Laughter is the Best Ending by Maryam Master
illustrated by Astred Hicks
Author/illustrator Interview at PaperbarkWords
‘You’re not supposed to laugh at funerals.
That’s the number-one rule of funerals. Everybody knows that. Even my pea-brain pet chihuahua, Jox, knows it.
But I can’t help it.
Tears (of the laughter variety) are rolling down my face.
This is bad.
Very bad.
(Laughter is the Best Ending)
Laughter is the Best Ending is published by Pan Macmillan.
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Thank you for speaking to ‘Joy in Books’ at PaperbarkWords, Maryam and Astred.
You are both a force to be reckoned with individually and even more so perhaps when you unite in your middle fiction novels Exit Through the Gift Shop, No Words and now in Laughter is the Best Ending.
How has your work together developed or refined during the course of these three books?
MM: Thanks Joy! I love joining forces with Astred. Her illustrations really complement and lift the story. She brings her own quirky, offbeat spirit to the page, which, when combined with my sometimes dark, idiosyncratic humour, results in what you see in Laughter is the Best Ending. Astred’s illustrations surprise and tickle me. Always a thrill to work with someone whose work you admire. It’s such a happy dance.
AH: The creative relationship has definitely evolved. Our first book together, Exit through the Gift Shop, was such an experiment for both of us. It was Maryam’s first novel and the open brief to me from the publisher to go wild and play. We were both testing the waters with each other, and the result strengthened this trust. It’s scary for an author to allow another creative to play with your characters, to give them visual form. Especially in a book that looks like it should be a novel – rather than a picture book. And let me tell you, it’s scary as an illustrator/designer, too! But Maryam’s writing lights a creative spark in me and inspires me; her stories provide so many funny prompts that my humour wants to dance about and respond to.
Laughter is the best ending was still nerve-wracking to start, but I had all these illustrations in my head, and as soon as I read the manuscript, I instantly scribbled away. And really, a lot of what I was doing was trying to make Maryam laugh the way she makes me laugh. Which I think is a great way to view the growth of the creative relationship – from nervous experimentation to comfortable silliness.
Laughter is the Best Ending is a brilliant title. Who chose it and what does it mean in this context?
Oh, I’m so glad you like it! I love it too but gee, it didn’t come easily. For a long time, the title was the first line of the book, which is ‘You’re Not Supposed to Laugh at Funerals’ – but a few weeks before we went to print, the team at Pan Macmillan suggested that a title with the word ‘funeral’ in it may not be good for a children’s book! And they were probably right. So, we had a short time to come up with something new. I was workshopping titles with my publisher, my best friend Kylie and my poor family every minute of every day.
I landed on Laughter is the Best Ending (a play on an Oscar Wilde quote referenced in the book) because to me, it sums up the spirit of the book. That life is fleeting and it’s best not to take things too seriously. It’s important to find the fun. Seek the joy. Laugh as much as we can along the way.
Please introduce your protagonist Zee and give a teaser into who she meets and what happens to her.
Zee is a loner. And she wants you to know that her ‘loner’ status isn’t one to be pitied. She has chosen it and prefers her own company to the boneheads in her new school, any day of the week.
She likes to read Oscar Wilde and watch documentaries all day, which according to her parents, is not normal for 13-year-olds. So they decide to send her on a five-day holiday camp, hoping she’ll make ‘at least one friend’.
Now, Zee would rather take a bath in Tabasco sauce than attend a camp called Youth Fusion. But with influencer Tiffanee and super-nerds Jonah and Moses, she soon finds herself in the middle of a hair-raising mystery, hurling her into some fierce detective work and bringing her face to face with the notorious Old Bat Viv.
Why Oscar Wilde?
His wit has me totally hooked!
What genre/s is Laughter is the Best Ending?
Ooh, good question! Comedy? With a dash of drama and a pinch of mystery.
How have you combined humour, pathos and joy in this story?
I find those things inseparable. When you examine human behaviour as Zee does, you are inevitably faced with the absurd. Humans are absurd. And therefore funny. And of course, Zee’s connection with the 86-year-old Dame Vivienne allowed me to explore the beauty of intergenerational friendships.
Why is camp such a great setting for excitement, adventure, mystery and growth?
Endless possibilities. So many things can go wrong. From wild animals to weird camp leaders. Not to mention your fellow campers. People you’d never choose to spend time with voluntarily. All thrown together around a campfire. My idea of hell.
Who is your most surprising or funniest character? Why?
MM: The most surprising has to be influencer Tiffannee (spelt with two ‘e’s ‘cause her parents are idiots) who is completely obsessed with her online life and addicted to the dopamine hits she gets from her doom-scrolling followers. You’d expect her to be a shallow person, perhaps stupid. But she’s neither. She’s smart, savvy and just trying to navigate social media like most of this TikTok generation.
AH: I love the twins and would just like to illustrate an entire book about them and their ace cardigans.
What are some themes you explore? Which of these was tricky to write for your middle-grade readership? How did you manage this?
I wanted to dig into society’s impossible beauty standards. None of us can escape it, they’re inflicted upon us all – young and old. Who’s hot, who’s not? And who made up the rules by which we judge ourselves and others?
I also wanted to examine the beast that is social media and celebrate true human connection – the kind that happens without screens.
What response to the book from a reader have you appreciated?
I’ve loved that people are finding it laugh-out-loud funny. Hopefully the story is also making them think about some deeper themes such as mortality, loss, self-acceptance and the importance of celebrating our differences, but I’m loving that it’s making people laugh. It’s what the title promises, so I’m glad it’s delivering on that!
If you didn’t work with books, what jobs would you both love to have instead? Why?
MM: I would like to own a bookshop/café. I’d give it a Middle Eastern vibe and spend all day doing my two favourite things – eating and reading. I’d serve my customers cinnamon & cardamom cake and endless cups of Persian tea and chew their ears off about the latest good reads!
AH: I am a noticer. I like looking at the world around me and noticing space, shapes and creatures. I think that’s what makes me a good designer. I am also a nature nerd. So, I would probably gravitate to a zoological science field if I wasn’t in book design/illustration. But realistically, that would never happen because I am utterly rubbish at maths, and you have to have some form of competency around numbers to do proper sciencey things. This is why I will stay in books and help people to notice the world around them through pictures and prose.
Maryam, why do I keep reading about and seeing photos of you with David Walliams? What’s your other career?
Ha! I’m also a playwright and have had the good fortune of adapting four of David’s books for the stage. He’s such a collaborative and generous creative. And an excellent human to boot. On the opening night of Mr Stink, he sent me three dozen yellow roses, which I turned into potpourri because when Mr Walliams sends you three dozen roses, you don’t just let those beauties die. You make ‘em last forever!
Astred, please tell us about some of your other books and how you manage your workload?
AH: Lists. Lists are the only thing keeping me from exploding and losing the plot in terms of managing my workload! My creative practice is branching out in so many different directions, which is why lists are very important! I am writing and illustrating my first children’s non-fiction book (out in June 2025 with CSIRO Publishing), which is very exciting and nerve-wracking. And I am finding that I am the pickiest author I’ve ever worked for. I’ve also just finished illustrating another giant children’s non-fiction book (out in January 2025 with Hardie Grant Explore). I’m also designing so many incredible titles ranging from picture books, mid-grade and young adult to beautiful craft books. On top of that, I am currently illustrating the Christmas light projections for Melbourne Town Hall 2024! (I have included an Easter egg of the Melbourne Collins Street Peregrine Falcons in one scene, which I hope people find and make them smile). Phew! It’s all jam-packed at the moment, and I’m feeling a bit frazzled. But even still, when I sit in my studio every morning with my cup of coffee and loyal pup at my feet, I grin stupidly to myself as I read through my list of work for the day. How lucky am I to get to work on so many brilliant projects and with so many passionate publishing creatives?
What have you both enjoyed reading recently?
MM: Demon Copperhead by Barbara Kingsolver was absolutely brilliant. I devoured it in 3 days. I also loved Suzy Zail’s YA novel Inkflower – a moving story about the experiences of a Holocaust survivor as told by his teenage daughter.
AH: Most of the time, I only have time to read manuscripts, which is exciting but also tricky because I can’t publicly discuss them! I loved Danielle Binks’s latest novel (I read the manuscript while designing and illustrating the cover), Six Summers of Tash and Leopold. However, I did binge the audiobooks for Juno Dawson’s Her Majesty’s Royal Coven series earlier this year, and I loved them. I’m a sucker for magical realism, plus audiobooks are excellent company when illustrating.
Laughter is the Best Ending at Pan Macmillan
My interview with Maryam about Exit Through the Gift Shop at PaperbarkWords blog
Maryam’s guest author post about No Words at PaperbarkWords blog
My interview with Danielle Binks at PaperbarkWords blog
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