This week on The Write Question, host Lauren Korn speaks with the National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature, Mac Barnett, author of Make Believe: On Telling Stories to Children (Little, Brown & Company). Not only do the two discuss Mac’s first book for adults, but listeners will also hear an excerpt from Lauren’s conversation with Mac during a recent Picture Book Picnic, a project of The Write Question that airs on occasional Wednesdays during The Pea Green Boat.
About the book:
Make Believe is bestselling children’s author Mac Barnett’s rallying cry for art and imagination, and a celebration of the power of storytelling in all our lives. It’s an incisive, intimate, and timely invitation to approach children’s literature not only as an art form worthy of deep study and criticism, but as a portal into the lives of the children. And at a time when we are faced with a national literacy crisis, he champions the profound joys of literature and the importance of reading for pleasure. What if children are a great audience for art? What if they are in fact better equipped to engage deeply with stories than adults? What if humans’ ability to appreciate art is, if not innate, awakened early in childhood?
Adults don’t really get it. I think that there are a lot of adults who underestimate kids’ books, and the reason they do that is a lot of adults underestimate kids, which is kind of weird, right? Because every adult used to be a kid, but they forget, I think. They forget. So there’s some convincing, there’s some reminding.
About Mac:
Mac Barnett is the ninth U.S. National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature, appointed by the Library of Congress and Every Child a Reader. He’s a New York Times-bestselling author of stories for children and the writer, with Jon Klassen, of Looking at Picture Books, a newsletter for adults about how picture books work (currently on hiatus). Barnett’s work has been translated into more than thirty languages and sold more than five million copies worldwide. His books have won many prizes, including two Caldecott Honors, three New York Times/New York Public Library Best Illustrated Awards, three E.B. White Read Aloud Awards, the Boston Globe-Horn Book Award, Germany's Jugendliteraturpreis, China’s Chen Bochui International Children’s Literature Award, The Netherland’s Silver Griffel, and Italy’s Premio Orbil. He lives in Oakland, California.
Mentioned in this episode:
Goodnight Moon written by Margaret Wise Brown, illustrated by Clement Hurd (HarperCollins)
“The Secret, Sacred Door: [Publishers Weekly] Talks with Mac Barnett“
“Writing for Five-Year-Olds” by Margaret Wise Brown, an essay written while training at the Bank Street School of Education in New York City
Sturgeon’s Law: “90% of everything is crud”; Barnett’s Addendum to Sturgeon’s Law: “94.7% of kid’s books are crud.”
Mac read these books as a child:
The Frog and Toad series written and illustrated by Arnold Lobel (HarperCollins)
Goodnight Moon written by Margaret Wise Brown, illustrated by Clement Hurd (HarperCollins)
The Chronicles of Narnia by C. S. Lewis (HarperCollins)
George and Martha written and illustrated by James Marshall (Clarion Books)
The Stoopids Step Out written by Harry Allard, illustrated by James Marshall (Turtleback Books)
The Stinky Cheese Man and Other Fairly Stupid Tales written by Jon Scieszka, illustrated by Lane Smith (Viking Books for Young Readers)
Mac Barnett also recommends:
Boats for Papa by Jessixa Bagley (Neal Porter Books)
Dim Sum Palace written and illustrated by X. Fang (Tundra Books), in conversation with In the Night Kitchen written and illustrated by Maurice Sendak (HarperCollins)
Du Iz Tak? written and illustrated by Carson Ellis (Candlewick Press)
The Old Truck written and illustrated by Jarrett and Jerome Pumphrey Brothers (Norton Young Readers)
Lauren Korn recommends:
Make Believe: On Telling Stories to Children by Mac Barnett (Little, Brown & Company)
Show Me a Story!: Why Picture Books Matter: Conversations with 21 of the World’s Most Celebrated Illustrators and You Can’t Say That!: Writers for Young People Talk about Censorship, Free Expression, and the Stories They Have to Tell by Leonard Marcus (Candlewick Press); listen to Lauren’s conversation with Leonard here!
Andrea Long Chu’s “The Velveteen Rabbit Was Always More Than a Children’s Book” in Vulture
Rumpelstiltskin re-told by Mac Barnett, illustrated by Carson Ellis (Orchard Books, Scholastic Inc.); listen to Lauren’s conversation with Mac and Ellis here!
Rumpelstiltskin re-told and illustrated by Paul O. Zelinsky (Dutton Books for Young Readers; this is the version Lauren grew up reading!)
Extra Yarn (HarperCollins) and Sam and Dave Dig a Hole (Candlewick Press) by Mac Barnett, illustrated by Jon Klassen
Du Iz Tak? written and illustrated by Carson Ellis (Candlewick Press)
The Frog and Toad series written and illustrated by Arnold Lobel (HarperCollins)
The original Amelia Bedelia series by Peggy Parish, illustrated by Barbara Siebel Thomas and Fritz Siebel (Greenwillow Books)
Ramona the Pest by Beverly Cleary, illustrated by Louis Darling (HarperCollins); and The Art of Ramona Quimby: Sixty-Five Years of Illustrations from Beverly Cleary’s Beloved Books by Anna Katz (Chronicle Books)
The Monster at the End of This Book by Jon Stone, illustrated by Michael Smollin (Golden Books)
Last Stop on Market Street by Matt de la Peña, illustrated by Christian Robinson (G. P. Putnam’s Sons Books for Young Readers), now available in Spanish! Listen to Lauren’s conversation with Matt here!
The Search for the Giant Arctic Jellyfish written and illustrated by Chloe Savage (Candlewick Press)
Bathe the Cat written by Alice B. McGinty, illustrated by David Roberts (Chronicle Books)
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The Write Question team for this episode was Lauren Korn, host, co-producer, and editor; and Chris Moyles, co-producer, editor, and sound engineer. This episode is supported by Bookworks of Whitefish, offering new books of all genres, stationery, and puzzles. Open 11AM to 6PM Monday through Saturday. Located in downtown Whitefish, Montana, in the Third & Spokane Building.
The Write Question logo and brand (2022) was designed by Molly Russell. You can see more of her work at iamthemollruss.com and on Instagram @iamthemollruss.
Funding for The Write Question comes from Humanities Montana; members of Montana Public Radio; and from the Greater Montana Foundation—encouraging communication on issues, trends, and values of importance to Montanans.
The Write Question is a production of Montana Public Radio.
