1. Where did you get the idea for Sophie and Sam Shattenberg?

Actually, I'm sort of like Sophie. And my sister is sort of like Sam. Our father used to read Sherlock Holmes stories to us when we were little, and we both always longed to be private detectives. Although my sister and I grew up in New York City, we often wished we lived on a farm in the Midwest instead-I guess after reading all the Little House on the Prairie books we thought farm life would be more exciting than the city!

2. What do you like to do when you're not writing?

I love to read, eat chocolate, and avoid washing the dishes.

3. What are some of your favorite books?

All of the Anne of Green Gables novels, I Capture the Castle by Dodie Smith, The Diary of Anne Frank, and the poetry of Edna St. Vincent Millay, Yehuda Amichai, and Langston Hughes. One of the best books I read recently is Candyfreak: A Journey Through the Chocolate Underbelly of America by Steve Almond.

4. Do cats really get asthma?

Unfortunately, yes. The cat named Zayde, who appears in The Venetian Policeman, is based on our cat. Not only does our cat have asthma, but she also likes to eat paper. She found the manuscript of The Rose Queen to be particularly tasty.

5. What are your top-five-stranded-on-a-desert-island makeup picks?

1. Stila Lip Glaze in Praline
2. Laura Mercier Secret Camouflage
3. Revlon ColorStay Overtime Lash Tint
4. Tarte cheek stain in Flush
5. Annick Goutal Le Chevrefeuille perfume (not exactly makeup, but I'd hate to be stranded on a desert island without it!)

6. If you could run away like Sophie and Sam do, where would you go?

I once visited Prince Edward Island in Canada—the home of the author of Anne of Green Gables—with one of my best friends, Dika Lam. I fell in love with the island, and I'd definitely run away there. Hopefully I could also bring my husband, my sister, my sister-in-law, all my friends, and my cat with us. (And of course said makeup items above.)

7. Sophie and Sam talk about food a lot. What are your favorite foods?

Belgian dark chocolate, cupcakes, doughnuts, spaghetti, chocolate pudding, lasagna, crepes, hot chocolate, ziti, knishes, chicken with chocolate mole sauce, clementines, and, my #1 favorite: the Endangered Species Chocolate Company's Sea Turtle bar (not made with sea turtles, thankfully—it contains dark chocolate and blueberries—but a portion of the profits goes to saving endangered species.)

8. Are you obsessed with chocolate?

What would give you that idea?

Read cool articles and interviews with M. E. Rabb at:

Teenreads
Nextbook
Jewish Woman
Detroit Jewish News
Studio 2B - the place for teens
Eclectica
Jbooks
Bookslut