While fans of the series created by the Duffer brothers wait with undisguised impatience the release of the fifth and final season of show to success, actress Millie Bobby Brown is making headlines for a very different reason. Indeed, the young woman recently released her first work, called Nineteen Steps.
A new string to his bow
Everything seems to be smiling at Millie Bobby Brown: the flagship face of Stranger Thingsin which she plays the role of the powerful Eleven, she is also the interpreter of a literary heroine thought of by Nancy Springerto know Enola Holmes. Prestigious projects featuring her should soon arrive on our screens! Among the latter, we can cite the film Damsel, in which the nineteen-year-old actress plays a forced marriage protagonist…Who quickly realizes that her husband plans to turn her into dinner for his dragon. The one who announced her engagement to the son of the artist Bon Jovi will also give voice during the series Spheresalongside Jessica Chastain and Patti Smith, also narrators of the program.
Comedy is clearly no longer enough for the star of Stranger Things, who decided to embark on a major literary adventure. Thus, his very first novel, Nineteen Steps, was published a few days ago. Inspired by the story of his own grandmother, the work is set as a romantic drama in the middle of the Second World War. The plot of the book takes place in London, in 1942. There, a brilliant young girl named Nellie Morries lives – despite the clashes – a peaceful existence. Her future seems all mapped out, since those around her constantly tell her that she will end up with Billy, a young man who has been in love with her for years. Everything changes with the arrival of Ray, an attractive American and army pilot. Only, none of them suspect the tragedy that awaits them. At the heart of the novel inspired by true events, the deadly disaster of Bethnal Green, which will turn the lives of the heroine and her family upside down.
A common practice
A very particular announcement ignited the powder: Millie Bobby Brown, in fact, used the service of a ghostwriter, Kathleen McGurl. As is customary, only the star’s name appears on the cover. Under a post from his publishing house, since deleted, we could discover a number of criticisms relating to this announcement. Some felt that the young woman should “be ashamed” and that such procedures, very common among stars, greatly harm the literary market. Along the same lines, following an Instagram post alongside McGurl, whom she thanks largely, negative messages are legion. Some believe that Millie Bobby Brown “takes credit” for the latter’s work and insist that her collaborator’s name also appear on the work.
If we can deplore such a process, we must not lose sight of the fact that collaborations between celebrities and ghostwriters are more than regular. If Millie Bobby Brown took on this undertaking with all four hands, McGurl has, in his personal blog, praised their joint work and the involvement of the young woman, who had, before she started writing, “done a lot of research and ideas”. We can therefore salute the frankness of the actress, whose new adventure is, very fortunately for her, enthusiastically followed by most of its community !
By Marie-Mathilde Peyralbe
I’m Marie-Mathilde (my parents couldn’t choose). Author-screenwriter, I was immersed in the pot of cinematographic potion by the latter – and in particular my mother, who took me to the cinema to see The Lord of the Rings at the age of four. When I was little, I looked through magazines on the 7th art. Even though I’m still not very tall, I’m now on the other side of the mirror, and without pills to boot! As moved by Pride and Prejudice as Kill Bill, a big fan of thrillers and other investigative stories, I particularly like writing about literature, series and cinema – and am always on the lookout new releases.