Journalist Alison van Diggelen explores Carmel through the lens of love

Scottish-born BBC journalist Alison van Diggelen has written a new book called The Love Project, dedicated to her mother. It's a book about love, and it's a book about Carmel, now her home. Through a rich spectrum of voices, The Love Project gives us an intimate glimpse of a place we thought we knew. Alison van Diggelen came to KAZU's studios to tell us more:

"Carmel is like a Brigadoon for me. The way the mist rolls in off the sea and cools everything down in the space of a few minutes."

Lisa Ledin: What motivated you to write this book?

Alison van Diggelen: My mother has been a widow for over 20 years. She's 93 years old today, and she discovered love, a true love, in her late 80s. And when I saw how that had transformed her, I knew I had the lens that I needed to write a book. I knew I needed to use the lens of love to explore my neighborhood.

Click the audio player at the top of this story to listen to the interview or read the highlights below.

Alison on the structure of The Love Project:

"There are about 30 love stories in the book, The Love Project. I used my BBC journalism hat, if you like, to really paint a portrait of Carmel that might surprise even people that know Carmel very well. It has a reputation for affluence and homogeneity. But I found a lot of diversity. I interviewed people who either live or work in Carmel, from teenagers to 90-year-olds. Many immigrants from Sierra Leone, Syria, South America, Hungary. And they each had powerful and remarkable stories of love."

Why van Diggelen switched from journalism to this new writing path:

" I think I've changed my focus. I used to cover technology, business, and now I've been reading a lot of poetry. And in fact, the writer Albert Camus said, we must have one love, one great love in our life, since it gives us an alibi for all the moments when we're filled with despair. And I think that kind of writing was part of what helped inspire me. And talking of poetry, my mother, 93 years old, still as sharp as a tack. It's incredible. I called her yesterday and I told her that I would be talking on the radio about love and about my book. And she just started quoting Shakespeare, Sonnet 116: Love is an ever-fixed mark that looks on tempests and is never shaken. Love bears it out even to the edge of doom. I feel these words are so resonant right now, and I think people need to hear them.

Alison reads a letter to her mother from The Love Project:

Lisa Ledin

"Carmel by the Sea, April 22nd, 2025. Dear Mom, I'm writing to share a secret with you, something you inspired. As you know, my anxiety has spiked recently, and you always told me, "when you're feeling down, do something for someone else." So I'm writing a book for you. This book is to thank you for gifting me your insatiable curiosity, for never blaming me for moving halfway around the world when I was 25. This book is a way of staying close to you, even though we're miles apart. It's a celebration of the love you found after 20 years a widow. It's a celebration of love in all its forms, sent from my village by the sea to your village in the heart of Robert Burns' country. With love and thanks and admiration, always and forever.

There will be a book signing at Pilgrim's Way Bookstore in Carmel on the evening of November 7th, where you can meet the author, Alison van Diggelen.