Brain Snacks: Tasty Tidbits of Knowledge
Even the craziest of doomsday scenarios can have a grain of truth. Jeanne DuPrau got the basic idea for the book from growing up in the 1950s, when people were worried about the effects of a nuclear war and what it would be like to survive in those conditions. (Source.)
Get this: of all the characters, DuPrau had the easiest time writing Lina because they're similar: DuPrau also likes drawing and running (or she did like running, when she was closer to Lina's age). (Source.)
DuPrau originally wrote The City of Ember because the idea of a dark city grabbed her, and she wanted to write a compelling story. But she also hopes that it inspires readers to love and respect the earth a little more, and to that we say Mission: Accomplished. (Source.)