In the book, Dara Bouldin comes up with a plan to lessen the effects of climate change. Her discoveries are destructive in ways she could never have imagined. One problem is that no one at the government agency where she works knows she exists. She is having trouble paying off her student loans and her father’s gambling debts, and she is still sad about breaking up with the artist Jericho, whose new single is quickly climbing the charts. When Dara figures out what’s happening, she is sucked into the middle of a global conflict.
In the style of the hit comedy-drama film, “Don’t Look Up,” the book “The Silent Count” is a story that looks at how leaders handle a situation that may be horrifyingly real.It tackles reality with humor the way good satire does. If you are ready to really think about the impact that our leaders have in regard to climate change, then we recommend you read “The Silent Count” by E.A. Smiroldo. Find out more in this question and answer interview with the author.
Q. People have said that the movie “Don’t Look Up” is like your book “The Silent Count.” Who would you want to play the main character in a movie or TV show based on The Silent Count? Why?
A. Millie Bobby Brown, who plays Eleven on the Netflix show “Stranger Things,” may do a great job as Dara Bouldin (the main character in The Silent Count). Even though she is young, shy, and has been through a lot of emotional pain because of loss and heartbreak, Dara learns to use her inner strength as the story continues. In the TV show “Stranger Things,” where she plays Eleven, Millie Bobby Brown has shown that she has a lot of emotional depth at a deep level.
Q. What’s the most important thing you want people who read your book, “The Silent Count”, to take away and share with the rest of the world?
A. We made the atomic bomb, sent a man to the moon, and made life-saving vaccines. WIth all those accomplishments, why can’t humanity dedicate their focus and do something just as remarkable about climate change? Make real progress and develop technologies that would really solve the problem the world faces?
Q. As the author of The Silent Count, Ms. E. A. Smiroldo, please tell your audience something about yourself that no one knows.
A. I secretly like to buy Barbie dolls and make clothes for them.
Q. We asked E. A. Smiroldo what book made her cry and why she felt that way while reading it.
A. The Nobel Prize for Literature in 1950 was given to A. Halldor Laxness for his book “Independent People.” In this story, a poor Icelandic sheep farmer has a series of bad things happen to him. However, his fatal flaw is his self-destructive independence.
There is a moving excerpt at the end of the book when the sheep farmer reconciles with his dying, estranged daughter. This moment in literature is absolutely heartbreaking.
Q. What would your ideal vacation look like? If E. A. Smiroldo could go anywhere, where would she like to stay the most?
A. One of my trip goals is to go to Antarctica!
Q. What wishes would Ms. E. A. Smiroldo hake, if a genie could grant you three?
A. Obviously, a way to deal with climate change works. Also, a cure for cancer and peace around the world.
Q. How does real research in science change the way you write?
A. Yes, my writing is certainly inspired by actual science. However, heartache, career setbacks, money problems, jealousy, and the effects of grief are all woven into my story, too.
Q. What kind of people should read “The Silent Count” by you, and why?
A. I think readers who long for a better world and dream of making change through their own ingenuity will find a kindred spirit in my main character. They’ll understand and empathize with the emotional roller coaster that comes with dreaming big. I sincerely hope there will be more than one person who fits this description!
Q. E. A. Smiroldo, could you tell us how you came up with the title The Silent Count for your book?
A. “The Silent Count” is about a time countdown that is going on all around us, but we can’t hear it. We are losing time, whether or not we realize it, because for years there has been inaction and very little progress in solving the crisis of climate change.
You can check out The Silent Count on Amazon.
For more information about E.A. Smiroldo, you can visit her website or find her on Facebook and Instagram.
