Q&A with Kate Hannigan

 

 

 

Kate Hannigan is the author of the new children's picture book biography Rachel Carson's Wonder-Filled World: How the Scientist, Writer, and Nature Lover Changed the Environmental Movement. Her many other books include Josephine and Her Dishwashing Machine. She lives in Chicago. 

 

Q: What inspired you to write a picture book biography of environmentalist Rachel Carson (1907-1964)?

 

A: I love hiking and getting out into nature. So one day, while on a hike in beautiful Northern Michigan, I started thinking about kids and screens and the usual hit list of worries about the modern world. I wondered whether young readers even knew about Rachel Carson and the role she played in launching the modern environmental movement.

 

So I began turning her life and impact around in my head. She was instrumental in making us as a nation re-evaluate the use of chemical pesticides, specifically DDT, through her book Silent Spring. But DDT is not exactly kid-friendly. It's an abbreviation for a long, unpronounceable synthetic chemical that came out of WWII.

 

So instead I decided to approach the story from a different angle. This route focused on her love of nature and how she encouraged even the youngest children to engage with the outdoors using all our senses. For young readers, thinking about our eyes, ears, noses, fingers, tongues, this is much more accessible!

 

Q: How did you research her life, and what did you learn that especially surprised you?

 

A: I learned so much! I knew she'd been an award-winning author prior to writing Silent Spring, the book that sounded the alarm to the overuse of pesticides.

 

But what really stuck with me is how challenging it was for her to pursue her writing and research. While she never married or had children, she still carried the heavy burden of supporting her family. So much of her life was spent managing her parents, siblings, nieces, nieces' kids.

 

Honestly, in my opinion, it held her back! I think if she were a man, perhaps her story might have been different. When Silent Spring came out, some of the criticism focused on her educational experience and that she'd not earned a doctorate.

 

But because of family demands and the impact of the Great Depression, she'd been forced to drop out of school and get a job—the only family member actually earning an income!

 

 Another surprise, yet NOT at all surprising, was the response many critics had to this female scientist's book. They called her essentially a hysterical cat lady. I guess maybe it's a badge of honor? She's the OG of the "cat lady" insults? But their efforts to discredit her were both shocking and predictable.

 

Q: What do you think Katie Hickey’s illustrations add to the book?

 

A: Katie has such a beautiful style! I love her use of color and the kind of dream-like quality of many of the pages. It's magical! And this is one of the joys of collaborating with a visual storyteller. I write the words, but the artist brings it to life!

 

It's a total kick to see how an artist interprets your words, then tells their own story through their illustrations. I love this process. And as you can see from Katie's art, picture books truly are a treasure to read and hold in your hands.

 

Q: The Booklist review of the book said of the book, “Hannigan’s portrayal of young Rachel will endear her to many readers, particularly since Carson’s career path and accomplishments as an adult sprang from her childhood interests and talents.” What do you think of that description?

 

A: I think this gets to the essence of what I was trying to do with the book. Find the connection to childhood. Young readers can connect with young Rachel and the idea of playing among the trees, exploring at the beach, feeling the wind on our face or the smell of woodsmoke on the breeze.

 

And as they see where this love of the outdoors took Rachel Carson, my hope is that it might lead them to consider where their love of nature will take them. Because we really, really need them to care about the natural world!

 

Q: What are you working on now?

 

A: I'm working on lots of things! Biggest is getting ready for a new book release. I grew up reading Little Women and loving Jo March. My sister is even named Beth, for the beloved third sister in the March family.

 

So, as I continue on my long list of things to worry about regarding children and the modern world, I can't stop thinking about creative writing. What is ahead for teaching kids to write using their own brilliant minds and not machines?

 

My small way to address this is through my next book, called Louisa Learns to Write. It looks at how Louisa May Alcott wrote Little Women, and I've overlaid onto that 10 "habits" she developed on her journey to becoming a writer. It's gorgeously illustrated by Sofia Moore and will publish on Jan. 20, 2026.

 

Q: Anything else we should know?

 

A: These are challenging times for lots of people. Creatives—whether authors of books or screenplays or musical scores, illustrators, photographers, designers—are looking at a world where their talents are replaced by AI.

 

It's so important for those of us who love the creative arts to support creative people in what they're doing. The stakes are tremendously high.

 

I try to buy books by working authors who are living and breathing right now, from bookstores run by local businesses and employing real humans with an interest in the community and literature and the power of storytelling. And I hope your readers will too!

 

--Interview with Deborah Kalb. Here's a previous Q&A with Kate Hannigan.