Chris asked Taylor Jenkins Reid:

Hi! I just finished "The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo" and, as a reader from Champaign, IL, I'm super curious to know -- why was it specifically mentioned that Harry's mother lived in Champaign?

Taylor Jenkins Reid Hi! I've gotten this question twice this week! I hadn't thought much about this in year but I'll pass along to you what I told the other person in Champaign who asked and hopefully that will shed some light for you.

I thought a lot about where Harry would be from and I wanted to show that so many of the people that make it big in Los Angeles come from other places.

Harry felt somewhat Mid-Western to me, deep inside. And Illinois felt really right. I chose Champaign because it was a big enough city to not feel rural but also small enough that he might still feel that classic feeling of wanting to go to a big city and find his own way in the world.

I have never been to Champaign -- so I did my research entirely off of a map.

I love Harry very dearly. I hope you found him interesting, too.

xo,
t

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