the image of a queer boy surviving. Surviving what, I wasn’t sure yet. But the theme of survival is what stuck—in the books I’d write before Compound Fracture, and then finally the book itself. It would be years before I knew myself and the story well enough to write it, but those years really gave the concept time to mature into something I’m so proud of.

Miles says, “For all the overdose deaths, environmental disasters, and reactionary politics, West Virginia is mine.” Can you talk about Miles’ complex feelings about his home?

Miles’ complex feelings about West Virginia are my own! Does the state have its problems? Absolutely. But the problems it faces are systemwide, and blaming the (often impoverished, disabled, disenfranchised, etc.) citizens for it all is both useless and cruel. Part of my job with this book was to shake non-Appalachian readers out of the stereotypes they’ve absorbed. Yes,West Virginia is an extremely dark red state, but what we are not going to do is abandon it.

In your author’s note, you compare your book to moonshine: “It’s gonna burn like hell going down.” How would you describe writing it?

Well, it was easier than my previous book, that’s for sure.

My sophomore novel, The Spirit Bares Its Teeth, was a nightmare to write. It fought me every step of the way, forcing me to change large plot points all the way into proofreads and copyedits. In contrast, Compound Fracture was breathtakingly easy. I knew what I wanted to say and how I wanted to say it. All I had to do was get it down on paper. It didn’t burn at all; this book was endlessly understanding and kind.

Where and when did you write the book? Describe the scene, the time of day, the necessary accoutrements or talismans.

I wrote Compound Fracture just about everywhere. I wrote it on my lunch break at work, trying to avoid getting crumbs in my keyboard. I wrote it behind my publisher’s booth at a conference, music turned up to drown out the crowd.  I wrote it before my wife woke up on the weekends, and in the dark after dinner, and in airports, and wherever I could catch a single second. All I ever really need is my headphones. If I have those, I can make it work.

Lilly Wachowski is adapting your book Hell Followed With Us into an animated feature. If Compound Fracture were adapted into a film or TV series, who would you cast?

Oh, what a question! I’m convinced it would be a great Sharp Objects–style miniseries, and I’d want the major roles to go to relatively unknown queer/trans actors. There are so few queer-focused roles available, and setting aside a production to give folks a foothold in the industry is one of the reasons I want my work to be optioned for film in the first place. However, if we managed to get Antony Starr to play Sheriff Davies, I certainly wouldn’t say no…

Mahnaz Dar is a young readers’ editor.