Tag: Ryan G. Van Cleave

Educational Activities: Bo the Brave, by Bethan Woollvin

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Bo the Brave
Author: Bethan Woollvin
Illustrator: Bethan Woollvin
Peachtree Publishing
1 April 2020
32 pages

Book description from Goodreads: “A feisty little girl learns who the real monsters are in this brilliantly funny medieval adventure.

Once, there lived a little girl called Bo. Bo wanted to be just like her brothers and capture a fearsome monster. Bo is small, too small to catch a monster–or so her brothers say. But Bo isn’t one to take no for an answer, so she sets off on a quest to catch a monster of her own. Can she defeat the furious griffin, conquer the hideous kraken, and triumph over the monstrous dragon? Or has Bo got the wrong idea who the real monsters are?

Author-​illustrator Bethan Woollvin, the creator of the New York Times Best Illustrated Little Red, employs her signature style in this original fairy tale with a clever twist. Readers are sure to fall in love with Woollvin’s newest vibrant and sassy protagonist.”

Need some reviews of Bo the Brave?

Educational Activities inspired by Bethan Woollvin’s Bo the Brave:

  • Before Reading–From looking at the front and back cover: 
    • Does this seem like our world, or is it about a different time and place?
    • What type of character do you think Bo is?
    • What do you think of when you’re told a character is “brave”?
    • Who/​what do you see sneaking about on the back cover?
    • If you could ask the author any question before you read the book, what would it be?
  • After Reading–Now that you’ve read the book: 
    • Which of the three creatures that Bo encounters on her adventure do you like the most?
    • What does the story teach us about who/​what monsters are?
    • How do you think Bo’s relationship with her brothers will change after this story?
    • At the end of this story, we learn that Bo and her brothers “loved roaming the land and learning about all the amazing she came across.” What type of creature do you think they met next?
    • From time to time, this story rhymed. Were they are moments that really stood out for that reason?
    • What other story does Bo the Brave remind you of?
  • Writing–Bo the Brave has three monsters in it: a griffin, a kraken, and a dragon. Write up your own list of other monsters that Bo might’ve encountered. Consider using the alphabet to guide your choices, such as “B is for Bigfoot” or “N is Nine Naughty Penguins!” Be as scary or silly as you choose! 
    • Feel free to create illustrations if you want.
    • Perhaps you might want to share your results with a sibling or adult?
  • Activities–This climax of this story has a lot to do with a dragon, so let’s celebrate dragons together. With an adult’s help, try the following dragon-​themed crafts: 
    • Dragon Corner Bookmark–Easy to make and useful, too. They’re so cute!
    • Dragon Mask–What better way to have fun with dragons than to become one? With this printable and a little decorating, you’ve got all you need for some dragontastic fun!
    • Make a Dragon Snack–It’s rare to have fully edible crafts in these Educational Activities, but this one sure is! Chocolate chips, raisins, a cashew, and a pear. Yum!
    • Paper Plate Dragon–It’s amazing how a single paper plate can transform into such a cool puppet.
    • Paper Puppet Dragon–Yes, another dragon puppet of sorts, but the results here are far different the paper plate version. What’s terrific is how this one scales up or down in terms of difficulty (for older or younger kids).
  • Further Reading–In addition to being about dragons (and other “monsters,”) this book is about bravery. Which of these other picture books about bravery have you read? (Click on the book cover for more information on any of these titles!)

Author Interview: Dev Petty

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This month’s author interview is with Dev Petty, a former Visual Effects artist who “sat in a terribly dark room for ten years working as a texture painter” for films like The Matrix. Don’t read that the wrong way—she really liked it! But after having daughters, she discovered her passion and skill for writing, and things worked out for Dev there, too.

We’ll cover a lot more about her writing career below, but to prepare us for that, here are seven fun Dev facts:

  • Married her high school sweetheart.
  • Was on the Bay Bridge in the ’89 earthquake.
  • Loves Cheezits.
  • Great at word jumbles.
  • Wicked good at making sandwiches.
  • Swears a lot.
  • Practicing Jew but devoutly Californian.

Here’s a bonus eighth thing about Dev–she’s got a new book out, The Bear Must Go On, and it looks tremendously fun.

Plus, here are some URLs to learn a bit more about Dev and all that she does in the world of picture books:

https://www.devpetty.com/​

https://nerdybookclub.wordpress.com/tag/dev-petty/

https://twitter.com/devpetty

With that, let’s get right to the Qs and As here!

RVC: One thing that most text-​only picture writers lament is not being able to create the art for their own books. You painted well enough to work for Hollywood. So…why aren’t you doing your own art to go with your picture book manuscripts?

DP:  Yes, I was a good painter. I had a knack for color and composition and texture and was good with all the technology to make it sing. I teach art sometimes, and I make art all the time. BUT…being artistic and being able to tell a story with my art are different things. I don’t have a particular point of view. I know what I like, but that doesn’t mean I have a style and certainly no sense of character design, movement, etc. Honestly, I really like the writing part–I grew up in Berkeley in the 70s. I’m by nature pretty weird and have a lot of ideas…the writing suits me fine. Doing the art would feel sort of like a…job.

RVC: I’ll bet the Hollywood experiences still proved useful in other ways.

DP: Being in film does, for sure, inform how I tell a story. In film, you have to tell a story front to back–which is to say if someone is noticing some mistake in the background when something important is up front, you’ve failed as a storyteller. That helps me be economical with words and good at discerning what thread I want to pull on in a story.

Film also taught me to have a terribly thick skin.

RVC: What kind of writing training did you undertake when making the shift from creating art to writing picture books?

DP: I actually wasn’t much of a writer and started by taking a personal essay class, which–I ought to tell you–is the cheapest therapy you’ll ever have. I enjoyed writing but didn’t know that I wanted to write picture books until I just wrote one for fun and totally loved it. After that, I just read a lot of blog posts and a gazillion picture books and just wrote, wrote, wrote. I’m not too much for researching or classes or conferences. I just dove in and figured it out.

RVC: You’ve got a thing for animal characters, it seems. Why do they appeal to you as a storymaker?

DP: Well, yeah. I do write books with humans, just none have been picked up as yet. But I like to write about animals–they come with some intrinsic qualities that create good material. So I’m able to inject a lot into their personalities because there are already certain elements there. But I’m not one to just take a human-​like character and decide it’s a walrus for the fun of it.

RVC: Mike Boldt—the illustrator of the Frog books—did an interview where he talked about I Don’t Want to Go to Sleep. Regarding the character of Frog, Mike said that he can “hear his voice and see his expressions just by reading the manuscript.” How do you go about creating an effective voice? What specific steps/​techniques are you using?

DP: Mike is the best–just have to get that out there!

RVC: I quite agree! (I hope he sees this and wants do his own OPB interview down the road.)

DP: Frog is fun to write because he’s sort of droll and dry but still curious and engaged in the world around him. Frog has a lot of questions. I’m not sure I take any specific steps–I can just sort of hear his voice, which is very much how I write in any case. I hear a book, at least the opening of a book, in my head before I ever put pen to paper. I don’t think I could write a narrative book with Frog. He’s all dialogue for me.

RVC: I’m a fan of Claymation, so obviously I dug your 2017 book, Claymates. What’s the story behind that book?

DP: A lot of wine.

Kidding!

Well, the extraordinary Lauren Eldridge and I were sort of Twitter friends and talked about working together. She would make these funny clay characters and I thought they were really hilarious. I didn’t want to take something normal, like a regular story, and have her illustrate it in clay. I wanted a story that was ABOUT the fact they were clay, where your character could be anything at any time. That’s so open and abstract and kind of 70s trippy and it all just came out at once–the ideas at least.

I pitched her the idea and she liked it! We did a full photographic dummy to try to sell it because, honestly, how could you pitch that story and not sound like a lunatic?! What’s funny is that in the same way the balls of clay become friends through experimentation, play, being silly–so did we. She’s one of my best friends in the world. Art brings the strangest bedfellows together.

RVC: You’ve talked before about the challenge of finding each story’s thread. Would you explain that concept by way via the creation of one of your books?

DP:  Well, Claymates is actually a great example. On the one hand, it’s just some goofball book about some balls of clay who make a mess of themselves. But in a bigger way, the thread of Claymates is about how no matter how many and what sort of hands (parents, teachers, friends) are trying to mold and shape us at any given time, ultimately we have an insatiable need to evolve on our own, experiment, make mistakes, play. I try to remember this as a parent–not to tinker too much in who my kids will become, they have to shape themselves. As long as they’re happy and good people, I don’t care what they end up doing.

RVC: In a 2014 guest post on Tara Lazar’s fine blog, you recommend writers stop writing. Care to give us an explanation on that surprising idea?

DP: Well, I think it’s really easy to go too quickly to writing once you have an idea. You get this lightbulb and want to RUN to start writing. But I’ve found I do much better when I just let things percolate a while, otherwise I just end up shuffling words about on the page instead of digging a little deeper, trying things, finding the thread.

RVC: While OPB interviews agents, we don’t always talk about the HOWS and WHYS of having/​getting one. You’re with Jennifer Rofé at the Andrea Brown Literary Agency, right? How did you land that relationship, and what has it done for your career?

DP: Jen is actually my third agent (loooooonnnnnng story) and I’m so grateful I reached out to her when I was again looking. She’s Mike Boldt’s agent too, so I already knew she was awesome. Jen pushes me, sometimes really hard, to do my best work. She’s editorial, honest, and whipsmart. I rarely feel intimidated by anyone but if I were to, it might be her. Not because she’s mean, because she’s just really sharp, engaged, and articulate. When we talk I write “don’t babble” on my hands because she is so on point with everything and I never want to look back and think, “Darn, Dev, you babbled!”

But she’s also kind and has an uncanny sense of the industry and how to balance life and writing. She’s just a fantastic person and I’m very lucky.

RVC: If you could time-​travel back to that first year of your writing apprenticeship, what would you tell yourself to ease the process? What do you know now that you wish you knew then?

DP: I suppose that it’s just a really slow process, even if you start out with a popular book like I did. It takes time to build this career and you don’t want to rush it just to sell books. I learned most of that from Jen, for what it’s worth.

RVC: Alright, it’s time to transition to the always-​fun, never-​equaled, ever-​exciting SPEED ROUND! Are you ready?

DP: Word.

RVC: The Carlton Dance, the Macarena, or the Cha Cha Slide. Which are we most likely to catch you performing? 

DP: The Macarena. (I don’t even know what the other two are, but I still know without doubt the answer is the Macarena!)

RVC: Most underappreciated film in The Matrix series?

DP: The first one. Everyone loves it and appreciates it and knows it’s the best and it still couldn’t be overappreciated because it’s really original and thoughtful and smart, so it’s probably underappreciated.

RVC: If picture books were ice cream flavors, what flavor would your Frog series be?

DP: Bubblegum. It’s hard to know what the underlying flavor is and there’s weird chewy bits inside for some reason that you pick out and let stain and stick to your napkin and then eat all at once for like five minutes before spitting it out.

RVC: What’s something about your writing process that might surprise people?

DP: I tend to write the opening a bunch of different ways before committing. Once I find one I like, I let that guide the rest of the writing. I throw a LOT away but save everything in case I did something great.

RVC: “The last truly GREAT picture book I read was __________.”

DP: Oooh. I’m really picky actually. In a way that probably doesn’t serve me well.  Sam & Dave Dig a Hole is up there, for sure. It’s dead smart.

RVC: The one-​sentence message you hope all of your picture books deliver?

DP: Ask questions.

RVC: Thanks so much, Dev!

DP: The pleasure is mine! Thank you!

Picture Book Review: Fly, Firefly! by Shana Keller

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Fly, Firefly!
Author: Shana Keller
Illustrator: Ramona Kaulitzki
Sleeping Bear Press
1 March 2020
32 pages

This month’s PB review is by Ryan G. Van Cleave (#1 Firefly Fan at Only Picture Books) and Florida-​based freelance artist Austin McKinley.

–Ryan’s Review of the Writing–

Fly, Firefly! tells the story of what happens to a single firefly when “a wind current carried him out to see the sea.” While out there, he sees winking lights beneath the water–other fireflies, perhaps? So he dives into the water and can’t get out. He’s rescued by “my niece and I” who explain that the underwater fireflies were in fact the glow of marine plankton–“bioluminescence swirling and twirling through the great sea!” The eponymous firefly is then released on land where he finds his fellow fireflies, and all is well again.

The smoothness and sense of most of the rhymes make lines such as “He dove and splashed through the wet glass, but under the surface, air did not last” stand out. Another line that gives this reviewer pause is “The sea pushed and tugged while I scooped up our bug.” While the second part of the Back Matter does an effective job of offering STEM-​style information on fireflies (a.k.a. lightning bugs)–including pointing out that they’re beetles, not flies–it doesn’t say that they aren’t bugs either (a fact, despite what this line claims). Considering that this book does have a science fact focus–and given the popularity of the term “lightning bugs”–this distinction seems useful to make at some point. Ultimately, the reason the word “bug” is there seems clear–to fit the rhyme, not the science.

Taken as a whole, the text works, though the overall story isn’t a story so much as an anecdote since it’s unclear whether the main character could/​should be the firefly (witness the title, and how it’s the first character we see on page one and in the last spread), the first-​person speaker (who’s an older character), or the niece, Marjie (who rescues the firefly and explains bioluminescence to it in Dr. Doolittle fashion that belies her very young age).

What gives away the real goal of the book is the first page of the Back Matter–the author read a letter that Silent Spring author and environmentalist Rachel Carson wrote to a friend about her own memorable encounter with a firefly half a century ago. An excerpt of that letter shows that Rachel herself considered writing a children’s book about the experience, though she clearly never did such a thing. Some readers might find it gratifying that Shana Keller helped fulfill Rachel’s impulse here with Fly, Firefly!.

The other selling points of this book are the really fine art (see what Austin says below!) and the second half of the Back Matter that gets into the science and biology of fireflies. It’s a plus that the author has so much information on Rachel , too, because kids need to know about her impactful life and work, without a doubt. If Shana Keller opts to write a nonfiction book about Rachel Carson (or the worldwide impact of Silent Spring) with the quality she used in her picture book biography, Ticktock Banneker’s Clock, OPB will be eager to see it.

If you’re a firefly fan or you just love good picture book art, Fly, Firefly! is likely to brighten up your nights.

3.5 out of 5 pencils

– Austin’s Review of the Illustrations–

German Illustrator Ramona Kaulitzki’s sumptuous illustrations are so kinetic you can practically hear them, but nevertheless remain calming and peaceful. Here she explores the entire spectrum from the warm glow of the firefly’s body, through a masterful rendering of magic-​hour twilight, to the swirling blues and greens of glowing plankton churning in the waves, all in tints pure and moody without being brooding.

The forest at dusk comes alive. The panoply of sea life she depicts with exquisite sensitivity, whereas the human and titular firefly characters she handles with appealing whimsy.

Her choice of perspectives is also fascinating. We soar through the air, plunge into the waves, and plod along the beach as the sparkling stars hang over the day’s last glow. She skillfully captures mood and emotion—it’s a truly magical, evocative experience that perfectly portrays the parallels of life-​generated lights that created such an impression on biologist Rachel Carlson, and subsequently author Shana Keller.

A look through Ramona’s portfolio will reveal a flair for stylizing the natural world in a sophisticated but approachable way both dynamic and heartwarming without ever becoming saccharine. Her work is digital, but has a very organic, textural, handmade quality that reminds one of mid-​century children’s illustration, like a next-​generation Alain Grée or J.P. Miller. Her staging, however, is far more clever and interesting, her cartooning more fine-​tuned, her palette more refined.

It’s a fine line to walk, but she dances along it expertly in Fly, Firefly!

5 out of 5 crayons

Austin McKinley makes comic books, cartoons, movies, video games, screenplays, novels and novellas through his company, Flying Car. He shot and appeared in the award-​winning feature documentary The New 8‑Bit Heroes alongside director Joe Granato. His comic illustrations have also been published by Image Shadowline, Devil’s Due/​1st Comics, Alias/​Blue Water Press, Avatar, Boom!, Blue King Studios, and FC9. He wrote and illustrated Squareasota, a weekly cartoon in the Sarasota Herald-​Tribune for seven years.
He is currently illustrating Tales of Mr. Rhee vol. 5: Rockstar Paranoia, a graphic novel for Source Point Press.

Agent Interview: Jennifer Unter (The Unter Agency)

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I had genuine worry that the COVID-​19 situation would understandably keep the OPB blog from continuing with the every-​Monday posts we’ve managed since we launched in April 2018. I’m incredibly stoked that we’re able to keep on trucking thanks to the generosity of literary agent Jennifer Unter who agreed to be this month’s Industry Insider Interviewee. What luck!

Here are three things you need to know about Jennifer before we get rolling.

  1. She has her own literary agency.
  2. She has her own literary agency.
  3. She has her own literary agency.

Let’s be clear about something. Jennifer has plenty of other selling points that make her an agent any writer would be ecstatic to partner with, but here’s what I’ve come to realize over the years—if you can launch your own agency and keep it up for more than a decade, you’re doing not just one thing but a BUNCH of things well. Let’s find out what those are!

Agency Website: www.theunteragency.com

Twitter: https://twitter.com/JenniferUnter

RVC: There’s no way to interview anyone right now without asking this question—how has the COVID-​19 virus affected your work?

JU: It’s so hard to tell at this point. In the present moment, many editors are asking me to re-​pitch them with projects in June since they’re so overwhelmed with working from home (with kids and other issues) that they aren’t buying anything. A few of my books have been pushed back to 2021, but some are going forward as planned, so we’ll see how that works. I’ve been trying to support my authors whose books are out now with new ways to publicize–online storytime and the like. Publishing is a real community, so everyone is trying to help everyone else out and we’re all just getting used to the new (temporary) normal.

RVC: Thanks for that honest update. I get a lot of questions from students, colleagues, and writing friends about what’s going on in the writing world. We’re all sort of holding out collective breath.

JU: Holding our breath and taking very deep breaths at the same time, if that’s possible!

RVC: Exactly so! Let’s circle back to the beginning. At what point did you know you were going to work in the writing world?

JU: I knew when I was in college that I wanted to work with writing in some way. I was an English major and my favorite thing was to read books, so I figured that working in publishing would be an extension of that!

RVC: How did you land that first editorial job at Henry Holt & Co.? And what was the most valuable lesson you took from that experience?

JU: I went to the publishing course at NYU the summer after I graduated college and the editorial assistant job at Henry Holt was on the job board, so I applied and, luckily, I got it. My boss, Allen Peacock, was a brilliant editor, and he taught me to trust my instincts and to have passion for every project. Every book is at least 2 years of work and if you don’t completely love it from the get go, you’re going to fall out of love pretty quickly when you have to read it for the 4th time.

RVC: While you’re not a copyright lawyer, you did attend Fordham University School of Law, and you spent some years at an entertainment firm, so I’m guessing you have better-​than-​average insight into this. What’s the most common misconception that writers (and maybe some agents and editors) have about contracts in general, and/​or copyright? 

JU: Many people believe that contracts are ironclad or can’t be negotiated, but that’s not the case. In addition, contracts can be difficult to read or make sense of–that’s what I focused on as a transactional entertainment attorney. After reading many hundreds, they become much clearer!

RVC: Is there one part of them that most early-​career authors don’t appreciate or think though? I guess I’m thinking about what a genius move George Lucas made way back when to keep the merchandising rights (and sequel rights!) to the Star Wars franchise. Any recommendations for contract parts to read with extra-​care and attention?

JU: Definitely the competition clause. A contract should never prohibit a writer from doing their job, which is being a writer! A contract that doesn’t allow a writer to publish other things–whether it’s another book, an article, or anything that isn’t very similar to the work that is the subject of the contract–is going overboard and should be negotiated so that it’s fair to the writer.

RVC: Great advice there for sure! Now let’s talk about the decision to create The Unter Agency, LLC in 2008. 

JU: I knew I wanted to work for myself for a long time, but it’s hard to find the right moment. I had two young kids at home, and I wanted to do something that was for me. I felt like if I didn’t go for it then, I was never going to do it.

RVC: What was your first sale?

JU: David Gumpert’s Raw Milk Revolution to Chelsea Green Publishing.

RVC: Unlike some kidlit agents, you also represent a host of other areas—food/cooking, nature/​environment, biography/​memoir, pop culture, travel/​adventure, true crime, politics, and health/​fitness. What percentage of the books your rep are kidlit in general? And picture books in specific?

JU: I would say that 60–70% of my list is kidlit. And out of that 60%, probably ½ is picture books.

RVC: What do you like most about picture books?

JU: I love the whimsy and the truth of picture books. They are our emotions, distilled down to 32 pages.

RVC: What picture book project at your agency—at whatever stage it’s in—are you most excited about?

JU: That is not really a fair question, since I love them all! But, I think for this current moment, a picture book that just came out entitled Krit Dreams of Dragon Fruit by Emily France and Natalie Becher–which is about weathering change–is perfect for kids right now.

RVC: Okay, it’s time for another installment of the World’s Greatest Picture Book Blog Speed Round™(ish)! Jennifer, are you ready? 

JU: Ready, willing, and able!

RVC: Since your agency’s office is a half-​block from Central Park…“The strangest thing I’ve seen at Central Park was…”

JU: A clown with a pet snake.

RVC: Best-​yet-​somehow-​underappreciated indie bookstore in NYC?

JU: I think because there are so few of them, no bookstores in NYC feel underappreciated, but my favorite at the moment is The Corner Bookstore on the Upper East Side.

RVC: If picture books were comfort food, what would they be?

JU: Eggplant lasagna.

RVC: Top attributes of your top clients?

JU: Their dedication to their craft and their desire to bring joy to their readers.

RVC: Best non-​Unter-​repped picture book of 2019?

JU: Magic Ramen by Andrea Wang.

RVC: What’s the secret sauce of YOUR success?

JU: I work all the time! And, I love what I do.

RVC: Thanks so much, Jennifer!

 

 

Educational Activities: Winged Wonders by Meeg Pincus

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Winged Wonders: Solving the Monarch Migration Mystery
Author: Meeg Pincus
Illustrator: Yas Imamura
Sleeping Bear Press
14 March 2020
40 pages

Book description from Goodreads: “For decades, as the monarch butterflies swooped through every year like clockwork, people from Canada to the United States to Mexico wondered, ‘Where do they go?’ In 1976, the world learned the answer: after migrating thousands of miles, the monarchs roost by the millions in an oyamel grove in Central Mexico’s mountains.

But who solved this mystery? Was it the scientist or the American adventurer? The citizen scientists or the teacher or his students? Winged Wonders shows that the mystery could only be solved when they all worked as a team–and reminds readers that there’s another monarch mystery today, one that we all must work together to solve.”

Need some reviews of Winged Wonders?

And here’s the cover reveal and an author Q&A with Meeg Pincus at Celebrate Picture Books.

Educational Activities inspired by Meeg Pincus’ Winged Wonders:

  • Before Reading–From looking at the front and back cover: 
    • What do you already know about butterflies?
    • What do you think the monarch migration mystery is?
    • Why might butterflies be called “winged wonders”?
    • If you could ask the author any question before you read the book, what would it be?
  • After Reading–Now that you’ve read the book: 
    • Where did the people–scientists, citizen scientists, and regular folk–discover that the butterflies went?
    • What were the most important things you learned about butterflies?
    • What other story does Winged Wonders remind you of?
    • What is a citizen scientist?
    • How can YOU help the monarch butterflies?
  • Science–While Winged Wonders has lots of information about monarch butterflies within the main story and the back matter, there’s so much more to learn about these amazing creatures! Consider watching the following short informational videos to learn more: 
  • Activities–With an adult’s help, try the following butterfly-​themed crafts: 
  • Further Reading–Which of these other picture books about butterflies have you read? (Click on the book cover for more information on any of these titles!)

 

Author/​Illustrator Interview: Hannah Batsel

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It’s always a treat to witness the beginning of a picture-​book career, and that’s what’s happening with the author/​illustrator we’re interviewing this month—Chicago artist Hannah Batsel, whose debut, A Is for Another Rabbit, comes out this month from Carolrhoda Books (Lerner Publishing). Hannah has a background in creating fine art and book arts, so she’s sure to have an interesting perspective on the process of becoming a picture maker. She’s also a self-​described “fashion idiot and rabbit superfan.” Talk about intriguing!

Let’s get to the interview to learn even more.

RVC: You probably don’t know this, Hannah, but I reached out to recent OPB-​interviewee (and Lerner editor) Carol Hinz for suggestions on early-​career writers who might be ideal for an OPB interview. Your name came up immediately—she clearly thinks you’re terrific. But here’s the real surprise—I already knew your name and work. You’ve got books in the Brizdle-​Schoenberg Special Collections Center at my college’s library, and I lurk in there a lot. 

Tell me about your interest in making special-​collections-​quality books like Ephemerus and Maneater, which are the two I’ve shown to my own students here.

HB: Wow, my reputation precedes me!

Well, I was first introduced to artist books and fine press books as a part of my printmaking studies, and I completely fell in love with them. I think that I’m a bit of a control freak, and the fact that I can write, illustrate, print, and bind an edition of books all by myself (and therefore obsess about whether that text line should be a sixteenth of an inch to the left or not for three days without annoying anyone else) is very empowering. Printing only small editions lets me branch out from the traditional codex structure and make weird double-​sided books, books with jointed paper dolls, fold-​out books that expand to twice their size—you name it! I think there’s a book design out there that’s perfectly suited to contain any conceivable human idea.

RVC: Let’s talk about my personal favorite—Maneater. It’s a boxed set of four books, where each sits inside the other like those Russian nesting dolls, and they’re held in place by little hidden magnets. And the story—if I recall it correctly—works backwards in time.

HB: It does work backwards in time—and then forward again! The smallest, innermost nested book takes place the furthest in the past, so as you read towards it, you get more context about the characters’ past relationships before having to read yourself back to the surface to finish the story in present day.

RVC: How did this project come about?

HB: This project was inspired by my collection of late-​19th-century mass market colonialist children’s books (a mouthful, I know). These books’ covers are gilded and colorful and just a treat to look at, but their beauty belies a lot of frankly horrifying ideas about the Western world’s relationship with both the natural world and the cultures of people they didn’t understand.

The four books of Maneater are all illustrated in that lush and extravagant style, and each of the four books follows a different character. There’s a mythical tiger god who rules over life on a tropical island, an actual tiger who is captured from the island and sent to a zoo, a villager on the island who must emigrate and work at the zoo once the island is stripped of its natural resources, and a wealthy shareholder who ends up employing the zookeeper as a butler after a tiger attack forces him into retirement. The books can be read separately, but only when you read them together does a legacy of colonialist greed become clear.

RVC: In what ways are artist books like picture books?

HB: I would say that all of my artist books are picture books! They are certainly for an older audience, but every single page in them is illustrated. Like other picture books, they are meant to be held and explored and looked at, not just read. I even have an artist book that’s only pictures: Overhead, a book that I wrote, printed, and bound all on a commercial airline flight (confusing the flight attendants to no end, I’m sure.)

RVC: You earned a BFA in Printmaking and Book Arts from the University of Georgia, followed by an MFA in Interdisciplinary Book, Paper, and Print Arts from Columbia College Chicago. Clearly you had a book-​focused future planned early on. When did you get interested in this career path?

HB: I had a professor at the University of Georgia who got me into artist books (thanks, Eileen!). Once it clicked for me that books could be made out of just about anything by just about anyone, I set out to do it in as many ways as possible. I feel fortunate to have found something that I can confidently say I’ll be making for the rest of my life in some form or another.

RVC: Let’s talk about your debut picture book. What’s the story behind A Is for Another Rabbit?

HB: I was speaking with my mom on the phone about how I’d like to write a children’s book, and how abecedaria (that’s nerd talk for “alphabet books”) were some of my favorites. I told her that I especially love animal alphabet books, but that I would probably want to make every letter about rabbits, which would make for a very boring book. We started goofing off and improvising pages (“U is for Uuuuuughh, seriously? Stop with the rabbits already!”) and while some of our off-​the-​cuff joke pages were a bit—well—vulgar for a younger audience, others did make it into the first draft of the manuscript.

RVC: How did the story change in the rewriting/​revision process? Was it always metafiction from the first draft?

HB: Very little of the original manuscript ended up changing, actually! It was mostly minor tweaks. It was always metafiction; I think that with a format as tried-​and-​true as the alphabet book, the most interesting thing to do was to throw a monkey wrench into it and explore what would happen if this very rigidly-​structured genre went awry.

RVC: Please talk a little about how you handle pacing via image and text. 

HB: This is something that I tend not to think too hard about; rather, I draft out what feels best to me intuitively and then show as many people as I can so that they can tell me if something feels off. Pacing is one of those things that’s hard to get a grasp on if you’re too close to the project, so having outside perspectives helps a lot. In general, I try to keep my text as tight and necessary as possible—if I can cut something from a manuscript, I do!

RVC: A Is for Another Rabbit uses rhymes, at times (yep—look what I did right there!). What’s your philosophy for rhyming well?

HB: Keep a consistent meter, jam as many rhymes in there as possible (not just at the end of the line), and above all else, use a rhyming dictionary! There’s no shame in it, and there are tons of free ones online; starting with a really great final line and then looking up rhyming words to build up to that finale is a great way to write a stanza.

RVC: The book is dedicated to “my favorite animal in the whole world: the rabbit.” What’s the appeal of these “feisty, fantastic, fluffy-​tailed” critters?

HB: One little-​known rabbit personality trait that I love is their sheer audacity, their absolute impudence. When a cat behaves like a jerk, at least he’s got the claws and teeth to back it up. A rabbit is a prey animal who has been running for his life in the wild for millennia, and yet you let him up onto your couch one time and he thinks he’s the king of the world!

The misbehaving rabbits in my book are inspired by a real rabbit, Pip, that I used to have. He was allowed to go anywhere in the house except for under my bed, so of course, he loved to try to sneak under when I wasn’t looking. Whenever I caught him snooping around for a way in, he would leap into the air with joy at the thrill of being caught and flee the scene! He seemed to like getting caught even more than succeeding!

RVC: I can sympathize with that because (when they were very little) my two kids loved to sneak into my office and riffle through my manuscripts, papers, stories, etc. and wait until I came back to catch them, and they’d laugh, laugh, laugh. Then they grew up and couldn’t care less what I do for a living.

What’s next for you in terms of the picture book world?

HB: I’m always working on my next book, and right now, I’m finalizing the manuscript and initial sketches for a new picture book that will make use of my letterpress-​printing background. I can’t tell you much, but I’ll give you a hint: if A is for Another Rabbit is a good Easter read, this next one would be better suited for Halloween…

RVC: I look forward to the spooky fun!

Last question for the main part of this interview. Since Carol Hinz got you into this, what’s it been like working with her and Carolrhoda?

HB: Carol and the team at Carolrhoda have been an absolute dream to work with. Making your own books like I do means that I had no idea how a bigger production worked, which book sizes were standard, what to put on a title page, what a book contract looked like, or even… oops… how to accurately manage a final deadline. But Carol and Danielle Carnito, my art director, held my hand ever-​so-​patiently and walked me through the whole process.

One thing that’s a bit strange is that I’ve never met either of them in person! From start to finish, making a book together was a multi-​year process, all over email. For all I know, Carol could be a bunch of rabbits standing on each other’s shoulders in a trench coat. Wait—have you ever met her?

RVC: Hold on now… while I’ve interviewed Carol, I have NOT met her. Hmmmm. You might be on to something here.

HB: I think so!

RVC: Alrighty—it’s time for the much-​heralded, always-​awesome SPEED ROUND. Rabbit-​quick questions + hare-​fast answers, please! Are…you…ready?!?

HB: I was born ready.

RVC: Your three favorite picture book rabbits?

HB: Wait, wait, I’m not ready!

Uhhhh, jeez, this is a tough one! Honestly, Richard Scarry’s vast herd of fictional rabbits would probably take up all three slots. Naughty Bunny, The Bunny Book, Bunnies, I Am a Bunny, not to mention all of the Busytown buns—the guy’s practically cornered the market on great picture book rabbits! Honorable mentions, of course, for Margaret Wise Brown’s many picture book rabbits, especially those of Goodnight Moon and The Runaway Bunny!

RVC: Most surprising rabbit fact?

HB: Rabbits can’t vomit. Hey, you asked for surprising!

RVC: Best place a rabbit might go to get GREAT Chicago deep dish?

HB: Pequod’s, hands down. That caramelized crust…

RVC: Best picture book art you’ve seen in the last year?

HB: Daria Tessler’s riso-​printed zine, Three Magical Recipes from the Book of Secrets of Albertus Magnus, published by Perfectly Acceptable Press here in Chicago.

RVC: What’s going to keep you up tonight after doing this interview?

HB: Nothing. I can go to sleep within 15 seconds of hitting the pillow; it’s like a superpower.

RVC: Three things that are at the heart of your overarching creative vision?

HB: Magic, fine detail, and the exploration of power (and the power of exploration!)

RVC: From one Chicagoan to another, thanks so much, Hannah! It was a hoot cluck chirp uhhh, say…what sound do rabbits make?

HB: Hmm, well they do thump their back feet on the ground when they’re angry. But I think this interview has been more like a contented tooth-​chatter, don’t you?

RVC: Right. That’s what I meant. It was truly a tooth-​chattering swell time. Thanks for playing along, Hannah!