Listen, Hippo!
Written and illustrated by Gabriel Evans
Published by Puffin
“’I’m feeling sad,’ said Billy. My thoughts are whirling and twirling like a pinwheel. I think what I need is – ’
‘Aha! As your best friend I know exactly what you need,’ said Hippo.’” (Listen, Hippo!)
I jumped at the offer of an interview with illustrator Gabriel Evans because of his beautifully crafted, thoughtful and humorous backlist of books. Amongst these are CBCA Notables and Shortlisted titles Norton and the Bear, Norton and the Borrowing Bear, A Human for Kingsley, A Job for Kingsley, Blue Flower (written by Sonya Hartnett), Little One (written by Jane Godwin), Captain Sneer the Buccaneer (written by Penny Matthews) and Roses Are Blue (written by Sally Murphy).
Listen, Hippo! is another fine picture both written and illustrated by Gabriel. It shows how Hippo tries to distract Billy from feeling sad with dressing up, dancing in the cherry blossoms, sitting in a favourite tree and eating chocolate-chip cookies on a flying carpet. But all Billy wants is for Hippo to listen to him.
Interview with Gabriel Evans about Listen, Hippo!
Thank you for speaking to ‘Joy in Books’ at PaperbarkWords, Gabriel.
Where are you based and how does this influence your work?
Thanks for the chat, Joy.
I live in a country town south of Perth with my wife and baby. We built a house in an old apricot orchard high on a hill overlooking a valley of trees that wind along a river.
I find our space very peaceful and I think this is reflected in my work.
You have both written and illustrated Listen, Hippo! How did this come about?
Listen, Hippo! Started out in my sketchbook as a drawing of a large, excitable hippopotamus and a small, quiet child. I felt the child had something to say, but the hippo was too busy to listen. This set the course for the story as I wanted to know more about the relationship between these two characters.
It took a while to work out what I wanted to say in this story, but once I’d constructed the bones of the narrative, I storyboarded the entire book in one weekend.
My storyboard process involves me both writing the manuscript and sketching the pictures simultaneously. As a visual person, this is my preferred system of making books.
What is the significance of your title Listen, Hippo! For a short title, it includes 2 punctuation marks. Could you comment on this?
I often struggle with titles, but this one emerged as the story developed. It’s straight to the heart of the subject matter and the inclusion of two punctuation marks amplifies Billy’s urgency for Hippo to listen to him.
Your books include humour, which is often gentle. What humorous aspect in Listen, Hippo! do you particularly enjoy?
I never actively seek humour, but it often emerges as the story is written. In this instance, humour is a useful tool as I explore the topic of emotions while keeping it obtainable for early readers.
We can resonate with Billy’s midnight emotions in his tummy as well as laugh at Hippo for solemnly stating his intention to build a sandcastle while wearing snazzy swimwear.
What media and illustrative process have you used in Listen, Hippo!
This book was created using a combination of watercolour, gouache and pencil. I find watercolour and pencil to be incredibly sensitive mediums to use when exploring emotion and they perfectly suited for this book.
Endpapers – what is their significance (particularly of the yellow stripes) here and what might you add to the final endpapers if you could redo them?
I think the stripes sum up the two personalities in the book, the vibrance and energy of the yellow alongside the quietness of the white. Endpapers are something I spend a long time contemplating and I love the simplicity of these.
Colours, why have you used yellow so generously? (It does also match well with the Puffin publisher icon!)
I hadn’t even noticed the colour matches the logo until now. What a happy accident!
Colours are a useful tool for setting the mood of a book. The decision to use one colour strips back the scene to a purer form and helps focus on the characters and the emotions that Billy experiences during the story.
It also created a wonderful contrast between Billy’s reality and Hippo’s fantastical, colourful ideas.
In a brilliant stroke you introduce colour gradually and then gloriously. Could you please select one of your illustrations and talk us through the colour and composition.
The pirate ship scene is a great example of what I wanted to achieve in the coloured sequences.
The ship carries the yellow theme in its sails as a link to Billy’s reality. Hippo and Billy sail through the ocean towards a giant blue wave. Everything feels exaggerated as the reader is swept along with our characters before we’re brought back to earth by Billy’s plaintive voice telling Hippo he feels sick.
These colour scenes were such a joy to make and I wanted that sense of fun to come through in the art as the colours swirl and dance across the page.
Please tell us about the comparative size of your characters.
Their size relates to their personalities. Hippo is this larger-than-life character who is enthusiastic and positive. In some ways, he’s almost a parental figure who wants to make their child happy. In contrast, Billy is small, quiet and mature for his age as he recognises and expresses his feelings.
How does the seeming simplicity of your illustrations belie depth?
This is such a difficult question to answer as I don’t honestly know. I think it’s because I truly believe in the world I’m creating and every mark and line carries the weight of responsibility in bringing it to life. One reason I like to work in watercolour and pencil is I’m able to mentally immerse myself in the artwork and exist in the space I’m creating.
Which illustration best captures or embodies the relationship between Billy and Hippo? Why?
I think the relationship is best captured in the second last scene where Billy is talking to Hippo and Hippo has a warm smile. Although they are opposite personalities, there’s a genuine connection between these two and it’s best displayed here.
Please tell us something about one or more of your awarded books as well as one of your books that you wished had garnered more attention.
Norton and the Bear was a story that paved the way for how I make my stories by writing and illustrating the storyboard simultaneously. Although I’d done versions of this process in some of my previous books, this was the first time it felt fully mature.
It’s hard to decide what book I wish had garnered more attention. I guess there are a few that didn’t quite find their feet, but they’re still special books to me and I look forward to reading them to my son when he’s older.
Thank you very much Gabriel. There is no doubt that Listen, Hippo! deserves high accolades as a picture book for the very young.
Listen, Hippo! at Penguin Books
Gabriel Evans about Little One (with Jane Godwin) at PaperbarkWords blog
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