Percy talks werewolves with Minnesota Public Radio
St. Olaf College Writer in Residence Benjamin Percy sat down with Minnesota Public Radio’s Kerri Miller for an in-depth conversation about “werewolves for modern times” and the process of writing about them.
In Percy’s new book, Red Moon, werewolves live alongside humans as second-class citizens and must take mind-numbing drugs to suppress their monstrous sides. But a violent werewolf attack at the beginning of the novel sparks a lycan revolution against the government, and thereby transforms this horror story premise into a political allegory.
“I love fiction that can be perfectly entertaining on one level … but if you look at it on that deeper level, you can see the political allegory at its heart,” Percy tells Miller.
Percy, whose second novel has garnered widespread critical acclaim, talked to Miller as part of MPR’s Daily Circuit program. They were also joined by MPR arts reporter Euan Kerr, who provided insight into films that have featured werewolves.