Well, this is an absolute first on My Book Corner! When Sarah Broadley approached me and said she’d got another interviewee lined up. Of course I was intrigued. Sarah always conducts BRILLIANT interviews.
But.
What I wasn’t prepared for. What I didn’t realise. Was that this time, it wasn’t the book creator who she was interviewing… but the author’s pet dog. An interview unlike any interview you’ve ever read before. An interview with Pablo. Jonathan Mere’s dog!
Sarah: Your dad likes to write, does he write all day or just when you’re sleeping?
Pablo: He writes?
Sarah: Your dad’s latest picture book is all about bats and what would happen if they were awake during the day. In between naps, have you and your dad ever seen bats? Or have you been anywhere were there’s maybe a human who knows a lot about them?
Pablo: Yes, I know all about bats. Cricket bats, tennis bats, baseball bats, ping-pong bats. My dad uses them to hit balls so that I can chase after them. My dad knows everything. And if he doesn’t know something he just looks at his phone. I don’t like his phone. It gets too much attention. One day I’m going to dig a big hole and bury it.
Sarah: I’m sure your dad has a writing routine he keeps to so he can keep creating more fantastic stories for all the readers out there. However, when your dad is meant to be writing, does he do other things instead or is he like you and gets down to Very Important work like digging up earth for no reason whatsoever?
Pablo: My dad doesn’t dig holes. He just fills in the ones that I’ve dug. It’s very annoying. And when we’re not doing that I like to take him for long walks to this special place, called The Countryside. It’s great. Full of trees and hills and birds and all kinds of other cool stuff. I’ve never caught a bird but I will one day.
Sarah: As much as you’d like your dad to spend all day rubbing your belly, what’s your favourite thing to do together? Does your dad have a favourite stick too or do you keep them all to yourself on your walks?
Pablo: You mean, after all the eating and sleeping and digging and chasing after balls? Well there’s this amazing place we go called Stick Heaven. It’s full of sticks. My dad throws them for me to chase after. He tries to get them back but I don’t let him. It’s great fun. You should try it sometime.
Sarah: Does your dad ever share his ideas with you? What do you think of his ideas? Do you have a bark code for whether they’re worth progressing with – one bark for ‘maybe try another POV’ or five barks for ‘that is fab, let’s get cracking’?
Pablo: No. Because everything my dad does is amazing. At least that’s what he tells me.
Sarah: You take your job of being your dad’s best friend very seriously, and rightly so. If you could describe your dad in three words, what would they be?
Pablo: Provider of food.
Sarah: Is your dad any good at drawing? I heard that the amazing illustrator, Anders Frang, helped him out with Little Bat’s story? Did your dad help Anders in any way or did he tell Anders the story and the picture book illustrations were created over time? If your dad behaved and ate all his dinner with no fuss, did he let your dad see how he was getting on until they were finished and your dad smiled the biggest smile you’ve ever seen?
Pablo: Remember I said that everything my dad does is amazing? What I meant was ‘everything except drawing.’ So I think he just wrote the words and gave them to Mr Anders. But my dad did suggest that Little Bat just had one ‘milk fang.’ And he’s never stopped going on about it since.
