Don’t worry though, Katie Kazoo’s coming too
Nancy Krulik’s kids books have delighted youngsters of age seven and older for a decade and the author’s coming to Cayman to celebrate.
Nancy’s interactive presentation will include a fun and educational trivia game and afterwards, the acclaimed author will be on hand to sign copies of her books. Nancy will present the latest book in her popular George Brown, Class Clown series, Attack of the Tighty Whities! Then she will share her newest book in the Katie Kazoo Switcheroo series, Super Special: Going Overboard!
“Kids often tell me that they see themselves in my characters, so the people they are reading about are very much like friends they already know,” Nancy tells Weekender.
“And my books are funny, which is something kids very much appreciate. What kid wants to spend her time reading and being depressed? My grandmother used to tell me that if you have a choice between laughing or crying, laughter should always win out. My goal is to make kids laugh as much as I possibly can.” A noble calling indeed. But how does she come up with her characters?
“Well, for starters, there’s always a little bit of me in every character I write. I don’t think an author can avoid that. Lucky for me, I’m still in touch with who I was when I was a kid. Still, a lot of the characteristics of the children in my books come directly from my two children and their friends.
“For instance, the reason Katie Kazoo is a vegetarian is that at seven years old my daughter Amanda announced she was a vegetarian and would never again eat anything that had ever had a face. The whole idea for George Brown, Class Clown and his super burps came from my son, who could proudly burp the alphabet when he was seven or eight years old. He was also the class clown – Ian spent most of eighth grade in the hall, I think.”
Eavesdropper
Sneakily, but brilliantly, Nancy says that when her kids were Katie and George’s age, she would eavesdrop on their play dates from another room and literally take notes on what the kids were saying or doing.
“Now that my children are older, I visit schools and talk to kids to see what they’re into and what they’re thinking. I actually get a lot of ideas from the kids I meet.
“Katie became a cheerleader because while I was on a tour recently, many of the girls I met were coming to my events directly from cheerleading practice. In New York City cheerleading isn’t a big thing. But everywhere else in the States it seemed to be. And sure enough, Katie Kazoo Switcheroo: Three Cheers for. . .Who? sold very, very well.”
The engaging author says that it’s a shame that (some) adults tend to lose their sense of adventure and magic in the universe in place of a dull logic-based approach. Weekender entirely agrees with this sentiment and like Nancy is looking to hold onto that sense of wonder for… well, forever actually. But what would Katie Kazoo do if she was in Cayman?
“Katie has an amazing sense of curiosity and fun, so I think for sure she would want to go snorkelling and come face to face with the beautiful fish. I think Katie might turn into a stingray. She loves animals of all kinds, and I think it would be fascinating for her to find out what it was like to swim like a stingray and have a tail that’s sharp like a knife. It would be fun for me to write as well.
“My favourite Katie Kazoo books are the ones where she switcheroos into animals because I love to research animals. The research is especially important in the ones where she becomes an animal because in order for Katie’s switcheroo to be believable, she has to act and sense things exactly as the real animal would. And I know Katie would want to try some of the traditional local food, although she’s a vegetarian so my guess is she would stick to the fresh fruit.” And if Cayman was a kids book character, what or who would it be?
“My first instinct would be to create a mermaid character named Cayman. It seems a natural thing for the character to have water as a central feature in her life. Mermaids have a sense of fun and joy, which is also something people seek when they visit the Cayman Islands.
“But mermaids also have a great sense of romance and mystery about them and I think people who visit the Cayman Islands are looking for some of that as well. I’ve always been fascinated by mermaids. You may have just given me a great idea!” We aim to please, Nancy. Our usual fee is 20 per cent, by the way.
Young booklovers and their parents can meet New York Times bestselling children’s author Nancy Krulik at Books & Books, Camana Bay on Saturday, February 25 at 5pm.
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