PEOPLE & PURPOSE
FEATURED EVENT: Brenden Wenzel, author of “They All Saw A Cat” (Virtual) April 5 at 6:30 p.m. Join us for a virtual author visit from Brenden Wenzel, author of the Caldecott Honor book “They All Saw a Cat,” who will share the details about his writing and illustrating career.
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Picture Books Lead to New Perspectives AUTHOR BRENDAN WENZEL’S picture books are popular not only with children, but with adults, for their ability to teach empathy in subtle and humorous ways. “They All Saw a Cat” tells how different animals see a cat, based on their experiences with cats, but it’s also about science, art and perception. Wenzel recently delivered the keynote address at the Forsyth County Public Library’s Staff Engagement Day. Here he answers questions from Yolanda Bolden, assistant library director.
When did you realize that you wanted to create books for children?
Since I was a kid I’ve loved drawing, and this has led naturally to storytelling, and storytelling has led to making books. I’ve always really enjoyed following a character or an idea, and finding out where things go. Over the years I have explored a handful of creative outlets, but picture books, and the unique opportunities they offer for telling a story, have felt like a perfect way to explore and share. I try to make books people of all ages will enjoy, but nothing makes my day more than finding out a book has resonated with a young reader.
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What was your process in writing and illustrating “They All Saw a Cat”?
Like most of my books, “They All Saw a Cat” started in my sketchbook. I would create an image, then experiment with a line of text, and then jump back to another sketch and see how the image changed once I considered the words I had just written. After the framework of the book was ready to go, the process of making “They All Saw a Cat” got very fun. I basically would wake up every day in my studio and pretend to be a different animal looking at a cat.
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What do you enjoy most about illustrating and creating books for young readers?
I am, of course, not the first person to say this, but the way that young people think about the world is unique and fascinating. That perspective has felt harder and harder to hang onto as I’ve gotten older. One of the best parts about making books for young readers is the opportunity to connect with kids all over the place and also the chance to spend time con-
necting with a younger version of myself. It’s great to talk to anyone about animals, or perspective or books, but my favorite conversations always seem to be with first and second graders. Hearing what kids think about the world around them, particularly the natural world, is an enormous privilege. It keeps me connected to things in a different way and reminds me of how much my older eyes are usually missing. It also keeps that younger voice in myself talking.
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What’s next for you?
More animals! When I am not making books, I have been honored to collaborate with groups working to protect wild places and creatures. Working on these projects and the conversations with wildlife conservationists that have grown from them, has really opened my eyes to just how dire things are for so many threatened species around the world. I, like many others, believe that we need to change our relationship to the natural world and the creatures we share it with. I feel really fortunate that by making picture books, I have a way to both exBrendan Wenzel plore my own fascination with the world around me, and also a platform to share many of the species and places that will need our help to survive in the coming years. I | S — YOLANDA BOLDEN, assistant library director WINTER/SPRING 2022 15
