Africa’s grandmother was a double Dutch legend, and Africa knows she can become the same. Her brother scoffs when she signs up for a double Dutch competition, though—how can she hope to compete when she’s never done it before?
Max's Boat Pick:
FLY
Written by Brittany J. Thurman and illustrated by Anna Cunha
Publisher: Atheneum/Caitlyn Dlouhy Books (January 11, 2022)
Can you tell me the origin story behind FLY?
"Fly began as a poem. There have been many moments society pressured and crushed my sense of self. Some of those moments came from lack of representation in media. Books, magazines, movies, advertisements. They all send a message. One day while on my lunch break, I wrote a poem in the hope
to break the bubble holding in these misconceptions. I wanted to counter the negative self-image I held
during my childhood. I wanted others to know, see and understand their worth as well. From the poem
came many revisions, rejections, reflection and ultimately results. The poem, You Girl, transformed into
Fly."
Are there other books you love with strong, confident girl characters? "Yes! I could not have written Fly without being inspired by a multitude of books featuring confident girls. Under My Hijab by Hena Khan and Aaliya Jaleel is a beautiful story featuring a young, confident girl who admires the ways in which the women around her wear their hijab. What If... by Samantha Berger and Mike Curato is a story of wonder and inspiration that shows a young girl confidently following her passions. The Me I Choose to Be by Natasha Anastasia Tarpley and Regis and Kahran Bethencourt shows real photographs of children and all the capabilities that exist within them."
Fly seems as much a celebration of the belief in oneself, as well as a celebration of community. Are there other picture books you love for their sense of community? "When I think of community picture books, Maybe Something Beautiful: How Art Transformed a Neighborhood by F. Isabel Campoy and Rafael López always rings in my mind. I’m reminded of the vibrancy, then I’m reminded of Mira and the neighbors, and their tremendous story that changes their gray community into a colorful oasis. Another community picture book that I love is Just Ask!: Be Different, Be Brave, Be You by Sonia Sotomayor and Rafael López.
In Just Ask, children, and adults of different abilities from around the world celebrate the attributes that make themselves just who they are. In the story it is emphasized that it is more than ok to ask questions; this is how we embrace and get to know our communities."
Your bio mentions you've read to thousands of children. I'm curious in what context? "After graduate school, I began working within the early literacy community in the city I was living at the time, Pittsburgh, PA. For several years, I led baby, toddler and preschool story times programs with corresponding activities. Whether it was at the Children’s Museum of Pittsburgh or the Carnegie Library, or with Reading is Fundamental and several smaller non-profits, I remember the smiles, excitement, and joy from children ready to hear a good story.
I say thousands of children because I truly do not know the exact number. But I do know there were a lot of tiny fingers helping me turn pages, book after book. At the Carnegie Library, I led outreach visits to daycares, child development centers and schools. Many of the schools I visited did not have Black children or Black educators. It was important for me to share the stories that truthfully reflect our world, just as it is vital for me to write the books that reflect my truth. I hope that my visits left an impact on the kids and educators.
Each week, a lamb puppet accompanied me to each visit. Once there, we sang songs, played games and read a handful of picture books. I still have that lamb puppet today to remind me that a child is already eager for a story."
What were some of your favorite picture books to read aloud? "This is the question of all questions! I have so many favorites and I wish I could list them all! Many of the books I like to read aloud have a musical quality or give ‘the feels’ after the first read! Play This Book by Jessica Young and Daniel Wiseman is like being in a band between the pages!
All Are Welcome by Alexandra Penfold and Suzanne Kaufman is a lyrical story of inclusion. Thank You, Omu! by Oge Mora is probably my top favorite. I love the theme of community and giving of oneself without asking for anything in return."
Fly is your debut picture book. Was there a single picture book that made you want
to pursue picture book writing? "I am always reflecting on Jacqueline Woodson’s Each Kindness. While I began writing long before I was introduced to Each Kindness, the story, characters, themes, and words kept me on the pursuit to write my own. While picture books are intended for children, they are also for teens, adults, our older generations. We can all benefit from the stories, images, and messages within.
Each Kindness is one of those books that showcases everyday values in an extraordinary way. When I think of Each Kindness, the same emotions I had on the first read still settle in my soul. That’s powerful."
What do you think the best picture books do? Is there a book that you think does this particularly well? "If I were to sum up one thing the best picture books do, I say it is that they transform. But this one aspect of picture books has a few different meanings. Picture books transform the reader as they traverse the story. You are taken on a short, but eventful journey. The characters are transformed from their original status to something ‘new’. (To be honest isn’t this every book?!) BUT, picture books also transform the aura of the reader. Through heartfelt moments, picture books tap into our inner most struggles, desires, wants and dreams, leaving
us with a feeling that I can only describe as 'the tingles.' Don’t we want to give picture books a hug once we’ve finished? Then, we’re ready to pick them up all over again to have the same experience."
What contemporary picture books do you hope will become the classics of the future? "Hair Love by Matthew A. Cherry and Vashti Harrison, Your Mama by NoNieqa Ramos and Jacqueline Alcántara, and Your Name is a Song by Jamila Thompkins-Bigelow are all books with timeless, classic qualities. Kids for generations will pick up these stories, see themselves and want to share the story with those they love."
What's on your list of 100 best picture books of all time? "I think this book is on everyone’s list and it is always at the top of mine. The Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats. I used to read this story to preschoolers each winter. I made felt pieces to accompany the characters and setting. Once we finished reading, we would retell the story through the felt pieces. Peter is a timeless character that so many can relate to today. Just as it was vastly important for Black kids to seem themselves in books as children full of joy when The Snowy Day came out in 1962, it is equally important for that same joyful representation today. Go Peter!"
What picture books coming out in 2022 are you most looking forward to reading?
"So many! Can I say all of them?! But here are a few of the ones I can wait to get my hands on!
Francis Discovers Possible by Ashlee Latimer and Shahrzad Maydani
Show the World by Angela Dalton and Daria Peoples
American Desi by Jyoti Rajan Gopal and Supriya Kelkar"
In this reimagined Scheherazade tale, story-loving, scooter-riding Shahrzad meets a boy who recounts fleeing from his home, where the king has grown angry and cruel. Shahrzad imagines herself zooming off in her toy airplane to confront the king. She tells him story after story, making him reflect on the kind of leader he really wants to be. We live and die by the sword? Not exactly, says Shahrzad. We live or die by the stories we tell and how we see, frame, and word the world.
Max's Boat Pick:
SHAHRZAD & THE ANGRY KING
By Nahid Kazemi
Publisher: Enchanted Lion Books (January 11, 2022)
Can you tell me the origin story behind Shahrzad and the Angry King?
NK: "I have always wanted to turn one of the stories of One Thousand and One Nights into a book. When I came to Canada, I started reading the book more carefully and I realized that behind all the stories of the One Thousand and One Nights lies the story of a woman who saved a city from death and healed the king through the power of storytelling, tact, wisdom and love that she injected into stories. The idea for my story originates from here. I rewrote this story dozens of times. After a while, I thought about what stories Shahrzad might have told the children if she had lived in this era. Then the character of the little girl in my story formed in my mind. Someone who looks like today's children with a simple appearance and is interested in hearing other people's stories. In the end, with the power of storytelling, wisdom and patience she also heals the king."
Are there any other picture books you love that are a modern reimagining of an old or classic tale? "The Prince and the Porker, by Peter Bently and David Roberts, is a reimagining of Mark Twain’s classic The Prince and the Pauper.
Anne of Green Gables: A Graphic Novel by Mariah Marsden and Brenna Thummler"
What would be on your list of 100 best picture books of all time?
"The Forest by Riccardo Bozzi, Valerio Vidali and Violeta Lopiz
The Promise by Nicola Davies and Laura Carlin
The Polar Bear by Jenni Desmond
I Want My Hat Back by Jon Klassen
The Little Flower King by Kveta Pacovská
The Sun is Yellow by Kveta Pacovská"
Updated: Jan 26, 2022
An enchanted log princess and her wooden robot brother are inseparable, until the sleeping princess, mistaken for lumber, is accidentally carted off to parts unknown. Now it's up to her devoted brother to find her, and get them safely back home.
Pick by Corey R. Tabor, Mel Fell:
THE LITTLE WOODEN ROBOT AND THE LOG PRINCESS
By Tom Gauld
Publisher: Templar Publishing (September 2, 2021)
Can you tell me the origin story behind The Little Wooden Robot and the Log Princess? TG: "It started as a bedtime story that I made up for my two daughters when they were small. The idea of a princess who turns into a log when she falls asleep was based on the fact that we call my younger daughter ‘The Log’ because she sleeps happily and heavily right through the night despite any kind of noise or disturbance. The girls liked the first version so I told it a couple more times, improving it and adding details and I began to realise that this might make a good picture book. I wrote many more drafts which I shared and read aloud to my wife and daughters until it became the version I brought to the publisher. In the first draft there were two sister-princesses, but I thought it was more fun to have a wooden robot brother."
The Little Wooden Robot and the Log Princess certainly feels like a classic fairy tale, but one infused with humor, charm, and a decidedly modern sensibility. As Carson Ellis wrote, "I didn't know the world needed another fairy tale until I read this funny, beautiful, perfect book." Do you think the world needs more fairy tales? Are there other modern fairy tales you love? "I love old fairy tales, particularly those collected by the Brothers Grimm and I did think about adapting one of their stories for my book, but I couldn’t find one that felt right when it was separated from the others in the collection. I like the idea of lots of magical tales happening in the same world, which is why my book contains some imaginary mini-tales nested in the main story.
I think fairy tales can be powerful because their themes and archetypes are so clear and strong and have been in our culture for so long that they can affect us on a deep level.
Tomi Ungerer’s book The Three Robbers is a favourite of mine. The family of robbers who appear in my book are a homage to his story. It’s quite dark for a picture book, but my kids loved it. Not a picture book, or for children (at all!), but I loved the language and reinvention in Angela Carter’s collection of retold fairy tales The Bloody Chamber."
You've certainly built a successful career illustrating for the likes of the New Yorker and the Guardian. What made you want to publish your first picture book? "The most important thing for me was having children and reading stories to them almost every night for more than five years.
I learned a lot about writing picture books by reading them aloud and realising there were books that were written so well that they made me a good reader and performer, and there were others that were a real struggle.
I think that the British writer Allan Ahlberg is brilliant at writing stories to be read aloud, and really inspired me to work hard on my script. I love the intelligent playfulness of the books he made with illustrator Janet Ahlberg, particularly Peepo, Each Peach Pear Plum and The Baby’s Catalogue. Peepo, for example, is a board book with a hole in the pages and a poem about a baby looking around him. It functions beautifully as a simple story to read to a small child, but if you look closely at the illustrations there’s a whole other story about Britain in the second world war
and the baby’s father going off to war.
I was also inspired by all Tove Jansson’s work, which seems always to conjure a wonderfully believable but strange new world. Apart from anything else, Who will Comfort Toffle? is just a brilliant title."
Do you remember what you loved reading to your girls? "I clearly remember reading all the books mentioned above but what comes to mind now particularly is Tomie dePaola’s book Strega Nona (which is really a retelling of the Grimm’s folktale The Magic Porridge Pot but with pasta instead of porridge). In our family we still talk about the character ‘Big Anthony who didn’t pay attention’ and quote the line “Big Anthony. Such a lie!” whenever one of us exaggerates."
What would be on your list of 100 best picture books of all time? "I’d put books by all the authors mentioned above but also Anno’s Journey by Mitsumasa Anno which is a beautiful, silent book in which a small figure wanders through a gently fantastic version of Europe. The drawings are incredible and it has a calm, poetic feel."
What have been your favorite picture books that came out in 2021? "I thought that Nadia Shireen’s book Barbara Throws a Wobbler was hilarious and The Rock from the Sky by Jon Klassen was brilliant."
What picture books coming out in 2022 are you most looking forward to reading? "I’m really looking forward to Mina by Matthew Forsythe. Matt is a good friend who gave me advice while I was making The Little Wooden Robot and the Log Princess. I saw an early, rough version of Mina and loved it, so I can’t wait to see the finished book. His paintings are always charming and atmospheric."