“I
still feel, as I did when I was six or seven, that books are simply the best
way to experience a story.” – Philip Reeve
Reeve, who turns 55 this weekend, is
the British cartoonist /illustrator of many books for kids, including the “Dead
Famous” book Horatio Nelson and His
Victory, and a number of books in the clever Horrible Histories and Murderous
Maths series. He also wrote the
Buster Bayliss books for young readers, which includes Night of the Living
Veg, The Big Freeze, Day of the Hamster, and Custardfinger.
In 2007 he delved into historical
fiction with his award-winning book Here
Lies Arthur, an alternative look at the King Arthur legend.
Reeve said he was always fascinated
by the illustrations as much as the writing and has strived to make his
illustrations as palatable as possible for young readers.
“Even tiny children looking at a picture book
are using their imaginations, gleaning clues from the images to understand what
is happening, and perhaps using the throwaway details which the illustrator
includes to add their own elements to the story,” he said.
As for his own pathway into his
career, he said, “I'm sure it came as no surprise to my friends and family when
I became an illustrator and then a writer because, from about the age of 5, I
was one of those children who always had his nose in a book.”
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