Camilla Reid - Peekaboo series

September 1st 2021

It will come as no surprise to hear that I think producing books for babies and toddlers is the best job in the world. As Editorial Director of Nosy Crow, I have run the Preschool list for over ten years now, and I can honestly say that I never grow tired of thinking of new ways to entertain and delight little children. Having said that, it is surprisingly tricky, considering how simple the end product is! There are scores of factors to take into consideration, and many of them pull in opposite directions, but our aim is always to get the best book that we can, with as few compromises as possible.

As Editorial Director I have two hats: one is a writer hat and the other a publisher one.  When thinking about a new book or series, I usually start with my writer hat on, thinking about the readers themselves. I think about what little children will enjoy in a book, what words will catch their attention, what images will intrigue them and what novelty elements (such as flaps, or sliders) they will discover on the pages and surprise them.

At the same time, I am bearing in mind the adult reader – because most of our books are designed to be shared with a grown-up. The adult reader’s needs are similar to those of the child but not completely identical. So, though adults want the book to be aimed primarily at the child they also, secretly, want the book to engage them a little bit too, I think, by being beautiful, or charming, or amusing, or even all three. Adults also have other needs that a child wouldn’t even consider, things like wanting the book to be safe, and durable, and value for money – and it’s important to wrap these into the mix, too.

And, of course, so that these books make it into children’s hands, I must don my publisher hat and consider the needs of the booksellers and retailers who champion our books to consumers. On top of wanting a great book, they will also want things like a front cover with catchy sales copy, or a format that fits their tables and shelves.

So, getting back to the books, it always amazes me how some preschool books can be read again and again and still bring delight to both child and parent, whereas others lose their appeal very quickly. It seems to me that, for a title to be enduringly successful it must meet most of the following criteria:

• It’s very simple.
• It’s aimed squarely at the child reader, not the adult.
• The illustrations have child-appeal but adults get pleasure from them too.
• It has friendly, engaging characters.
• The text is straightforward, probably quite repetitive, and easy to understand on the first reading. It might rhyme, but not necessarily.
• Even if there isn’t a story as such, there will be a narrative journey.
• It will have a distinct, possibly surprising, ending.
• If it has a novelty component, it’s integral to the reading experience – the novelty advances the narrative, and is not an ‘add-on’.
• Text, illustrations and novelty all complement each other.
• It may well be funny.
• It will definitely have warmth.
• The cover will have instant impact.
• Finally, if it’s a great preschool book, one that sells for years and years and ends up being a ‘classic’, then it will certainly have some undefinable, magic touch of originality and genius.

The Peekaboo series (illustrated by the wonderful Ingela P Arrhenius) has recently launched and, I’m hoping, has many of the qualities that I’ve listed here. Knowing that very young babies love to play peekaboo, we made sure that there are cute characters’ faces popping up on every page (even the backcover) and that it ends with the baby’s favourite face of all – their own, in a mirror! By asking the child to work the simple mechanisms, to join in with the rhyme and then by having their own face appear at the end, it sends the message that the book can’t function without the child – that the book needs them – and I think this is really helpful to draw them in and engage them.

My job as a publisher is of course to sell books but as a writer my over-arching aim is to give children what I call ‘book-confidence’. By learning to understand the conventions of the book (the page turns, the idea of character, the narrative journey, the ending) and deriving a sense of pleasure from story, a child will have taken the first few important steps on the road to a lifetime of reading, and that is ultimately what I think the job of a preschool book is to do.

Peekaboo Moon is out 16th September 2021.

Don't miss our 40% off the full Peekaboo series, valid from 1st September 2021 until 31st October 2021.