New Voices: Lisa O'Donnell, from Scotland via L.A.

Lisa O'Donnell, author of 'Death of Bees.' (Photo: Vanessa Stump)

Novel features two abused but resilient sistersFormer screenwriter uses three alternating narratorsInspired by scene in East L.A., but set in Glasgow

The book: Lisa O'Donnell's debut novel The Death of Bees (Harper, 309 pp., on sale Jan. 2), set in Glasgow, Scotland, concerns two neglected, abused but resilient sisters, 15 and 12, who, after the deaths of their drug-dealing parents, hide their bodies in the backyard.

Why it's notable: After rave reviews in Britain, it's a Barnes & Noble Discover New Writers pick and an Indie Next Great Reads selection.

Memorable lines: "Today is Christmas Eve. Today is my birthday. Today I am fifteen. Today I buried my parents in the backyard. Neither of them were beloved."

The author:

Quick bio: O'Donnell, 40, grew up on the "wee isle" of Bute in the Fifth of Clyde, Scotland, graduated from Glasgow Caledonian University, worked in marketing, and in 2000, won the Orange Screenwriting Prize for The Wedding Gift, a quirky gangster story which was optioned but not produced. Divorced, she lives in Los Angeles with her son, 8, and daughter, 4.

Inspiration: In East L.A., she spotted a young girl pushing a stroller with a baby in itand began thinking about "kids who have to raise themselves or raise their younger siblings."

On using three narrators (the two sisters and an elderly neighbor): "That comes from my screenwriting experience. I've been told I'm good at dialogue. I hear voices in my head."

If she, like Marnie, the novel's older sister, ever buried her sorrows in algebra: "I used to bury my sorrows in books. But I wanted Marnie to be more intelligent than I was."

Is Scotland is "always waddling about in the muds of yesterday," as one of her characters says? "Yes. I hope this doesn't get me in trouble, but in a place where there's not many jobs they keep talking about teaching Gaelic which hardly anyone speaks anymore."

What's next: Another novel, Closed Doors, set in Rothesay, her Scottish hometown, "where everyone knows everything about everyone, but where a secret has repercussions for everyone who's kept it."

Bob Minzesheimer has written about books and authors since 1997 - as close to a dream job as any job can be for someone who loves to read. A former political reporter and editor, he was president of his local library board.

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