I've had the privilege of interviewing so many talented writers and illustrators over the past year. To celebrate Wally’s launch, the tables have been turned, and seven amazing picture book authors and illustrators that I admire are interviewing me!
WALLY THE WORLD'S GREATEST PIANO-PLAYING WOMBAT
Written by Ratha Tep and illustrated by Camilla Pintonato
Published by Princeton Architectural Press (October 18, 2022)
THAO LAM, author-illustrator of The Line in the Sand and THAO: A Picture Book: “I'm sure you've gotten this many times, but exactly how do you pronounce your name?”
RT: “Thao, you wrote such a wonderful book about growing up with an unfamiliar name. I was really awestruck when I saw THAO: A Picture Book since we have the exact same problem with our names—and the same remedy, too. Just like in ‘Thao,’ ‘Ratha’ has a silent ‘h,’ as in ‘raw-ta’ (same emphasis on both syllables). But it took me awhile to get here. In elementary school, I acquiesced to “rATH-a” (we were learning phonics after all), and in junior high and high school my name became “rAWTH-a” (a baby step toward asserting myself). It wasn’t until I got to college (a great place for reinvention), that I started introducing myself in the way I really wanted my name to be pronounced."
ANNE WYNTER, author of Everybody in the Red Brick Building and the forthcoming Nell Plants a Tree: “You wrote a fantastic book about piano-playing wombats. I'm curious—do you have a musical background?”
RT: “It’s so fitting that you asked me that, Anne! In Everybody in the Red Brick Building, a chain reaction of noises wakes everyone in an apartment building, and then another one lulls them back to sleep. I grew up in an apartment and know only too well how thin those walls can be. As a child, I had started piano lessons, but my next-door neighbor complained that my piano playing was too disruptive. So I barely practiced for fear of making noise, and quit after only a short while. If only I had a big eucalyptus forest to play in, like Wally! But I’m picking up the piano again after all these years, and learning alongside my kids.”
RUTH CHAN, author-illustrator of Thank You, Neighbor! and The Alpactory: "This is your first picture book! (Congrats!) What was the most challenging or unexpected part about writing Wally the World’s Greatest Piano-Playing Wombat?
RT: “For sure, cutting down the words! I’m a journalist and used to writing long-form pieces, so limiting myself to such a small amount of text took some getting used to. I’m a real writerly writer, and can get quite wedded to certain words and how they sound, so having to cut something I loved was difficult. It also meant that each word carried more weight, so each one of the 400-or-so words in Wally had to go under heavier scrutiny than usual. Wally went through at least 50 different drafts. An earlier version was completely in rhyme!”
CARTER HIGGINS, author of A Story is to Share and Big and Small and In-Between: "What's something you really love to do but aren't very good at? Let's assume you are an end-of-story version of Wally for this one: celebratory and playful, not mad about it!"
RT: “Writing? I’m not sure any writer thinks they’re very good at it, do they? I’m the opposite of a beginning-of-story version of Wally when it comes to writing. He’s over-confident; I’m definitely not. I fret and fret, but also like Wally, at some point I just say, ‘Enough!’ The fretting only gets you so far.”
JULIE FALATKO, author of Rick the Rock of Room 214 and Yours in Books: "One thing I love about the picture book community is the relative lack of competition. Everyone boosts each other and cheers each other on (like on this website!). And here you are with a book about a competitive wombat! What are your thoughts on competition in general? Or is it really envy that motivates us to do better?" RT: “Agreed! I’m a newcomer in the picture book community, and I’m constantly amazed at how welcoming it is. I think it stems from the fact that bookmaking can be a lonely process. We’re all in the same boat, toiling on our books alone, and never really knowing if anything will actually come from it. So I’m so grateful for all of the amazing support I’ve received.
Competition was something I really grappled with as a child. (I was on a swim team, but didn’t compete.) I hope Wally can help kids work through these messy feelings of envy and competitiveness. I want them to see that these feelings are perfectly normal, and what matters is how they react to them.
But while I’m competitive about many things, I’m oddly not competitive with writing. I think it’s because I’m so amazed by what other writers create. I’m like Wylie here, who’s so in awe of Wally. Knowing that there are so many talented authors out there making such creative, smart, funny, moving books really motivates me to do better.”
KATE HOEFLER, author of Courage Hats and Nothing in Common: “I love the emotional honesty of this book—an honesty that resonates with all ages! It made me think a lot about internal versus external validation when it comes to making things or doing things we love. It’s something people of all ages struggle with (and wombats, too). How do you grapple with it?”
RT: “What a question, Kate! I’m definitely my own worst critic. I set a high bar for myself, which I don’t usually reach, but when I get close, it’s certainly a great feeling. A deep-seated, long-lasting one, too. But writing is a nebulous thing, so external validation can, well, validate internal feelings. Wally and Wylie swelled with pride when they saw their adoring audience. But when that audience moves on, I hope they’ll still feel proud of themselves. External validation can depend on a lot of things that are beyond anyone’s control—the mood of the moment, what’s already been done, what’s floating down from the sky (I mean, ahem, what's coming down the pipeline)—so I try not to let it affect how I intrinsically feel about my work.”
ZOEY ABBOTT, author-illustrator of Clementine and the Lion and Pig and Horse and the Something Scary: "I have a theory that we write for ourselves (despite the fact that a book is an offering to the world and a marketplace object). Did you write this book for yourself? Your current self? A past self? An alter-ego self?" RT: “Writing, putting words down on a page in some form, was the only thing I've ever aspired to do, even from a young age. It brings me so much joy. But I only ever started thinking about writing for children after my first daughter was born. As Matt de la Peña put it so well, picture books ‘are a reason for a child to be close to a parent and a parent to be close to a child.’ With my daughters on my lap, we’ve read so many books together: gorgeous, lyrical books; thought-provoking books; books where they see themselves; books that shed light on a certain aspect of the world; and books that helped them wind down for bedtime. But what I loved most was to hear them laugh. So I wrote Wally for that version of myself: the parent who wanted to hear one last shriek and snort from my kids before I kissed them goodnight.”
Art by Camilla Pintonato
Bunny and Turtle are the best of friends, but they are very different from each other! Bunny is all action, while Turtle is a thoughtful planner. When Bunny and Turtle decide to climb a mountain together, Bunny is eager to get going. But Turtle wants to take it slow and prepare for the trip. Will Bunny become impatient? Will Turtle's planning pay off?
Max's Boat Pick:
WHAT'S THE RUSH?
By Yiting Lee
Publisher: Princeton Architectural Press (October 18, 2022)
Welcome onboard, Yiting! I'd love to know the origin story behind What's the Rush?
YL: "The two characters Bunny and Turtle are originally inspired by my beloved parents. I came up with the idea for the book during a time period when I moved back to live with them. Being an adult, I tried not to look at them as my parents, but just as two adults trying to get along in life. They are very different, but they find their way to tolerate each other, and at the same time be inspired by the other, too! From observing them, I see there’s no good or bad personality; it only depends on how you look at it. That’s where the story came from!"
Early sketches of What's the Rush?:
Upon reading the book, I couldn't help but see myself in Bunny! I'm absolutely always in a rush, and always trying to scurry my kids along. Who are you?
"Now you know I was raised by Bunny and Turtle! So I feel I got a bit of both. My nature is quite spontaneous, but my Turtle dad is always at my back reminding me of all the things I should bring (and all the things I probably don’t need). So I am a hybrid!"
An interior spread from What's the Rush?:
Fairy tales are certainly having their moment. There are SO many modern retellings just out, from Mac Barnett and Jon Klassen's The Three Billy Goats Gruff to Jed Alexander's Gold, Davide Cali and Marianna Balducci’s Too Many Pigs and One Big Bad Wolf, and of course, your sweet book. I'm curious how you decided to go with an already well-known storyline?
"It's actually quite interesting that when I wrote the story, I never thought of it as a retelling of
Aesop's tale until I read the book blurb from the publisher. But I love it. I am happy to see how the story is coming into people’s hands, and how they have their interpretation."
What are some new or forthcoming books you're looking to getting your hands on? "Of course Wally the World's Greatest Piano-Playing Wombat is on my list. I'm also interested in getting Paul Nash: Designer and Illustrator by James King, and Drawing for Illustration by Martin Salisbury."
Updated: Nov 29, 2022
Shimmer, glimmer, glowing light – twinkle, twinkle, winter night. Celebrate winter with this magical twist on a beloved nursery rhyme that brings the shimmering season of lights to life.
Max's Boat Pick:
TWINKLE, TWINKLE, WINTER NIGHT
Written by Megan Litwin and illustrated by Nneka Myers
Publisher: Clarion Books (September 20, 2022)
Thanks for coming onboard, Megan! Can you tell me the origin story behind Twinkle, Twinkle, Winter Night? ML: "This book began with a distinct initial spark on a dark December drive…eleven years ago. My then-toddler son was newly mesmerized by all the different kinds of light we passed – from lights on houses, trees and lampposts, to the starlight and moonlight and glittering snow. He started using the phrase 'twinkle lights' to call out everything he saw. That car ride was full of joy and excitement and wonder at the world. A simple drive had turned simply magical! I’ll never forget it. And it got me thinking about how in this darkest time of year, our world is truly filled with light. Light that we can ALL share. I knew I wanted to make a book that celebrated that in some way."
For those who love Twinkle, Twinkle, Winter Night, can you recommend a few other titles that you think they might also enjoy? "I’d recommend they cozy up with these winter titles that are filled with a sense of wonder, joy, and optimism, and where children are finding all kinds of magic in the season:
The Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats
Snow by Uri Shulevitz
Before Morning by Joyce Sidman and Beth Krommes
Snowy Race by April Jones Prince and Christine Davenier
Winter is the Warmest Season by Lauren Stringer
Twinkle, Twinkle, Winter Night has the honor of being one of the very few rhyming books on Max's Boat! I'm in awe of your rhymes, though I'm sure you've heard the same advice I have, which is that books in rhyme are an extremely hard sell. I'm curious why you decided to go in rhyme for your debut book? "I’m thrilled to have that honor – I am a huge fan of Max’s Boat! But oh yes, I have certainly heard that same caution on rhyme. And yet – we are who we are, right? I write in rhyme because that’s the way my brain works. When I do school visits and talk about writing I often say that I 'play with words' for a living. I feel like I work on word puzzles all day. Once I have an idea and a story shape in my head, I let it all pour out (and that is usually, but not always, in rhyme or some sort of lyrical fashion) – and then I get to work. Swapping a word here, shortening a beat there…changing the sound and shape and flow of the text. I think some of it may stem from my background in education, where I worked for many years helping children learn to read, often through poetry and song and rhyme. I’ve always been a little enamored with language and wordplay. And for Twinkle, Twinkle, Winter Night, it certainly seemed like the right fit, given the nod to 'Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star' in the title and the fact that I had a repeated refrain I wanted readers to feel in their heart."
What are some of your favorite books in rhyme?
"Andrea Beaty, Julia Donaldson, Chris Van Dusen, and Josh Funk are masters at what I would call 'rollicking rhyme.' Books like Ada Twist, Scientist; Room on the Broom; The Circus Ship; and Lady Pancake and Sir French Toast have this wonderful rhythm that pulls you along to the climax in an 'I-just-can’t-stop-reading' kind of way! Those are all read-aloud GOLD and so much fun to share.
Red House, Tree House, Little Bitty Brown Mouse by Jane Godwin and Blanca Gómez is another read-aloud gem with that same clever, fast-paced rhyme, but done in a way just right for the youngest of young readers.
And then there is the more thoughtful, quiet rhyme. The kind where you might sit with a line for a beat or two before turning the page, and where the connection and emotion that is happening for the reader is more internal. That is very different than the kind I just spoke about – but equally satisfying. A perfect example of this would be All the World by Liz Garton Scanlon and Marla Frazee, one of my
favorite picture books of all time and a real mentor text for me. I remember thinking 'THIS. I want to
make picture books like THIS one day.'
Similarly, Wondering Around by Meg Fleming and Richard Jones is another poetic text I love that allows
for this kind of pondering and pausing."
What would be on your list of 100 best picture books of all time? "Picture books are my favorite books in all the world, so my list could stretch on forever and ever! In the spirit of brevity, I’ll name just one. My favorite holiday book: The Polar Express by Chris Van Allsburg. I actually wrote my application essay for the Children’s Literature graduate program at Simmons University on the magical realism in that book way back in the year 2000. I’ll love it forever."
What forthcoming books are you most looking to get your hands on? "There are two upcoming titles I’m really looking forward to that fit quite nicely into this conversation, and they are from creators whose whole body of work I admire. I’ll be first in line for the December release of Dark on Light by Dianne White and Felicita Sala, and 2023’s In the Dark by Kate Hoefler and Corinna Luyken."