Interviews
A Conversation with Author Amy Krouse Rosenthal
What encouraged you to do another book similar to Little Pea?
Victoria had been asking me to come up with a “sequel” for a while. I struggled with it for a long, long time. I just couldn’t
“see” what the sequel would be. It was only until I looked at it totally differently—continuing not the story of Little Pea
exactly but continuing the INVERSION premise—that it finally fell into place.
What do you like about the images Jen gives to the story?
Everything! I love Jen’s style. I can’t imagine Little Pea or Little Hoot looking any other way, or being done by any other
illustrator. Those books were born to be drawn by Jen.
How much collaborating do you do together?
A fair amount, but all through the mail. Jen and I have never actually sat down and collaborated; we’ve never even met!
Victoria sends me sketches at various stages and then we (Victoria and I) talk about them, compare notes, etc.
How have kids reacted to this book when you read it aloud?
Well, luckily, happily, so far so good. They seem to love the bedtime inversion thing, and of course, they adore Jen’s
illustrations.
In the text there are quite a few plays on words. Do kids pick up on these?
Absolutely!!! Just yesterday I was doing a school presentation. I read Little Pea first, and then Little Hoot. At the end a lot
of the kids shouted out, “Hey, you said, ‘owl lived happily ever after’ just like, ‘hap-pea-ly ever after’ in Little Pea!” They
get it.
Is Little Hoot modeled after anyone?
Nope.
How do bedtimes play out in your house?
My kids are big-ish now—10, 13, and 14. No bedtime struggles anymore. . . . Our struggle involves getting OUT of bed.
No one wants to wake up in the morning, least of all, me! I love sleeping. . . .
Will there be more books like Little Pea and Little Hoot?
Yep! There is one more coming . . . the last and final in what will now be a veritable trilogy. We didn’t realize there would
be three in this series when we first made Little Pea, but I’m excited that it turned out to be this way. Can you guess what
the third and last title/story is? . . .
