Lindsay Bonilla is the author of the new children's picture book The Storyteller. Her other books include Polar Bear Island. She lives in North Canton, Ohio.
Q: What inspired you to write The Storyteller?
A: I’d been working as a professional storyteller for some years and realized just how few people knew about the art of storytelling. In college, I stumbled upon it myself.
If I’m honest, I took a class in storytelling not because I was particularly interested in the topic, but because I loved the professor, Rives Collins. I’d taken one of his other classes, and it was transformational. I would’ve taken any class he had to offer!
Still, I had no idea that that choice would change the course of my life, inspiring in me a love for folktales and showing me how stories have the power to get people to make change from the inside out.
So when I started this book, I really wanted it to be a love letter to the art of storytelling — capturing how beautiful and magical it is.
I also wanted it to show that storytelling is a universal art form. We all tell stories every day, we just don’t usually think about it in that way.
But every time you share that funny thing that happened during your day with your spouse or kids over dinner, or when you call your mom to tell her about the bad day you’re having or the great lunch date you had with a friend, you’re telling a story!
I want readers to come away empowered with the knowledge that they are storytellers.
Q: What do you think Noar Lee Naggan's illustrations add to the book?
A: I don’t know if “add” is the right word in this case. Noar’s illustrations are absolutely essential because this is a deeply visual story. As I was writing, I imagined the scenes in my mind.
I wanted the real world and the fairy tale world to blend in such a way that you weren’t sure which world was which, and Noar captured that.
The first time I looked at the physical book I remember telling my husband that it made me feel like I was inside of a warm memory. His illustrations complete the story perfectly.
Q: The Kirkus Review says that the book “Warmly and tenderly conveys the comfort of sharing the lore of days gone by.” What do you think of that description, and what do you feel the book says about storytelling?
A: I love that description, and it definitely fits my feeling after looking at the book for the first time (as I described above.) The word “comfort” stood out to me for sure.
In writing this book, I discovered that I couldn’t write about storytelling without writing about relationship. Storytelling implies a relationship. There is a teller and a listener, and sometimes this line gets blurred, and both parties become both.
But there’s something about telling our stories and having someone care enough to listen that brings comfort.
Just this week I was in the car with my kids and something they were talking about triggered a silly memory for me. I said, “That reminds me of this one time when I lived in Madrid. You’ve probably already heard this story. . .”
My son cut me off immediately and said, “Yeah, I have. But I want to hear it again!” He knew the story, but the delight in his voice over the prospect of hearing it again was palpable. The re-telling of stories brings comfort, familiarity, warmth.
And soon, the story isn’t just mine. It’s my children’s too, and they delight in it just as if it had happened to them. It’s pretty amazing really — and that very special magic of storytelling is what I hope the book communicates to readers.
Q: How would you describe the relationship between your character Griffin and his grandmother?
A: Their special bond is the kind that consistently draws out the best in the other person.
One of my favorite parts of the book is when the Storyteller reminds Griffin of a time that he showed his bravery by scaring away a wolf. Griffin says he was able to be brave because he knew she was waiting for him on the other side of the forest.
There are special people in our lives that make us braver and better just by being who they are and loving us for who we are. They remind us both of the good that is already in us and all that we are capable of becoming. They make us want to live the very best story we can.
That’s the kind of deep love that Griffin and his grandmother share.
Q: What are you working on now?
A: Too many things to list! As a picture book author, I usually have a bunch of different projects going simultaneously. I’ve learned to put the letters “PB” in the name of the files of all of my picture book drafts because I will often forget what I’ve started. But a quick search of “PB” will pull them all up for me!
I’ve also begun trying my hand at writing middle grade, and I’ve got three different projects I’m working on in that department. My mind can get kind of cluttered sometimes, but I do enjoy being able to jump around because if I ever get stuck, I can easily go to something else.
Q: Anything else we should know?
A: The Storyteller’s last words are: “Keep the stories alive, my love.” That is my charge to readers. Tell the stories. The big ones, but the silly, seemingly inconsequential ones too. Telling our stories is what makes us most human and connects us most deeply. So whether you’re a grandparent, parent, teacher, or CEO — share your stories!
And also LISTEN to the stories of others. The world would be a much more compassionate place if we would cultivate the art of listening. :)
--Interview with Deborah Kalb
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