Layla was inspired in part by a profile in the New Yorker about Katherine Ann Power, an antiwar activist, who became a fugitive and lived a secret life under the radar. In 2003, when Kathy Boudin, a member of the radical Weather Underground, was released from prison, there was a massive public reaction. Is it surprising that their crimes were committed decades ago, but still inspire such a fiery response? Author Céline Keating has remained very involved in politics since the ’60s. It was these news stories that planted the seed of a novel, but perhaps more influential was the question her friend posed after hearing about an argument between Céline and her mother regarding politics: How would you feel if you had a daughter with ultra conservative political views? This question evolved into many questions. How does the generation who experienced the ’60s first hand see that period of time now? And how do subsequent generations view those years? Does the legacy of the ’60s still resonate today? The novel Layla is a rich and complex response to these broad questions as well as a story about a mother and a daughter, a family brought together and torn apart by politics, and ultimately about the way we develop our personal moral compass.