Why Karen Thompson Walker dreamed up a sleeping sickness

We hope this author interview doesn’t give you any nightmares.

Karen Thompson Walker’s new novel, The Dreamers, features a mysterious sickness that befalls a fictional California town.

Affected individuals fall into a deep sleep, from which many wake up.

Walker explains why she finds the concept of sleeping and dreaming so fascinating (in addition to, you know, appealing) and theorizes on why we — like some of the book’s characters — find comfort in conspiracy theories to All Things Considered's Melissa Block.

Listen below or read the transcript on NPR's website.

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