Acclaimed children’s book author Artie Bennett will be reading to children at the Hillsborough Public Library on Nov. 10.
Author of well-known picture books “The Butt Book,” “Poopendous!,” “Peter Panda Melts Down!,” “Belches, Burps, and Farts—Oh My!” and “The Universe’s Greatest Dinosaur Joked and Pre-Hysteric Puns,” Bennett will present all five of his humor-filled books for Local Author’s Day.
“I am hoping to introduce [children] to my books if they haven’t become familiar with them,” Bennett said. “I am hoping to delight them with my readings. I will be reading, time permitting, ‘The Butt Book’ and ‘Poopendous!’ It’s a wonderful thing to be able to meet young fans, new fans, old fans and share the joy of reading with youngsters.”
This Saturday, not only will Bennett read his books to the children and discuss the “science” behind them, but Bennett will be signing copies of his books, as well.
Bennett works as an executive copy editor at Random House Children’s Books. In late 2009, he felt after being in the field for so long he would be able to write a children’s book himself.
“I entertained the notion that I could write children’s books, as well,” Bennett said. “I work on other people’s books, I work on improving them in every way possible, but I began to think with all of this experience that maybe I have learned, as well, on what could make a really good picture book.”
His first book, “The Butt Book,” was released in January 2010. It was such a sensation the book sold out of its initial print run of 6,000 copies in only two months.
“It surprised the publisher so much,” he said. “They knew it was a fun book, but they had no idea that it was so popular. So, what happens in a case like that is that there’s a lull until the next printing arrives because picture books are mostly printed overseas as a cost-saving measure. So, it took some time before the next printing arrived, but ‘The Butt Book’ still had legs and it picked up from where it left off.”
Now wondering what he should write next, Bennett had the idea for his second children’s book in a dream.
“After ‘The Butt Book,’ I answered the call of ‘doody,’ and I wrote, ‘Poopendous!’ The inside scoop on every type and use of poop, which was my ‘number 2’ picture book,” he said. “I was wondering what my next children’s book should be about and I woke up one morning with the word poopendous on my lips. The first thing that I did was race to Amazon to see if someone had written a book called ‘Poopendous’ and amazingly no one had. This seemed liked the perfect title for a children’s book because it’s a subject that children find endlessly fascinating. I came up with a fun, non-fiction picture book about poop called, ‘Poopendous!’”
Bennett credits his initial inspiration to the great Dr. Seuss.
“[He] has these anatomical books, ‘The Foot Book,’ ‘The Eye Book,’ ‘The Ear Book…’ and that’s what got me started with ‘The Butt Book,’” Bennett said. “Interestingly enough, I submitted it to his publisher, hoping they would add it to the series. Because I was aware they added ‘The Knee Book’ and ‘The Belly Book,’ so why not add ‘The Butt Book’ to the series? So, I submitted it to his publisher and there was interest at first, but it kind of evaporated. But it worked out well because I think if it were a part of the Dr. Seuss series, it would not have gotten the attention and the critical reviews it received.”
Following Bennett’s third book, “Peter Panda Melts Down!,” which was more of a story than a picture book, Bennett found himself returning to the world of anatomy.
“‘Belches, Burps, and Farts—Oh My!,’ which was my return to the offbeat, non-fiction picture book universe, so I would say my ideas come from channeling my inner 8-year-old,” he said. “The topics that I have written on are topics that children find fascinating, but I do, too. I was hoping to bring something different to the enterprise. I was hoping to try and make my books really funny and really educational. I knew children would be drawn to subjects like butts and poop and belches and farts. But I could bring something different to it, so I made sure the books are never gross or crude. I try to make them charming, light-hearted and tasteful. There’s interesting vocabulary in the books. So it’s a way to have youngsters learn new words throughout humorous context.”
Bennett aims to bring children back to books and provide them not only with something educational, but something fun.
“I wanted them to be entertained,” he said. “I wanted them to see how much fun a book can be. I wanted them to really appreciate the singular joys of a book, and these days there are so many competing forces for children’s attention. I think it’s important that youngsters could delight in how much fun a book can be and get excited about reading. For many kids, the words ‘excitement’ and ‘book’ aren’t really paired, and they should be.”
The Local Author’s Day event will be held from 1 to 4 p.m. at the Hillsborough Public Library, 379 S. Branch Road. Bennett will begin his reading in the Children’s Room at 2:40 p.m.
For more information about Artie Bennett, you can visit his website at www.artiebennett.com.