Today we are very excited to share an interview with author Ed Vere!
Read on to learn more about the author, the book, and a giveaway!
Meet the Author: Ed Vere
ED VERE is the author and illustrator of numerous picture books, including How to Be a Lion, The Artist, and the New York Times and USA Today bestseller Max the Brave. He lives in London.
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About the Book: The Elephant and the Sea
An inspiring, seafaring fable about a determined and brave elephant who reaches for his dreams, from New York Times bestselling author-illustrator Ed Vere.
“There is only one thing I want to do . . . So I will do it!”
Gabriel the elephant dreams of being part of the lifeboat crew in his seaside town, but he is too young, and too little. But soon, Gabriel grows up and he is too . . . BIG! Disappointed but undaunted, Gabriel makes a plan. He hammers and chops, saws and sands, and builds his very own boat.
One night, a great storm hits, and it’s Gabriel’s time to shine, pulling his oars alone against the crashing waves to save a crew in peril.
Young children will love rooting for underdog Gabriel and will draw inspiration from his determination to achieve his dreams despite hurdles and setbacks.
The Elephant and the Sea is a perfect gift for anyone setting out on a new path, encouraging them to face life’s obstacles with optimism.
~Author Chat~
YABC: What gave you the inspiration to write this book?
I occasionally have forays living out romantic dreams in different parts of the world. One was spending a winter in Cornwall, which is the sea-lashed peninsula tacked onto the far south-west corner of England.
While I was there, I was painting and thinking about my next book. The small fishing villages dotted along the coast surrounded by dazzling seas brought back memories of my grandfather and my father who both loved the sea and anything to do with boats. As a child I was fascinated by lifeboats and the swashbuckling adventure of the sea.
There were echoes of an older time everywhere—wooden boats and the sense of community in the fishing villages. Cornwall felt like the perfect setting for a picture book. For anyone who doesn’t know it, in winter it’s often lashed by gales and rain. That’s how I first drew Gabriel, the main character, standing, determined and steadfast, against the elements.
YABC: Who is your favorite character in the book?
Gabriel is the book’s hero. Young Gabriel has a dream to be a part of the lifeboat crew, but elephants grow pretty big. Too big for some boats. Gabriel, however, is determined to make his dream come true. He doesn’t take no for an answer. He builds his own boat. A boat strong enough to face the fiercest storm.
Gabriel shows a quiet, humble bravery—which I love. Embarrassingly (for a Brit—by tradition we don’t show our emotions), I find myself choking up a bit at a few points when I read the book to children.
YABC: Which came first, the title or the story?
A drawing of Gabriel standing at the sea’s edge, lashed by the rain came first. The title seemed obvious after that. Then came the story… I wrote the first quarter, then wasn’t quite sure where to take it so I wrote another book, The Artist. Then, immediately afterwards, the rest of the story came tumbling out. Normally I think of a title at the end, when I really know what the story is about, but the title led this story.
YABC: What scene in the book are you most proud of, and why?
The scene I love most is Gabriel bravely towing the fishing fleet home, saving them from the teeth of a mighty storm and into the safety of the town harbour. I loved drawing the sense of the small town battered by the wild storm but safe from it, with smoke blowing from the chimneys suggesting a cozy warmth inside the cottages.
YABC: Thinking way back to the beginning, what’s the most important thing you’ve learned as a writer from then to now?
A great question. The most important thing I’ve learned as a writer is to not be too hard on yourself and to not worry if it’s not good yet—just get your idea down on paper, however incoherent it may seem. You can come back and improve it later. The important thing is to not lose the idea.
YABC: What do you like most about the cover of the book?
I love the sense the cover gives of who Gabriel is. His adventurousness and his gentle determination. He’s in his boat, with Milou his sea cat, rowing against a stormy sea. In a sense life can sometimes feel like that, but if we row hard, we’ll get there.
YABC: What new release book are you looking most forward to in 2024?
Chris Haughton’s The History of Information. Chris is a great friend and I’ve been lucky to see many iterations of it along the way. It’s truly an incredible and fascinating book.
YABC: What’s a book you’ve recently read and loved?
Sarah Crossan’s Where the Heart Should Be—a heart-wrenching tale set at a very difficult time in Ireland’s history when along with potato blight, a famine was engineered by the British colonizers. The Irish suffered terribly—a very dark episode in the history of Europe.
YABC: What’s up next for you?
I’m writing and drawing for my next book at the moment. It’s very early days so there are quite a few ideas floating around my head. Two mice who think quite highly of themselves (though they really shouldn’t) are quite high up in my thoughts.
YABC: Which was the most difficult or emotional scene to narrate?
Getting the tone of the last page took a while. We join Gabriel as an old elephant, looking back on his life, content that he has spent it doing something he loved—savings sailors in trouble at sea. He’s both thoughtful and happy. In some ways it’s a meditation on old age. Very young children don’t always realise that their grandparents haven’t always been vastly old. I wanted them to realise that their grandparents were once young too. That they also had dreams and adventures.
It would be lovely if this book elicits those sorts of conversations between grandparents and their grandchildren.
YABC: What is the main message or lesson you would like your reader to remember from this book?
It’s a book about having a dream and not giving it up, despite the setbacks you may meet on the way. If you’re dedicated and determined, you will find a way to achieve your dream. I hope as well as having a lesson, that it’s also a great adventure story.
YABC: Is there an organization or cause that is close to your heart?
RNLI – The Royal National Lifeboat Institute – which survives entirely on donations. The volunteers manning the lifeboats are absolute heroes.
YABC: What advice do you have for new writers?
Never give up. Each day is a new day to start or improve a project.
Title: THE ELEPHANT AND THE SEA
Author: Ed Vere
Illustrator: Ed Vere
Release Date: 5/7/24
Publisher: Doubleday Books for Young Readers
ISBN-10: 0525580905
ISBN-13: 9780525580904
Genre: Fiction picture book
Age Range: Ages 3-7
*Giveaway Details*
Three (3) winners will receive a hardcover copy of The Elephant and the Sea (Ed Vere) ~ US Only!
*Click the Rafflecopter link below to enter the giveaway!*
What an adorable read!
Book look so cute! Look forward to reading it!
We love his other books, this one looks great, too!
The cover matches the synopsis well.