How do new board and picture books come to be?

Gaby Paez, a member of the Penguin School and Library team, interviewed Cecily Kaiser, the Vice President and Publisher of the RISE x Penguin Workshop and the world of Eric Carle imprints! Read their Q&A to learn more about how Penguin publishes books perfect for early childhood education.

GP: What made you want to work on books for babies, toddlers, and preschoolers?  

CK: I’ve been drawn to young children since I practically was one. I studied Child Development in college, and earned a teaching degree, with the intention of becoming a principal. But after a summer internship at Scholastic, I never looked back. I fell in love with the purposeful, mission-driven work of this industry, and the scale of its effects. One incredible book could change the lives of millions of children across the world. I see publishing for the youngest readers as an immense opportunity, and also, a staggering responsibility. When done right, our books help children love themselves and love others… and of course, love books!

GP: What challenges do you think are unique to editing books for this age range?

CK: Unfortunately, 0-5 year olds are not walking into a bookstore on their own with wallet in hand. They’re not hearing about new books and single-handedly placing them on hold at their local libraries. In fact, most 0-5 year olds are not even picking up a book and reading it to themselves. Arguably the biggest challenge of publishing for this age group is the gatekeepers: ADULTS! I’ve learned over my 25-year career that we can have the most relevant, appealing, worthwhile of ideas for a preschool book, but if its value is not immediately obvious and appealing to adults, it won’t get read. We work every day to center our young readers, while keeping a close secondary eye towards the adults who may be selecting, purchasing, and ultimately reading these books aloud. Of course, knowing that adults will inevitably be reading these books, too, presents its own opportunity. So many of the books we publish offer perspectives and ideas that were not discussed when today’s adults were young. It’s a chance to open the eyes of our older readers alongside those of our youngest ones!

GP: Board books often are adaptations of text and illustrations that started as a picture book. We are noticing an uptick in board book originals – would you say you’ve noticed this too? What do you think about board book original text and illustrations? 

CK: I’m an OG proponent of board book originals! I’ve published hundreds of board books over the last two decades, and not one of them has been a picture book reformat. Our industry is evolving to embrace what we now know about 0-3 year olds: how critical a time it is for brain development, for empathy, for language acquisition, for pre-literacy. The fact that we can create books specifically for these readers – with content that speaks to them, and in a format that they can hold and manipulate – purely benefits those kids!  At RISE, we begin every project by homing in on the sweet spot age for that particular book. That then dictates everything: the format, the trim size, the word count, the size of the font, the complexity of the art and design… and in that process, it becomes clear as to whether the project should be a board book. Content for the youngest kids best serves those kids in board book form!

GP: How do you approach diversity and inclusion in books for our youngest readers?

CK: In order to publish books that best serve our audience, we consider true representation at every stage of the process. First, diversity on our own publishing team is essential – for expertise, for point of view, for lived experiences, and for priorities. Next, we seek out creators from an array of backgrounds and experiences to bring their authentic selves to their projects. Each project is different – some rotate through a cast of characters such as a classroom of students. In those cases, we make sure to represent diversity of race, gender, body type, and ability. In other cases, a single character or family is featured with authentic intention. Words and images make a life-long impact on young readers, and it is our privilege to use this power for the good of every body.