Book Club
catches up with John Bond following the release of his new childrenās book Here at Families, we love snuggling up with a good book! Itās never too early to start nurturing a love of books and sharing a story with your child is the perfect excuse to cuddle up together on the sofa or at bedtime. Books can make ideal Christmas presents and one of our new favourites is Mini Rabbit Not Lost, the ļ¬rst in a new three-part picture book series by award-winning author/illustrator, John Bond. Rachel Bailey talks to John about what led him into the wonderful world of childrenās books. How do you spend your working day?/how many hours a day do you spend illustrating?
audience to use their imagination and read other narratives into it too. I like that.
Iād love to say that most of my day is spent illustrating - but the reality of working for yourself means that thereās a whole load of ānon-creativeā work to do too. Emails, meetings, admin, packing shop orders. No day is ever the same (which I like) but on average I probably get to spend half the day illustrating. When deadlines are looming though, I can end up drawing for 12 hours non-stop.
What's your favourite childhood book?
As an award winning illustrator and animator, why have you chosen children's books? Unintentionally, I had been creating a series of images (that involved Mini Rabbit) and was posting them on Instagram as a fun personal project. I was lucky for the work to be noticed by a few publishers, who subsequently contacted me and expressed an interest in Mini Rabbit as a picture book character. Childrenās picture books are such a visually engaging, tangible format. As much as words can tell one story, I try to create images that āsayā something else. Allowing an
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Any of Richard Scarryās picture books are amazing! I particularly remember the āBest Storybook Everā - which had a pipe-smoking Lion driving a truck on the cover. What gave you the idea to write a 3 part picture book series? Mini Rabbit is an intrepid explorer. I just felt his story and adventures were too much to ļ¬t in 1 book. Plus 3 is one of my favourite numbers.
Where's your favourite place to work? I donāt think I have a favourite. For example - Iām answering this question sat in my cosy front room with a coļ¬ee, in silence. But tomorrow Iāll enjoy painting/drawing in my studio whilst listening to music and chatting with studio mates. A variation in surroundings is healthy, I think. What's your favourite way to spend time with your family? Being outside and living by the seaside. Riding bikes, walking around gardens and exploring woodlands.
I can definitely recognise my children in Mini Rabbit! Are your children a constant source of inspiration? Without a doubt! Mini Rabbit is a total mix of me as a child and my own kids. They constantly remind me of the unļ¬ltered, innocent, imaginative minds that children have. Do you have a favourite phrase/word/amusing habit that either of your children use and you hope they never grow out of? It might seem a bit odd, but part of me doesnāt look forward to them calling me āDadā instead of āDaddyā. Maybe thatās a slight fear of growing up/getting old.
We love your Instagram doodles! Are you a procrastinator? Thank you. Ha! Is it that obvious from my feed? I deļ¬nitely do like to procrastinate, but have accepted the fact that itās a part of my creative process and that I shouldnāt feel too guilty about it. These ābreaksā are important for me to breathe, think about projects and come up with new ideas.
Mini Rabbit Not Lost is available to buy now as a hardback, eBook and audiobook www.iamjohnbond.com Instagram: @iamjohnbond
If youāre after some further inspiration for books to capture your childās imagination, BookTrust has published its 2018 Great Books Guide which, for the ļ¬rst time ever, features 100 book recommendations for children aged 0-12. You can download a copy from www.booktrust.org.uk/great-books-guide
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