Yes & No
Roaring Brook Press (April 13, 2021)
Reading age : 2 - 6 years
Yes & No
This book is about a puppy and a cat and their day together (with a surprise twist at the end). It’s also, I hope, about something more.
I wrote the story at a bakery in Brooklyn, at their communal wood table. Then, as I dreamed about what the book could be, I spent time at the Impressionist Galleries at the Met (looking at clouds and shadows), and the Asian Art Collection (where I fell in love with the mountainous landscape scrolls). I also biked around the city on the lookout for puppies, and if I saw a good one (right age, size, disposition), I’d pull over and ask the owner if I could draw them.
Once I’d assembled my various sketches, I started to paint. I wanted the book to look similar to the black-and-white art of Big Cat, Little Cat, but with a watercolor wash. It took me one summer to paint, possibly longer because of a mistake I made with the paper (one I’m too embarrassed to admit to).
Yes & No is pretty simple: puppy, cat, day. But the emotions, at least for me, became deep. Family, love. Siblings, parent. Sadness, space. The balance within a family, and the rhythm of our days. The longing we all feel – especially now – for a sense of peace.
