Hello Picture Book Builders family! I hope everyone is doing well and enjoying the (fingers crossed) tail end of winter. Not sure where you are, but here in NJ, it has been c-c-cold, but I feel optimistic that spring warmth will be on its way soon!
I have to admit that I’m typically NOT a very optimistic person – I tend to be a bit jaded and skeptical – but after reading today’s book, I’m beginning to have a new outlook on life. I mean, why NOT see the positive in every moment? Why CAN’T everything be celebrated! YAY FOR FREEZING COLD WINTER WEATHER! In fact, I have an idea – let’s throw a FREEZING COLD WINTER WEATHER PARTY!!! WHOOHOO!!!!
Tara Lazar has brought her positive outlook and hilarity once again to her brand-new, fantastic picture book, PARTY ANIMALS, illustrated by Anna Raff, which bursts like a confetti cannon into the world NEXT WEEK (March 11th!) by Disney Hyperion. It’s a super fun story about finding something to celebrate in even the smallest and silliest moments.
I’m so honored that Tara took the time to answer a few questions for us. Welcome Tara!
RGL: First off, enquiring minds want to know… Are YOU a “party animal?” What is YOUR favorite kind of party to throw and/or to attend?
TL: Actually, I am not at all a party person. When I was in my teens and early 20s, I didn’t like parties and I couldn’t figure out why. Everyone else loved parties! What was wrong with me? Then I figured out I’m an introvert. If I do go to a party, I wind up spending it with the family pet.
RGL: Ha! You have no idea how much I feel you on that — introverts unite!
So, I know from reading your blog that you often get ideas for stories from idioms, punch lines, and silly phrases (I do as well!), so can I assume this story started with the awesome title? Can you talk a little about how you came up with the story to go with it? Did you play with different narratives before landing on this one?
TL: I did get the idea from the phrase “party animals” and I felt strongly enough about it that I just sat down and went for it! I figured out that the animals wanted to party all the time for any kind of reason, but knowing that I had to introduce a problem, I created the character of Horace, the party pooper.
RGL: I LOVE Horace, the party pooper! Very relatable. Lol.
Curious, did you have any say about which animals you wanted included or did you leave all that up to the fabulous illustrator, Anna Raff? How much influence did you have over illustrator selection and/or illustration process?
TL: I did not choose what kind of animal each character should be. It was the same with my book Normal Norman; I let the illustrator create the character based on my words. Anna did a fabulous job, of course! I did not choose her as the illustrator, but if we had to do it all over again, I would definitely choose her!
When I’m shown first pass sketches or near-final art, that’s when I usually speak up about character actions that don’t jibe with the text or the humor I was trying to communicate. That’s usually the only kind of input I contribute to the illustrative process.
RGL: To me, at its core, this book is all about looking at the bright side and trying to find joy in ANY situation. Are you a glass-half-full kind of person? Why do you think this is an important takeaway for young readers?
TL: I am a glass half-full kind of person because it’s necessary as a chronically ill individual with multiple sclerosis. When you’re sick, your attitude is everything. You could either “woe is me” all day long or you can write some spectacular children’s books. I choose the latter.
RGL: And we are SO lucky you do!
And now, my favorite question to ask my guests: What is one question no one has yet to ask you about the making of this book that you would love to answer? (And what’s the answer?!)
Have I ever had a sour milk party? No, I haven’t, but now I’m ready the next time it happens. I would choose to eat Cap’n Crunch Crunch Berries without milk!
RGL: Oh, that sounds like a kind of party I can really get behind. Please save me a seat!
Thank you so much, Tara, for sharing more about the making of PARTY ANIMALS, which comes into the world on March 11!
AND, dear readers, Tara has generously offered to giveaway a signed copy of PARTY ANIMALS to one lucky person. Please comment below for your chance to win. I’ll announce the winner on my next blog post, scheduled for April 1st!
And the winner of last month’s giveaway of a copy of Angela H. Dale’s GOODBYE, HELLO is….
****KATHY CANNON WIECHMAN!!!!!***
Congrats Kathy! Please email me at [email protected] to claim your prize!
Tara’s Bio:
Street magic performer. Hog-calling champion. Award-winning ice sculptor. These are all things Tara Lazar has never been. Instead, she writes quirky, humorous picture books where anything is possible. She’s the author of over a dozen picture books, including 7 Ate 9: The Untold Story, The Upper Case: Trouble in Capital City, Bloop, and Flat Cat, plus her 2023 SCBWI Golden Kite Award-Winning book for 3rd-8th graders Absurd Words. Find out more about Tara at www.taralazer.com and on Instagram at @taralaser.
Party Animal sounds delightful. I enjoyed hearing your thoughts behind the story, Tara!
Party Animals is hilarious. I was laughing aloud as I read the pages included. I enjoyed reading about how the book was written!
Congratulations!
What a party! Thanks gif sharing
Fellow introvert here, but I still love a good party once a year or so. 🙂 Looking forward to reading this one!!
can’t wait to read it!
This looks like so much fun! Thanks for a great interview! Congrats Tara!
This book looks perfect for story time. I can’t wait to get my hands on this one to read the whole story.
Happy to celebrate PARTY ANiMALS with you Tara!
This book is so much fun! It makes me want to plan a party now even is it is a lot of work, even if it will be so noisy, even is my husband will be a stick in the mud…
Tara, keep on doing what you do so well!
So happy our library has it on order. Can’t wait to read it!
Congrats on the new book Tara!
We all need a party! What a fun book! Congrats, Tara!
The joy jumps off the pages!
This is a great book for the kid who needs to learn how to find a reason to smile, even when times are tough. Actually, we all need to learn that. Thanks for the interview.
Very fun!
And clearly the true “party animal” is Tara’s very own cat — love the custom party hat! 🥳 🎉
This book is so imaginative! I’m excited to read about all of the more silly reasons to throw a party. I’m also not a party person, but I do enjoy reading about them when I can pretend to be an extrovert.
As usual with Tara’s books, this looks like a blast! Kids will have so much fun making up their own parties after reading this. The illustrations are wonderful, too!
Ha! At parties, I spend time with the family pet. I can relate!
This book sounds like fun. Thank you for this post.
This book looks so fun! Thanks for the fun interview!
Congratulations, Tara!!! Every party has a pooper! Love Horace 🥳
Congratulations, Tara! There’s a Horace in every crowd and I totally relate to him! I can’t wait to read PARTY ANIMALS!
This looks amazing, Tara! I can’t wait to read it!
PARTY ANIMALS looks spectacular–wishing many joyful parties for you and Horace!
So fun Tara! What a fabulous book.
I love the concept of celebrating life, but I also think a curmudgeon party pooper makes for a great story. Congratulations, Tara, and great interview, Rebecca!
Can’t wait to read Party Animals. It looks like a fun one.
This one looks like grand fun, and a great pairing of author and illustrator! Congratulations, Tara and Anna!
This book looks full of fun and joy – looking forward to reading!
What a cute idea, Tara! I’d love to win this book for my kindergarten class!
Excited to see this one come into the world at a time when we all need a little positivity infused into our days! Congrats, Tara. Great idea and fun illustrations.
Signed, Horace (aka Kitty) : )
Woohoo for Party Animals! I’m sure they are looking forward to celebrating their book birthday! Thanks for the fun interview, Tara and Rebecca!
These are definitely animals that I want to come to my next party! Congratulations, Tara on this super fun book!
Geez, I love this book! It had me at the cover. “Party-pooper parties” made me laugh out loud.
Thanks for a great interview, Rebecca. Raising a full cup of tea to Tara and her success with this adorable book! 🫖☕😻
I can’t wait to read this book! The colors, the animals all draw you into the book where Tara’s wonderful storytelling moves you from page to page!
We love all Tara Lazar books! I’m library requesting this one as soon as I finish this comment. Thank you so much for sharing about it!
Tara’s books are the best! Thanks for alerting me to this latest one!
This is such a fun story. And I’ve never had a sour milk party either 🙂
This sounds like such a fun book! I just put in a library purchase request. 🙂
Tara is delightful and this book “sounds” like her! Yay, Tara!!
As a non-optimist, I need to read this book! It’s not at my library yet, but I can get an early look at it on Hoopla. Sending wishes to Tara and Rebecca for a year full of reasons to celebrate!
Tara – love this book cover and interview. Thank you!
Congratulations on such a fun story Tara! I love how light-hearted and fun the text sounds. Thank you for sharing such a lovely interview with us.