Year of the Book: Laurie Keller
Many of my books have been said to be somewhat "educational" in nature -- The Scrambled States of America books (geography), Open Wide Tooth School Inside (dental health), Grandpa Gazillion's Number Yard (counting) and Do Unto Otters (manners). I don't really start writing with that end-result in mind but I do like the challenge of writing about subjects that most kids find "boring" and then trying to make it more fun. Other times I've just been inspired to write about something completely random like, say...a doughnut who doesn't know that doughnuts are made to be eaten (Arnie the Doughnut). Birdy's Smile Book falls somewhere in between the two approaches.
Birdy's Smile Book is about a little girl named Birdy who simply discusses why she thinks smiling is so important. It features some of her family and friends, most prominently her beloved dog, "French Fry",
and her best friend, "Pearl" ("who can make her smile reach all the way up and touch her glasses!"). Did you know that someone who studies laughter is called a "gelotologist"? Did you know that smiling is good for your health? Did you know that smiling burns more calories than kick-boxing? Ok, that last one hasn't been proven yet but the previous two are true. Birdy's Smile Book includes such facts on smiling in addition to Birdy's personal thoughts on smiling and lots of silly stuff. And at the end of the book there is a mirror to help readers practice their own smiling, too.
While I occasionally like writing about subjects that are "educational", lately I'm more inspired to write about character development and social skills that might help kids get along in the world. I decided on the topic of smiling after leafing through a book and reading a blurb about smiling and why it's so important. I thought that might make a good topic for a picture book. I ran the idea by my editor, Christy Ottaviano and she loved it. In fact, when I had put the idea on the back burner for a year or so, she reminded me about it...so I finally "dove in".
A new experience for me with Birdy's Smile Book was creating a "human" main character for the first time. In the past my lead characters have either been animals or inanimate objects (I'm still not convinced that they really don't have feelings!) Grandpa Gazillion is a man but that book was more about numbers than Grandpa. I tried using animals and inanimate objects at first but eventually I decided I wanted to have a little girl character who was sweet and fun-loving -- and maybe a little feisty. I found my inspiration in my friend's little neighbor -- a 6-year-old girl whose parents had nicknamed, "Birdy" (I don't even know her real name). I had heard several highly entertaining stories about her from my friend and I knew that she would be my muse.
Last year while working on the illustrations for Birdy's Smile Book, I finally met the "real-life" Birdy and she was as cute and funny as I'd imagined. I'd like to think that if my Birdy were a real person that the two of them would be life-long friends.
I hope Birdy's Smile Book brings a smile to the face of those who read it. I also hope that someday researchers will, in fact, find that smiling burns more calories than kick-boxing. I will keep you posted!
Laurie Keller is the acclaimed author-illustrator of Arnie the Doughnut; The Scrambled States of America; and Open Wide: Tooth School Inside. Her latest book, Birdy's Smile Book, is publishing next September. She lives in Muskegon, Michigan. This is her smile:
Picture Books | tagged Teachers, Year of the Book
Reader Comments (1)
Laurie Keller is exceptionally brilliant when it comes to kids' books. My wife bought Open Wide Tooth School Inside to prepare our little girl for her first dental check-up. Our Clemson dentist is very patient and careful with my wife's teeth and the results are really wonderful. We wanted our child to grow up carrying a beautiful smile as well. I think the book is very clever. That's where I discovered that George Washington had dentures made of elephant ivory, hippopotamus tusks and cow teeth. Even I as an adult, enjoyed the story.