Interview with Beth Anderson: Thomas Jefferson's Battle for Science

 

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: 

Cloaked in Courage

Revolutionary Prudence Wright

Franz's Phantasmagorical Machine 

Tad Lincoln's Restless Wriggle 

Lizzie Demands a Seat