Daisy Johnson makes the old so fresh, it feels raw. In her debut novel, Everything Under, the English author retells the Oedipus myth — that icky man-kills-his-father-and-marries-his-mother story — in a way that not only functions believably in a modern context but also carries a propulsive urgency. She writes with flashy lyricism, with motifs of flowing rivers and swaying trees rendered vividly on the page.

But as Johnson speaks about her book, she’s hardly so precious. In fact, she details her process and her choices with a striking matter-of-factness.

“There’s something so destructive about the idea of a retelling,” Johnson says gleefully. “Saying something about our world through a classic lens. I love the idea of destroying something and putting it back together.”

To read the rest of the article click here.