We talk to author Molly Harris about her new picture book Whirby, illustrated by Jacob Souva. Whirby is a robot and his favourite activity at school is bot battles, but in his excitement about getting ready he forgets to get any rest and recharge his batteries and when it comes to his turn in the competition he has no energy left. Can he recover and do what he really enjoys?
A great book for bedtimes with lots to look at in the pictures.
You can find out more about Molly Harris here and read Jacob’s substack here.
Molly’s other books are:
The Big Squeeze, illustrated by Alison Hawkins
I Need Space, illustrated by Jon Corby (out Dec 2026)
And the book Molly recommended was
Benita and the Night Creatures, by Mariana Llanos, illustrated by Cocoretto
At the end we talk about two new picture books
I’m Going to Make a Friend by Darren Chetty, illustrated by Sandhya Prabhat
Naughty by Jeanne Willis, illustrated by Paddy Donnelly
Katy
0:11
Hi,
I'm
Katy
Ali
0:12
And
I'm
Ali
and
welcome
to
Mosty
Book
Talk.
Katy
0:15
In
this
episode,
we
are
talking
picture
books.
We
have
an
interview
with
the
author
Molly
Harris
about
her
new
book,
Whirby,
and
we
also
chat
about
a
few
new
books
that
have
caught
our
eye.
Ali
0:28
We're
very
pleased
to
have
with
us
the
author
Molly
Harris,
who
published
her
second
picture
book
at
the
end
of
March.
Her
first
book,
The
Big
Squeeze,
came
out
in
2024,
and
her
latest
one
is
called
Whirby,
and
it's
illustrated
by
Jacob
Souva.
So
welcome,
Molly.
You're
originally
a
technical
writer,
which
I
think
means
you
write
manuals
and
explain
us
for
software.
And
you
grew
up
in
Massachusetts
but
now
live
in
Ireland.
So
give
us
a
quick
overview
of
how
you
became
a
picture
book
author.
Molly
0:55
Yeah,
absolutely.
So
that
is
true.
I
am
a
technical
writer
for
my
day
job,
which
that's
precisely
what
it
is,
writing
somewhat
dry
documentation
explaining
software.
And
while
that
is
a
great
day
job,
it's
when
you're
creative
inside,
like
me,
you're
looking
for
another
outlet.
And
so
I
had
studied
English
in
college.
I
was
always
like
a
young
writer,
writing
stories
when
I
was
growing
up.
And
then
as
I
was
reaching
my
late
20s,
I
felt
very
detached
from
that
side
of
me.
And
I
was
just
like
a
worker
bee.
And
I
wanted
to
get
back
in
touch
with
that.
What
do
I
want
to
write?
I'd
kind
of
always
written
like
secretly,
but
never
showing
it
to
anybody.
And
so
I
thought,
okay,
I
have
to
be
brave
and
put
something
out
there.
What
do
I
want
to
write
about?
Everything
that
I,
if
I
was
to
think
of
like
really
favorite
books,
it
was
always
when
I
was
younger.
And
I
think
I
was
always
very
drawn
to
children's
literature
and
like
very
fond
of
thinking
about
the
books
that
I
loved
growing
up.
And
so
I
think
that's
where
I
was
drawn.
But
I
thought
I
would
go
more
into
middle
grade
or
YA.
And
so
I
had
started
to
write
that.
And
then
as
I
was
working
on
some
manuscripts
there,
I
had
a
baby,
my
first
baby.
And
that's
then,
oh,
I'm
picking
up
some
of
my
old
favorite
books
for
his
library,
like
Where
the
Wild
Things
Are
and
Good
Night
Moon.
And
just
going,
yeah,
these
are
bangers.
Like
these
so
good.
And
that
type
of
language
was
getting
back
into
my
head.
Like
I
hadn't
picked
up
a
picture
book
in
so
long.
But
then
I
was
finding
the
stories
that
were
in
my
head
were
starting
to
come
out
a
little
bit
more
in
that
short
form.
And
when
I
had
my
first
child,
it
was
the
very
start
of
COVID.
It
was
early
2020.
And
at
the
time,
not
to
bring
up
the
drama
of
that
period,
but
we
were
all
stuck
inside
with
absolutely
no
outlets
or
anything
to
do.
And
I
was
speaking
to
my
husband
one
day
about
just
how
we
were
all
just
taking
in
so
much
and
had
nowhere
to
put
all
this
energy.
And
I
described
it
as
being
like,
we're
sponges
soaking
everything
up,
and
we
have
no
way
to
ring
ourselves
out.
And
when
I
got
that
little
metaphor
out
of
me,
I
went,
geez,
that's
a
really
nice
image.
And
I
went
and
I
wrote
the
big
squeeze
based
on
that.
And
that's
how
I
ended
up
going
down
the
path
of
picture
books
because
that
one
was
the
one
that
got
me
my
agent.
Katy
3:10
And
it
took
you
a
long
time,
though,
didn't
it?
You
got
an
agent
quite
quickly.
I
was
looking
at
your
work.
You
got
an
agent
quite
quickly,
but
then
it
took
what
three,
three
years.
Molly
3:19
Yeah,
I
think
it
was
three
and
a
half
or
so.
Yeah,
I
didn't
have
to
struggle
too
much
in
the
query
trenches
on
that
one.
And
I
know
for
a
lot
of
authors,
that
is
a
really
long
process.
I
was
very
lucky.
And
I
am
still
with
my
agent
Sarah
Rivers.
She's
wonderful.
And
the
book
did
get
picked
up
by
HarperCollins
quite
quickly,
actually.
But
I
had
this
very
quick
start,
and
then
I
discovered,
my
goodness,
it
takes
a
long
time
to
make
picture
books.
Katy
3:50
Yeah.
Molly
3:50
So
I
think
it
was
acquired
in
well,
I'll
get
this
date
wrong,
maybe
2021.
And
it
ended
up
coming
out
in
2024.
Wow.
And
so
just
keeping
that
little
secret.
I
didn't
want
to
until
it
felt
real.
I
didn't
really
share
it
with
a
lot
of
people.
So
I
kept
it
to
myself
for
a
while.
Wanted
something
a
little
more
tangible
to
share
with
my
parents.
This
is
real.
This
is
happening.
Katy
4:11
And
was
Whirby
quicker?
So
you
must
have
been
commissioned
for
Worby
while
you
were
waiting
for
that
to
come
out.
Molly
4:18
I
wrote
Whirby
then,
I
think
that
was
2023.
I
had
given
that
manuscript
to
my
agent
who
we
went
back
to
HarperCollins
with
that
one.
And
yeah,
they
did
pick
that
up
within
the
year,
I
think
it
was
that
we
gave
it
to
them.
Publishing
industry
is
very
slow.
They've
backlog,
they
know
it's
hard
for
can't
imagine
what
inboxes
look
like
in
the
editorial
set
of
things.
But
it
did
get
picked
up.
And
from
I
think
from
when
I
gave
it
to
my
agent
to
when
it
is
coming
out
is
exactly
three
years.
It's
a
very
long
process.
It
is
a
really
long
process.
Ali
5:09
So
do
you
want
to
give
us
a
quick
overview
of
Whirby?
Who
he
is?
Yeah.
Give
us
a
little
a
little
bit
about
him.
Molly
5:15
Yeah.
So
Whirby
is
a
robot.
Is
he
a
him
or
then?
He's
a
him.
He's
a
him.
Yeah.
I
have
two
boys,
so
I
really
wanted.
And
this
is
very
drawn
from
a
real
life
experience
of
my
boys.
Werby
is
a
little
robot
who
loves
going
to
his
robot
school.
My
illustrator
is
Jacob
Suova,
and
he
really
developed
this
beautiful
world
in
which
Whirby
lives
in
with
all
these
other
robots.
And
they
do
go
to
school,
and
he's
a
good
little
student.
And
his
favorite
class
is
called
gadgetering.
In
gadgetering,
you
come
up
with
these
contraptions
to
fight
in
bot
battles.
So
if
you've
seen
those
really
exciting,
like
real-life
battle
bot
kind
of
things,
it's
that
type
of
thing.
And
Whirby
loves
this.
It's
very
exciting,
very
stimulating
for
him.
And
he
goes,
he's
supposed
to
be
going
to
bed
one
night,
but
he's
a
little
too
excited
about
the
prospect
of
being
in
a
bot
battle
the
next
day.
He
stays
up
all
night
and
forgets
to
charge
himself
in
because
he
has
a
robot
and
he
has
a
finite
battery.
And
over
the
course
of
this
night,
while
he
is
just
playing
around
and
getting
really
hyped
up
that
his
battery
level
is
actually
going
down,
down.
And
he
ends
up
going
to
school
the
next
day
and
he's
malfunctioning
because
he's
really
running
on
empty.
And
I
won't
spoil
it,
but
if
you
have
ever,
ever
been
exhausted
in
that
kind
of
way,
you
probably
know
it
doesn't
go
great
for
him
when
he
gets
into
the
ring
to
battle.
Katy
6:44
Yeah.
Staying
up
all
night,
not
good
for
anyone
ever.
You
said
that
it
came
from
your
children.
How
did
that
come
about?
And
where
did
that
story
fall?
Molly
6:55
My
eldest
son
at
the
time,
he
was
two
in
a
bit,
and
he
was
going
through
this
stage
at
bedtime,
as
they
are
wont
to
do.
And
we
but
we
were
really
struggling
with
it.
I
was
pregnant
with
my
next
son.
We
were
trying
to
buy
a
house.
We
were
currently
like
living
with
my
in-laws
at
the
time.
We
had
we
were
just
we
were
very
stressed
out.
We
had
just
moved
back
to
Ireland
as
well.
So
we
were
all
sort
of
out
of
our
routines
and
we're
just
in
this
really
desperate
space.
And
he
is
waking
up
in
the
middle
of
the
night,
grouchy
the
next
day,
refusing
to
go
to
bed.
And
he
was
a
two-year-old,
so
he
was
into
robots.
And
I
just
desperately
said
to
him
one
night,
buddy,
even
robots
got
to
plug
in.
Like
it's
like
a
phone
or
a
tablet.
They
don't
just
go
forever.
You
have
to
charge
them
overnight.
And
he
was
like,
What
if
you
don't?
And
that
was
really
the
jumping
off
point.
What
if
you
don't?
He's
gonna
act
really
slow
and
glitchy,
and
none
of
his
gizmos
are
gonna
work.
And
eventually
he's
just
gonna
power
down.
He's
gonna
be
busted
until
he
charges
up.
And
that's
just
how
it
is.
And
we
started
to
refer
to
that
bedtime
routine
as
it's
time
to
charge
your
batteries.
And
yeah,
that
was
he
is
now
he's
almost
six
and
he
sleeps
great.
But
the
irony
is
at
the
time
I
was
pregnant
with
my
second
son,
and
now
for
exactly
three
years
later,
he's
the
exact
same
age.
We
are
doing
these
this
whole
thing
all
over
again.
Katy
8:19
I
have
a
lot
of
sympathy.
My
eldest
was
quite
a
good
sleeper,
but
my
youngest
was
actually
old
enough
to
understand
the
concept
of
bribery
before
she
slept
through
the
night.
And
yes,
not
my
best
parenting
moment,
but
it
did
finally
work.
Ali
8:35
You
do
what
you're
gonna
do
to
get
your
sleep.
It's
the
adult
as
well.
You'll
get
the
end
of
your
tether
as
well.
You
you
need
to
recharge
and
get
some
absolutely
I'm
pretty
glitchy.
Molly
8:45
Glitchy
parenting
going
on
at
the
end
of
the
day.
Katy
8:48
Yeah,
mine
was
probably
nearly
three
before
she
slept
through
the
night.
Um,
but
it's
about
that
time.
Molly
8:54
That's
what
I
find
so
interesting
about
gosh,
this
book
is
coming
out,
and
it's
actually
now
more
pertinent
about
the
second
one.
Yeah.
And
but
it
is
it's
because
just
in
that
time,
they
this
is
where
they
really
they're
showing
how
uh
independent
they
are.
Katy
9:08
And
what
are
you
doing?
There's
nothing
worse
when
you
have
to
you've
been
through
that
and
then
you
have
to
get
up
in
the
morning
and
go
to
work
and
try
and
be
a
normal
human
being
anyway.
Molly
9:15
No,
the
feeling,
and
that's
what
I
think
Jacob
did
a
great
job
in
the
illustrations
of
really
depicting
what
that
feels
like
the
next
day.
And
Werby
has
these
bright
green
eyes,
but
if
there's
little
details
aside
from
the
battery
going
down,
like
his
green
eyes
are
actually
red
as
he's
about
to
crash
out,
and
it's
like,
yeah,
that's
how
it
feels
pretty.
Ali
9:36
And
even
though
it's
got
those
clear
messages
that
you
need
to
sleep
and
things,
it
doesn't
feel
like
a
lesson
with
the
robot
bolted
on.
Right.
So,
how
conscious
were
you
of
keeping
the
story
first
and
then
the
mess
kind
of
creeping
in?
How
are
you
balancing
that?
Molly
9:51
It's
a
tricky
thing
because
you
don't
want
to
be
too
didactic,
you
don't
want
to
be
too
much
go
to
bed.
I
think
there
are,
and
we
read
all
the
bedtime
stories,
right?
I
think
there's
maybe
two
kind
of
main
types.
One
is
the
kind
of
like
go
to
bed
already.
And
trust
me,
I've
been
there.
And
then
there's
a
lullaby,
the
kind
of
like
soothing
rhyming
off
to
bed
now,
sleepy
head.
Yeah,
and
we
love
them.
Like
I
mentioned
earlier,
they're
great.
I
didn't
want
it
to
necessarily
be
you're
being
told
to
go
to
bed.
I
wanted
it
to
like,
can
you
recognize
what
it
feels
like
when
you
don't?
And
I
think
that's
where
the
robot
and
it's
really
obvious
once
you
read
theory,
it's
his
cranks
are
cranky
and
his
gears
are
gritty,
and
yeah,
you
just
don't
feel
quite
right
and
you
don't
act
quite
right.
And
he's
got
the
siren
that's
just
blasting,
and
that's
when
you
just
start
yelling
and
you
get
upset
very
suddenly,
and
you
can't
control
it.
So
I
wanted
it
to
be
more
can
you
recognize
what
that
feels
like
as
opposed
to
go
to
bed,
sleepy
hat.
I
do
love
those
types
of
stories,
but
I
wanted
this
to
also
be
a
fun
read,
which
it's
a
high
energy
story,
but
hopefully
you
get
the
point.
But
if
you
want
to
have
high
energy,
you
still
have
to
charge
up.
You
can
have
all
this
fun,
you
just
gotta
charge
before
you
do
it,
or
otherwise
there's
consequences
to
that.
You
may
not
be
able
to
play
your
game
the
next
day.
Katy
11:17
Yeah.
And
there's
some
quite
Ali
and
I
were
talking
about
it,
that
there's
some
quite
big
words
in
it.
It's
got
quite
a
lot
of
technical
words
about
robots.
Molly
11:27
Yeah,
I'd
like
to
put
in
some
words
that
are
fun
to
say.
Somebody
was
saying
to
me
the
other
day,
actuator,
and
made
a
big
list
of
buzzy
sounding
mechanical
words.
My
husband
is
a
mechanical
engineer,
so
I
also
was
running
it
past
most.
And
I
did
also
run
it
by
him.
Is
this
could
this
robot
exist?
Or
am
I
inventing,
I'm
just
throwing
words
out
here?
And
he's
for
the
most
part,
yeah.
So
I
think
we
have
to
suspend
our
belief
a
little
bit.
But
yeah,
yeah,
creative
license
aside,
yeah,
just
could
be
feasible.
Katy
11:56
I
like
books
with
big
long
words
in
it
that
small
children
don't
really
need
in
their
vocabulary.
But
which
is
that
book,
Ali?
The
one
where
you've
got
the
three
little
wolves
and
the
big
bad
pig.
Is
it
Helen
Oxenbury?
I
know,
and
there's
one
wonderful
words
in
it,
pneumatic
drill.
And
yeah,
it's
got
really
great
words
in
it,
and
but
they're
not
toddler
necessarily.
They
sound
really
nice.
Molly
12:21
I
think
it's
I'm
I
tend
towards
if
it
sounds
good,
like
a
turbulent
turbo
booster.
I
think
that's
a
fun
phrase
to
say.
And
yeah,
I
wanted
it
to
be
an
more
of
an
action-packed
kind
of
story.
Some
of
them
are
maybe
a
little
bit
of
a
mouthful,
especially
if
you're
just
learning
to
read.
Don't
get
me
wrong,
but
I
think
that
kind
of
adds
to
the
or
hope
it
adds
to
the
experience
of
reading
it.
Ali
12:46
Like
I
think
it
really
does.
And
I
think
kids
do
like
long
words,
they
know
all
know
the
names
of
every
dinosaur
by
a
certain
age.
Yeah,
oh,
yeah.
Yeah,
they
can
manage
those.
So
I
think
it's
great
that
there's
some
big
interesting,
fun-sounding
words.
Molly
13:02
My
dad
was
asking
me,
he
was
like,
it's
great.
I
do
think
it's
great.
Um,
algorithm?
Do
we
want
that
word
out
there
for
kids?
And
I
was
like,
honestly,
the
kids,
they're
all
coding
when
they're
children
now.
So
I
think
I
also
felt
that
they're
far
more
technical
digital
generation
coming
up.
I
this
might
seem
strange
to
us,
but
I
don't
know.
There's
loads
of
kids'
books
about
coding
now
as
well.
How
to
code
a
sandcastle
by
Josh
Funk
is
one.
There,
there
are,
I
don't
know
if
they're
that
far
off
from
like
actually
completely
understanding
what
a
lot
of
these
terms
are.
So
yeah,
I
have
fun
with
it.
Ali
13:38
They're
nice,
and
they're
nice
words
to
say
as
well,
which
are
nice
words.
They're
nice
words
to
read
aloud.
Molly
13:42
Yeah,
like
automonopeia
types
as
well.
But
I
like
to
I
definitely
like
to
use
those.
Katy
13:48
Yeah.
And
in
terms
of
the
illustrations,
Jacob
Souva's
illustrations,
I
really
like
them.
They're
not,
I
think,
what
you
might
expect
in
terms
of
a
robot,
in
that
they're
quite
soft
and
muted
and
textured.
It's
not
a
sort
of
shiny
approach.
How
did
you
feel
when
you
saw
them?
You
must
have
had
something
in
your
mind
when
you
were
writing
it.
Molly
14:09
And
how
did
that
sometimes
I
do
have
something
in
my
mind?
I
think
I
was
in
my
mind
at
the
time.
There
was
a
TV
show,
I
don't
remember
what
it
was
on,
and
might
have
only
been
in
the
States.
It
was
called
Rolly
Polioli.
And
it
was
about
a
robot
world.
And
they
were
all
very
round
and
shiny
and
yellow
head
but
gray
sort
of
connectors
and
stuff.
So
when
I
saw
Werby
for
the
first
time,
that
I
was,
oh
yeah,
he's
got
this
yellow
head
and
these
kind
of
gray
connectors.
Like
that
part
was
right.
But
fortunately,
I
didn't
really
have
a
set
picture
in
my
mind
because
Jacob
uses
a
lot
of
texture.
And
I
think
that's
for
me.
If
when
I
first
saw
the
first
spread,
and
all
my
text
said
was
Werby
is
a
robot
going
to
robot
school
or
something
like
that.
That
was
it.
And
he
took
that
and
made
an
entire
world
out
of
it.
And
I
think
all
those
textures,
tons
of
color.
The
color
palette
is
so
interesting.
You
would
think
these
things
wouldn't
go
together,
but
they
do,
which
is
actually
fun
from
the
robot
making
all
these
different
parts
and
things.
Like
I
think
that
actually
works
really
well.
Yeah,
it
was
definitely
surprising.
I
knew
what
his
aesthetic
was,
Jacob's
got
him
general
aesthetic
was
with
the
texture
and
layers,
and
but
uh
yeah,
I
just
couldn't
get
over
the
level
of
detail.
And
even
though
it's
a
robotic
world,
he's
got
palm
trees
in
the
background
and
they
could
see
the
sun
setting.
Yeah.
And
it's
it
just
feels
like
very
a
very
real
place.
Katy
15:40
Um
the
robots
are
slightly
different,
so
you
can
tell
them
apart
and
you
can
see
how
they
might
battle
differently
and
things.
They
could
potentially
each
have
their
own
strengths.
Molly
15:48
And
Dottie
is
one
of
the
characters
I
really
like.
She
is
the
one
that
Werby
is
up
against
in
when
it's
his
term
to
go
to
a
bot
battle.
And
she's
just
this
little
diminutive
pink
robot,
but
she's
really
bears,
and
she's
got
this
massive
blade,
and
he's
intimidated
by
her
as
he
should
be
because
he's
not
prepared
at
all.
Katy
16:06
It's
quite
a
brutal
world
robot.
Molly
16:09
Yeah,
yeah.
Kids
have
asked
me
why
don't
we
get
to
see
the
battles?
And
I'm
like,
oh,
yeah.
That's
true.
We
leave
that
part
off
the
page
because
parts
would
go
flying.
Katy
16:17
But
yeah.
I
was
gonna
say
the
ones
that
you
do
see
on
TV
are
quite
brutal,
so
you
have
to
leave
that
bit
to
your
imagination.
Exactly.
You
can
imagine
that.
And
uh
I'm
right
in
thinking
that
he
brought
the
dog
in.
Molly
16:29
That's
right.
Whirby
has
a
little
dog.
I
did
not
imagine
that.
This
is
again
why
it's
great
as
the
author
to
just
see
what
the
illustrator
might
bring
to
it.
Love
the
dog.
The
dog
even
plugs
in
at
night,
which
was
so
funny
to
me.
If
you
look
throughout
the
illustrations,
the
plant
has
a
little
plug
that
that
charges
up.
There's
loads
of
little
details
like
that.
And
Jacob
and
I
feel
the
dog
needs
its
own
name,
so
we're
gone
with
Sparky.
Oh,
okay.
Thought
that
was
a
nice
technical,
mechanical
name
for
him.
Yeah,
I'm
sure
you'll
get
asked
that
at
school.
I
know.
I
was
like,
I
need
to
have
an
answer
for
that.
Ali
17:03
So
your
first
book
was
about
a
sponge
overdoing
it
and
burning
out,
and
now
you've
got
a
robot
learning
the
importance
of
sleep.
So
what
the
non-human
character
using
that
to
explore
a
human
experience.
Um,
why
do
you
think
that
is
useful
for
the
child
reading
it?
Molly
17:20
Yeah,
I
think
it's
because
it
makes
it
universal.
I
think
that's
why
it's
useful.
I
don't
really
know
why
I
always
tend
to
tend
to
like
it's
not,
I
don't
go
and
go
look
around
the
house
and
say,
what
could
I
use?
Although
I
think
when
I
am
trying
to
explain
something
to
my
own
children,
I
try
to
find
something
that
is
tangible
and
right
in
front
of
them
that
they
can
relate
to.
Because
I
guess
the
sponge
thing,
I've
said
that
for
years
before
I
wrote
the
book.
It
was
like,
I
feel
like
a
sponge
right
now.
I
take
everything
in
without
any
thinking
about
things,
like
how
will
I
turn
this
into
a
story?
That
was
just
some
that's
how
my
brain
thinks
about
dings.
So
I
do
tend
to
write
that.
But
I
think
the
reason
I
think
it's
been
working
for
the
picture
books
is
because
it's
universal.
There's
no
anybody
can
actually
relate
to
this.
Anybody
can
see
themselves
in
that
when
they're
depicted
just
very
vulnerable.
I
think
I
write
very
like
characters
on
the
brink
of
meltdown
or
a
breakdown,
or
and
I
think
kids
relate
to
that
very
much
because
they're
always
just
about
to
turn
and
have
that
tantrum
or
something,
or
certainly
my
kids
are.
But
yeah,
I
think
anybody
can
see
themselves
in
those
objects.
I've
been
fortunate
the
the
illustrators
really
give
them
these
very
emotive
eyes
and
making
them
extra
adorable.
And
the
next
I
do
have
a
book
coming
out
end
of
this
year
with
a
rocket
ship
as
the
main
character,
and
that's
called
I
Need
Space.
And
it's
similarly
like
it
needs
to
cool
as
jets.
And
I
try
to
use
terminology
around
rocket
ships
and
blasting
off
and
being
really
fiery
and
then
cooling
down.
They
work,
those
kinds
of
metaphors.
Katy
19:01
Definitely
they
become
human,
they
feel
human,
human-like.
And
presumably
you've
been
in
schools
with
them.
What
kind
of
responses
do
you
get
from
children?
And
what
kind
of
conversations
are
you
hoping
that
it
opens
up?
Molly
19:14
So
because
Worby's
just
come
out,
I
haven't
had
too
much
time
yet
in
front
of
kids,
but
I've
done
a
few
story
times
with
it
when
I
was
over
in
the
States
so
far.
And
yeah,
I
think
it's
very
they
get
the
message
very
quickly,
but
are
excited
about
it.
So
we
were
doing
a
craft
where
we
made
Worby's
got
a
lightning
bolt
charger
on
him.
We
made
these
bracelets
with
a
little
lightning
bolt
charm,
and
that's
you're
charging
up
bracelets
to
remind
you
when
you
go
to
bed,
or
it's
time
to
charge
up.
I
think
that
term
charge
up,
it
sounds
exciting
when
it's
really
go
to
bed.
So
I
think
they
understand
it,
but
it
seems
like
they're
really
getting
the
message
with
that
feeling.
Okay.
It's
a
different
spin
on
what
they
have
to
do
every
night.
So
I
think
they've
been
responding
well
to
that.
The
big
squeeze,
it
depends
on
the
ages.
The
younger
kids,
the
big
squeeze
has
a
sponge
soaking
up
everything
in
a
dirty
kitchen,
and
she
ends
up
being
really
filthy,
dirty,
soggy,
bit
of
a
mess,
and
needs
to
learn
to
take
time
for
herself,
squeeze
yourself
out
before
she
can
help
others.
That's
the
kind
of
message
of
that
one.
Kids
love
the
dirty
kitchen.
They
really
like
reacting
to
all
the
messy
stuff.
And
I
think
the
bigger
picture
of
it,
that
taking
time
to
rest,
I
get
the
parents'
teachers,
the
grown-ups
come
up
and
go,
Wow,
I
never
thought
I'd
relate
to
a
sponge
before.
But
I
think
when
I
wrote
that
one,
I
thought
that
that
message
might
be
for
quite
young
kids.
Maybe
they
wouldn't
necessarily
get
it,
but
they
might
see
it
in
others.
And
so
it's
also
about
recognizing
in
others
when
is
your
parent
like
at
the
end
of
their
capacity
and
don't
mind
if
you've
got
to
go
lie
down
for
a
bit
or
if
dad
needs
a
day
off
or
whatever.
Katy
20:57
I
thought
that
about
Whirby,
that
it
might
actually
open
up
conversations
about
adults
needing
sleep
too,
as
much
as
it
was
about
children.
Molly
21:04
Exactly.
I
think
the
conversation
is
something
I
was
always
thinking
about
with
the
big
spees,
but
I
think
it
works
with
Worby.
Just
to
have
the
language
to
say,
I'm
sorry,
I
don't
have
it
in
me
tonight
to
talk
for
half
an
hour.
I'm
tired.
Like
I
need
to
go
charge
my
batteries,
or
I
need
to
just
go
take
time
for
myself
for
a
bit
so
that
I
can
be
more
fun
with
you
tomorrow.
And
I
think
it
must
be
because
I
didn't
get
a
good
night's
sleep
last
night.
Then
it's
it's
not
your
fault.
It's
me,
I
need
to
go
charge.
So
yeah,
I
hope
that
will
open
up
nice
conversations.
Ali
21:34
Yeah,
because
quite
often
kids
want
to
have
those
conversations
before
bed.
Yeah.
Sometimes
partly
is
a
delaying
technique,
but
also
because
sometimes
actually
it's
time
to
process
what
they've
been
going
through
the
day.
And
it's
there's
a
kind
of
balance,
isn't
there,
between
it
is
time
to
go
to
bed
yet.
But
we
do
have
time
to
talk
about
if
there's
something
worrying
you.
Molly
21:53
That's
very
true.
Going
through
that
right
now
with
my
five,
almost
six
year
old,
and
end
of
the
day,
and
he's
like,
what
should
we
talk
about?
Like,
oh,
yeah,
I
guess
it's
because
that
is,
it's
like
when
you're
growing
up
and
you
put
your
head
on
the
pill
and
you're
all
ready
to
go
to
bed,
and
then
you're
like,
all
the
things
I
have
to
do
tomorrow.
And
what
it
oh,
what
was
that
weird
conversation
I
had
earlier?
Just
was
that
weird,
you
know,
make
the
to-do
list,
what's
happening
in
the
world?
Like
it
all
just
comes
to
you
at
the
end
of
the
day.
And
I
think
it
is
what's
happening
with
kids
at
the
end
of
the
day
too.
And
all
right,
let's
decompress
a
little
now.
Ali
22:24
We've
talked
a
little
bit
about
I
need
space.
Um
do
you
think
there's
now
a
thread
linking
all
the
three
books,
even
if
you
didn't
plan
it
that
way?
Molly
22:33
It
wasn't
planned
that
way,
but
absolutely
it's
all
very
much
about
taking
a
minute
for
yourself.
A
lot
of
mine
are
coming
from
their
ideas
that
are
coming
out
of
real
conversations
that
I'm
having
with
my
kid,
with
my
husband,
and
it's
usually
out
of
these.
How
do
you
communicate
this
feeling
that
I'm
having
and
what
do
you
do
about
it?
And
a
lot
of
times
we
say
it
in
our
house,
just
go
take
a
minute.
Just
tell
that
kid,
I
need
space
for
a
few
minutes
if
they're
playing
too
rough,
or
say
to
your
brother,
I
don't
want
to
do
that
right
now.
I
need
space,
I'm
mad.
And
let
them
know
that's
it.
You
can
diffuse
the
situation
pretty
quickly
if
you
can
do
that.
So
that's
I
need
space
that
came
out
of
how
to
deal
with
other
kids.
And
how
do
you
let
them
know
without
it
being
just
blowing
up
at
them?
And
so
yeah,
it's
that
in
that
one,
there's
a
rocket
ship
that
does
need
to
go
and
chill
out
basically
for
a
few
minutes
and
before
they're
ready
to
come
back
and
play.
And
that
that
is
Worby
doesn't
have
to
necessarily
take
time,
but
he
has
to
look
after
his
body.
And
with
the
big
squeeze,
it's
don't
don't
work
so
hard
before
it's
too
late
and
you
can't
don't
burn
out,
don't
break
down
basically.
But
yeah,
there's
definitely
a
common
thread
there.
Obviously,
that's
what's
in
my
head
all
the
time.
I
think
everybody's
you
need
time,
huh?
Katy
23:48
You
need
time.
Definitely
know
that
feeling.
So
you've
already
done
the
launch
of
the
book
in
America,
and
you're
about
to
do
Ireland,
and
you're
gonna
be
in
the
UK
as
well.
Am
I
am
I
right?
I'm
not
gonna
be
in
the
UK,
but
I
am
gonna
I'm
in
Ireland.
I
don't
have
any
events
in
the
UK,
no.
So
you're
doing
the
launch
in
Ireland.
Uh
you're
available
though.
Are
you
available
for
school
visits
in
the
UK
in
theory?
Yeah,
absolutely.
Yeah.
And
so
I
just
want
to
ask,
what
do
you
feel
is
like
different
in
terms
of
the
children's
book
market
and
how
it
works
in
the
US
to
Ireland?
Molly
24:18
One
thing
I
was
just
realizing
when
I
go
over
to
the
US
and
I
do,
when
I
say
I
do
events,
oftentimes
what
I'm
doing
is
jumping
in
on
an
existing,
like
a
standing
story
time
that
bookstores
have.
Bookstores
in
America
often
have
at
11
o'clock
in
the
morning
on
a
Saturday.
It's
story
time.
And
it
will
be
the
booksellers
doing
readings
of
some
of
the
books
that
are
coming
out.
And
this
is
something
that
parents
can
bring
their
kids
to
and
get
a
copy.
And
it's
really
common.
And
so
I
was
able
to
set
that
up
quite
simply
and
just
say,
Well,
I
step
in
on
this
Saturday
and
do
my
book.
And
that
they're
always
quite
happy
to
have
a
visiting
author
come
in
and
there's
an
existing
audience
that's
they're
gonna
be
there.
Yeah.
Because
this
is
weekly,
we
do
this.
So
I'm
finding
that's
not
the
case
in
Ireland.
I
am
doing
an
event
here
at
a
local
bookstore,
but
it
seems
the
story
times
tend
to
be
more
in
libraries
or
I
would
need
to
go
to
schools
and
stuff.
So
that's
something
that
I'm
navigating
right
now.
What
about
in
the
UK?
Haven't
actually
noticed.
Is
it
common
to
have
a
story
time
in
a
bookstore?
Ali
25:22
Quite
a
lot
of
them
do.
Yeah.
But
it
is
more
libraries,
I'd
say.
Katy
25:26
Yeah.
Yeah,
there's
lots
of
story
times
in
libraries.
So
they'll
have
whatever
it
is,
bounce
and
rhyme.
I've
got
that
the
wrong
way
around,
isn't
it?
Todd
toddler
bounce
or
something
where
they
do
use
nursery
rhymes
and
short
stories,
they
tend
to
be
for
the
littler
ones
during
the
week
while
the
older
ones
are
at
school.
Rhyme
time.
Rhyme
time,
that's
yeah.
And
I
don't
know,
I
know
my
local
bookshop
has
a
children's
book
club
on
a
Saturday
morning
or
Saturday
afternoon.
I
can't
remember.
But
yeah,
I
I
think
it's
perhaps
not
as
routine.
But
most
of
the
independent
bookshops
have
a
whole
series
of
events
because
it's
the
only
way
they
can
actually
keep
going.
It's
part
of
their
getting
people
in
and
having
an
events
program
is
crucial
in
terms
of
their
viability.
Right.
Ali
26:11
And
also
you're
part
of
the
Laureate's
Live
Mentoring
Program.
What
does
that
involve?
Molly
26:16
Yeah.
So
the
Laureate
Nano
is
the
children's
laureate
here
in
Ireland.
Patricia
Ford
has
been
the
laureate
here.
I
think
she
had
a
maybe
a
three
or
four-year
student.
Hers
is
just
coming
to
an
end.
She
uh
was
a
wonderful
mentor.
So
she's
highly
published,
got
at
least
a
dozen
books,
I'd
say,
in
middle
grade
and
picture
books
as
well.
And
so
this
program
came
at
a
time
for
me
where
I
really
needed
it
because
as
I
was
kind
of
mentioning,
I
wasn't
really
sure
where
to
go
do
events.
I
wasn't
hearing
from
schools.
Do
I
ask
schools?
Should
I
come
in?
How
do
I
get
in
that
people
know
that
I'm
here,
that
I
can
do
this?
How
do
I
get
the
word
out
and
engage
with
the
kids?
And
I
was
having
a
little
bit
of
a
crisis
about
this
after
big
squeokies.
And
suddenly,
just
serendipitously,
the
laureate
had
launched,
yeah,
it's
called
the
Live
Literature
Mentoring
Program
about
doing
school
visits,
how
to
present
your
text
to
kids,
develop
programs
for
festivals,
for
just
being
able
to
get
up
and
speak
about
it.
And
so
there
were
four
of
us
selected.
I,
in
typical
form,
talks
about
very
vulnerably
about
how
it's
like
uh
this
has
been
a
struggle
for
me.
And
she
said
that
she
could
tell
that
I
was
genuinely
very
interested
in
developing
this
skill.
Writers,
we
sit
in
our
rooms
alone,
yeah,
most
of
the
time.
That's
we're
not
necessarily
the
get
out
there
and
go
and
talk
about
ourselves.
Oh
my
gosh.
It's
kind
of
hard.
It's
scary.
It
is,
yeah.
And
this
kind
of
conversation
is
very
nice.
But
to
get
up
in
front
of
people
and
go,
I'm
here
and
this
is
I
must
be
it
just
it's
it's
a
Nicky
kind
of
feeling
until
you
get
practice
at
it.
And
the
first
time
I
went
and
did
just
a
reading
of
my
book,
I
was
really
shaky,
trembly.
I
had
like
nearly
a
panic
attack
beforehand.
And
I
was
like,
I
can't,
that
can't
happen.
I'll
never
be
able
to
do
this.
Because
with
kids,
you
really
need
to
be
interfacing
with
them.
And
I
need
to
get
out
there.
I
can't
just
write
it
and
put
it
out
there,
and
that's
it.
So
anyway,
the
program
was
very
much
about
getting
practice
at
it.
And
there's
this
one
of
the
best
parts
of
it
was
the
program
placed
us
into
a
school
here
in
Ireland,
and
Patricia
Ford
came
with
us
and
with
each
of
us
individually
and
watched
us
from
the
back
of
the
class.
And
then
we
went
to
lunch
after,
and
she
gave
loads
of
feedback
about
I
think
this
worked,
I
think
this
didn't.
And
just
that
was
a
really
special
touch.
And
we
had
just
such
a
great
chat
after
I
think
it
gave
me
confidence
that
now
I
can
get
up
and
read
my
story.
And
I
I'm
still
learning,
absolutely
still
learning,
but
oh
what
a
terrific
opportunity
that
was.
Ali
29:03
Yeah,
and
there's
a
thing
that's
happening
in
the
UK
now
with
GLL
are
doing
that
as
well,
aren't
they?
They're
mentioning
authors.
Katy
29:11
Literary
foundation.
Yeah.
They
run
quite
a
lot
of
public
libraries
in
the
UK,
and
they
have
a
similar
thing,
which
is
supporting
authors,
and
they
do
things
like
practicing
doing
presentations
with
children
and
things
like
that.
Molly
29:23
It's
great
because
being
able
to
manage
like
kids
talking
over
you.
What
do
you
do
when
sometimes
a
kid
stands
up
and
wants
to
be
the
center
of
attention
and
it's
got
a
story?
Like
even
just
little
tips
on
like
how
to
you're
gonna
lose
the
attention
of
everybody
else
if
this
one
stands
up
and
starts
talking.
And
like
it
does
happen
every
time.
Somebody
wants
to
take
over
and
doesn't
understand.
And
she
just
had
these
little
tips
of
this
little
hand
gesture
I'll
do
to
kind
of
move
along,
keep
it
flowing,
have
these
stories
in
your
back
pocket.
What
to
do
if
the
teacher
leaves
the
classroom?
That's
yeah,
that's
instant
panic.
Well,
they
go
wild.
Like
if
I
just
put
myself
out
there,
especially
as
I
grew
up
in
America,
and
I
think
going
into
maybe
American
elementary
schools,
I'd
be
familiar.
It
would
feel
like
hallways
I
knew.
Yeah.
But
because
I'm
here
in
Ireland,
my
own
kids
are
just
getting
started
in
primary
school.
So
I
just
don't
even
have
I
didn't
have
the
experience
of
even
setting
a
foot
in
one
yet.
So
for
to
have
her
there
with
me
for
the
first
time
was
what
a
gift.
Katy
30:27
That
sounds
great.
No,
we
hear
quite
a
lot
of
that
Ireland
is
getting
a
lot
of
things
right
in
supporting
both
children's
authors
and
children
as
readers
as
well.
Molly
30:37
Children's
Books
Ireland
is
a
fantastic
organization.
So
I'm
working
with
that,
they
were
the
funders
of
that
program.
And
I'm
also
they're
I'm
doing
school
visits
with
them
right
now,
but
champions
of
reading
is
what
it's
called,
and
visiting
schools
that
are
being
gifted
250
brand
new
books
for
their
school
library.
And
then
you
get
assigned
a
champion
who
comes
in.
So
I
come
in
for
six
visits
and
meet
with
all
different
ages
and
just
getting
them
excited
about
reading.
It's
not
about
my
own
books,
it's
just
about
what
kind
of
books
do
you
like.
Ali
31:10
And
there's
something
about
you
going
in
multiple
times
as
well.
I
think
they
they
like
uh
other
adults
coming
in,
but
they
also
will
feel
more
comfortable
because
they'll
get
to
know
you.
So
there's
that
kind
of
two-way
conversation.
Molly
31:22
Depending
on
the
age,
I
think
sometimes
it
you
can
just
feel
like
you're
the
morning's
entertainment
sometimes
going
in.
And
with
this,
I
feel
a
bit
more
like
they're
excited
to
see
me
just
find
out
what
we're
going
to
do.
And
some
of
them
are
so
sweet,
they
give
me
little
presents
and
stuff.
Like
they're
very
sweet.
Um,
like
little
notes,
and
I
made
you
this
bookmark
and
things.
It
does
feel
I
have
more
time
to
actually
get
to
know
them.
And
hey,
you
said
you
liked
this
horror
book,
right?
Have
you
heard
of
this
one?
I
can
actually
make
real
recommendations
to
them.
So
yeah,
they're
awesome.
Katy
31:53
That's
nice.
I
think
we
should
try
and
find
out
more
about
Children's
Book
Island
and
what
they're
doing.
Molly
31:57
Oh,
fantastic.
Fantastic
organization.
Katy
32:00
So
it's
it's
been
really
great.
Ali,
do
you
want
to
ask
a
final
question?
Ali
32:04
What
is
our
final
question?
Is
there
a
picture
book
that
you've
come
across
recently
that
you
think
deserves
more
attention?
Molly
32:11
Oh,
great
question.
I'm
looking
at
a
little
stack
that
I
have
here.
Okay,
here's
one.
I'm
not
sure
you
would
have
seen
this,
but
I
love
this.
And
we
read
it
all
the
time
in
my
house.
I
think
it's
just
a
perfect
book.
Hold
up
for
you.
It's
called
Benita
and
the
Night
Creatures.
Uh-huh.
Is
that
Mariana
Llanos?
Uh-huh.
So
this
is
a
story
about
a
girl
called
Benita
who's
just
trying
to
read
a
book.
All
she
wants
to
do
is
read
her
book
in
bed.
And
the
author
is
Peruvian.
And
so
these
Peruvian
monsters,
there's
three,
three
or
four
Peruvian
monsters
that
kind
of
surround
her
there
on
the
cover.
They
keep
coming
to
try
to
scare
her,
but
she
cannot,
she
is
reading.
She
can't
don't
bother
her.
She's
reading.
And
they're
like,
What
is
up
with
this
little
girl?
Why
can't
we
scare
her?
And
they
keep
trying.
And
eventually
they're
like,
What
is
it
that
you're
doing?
And
she
shows
them
how
beautiful
her
book
is.
And
it's
a
very
just
a
really
that
this
it's
illustrated
by
Coco
retto.
And
the
illustrations,
it's
just,
it's
nice.
It's
a
spooky
story,
but
we
read
it
all
year
round.
It's
not
a
Halloween
story
per
se.
It's
it's
for
if
like
my
kids
love
kind
of
anything
spooky,
creepy,
or
whatever,
and
it
really
turns
it
on
its
head.
I
think
that's
a
when
I
read
it,
I
was
like,
this
is
perfect.
Katy
33:30
Okay,
yeah,
that's
a
great
recommendation.
Thank
you.
See,
this
is
worth
asking
for
recommendations.
That's
definitely
that's
one
I
haven't
seen.
So
I
have
to
check
out.
Hopefully,
we
can
get
it
here
in
the
UK.
And
it's
been
really
lovely
talking
to
you
and
finding
out
about
Werby.
Thank
you
so
much.
It's
been
lovely
to
talk
to
you.
Thank
you.
So
that
was
interesting.
Do
look
out
for
Wirby
in
a
bookshop
near
you.
Ali
33:54
Yeah,
and
Ireland
came
up
again
as
somewhere
that's
doing
good
things
to
support
authors
and
reading
for
pleasure.
Katy
34:00
Yeah,
I
think
that
must
be
the
third
or
fourth
person
to
mention
Ireland.
Because
Louie
was
talking
about
Louis
Stour
was
talking
about
it,
wasn't
she?
And
somebody
else
has
mentioned
it
as
well.
So
I
I
think
we
probably
should
do
a
bit
more
of
a
a
delve
into
what's
going
on
in
Ireland
and
what
they're
getting
right.
So
we
can
that
can
be
added
to
our
to-do
list,
because
I
know
you're
you're
feeling
swamped
by
our
to-do
list
which
never
gets
done.
We'll
chip
away
then.
Yeah.
Ali
34:26
Before
we
go,
we've
got
a
couple
of
other
picture
books
that
caught
our
eye.
So
first
up
is
Darren
Chetty's
I'm
going
to
make
a
friend,
which
is
now
out
in
paperback.
Explores
the
challenges
of
moving
somewhere
new
and
making
friends.
The
main
character
worries
about
how
long
it
will
take
and
whether
anyone
will
notice
him.
All
familiar
fears
for
any
child
going
somewhere
new.
He
decides
to
put
his
making
skills
to
work
and
literally
makes
a
friend
in
the
form
of
a
robot,
all
the
while
puzzling
about
what
qualities
it
should
have.
Katy
34:54
And
it's
got
lovely
illustrations
by
Sandhya
Prabhat,
which
have
lots
of
details
to
spot.
There
are
dinosaurs
and
dragons
and,
of
course,
most
importantly,
a
cat
that
features
on
every
page.
So
look
out
for
that.
Second
up,
we
have
a
new
book
by
Jeanne
Willis
and
illustrated
by
Paddy
Donnelly,
which
is
called
Naughty.
And
it's
bursting
with
colour.
Again,
there
are
lots
of
things
to
spot
in
the
illustrations.
And
it's
one
of
those
books
that
I
think
it
would
take
a
long
time
to
read
with
an
attentive
listener.
Which
is
fabulous.
Ali
35:32
And
it
opens
with
a
boy
sitting
on
the
bottom
step
of
a
flight
of
stairs
looking
miserable.
He's
got
muddy
boots
on,
and
the
muddy
footprints
are
on
the
floor.
Suggests
that
he's
either
already
in
trouble
and
on
the
naughty
step
or
is
expecting
to
be.
Katy
35:47
Yeah,
it
doesn't
sort
of
explicitly
say
he's
on
the
naughty
step,
but
it
definitely
looks
like
it
might
be
that
way.
And
the
text
focuses
on
the
cat
who
is
on
the
naughty
mat
for
chasing
a
bird,
and
the
bird
in
turn
is
on
the
naughty
perch
because
he
said
a
naughty
word.
And
it
kind
of
goes
through
as
a
very
slight
rabbit
and
a
bull
and
a
I
don't
know,
all
sorts
of
assorted
animals,
until
there
is
absolute
chaos
in
the
hallway,
which
actually
feels
a
bit
like
my
hallway,
but
you
know,
people
wandering
into
the
house.
But
absolute
chaos.
Ali
36:22
Uh
and
then
finally
daddy's
quite
naughty
too,
and
shows
that's
right,
yeah.
It
isn't
always
that
easy,
and
that
maybe
leaving
muddy
footprints
isn't
the
worst
thing
you
can
do.
Katy
36:34
No,
it
kind
of
makes
the
muddy
footprints
sort
of
fade
into
the
background
there.
Anyway,
it
is
really
good
fun.
And
should
probably
also
say
that
Jean
is
one
of
our,
I
think
our
my
definitely
favourite
author
of
one
of
my
favourite
books,
which
is
Tadpole's
Promise,
which
if
you
haven't
read
it,
you
absolutely
must.
It's
it's
not
for
the
faint-hearted,
is
it,
Ali?
Ali
36:56
It's
not,
it's
traumatic,
frankly.
It's
traumatic.
Katy
37:00
It
turns
on
its
head
everything
you
and
possibly
and
whoever
you're
reading
it
to
thinks
that
they
know
about
picture
books
that
start
talking
about
tadpoles
and
caterpillars
and
what
happens
to
tadpoles
and
caterpillars.
Ali
37:15
Yeah.
Um
should
definitely
come
with
a
warning
message.
Katy
37:19
Yeah.
Well,
don't
say
we
didn't
warn
you.
Yeah.
But
do
but
find
it
and
read
it.
Yeah.
Anyway,
enjoy
it.