Today we are very excited to share an interview with author Jacob Grant!
Read on to learn more about the author, the book, and a giveaway!
Meet the Author: Jacob Grant
Jacob Grant is an author, illustrator, and dad who is usually hungry. Many of his favorite foods are in this book. When not thinking about food, Jacob can be found at home in Chicago, drawing and writing books like: No Fair!, No Pants!, and Bear’s Scare, among other stories. Learn more about Jacob at JacobGrantBooks.com.
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About the Book: UMAMI
Umami is tired of eating cold fish.
But fish is what the penguins eat. Fish for every meal and birthdays too. To find new exciting foods, Umami adventures across the sea and discovers flavors and spices that are inspiring! She has to share them.
But will the other penguins share her love for these different foods?
~Author Chat~
YABC: What gave you the inspiration to write this book?
Umami was inspired by many things in my life, but the biggest influence has been my kids. My son is nine and my daughter is six, and trying to figure out what they will eat on a daily basis continues to mystify me.
My son has loved spicy foods since he was a toddler and enjoys a surprising amount of different foods, but I can’t get him to eat chicken nuggets. At the other end of the spectrum, my daughter will refuse most foods because they are “spicy”, which simply means they have any hint of flavor at all.
YABC: What scene in the book are you most proud of, and why?
My favorite scene in the book was also one of the most challenging to illustrate, and that is when Umami arrives at the docks of the city and discovers the many food stalls there. I knew it would be a big moment in the story and that the art would need to show a plethora of foods and citizens in a lively market. Crowded scenes are tough! The balancing act here was to illustrate a scene that looks both busy and alive, while still keeping the focus on our hero. Umami’s red backpack was a big help!
YABC: What came first, the concept, landscape, characters, or something else?
Like many of my books, the idea for Umami originated in my sketchbook. A few years back, I had doodled a penguin eating a spicy bowl of ramen, and the name, Umami, came to mind immediately. That’s pretty unusual for me, and I knew there was something there. At first I just liked the name because it was punchy and fun, but later it would inform the structure of the story and lead to introducing the five basic tastes.
YABC: If you could only write one genre for the rest of your life, what would it be and why?
It will always be picture books for me. I love their interplay of word and image, I love their brevity, and I love their ability to talk about big subjects in a simple way. I especially love how picture books are shared.
Whether that’s a librarian reading to a group, or a teacher reading to a class, or a parent sitting down with a child at the end of the day. Picture books are magic.
YABC: How do you keep your ‘voice’ true to the age category you are writing within?
I don’t think too much about writing in a particular voice for children’s books, as I’m mostly writing about whatever I’m interested in at a particular time, but I do make an effort to keep the vocabulary simple and clear for my young audience.
YABC: What can readers expect to find in your books?
The majority of my books feature animals with problems – a bird that learns a bad word, a cat that rejects change, a bear with many anxieties, or a penguin that cannot stomach one more cold fish.
I’ve made books about people too, but I always come back to writing about animals that behave like people because animal characters are universal, and they can have qualities that are both adult and child-like all at once. For example, Umami can be a picky-eater who wears a little birthday hat, and also knows how to sail a boat across the sea.
YABC: What is your favorite snack when writing?
Based on the story subject, could we go with the question: What is your favorite food?
My belly is almost always hungry and many of my favorite foods are in this book, but if I had to choose one, it would have to be ramen. I’m convinced that a quality bowl of tonkotsu is the most perfect, delicious food the world has to offer. So much flavor and goodness in one hot bowl.
YABC: If you were able to meet them, would you be friends with your main character?
Could I be friends with a talking penguin that enjoys food and travel? With ease! Umami would be the very best dinner guest due to her willingness to eat just about anything except cold fish. Though I’d attempt to persuade her that even cold fish can make a tasty dish. Sushi, anyone?
YABC: What’s your least favorite word or expression and why?
I don’t have a least favorite expression, but I do have an easy favorite: “Fake it ‘til you make it”.
These six words got me into writing and illustrating children’s books, and continue to give me the courage to explore new ideas and make new art. Creativity involves risk taking, so the best path is to be bold and act like you know what you’re doing!
YABC: What do you do when you procrastinate?
I’ve never been a procrastinator. I’m fairly disciplined when it comes to tackling one project or another, but when I get stumped writing or illustrating, I have a few methods that work for me. My first instinct is to just switch gears for a bit and work on another project, or a different part of the same project. If it’s related to writing, I’ll read other books that I admire, or visit the library to find something new. If that’s not helping, a change of scenery can be the trick – a walk around the neighborhood, or a park, or even a visit to the art museum can be a great way to refresh.
YABC: What’s up next for you?
I’m currently surrounded by drawings of sea turtles, as I’m in the process of completing art for my next book, Turtle Slept In. This is the story of one turtle who hatches late to discover her brothers and sisters have already left for the sea, and it’s up to her to navigate the many hazards of a busy beach to reunite with her family. Similar to Umami, I’m making the art for this book using oil pastel monoprints and color pencil, which adds just the right texture for the many sandy scenes. If there’s a close second that’s as comforting as thinking about food, it’s thinking about a day at the beach. Turtle’s adventure begins in spring 2026.
YABC: What is your favorite holiday or tradition and why?
Ever since my late teens, my favorite holiday has been Thanksgiving. There’s little pressure to do more than gather with fam, make food and stuff your face, and that is a fine thing to celebrate. I have a feeling that Umami would agree.
YABC: Is there anything that you would like to add?
Umami is the first book that I’ve made using traditional media, avoiding the computer as much as possible. All of the art was created by layering oil pastel monoprints and then drawing on top of those with color pencil. The surprising textures and flaws of handmade art have a quality and warmth that I’ve never been able to replicate digitally, and it’s been a joy to experiment with. The art for Umami even brought me to Italy as one of the winners of the 2024 Bologna Children’s Book Fair Illustration Exhibition. Now the art for Umami is traveling on a museum tour across Japan, Korea and China – so the new approach seems to be working!
Title: UMAMI
Author: Jacob Grant
Release Date: October 29, 2024
Publisher: Viking Books for Young Readers
ISBN-10: 0593624068
ISBN-13: 9780593624067
Genre: Hardcover Picture Book
Age Range: 3-7
~ Giveaway Details ~
Three (3) winners will receive a copy of UMAMI (Jacob Grant) ~US Only!
*Click the Rafflecopter link below to enter the giveaway*
