How did it feel to write the last book about the Sisterhood? Did you feel pressure to wrap up the girls' stories?

Ann Brashares: I didn't feel a sense of pressure, but more a sense of inevitability. I didn't want to force change upon the girls so much as recognize that it had already taken place. I wanted to mark the end of a great time in their lives and complete the story. But that doesn't mean I won't revisit them in another part of their lives. I have a feeling these characters will live to tell another story.

You went on a lengthy tour for this book. What's the best part of meeting your many fans?

AB: The best part for me, I guess, is a feeling of connection with readers. We (me and my readers) spend hours in the same world, thinking about the same people, so there's kind of a built-in closeness even if we've never met before. Many girls and women come to my readings with their friends. They often tell me or show me the rituals and symbols of their friendship, and I am inspired by them, not only in my writing but also in my life.

As for the travel part, it's hard for me to leave my family, but I confess it's fun to take a bubble bath in a nice hotel and eat all the M&M's from the minibar.

Did you struggle over the issue of giving Lena another chance with Kostos—and giving Bridget a chance to mess things up with Eric yet again?

AB: There are often important people in your life who define you and hold you, even when you don't want them to. For Lena, many roads lead to Kostos. But this time, at least, she trips over a good deal of self-knowledge along the way. For Bee, the unexamined life wreaks havoc. She has a natural weakness for doing a lot and thinking a little. But you can't have a real relationship unless you are willing to tame your impulses, and Eric is the person she's found who is worth that sacrifice. With these characters, as with real people, the same weaknesses afflict us again and again, though often in different ways. The same people have the power to hurt us and also to move us.

Despite the trip's origins, the girls spend a wonderful week bonding in Santorini. If you could get away for a girls-only weekend, where would you go?

AB: I think Santorini sounds pretty good, actually. As a less glamorous alternative, I like the idea of gathering at a beach house in the off-season. I like taking runs or walks with friends along the ocean when it's chilly and kind of desolate. I like communal cooking and eating and staying up all night talking when you've got nowhere to be the next day.

Have you ever had a toxic friendship like Carmen and Julia's? Do you have any advice for someone in a similar situation?

AB: I have had a few friends (if you can call them that) who've made me feel bad about myself. They've tended to be competitive people who, on some level, seemed eager for my missteps and my disappointments. These were short-lived friendships, thankfully. There's a famous quote that represents that particular toxicity: "It is not enough for you to succeed; your friends must also fail." If you have a friend who seems to espouse that philosophy, it's important to recognize that she is not actually your friend and move on.

How many pairs of jeans are in your closet? What's your favorite pair, and why?

AB: I have about three pairs that I regularly wear, two pairs I keep folded away for nostalgic reasons (one pair from tenth grade, another pair from college), and about seven pairs, stored in the closet of my study, which readers and booksellers have made for me over the years. I have a nostalgic attachment to those too. I guess I'm pretty sentimental about clothes. Can you tell?

This novel, along with portions of The Second Summer of the Sisterhood and Girls in Pants, will be a major motion picture later this summer. Is there anything you're hoping to see on the big screen?

AB: I loved the last movie [The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants], so I guess I'm spoiled. I'm thrilled that the four actresses are back to reprise their roles. I'm hopeful that it will be as emotionally satisfying as the first. I'm very excited to see it.

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