What Happened to the McCrays?: Interview With Tracey Lange

What Happened to the McCrays?: Quick Summary and Review

In What Happened to the McCrays?, Kyle, a 40-year-old man estranged from his ex-wife, Casey, and his father, returns home to Potsdam, New York, after his father has a stroke. There, he faces not only his family but also the event that caused him to leave, and he seeks hope through a group of middle school hockey players.

This story is beautifully told through dual timelines in a way that the reader unfolds the love story of two childhood sweethearts like the layers of an onion, from their youthful days of hopeful love to their conflicted present, marred by trauma.

The title perfectly captures the reader’s thoughts as you slowly learn how this lovably flawed couple got to this point. Let me tell you, you’ll gasp when you uncover what drove them apart. You can’t help but feel for them and root for them.

Tracey Lange on What Happened to the McCrays?

I learned that the idea for this story sprang from your desire to write a book about divorce. How did that little spark evolve into Kyle and Casey?

As soon as I landed on the basic premise—the breakup of a marriage—I started asking myself lots of questions about the couple: who they were, where they came from, their personalities and occupations, what their respective families were like, etc. Before I could figure out what tore them apart, I needed to know what brought them together. Kyle came to me first, which is why I started the story with him, but Casey was close behind.

The title of What Happened to the McCrays? so perfectly captures what lurks in the reader’s mind as he or she peels back the layers of Kyle’s and Casey’s love story like an onion. How did you decide on a book title in question format?

The title was there from the beginning; it was the central question that pulled me through the first draft. I didn’t know if it would ultimately make the cut, if perhaps my editor would fear it hinted at more of a true suspense novel. But I went with it and fortunately she agreed!

The beautiful book cover (there’s just something about book covers with yellow houses) showcases an icy winter scene, and the story is mainly set around the holiday season. Why did you choose this time of year?

I wanted a significant part of the story to take place during the harsh winter months upstate New York is known for. But the specific time of year, leading up to the holidays, was actually determined by the typical middle school hockey schedule in that area. And I wish I could take any credit for the perfect cover, but it was all my amazing publishing team.

Potsdam, New York, earned a very special ranking in my reading life. It’s one of only a handful of literary settings that felt so vivid I had to research it for myself– the hallmark of a perfect book setting, in my humble opinion. For the record, it’s exactly as I pictured it. I assumed you lived there, but I was wrong in learning you didn’t! How did you find and land on it for this story? In all seriousness, was it the toilets?! (Potsdam has a “toilet garden.”)

Thank you so much! One of the best compliments I receive is when someone from Potsdam reaches out to let me know I got the setting right. From the get-go I wanted a small, isolated winter town where people often have to rely on each other. I started researching way upstate, near the mountains, and came across Potsdam (which I’d heard of but never been to). The fact that it had two college campuses added a nice layer. The more I investigated—historical research, talking to people from that area, endless Googling of newspaper articles and pictures and maps—the better it felt, and once I visited I had no doubts. The toilets came in a later draft, after my son’s girlfriend (who’s from upstate NY) sent me a meme about them. I went down the rabbit hole with the whole issue, which led to a documentary called Potty Town. It became such a fun storyline for me.

I heard that you utilized the Enneagram personality typing to flesh out these characters. Many readers, myself included, are fans of this personality typing, which is categorized by core motivations and fears. Can you talk about how the Enneagram informed your characters? 

I find the more I develop my characters on the front end, the more they tell me the story. Once I’ve gotten to know them, their backgrounds and strengths and flaws, I like to use the Enneagram to help flesh them out even more. I find the Enneagram particularly useful because it’s not designed to pigeonhole each of us within one narrow personality type; rather, it’s a tool for better understanding ourselves and building empathy for others. I often use it to gauge my characters’ progress, or their reactions to each other, as they face challenges and evolve throughout the story.

This John Lennon lyric describes Casey’s life in a nutshell for me: ” Life is what happens to you / While you’re busy making other plans.” In your view, how do plans and reality intersect for Casey?

That line is so true for all of us. But yes, Casey has been thrown for many curveballs in life. She experienced significant loss from a young age, and many of her plans have been derailed along the way. What I admire about Casey though is she doesn’t use any of that as an excuse to give up or be bitter, and she doesn’t view herself as a victim. She owns the choices she’s made; she loves her family, friends, and community, and she doesn’t wish for a different life.

Kyle’s hope comes in an unlikely form — the middle school hockey players he coaches. How did you choose them to intersect with Kyle back in Potsdam?

I loved the idea of Kyle having to coach funny awkward middle schoolers. It gives him a bright spot during this challenging transition home. Hockey has always been important to him, and at a time when he’s looking for a little redemption he has a chance to help these struggling players. It forces him and Casey to work together since she’s the program manager, and the team provided some great opportunities for warmth and humor.

Ed Sheeran’s song “Perfect” plays a “pivotal” role in the book. Why did you choose this song?

Without giving much away, it was a product of thinking about which timely love song would likely be requested for a specific circumstance during a middle school dance. Several could have fit the bill, but that one felt…perfect (ugh, sorry).

I’m not usually one to “dream cast” a hypothetical book adaptation, but I couldn’t help myself for this one. (If only I were Reese Witherspoon and could adapt it myself.) I settled on a real-life couple: John Krasinski and Emily Blunt. Do you have a dream cast for these characters?

Although I dream of seeing this story on the screen one day, I can’t say I think about specifically who would play these characters. I’m sure there are so many actors who could do a great job—though John and Emily would definitely have my vote!

Kyle and Casey (and Danny (Kyle’s dad) and Wyatt (Casey’s brother), too) are the types of characters readers long to know more about. Do you think you would ever return to them, or is the final page the end of their story for you?

I love these characters, and they will always be with me, just like characters from previous books. I never rule anything out, but as much as I would like to spend more time with them, at this point I feel like I’ve told their story. I do like to include Easter eggs in my books though; there is a reference to each of my first two books in this one. I hope to keep doing that, so there may be small indications of how the McCrays are doing in future stories!