Minh Le is the author of our feature book this month Drawn Together, an amazing look at the barriers that many children (and adults too!) face with relatives from different cultures who speak a different language. Minh drew on his own experience with his grandparents who were from Vietnam, where his parents immigrated from. Minh was born in the US and grew up in Connecticut. If anyone knows about picture books, it’s Minh. Not only has he written about children’s books for many publications, he writes his own blog, Bottom Shelf Books. Currently, he is serving as a judge for the 2018 Boston Globe-Horn Book awards. Always a picture book fan, it was his wife who persuaded him to write a book.

MARMALADE BOOKS (MB): In your first book Let Me Finish, you worked closely with illustrator Isabel Roxas, which is not usually the norm. Your new book Drawn Together, has few words and is such a fabulous and important collaboration with illustrator Dan Santat. How did it come about that Dan would be the illustrator? You didn’t work directly with Dan this time but did you give him notes about how you saw the illustrations for the story?

Dan Santat is a very talented author and illustrator of over 60 books. He lives in southern California with his wife, two sons and a variety of pets. In 2015 he won the Caldecott Medal for his book Adventures of Beekle: The Unimaginary Friend. This prestigious medal is awarded annually by the Association for Library Service to the artist of the most distinguished American picture book for children. Dan is the illustrator of our feature book this month, Drawn Together.  

MARMALADE BOOKS (MB): In order to convey the language barrier that the boy and his grandfather had in Drawn Together, there was very little text. Your illustrations were so important to the story. How much direction did you get from author Minh Le and/or your editor? And while we’re at it, how did it work for Dude!? This hilarious high concept book (illustrated by you) only has one word by Aaron Reynolds, expressed in many different ways.