 |
| Thomas Jefferson's Battle for Science illustrated by Jeremy Holmes |
|
|
Beth Anderson’s eighth picture book Thomas Jefferson’s
Battle for Science: Bias, Truth and a Mighty Moose! published by Calkins
Creek, delights and has a hilarious ending. Award winning illustrator Jeremy
Holmes illustrated this story with woodblock prints and digital pencil. The
book includes beautifully illustrated end papers with paw prints of various
North American mammals. As always Ms. Anderson include back matter which
include a timeline, an essay and references.
Two Question Interview
with Beth Anderson
Welcome
Beth. Thanks so much for returning.
ETC: How did you first learn of Thomas Jefferson’s “Mighty
Moose” and its hilarious ending?
BA: My first attraction was to Jefferson’s
obsession with mammoths. But when a book came out about that, I let my
manuscript rest. Then I stumbled on an article about the moose incident. Soon
another book was announced about his obsession with measuring, and that had the
moose in it. But…my attraction to the incident was the idea of how to
"measure truth." It strongly connected to our moment in time. It held
so much relevance and had hugely important ideas about science, misinformation,
and checking sources (so important to teachers!). It took a lot of
digging to understand the larger context, find the details, and decide how to
handle the fact that Jefferson too was biased (with awful consequences).
ETC: I would suggest that “Moose” in the title, the endpapers with
paw prints and the line “Or So He Believed,” all constitute both hooks and
heart. Is there a specific point in the book that you consider heart or an
entry point for a child?
BA: Definitely! Moose in the title surprises and grabs
interest. The footprints are a hook that illustrator Jeremy Holmes created in
the end papers. And you nailed the beginning of the “heart” thread in the line
“so he believed.” That’s really what it’s all about—what we believe, why, and
being able to admit our errors. I think about hooks and heart from the very
beginning. As I research, that’s what I’m after as I sift through the facts. If
I can’t find any value for kids today and the event is an interesting anecdote
rather than a story that matters, I let it go. I try to find my heart idea,
what the story is about at a deeper level than the physical plot,
before I start drafting because that heart becomes the frame and driving force
for decisions about what goes in and how I shape the story. The heart of this
manuscript shifted a few times as I revised and found that some pieces were too
abstract or complicated. I experimented with the “path” through and different
endings. There were just SO many possibilities and valuable ideas in this story
that it was a real challenge to hone the through line to make it clear and
focused.
ETC: Thank you for the detailed answers and a
book about science with so much humor.
Visit Beth Anderson
Visit illustrator Jeremy Holmes
Visit Greg Pattridge
host of MMGM
Visit book store Second Star to the Right
Previous interviews
with Beth Anderson:
