Sag Harbor - Hamptons literary landmark Canio's Books once again provided book loving East Enders the opportunity to interact with another in a long line of authors that have graced the podium of this seminal bookshop. Last Saturday novelist and short story writer Sheila Kohler read from her latest novel "Becoming Jane Eyre" and fielded questions from the SRO audience in Sag Harbor.

Born and raised in Johannesburg, South Africa, Kohler made her way to Europe after high school and lived in Paris for 15 years. She studied at the Sorbonne acquiring a degree in literature followed by a graduate degree in psychology from the Institut Catholique. In 1981 she moved to the U.S. and received an MFA in writing from Columbia University.

Kohler did not publish her first short story until her mid-f40s, but "The Mountain" proved to be more than just an impressive first work as it won an O'Henry Prize after appearing in The Quarterly in the summer of 1987. This maiden work the following year became the opening chapter of "The Perfect Place," the first of her seven novels.

I asked the prolific writer if she came from a literary household, "No, not at all. Actually my mother sort of disapproved of reading. You were supposed to be doing your sewing or knitting and you were certainly not allowed to do it [read] in the morning. No reading in the morning, that was sinful. So, of course, that got me reading."

The eldest of two daughters, Kohler states that her writing took a turn with the death of her sister, "When my sister died a violent death 25 years ago in apartheid South Africa, my writing took a new turn. I was driven to explore the reasons for violence within intimate relationships, in particular, the abuse of power and privilege. Since then I have published seven novels, three collections of short stories, and several others not yet collected, all of which focus in some way on this theme. They represent my attempt to delve into the mysteries of hate and anger, and of love and compassion, as well."

"Cracks" by Sheila Kohler.

One such novel resounding with those themes is her 1999 "Cracks" from which a film of the same name has just been released in Europe produced by Ridley Scott and represents the directorial feature debut of his daughter Jordon Scott. Recounting an encounter with Ridley Scott seeing it at the Toronto Film Festival Kohler remarked, "He was right there in front of us and I realized at the end of the movie I had nothing to do with the movie. Nothing, I wrote the book and that was it. I realized at the end of the movie he was standing over me waiting to see what I was going to say. Your heart stops, I was just undone." Although the film changed both the novel's setting and time frame, Kohler was pleased with it, "I actually liked the movie. I did!"

After seeing a brief trailer of the film on Kohler's website I can best describe it as a "Lord of the Flies" version of "The Prime of Miss Jean Brody." What I saw in the trailer was stunningly filmed and beautifully acted. Early reviews have been quite complimentary and the film will be coming to theatres in the U.S. later this year.

Turning the conversation back to the evening's reading at Canio's, I asked Kohler to describe her latest book, "It is based on the life of the Brontes. What I was really interested in was how Charlotte Bronte came to write 'Jane Eyre.'" Her first book 'The Professor' was really a bit of a flop and she hadn't been able to sell it and then she wrote this book ['Jane Eyre'] which was overnight a best seller. So I was interested in how that came about."

After being introduced by Canio's co-owner Kathryn Szoka, Kohler shared some background regarding the writing of her historical novel and read from the chapter wherein Bronte hesitantly reveals to her father the existence and success of "Jane Eyre." The reading had moments that were both touching and funny and the audience responded in kind. Kohler's gift of literary imagery facilitates the spoken word rendering of her work, admitting to me earlier in our conversation, "I always write very visually, I see it. I think some people work more through language, but I really work through like a screen, what I see. When I am writing, I need to see it."

Sheila Kohler reading in the Hamptons literary landmark book shop that is Canio's.

Inquiring further about Kohler's creative process, I asked if she worked from an outline, "Not at all, I just sit down and write. Then, of course, it is all in the revision. No, I think it would be dull if you knew the whole thing ahead of time. I think you need to surprise yourself on the page."

What is no surprise, however, is that once again Kohler has brought yet another beautifully crafted story to the page. "Becoming Jane Eyre" is a brilliant and touching, albeit fictionalized, look into the artistic process and emotional profile of the world's most profound and tragic literary sisterhood in general and the specific creative journey of Charlotte in particular. It is an endearing back story to one of literature's most endearing and timeless novels, "Jane Eyre."

For more information on events at Canio's Books go to: www.caniosbooks.com.