Interview: Jez Smith talks about Honu and Blue's Sealife Clues

Jez Smith is a zookeeper, animal trainer, conservationist and storyteller. He has worked in zoos for nearly three decades and currently works at the world-renowned Auckland Zoo, where he can be seen flying birds, enthralling audiences and telling stories that matter. His first book with Scholastic was Pu and Ru’s Bird Beak Clues. Jez talks to NZ Booklovers about his second book, Honu and Blue’s Sealife Clues.

Tell us a little about Honu and Blue’s Sealife Clues.

Honu and Blue's Sealife Clues is a companion book to my earlier publication, “Pu and Ru's Bird Beak Clues”. It follows a similar format, with readers invited to join two friends on a journey of discovery along Aotearoa New Zealand's sea shores, solving rhyming riddles to learn about our wonderful native sea creatures. It's full of facts and fun, beautifully illustrated by the brilliant Ned Barraud and comes with a powerful message and useful conservation tips. 

What inspired you to write this book?

I grew up in the UK and lived a long way from the coast. A trip to the sea side was a rare treat, but something I always loved. Exploring rock pools, fishing for crabs in the harbour and visiting seabird colonies were highlights of many a summer vacation. I developed a huge affinity for the sea and became fascinated by the creatures that lived there. When I moved to New Zealand, I couldn't wait to go snorkelling in the clear waters around Goat Island, Aotearoa's oldest marine reserve. It didn't disappoint. But then I tried a bit of snorkelling along a rocky outcrop just a little way down the coast. What I discovered was a barren environment, devoid of much sealife. This stark comparison between what a thriving seabed should look like and what I saw in an unprotected area left a lasting impression. It was clear that if this is how much of our coastline looks, sealife is in trouble.  Writing a book to encourage children to look closer at sealife and offering tips on how they can help it out is just one way that I hope to make a difference.    

What research was involved?

I have a good background knowledge of sealife which gave me a good starting point, but I was keen to ensure that I fact checked everything and I didn't miss out on any super cool facts. This meant that I did a huge amount of reading on each species that I included in the book and a few other species that didn't make the cut too. I was also very keen to include a conservation tips page that would offer children some suggestions of actions they can take to help the oceans. I talked to a lot of people about this and everyone agreed that plastic pollution, over-fishing and climate change are serious problems. However, there are other issues affecting the oceans that aren't as well known. Who knew that flushing cat poo down the toilet is dangerous to our precious Maui dolphins? I didn't, but it's something that I learnt along the way.   

What was your routine or process when writing this book?

I don't get much time to just sit down with my laptop and write, so I find myself writing in snippets, literally two lines at a time. This is usually whilst I'm doing other things like cooking or riding to work on my motorbike. I sometimes jot them down on a piece of paper until I get a chance to add them into the story, but more often than not I find myself running them through my head all day long so that I don't forget what I came up with. The problem is, quite often when I finally get to insert them into the story, they don't seem to work as well as I thought they would and I have to start all over again.

How did you work with the illustrator, Ned Barraud? 

I was paired with Ned for my first book by the team at Scholastic and right from the start, I felt that Ned really understood where I wanted to go with it. Since then, we have become good online friends and I was over the moon when he agreed to illustrate Honu and Blue's sealife clues. Let's face it, being a companion book, it just wouldn't work the same without him. His attention to detail and the way he works visual clues into each picture perfectly complements my written verse. Other than a short discussion about what species of turtle I envisaged Honu to be, I just left Ned to do his magic and waited for the results. Once again, he absolutely nailed it.

If a soundtrack were made to accompany this book, name a song or two you would include.

I think “Under the Sea“ from Disney's 'The Little Mermaid” perfectly captures the diversity and wonder of life under the waves and would work quite well with this book. Bobby Darin's “Beyond the Sea” springs to mind too.   

What did you enjoy the most about writing this children's picture book?

Each verse in this book is about a different sea creature, ranging from the tiny pot-bellied sea horse to the great white shark. This diversity in creatures allowed me to write in a diverse range of styles to suit each subject. Some verses are humorous, some are dramatic, and some are tinged with sadness. Then, of course, there are the two commentators in the book, a wise old turtle, Honu, and the wise-cracking Little penguin, Blue. This gave me the opportunity to write lots of dad-jokes and know that kids will be groaning about them the length and breadth of the country!

What did you do to celebrate finishing this book?

When I finished this book, I took the opportunity to sit down and write something a little bit different. It's a spoof of a poetry classic, and like the original, a little bit of nonsense. There was no research involved, just my imagination and wordplay, which made it lots of fun to write. It's still sitting on my laptop, and chances are it will likely just stay there. Sometimes it's nice to write something just for yourself.   

What is the favourite book you have read so far this year and why?

I have just read “Tall Oaks” by Chris Whitaker. It's a story about a boy going missing in a small town in America. The crime itself plays second fiddle to the study of the various characters that occupy the town and may or may not have had some involvement. It was the variety of characters and the depth that the author brought to each one that I really enjoyed. 

I also recently picked up a copy of Eel Song by Amber McEwan and Sonia Frimmel, which I thought was beautifully written. Whilst it is marketed as a children's book, it reads almost like a sorrowful ballad, lamenting the life cycle of the Longfin eel.

What’s next on the agenda for you?

I have recently completed a third book in the 'Clues' series that is now in the early stages of production with Scholastic. I'm quite proud of the fact that I will have a trilogy on the shelves! Not quite in the same league as 'The Lord of the Rings', but a very personal achievement.

I am also working on a new series. It's something similar but different, so I'll wait to see where that takes me.

Since publishing my first book, Pu and Ru's Bird Beak Clues, I have spent a lot of time visiting schools and doing talks and readings. It's something that I have really enjoyed and so I will be continuing with those and introducing them to Honu and Blue. I'm no stranger to presenting talks in front of an audience in my day job as a zookeeper, but when I visit a school, I find that I am greeted by a guaranteed audience of enthusiastic kids just waiting to get silly and loud. It really is great fun. 

Scholastic New Zealand