Today, I’m delighted to be able to share a fascinating guest post from author and illustrator Sophy Henn on the inspiration behind Happy Hills. I will also be sharing my review of this hilarious graphic novel.
Guest Author Post
Sophy Henn on the inspiration behind Happy Hills
One of my favourite bits of my job is doing Q&A sessions after events. Now, I must confess I rarely get to do them as I am always running out of time BUT when I do I am consistently thrilled by the variety of questions I get, but three pop up rather a lot…
How old are you?
What’s your favourite colour?
And… Where do you get your ideas from?
So, in case you are interested…
1) REALLY old (but huge thanks to the very sweet girl who suggested I was 27!)
2) Rainbow
3) EVERYWHERE.
Ideas for stories really are everywhere, they are happening around us all the time but we must stay vigilant or we will miss them! I like to scribble or doodle my ideas down when they pop up as my memory is appalling and also because more often than not I will get a bit of an idea and either have to let it grow over time in my sketchbook, or match it with something else that has been lingering there.
This was the case with Happy Hills. I have been making comics for many years and used comic strips throughout the Pizazz series but it still felt like a bit of a leap to make an ENTIRE comic book. But it was going over my sketchbooks and seeing all the characters I had dreamt up that gave me the idea to create an ensemble cast of cute but VERY feisty characters that could populate this imaginary land.
With my head full from browsing pages and pages of sketchbooks I sat down and drew pretty much the whole cast, straight away on one page of a sketchbook. And the idea of them looking so cute but having very contrasting traits was making me laugh but it was also resonating!
As a middle aged woman I find myself often pigeon holed in one way or another, but I delight in still having the capacity for great silliness, or maybe getting furious about an injustice or possibly just wanting to sing and dance – despite what the world expects of me! And despite huge leaps and bounds this happens in all areas of society, but I think girls and young women suffer from preconceived ideas of looks /behaviour more than most. So not only did a cast of cute but spirited and silly characters make me laugh it felt like something with worth and meaning.
I wanted to keep the energy high so while I decided to have a narrative thread that ran through the books in recurring strips, I would pepper this with running gags, standalone strips and mini series that run from book to book. In my head it became a sketch show, rather like The Fast Show, with catchphrases, familiar jokes and surprisingly poignant moments. Hopefully.
The core ideas for the strips themselves come from a very disparate selection of sources – memories of my childhood, of my daughter’s childhood, moments I have witnessed and overheard when I am out and about, pop culture references, old comic strips I made years ago, films, TV and occasionally even BOOKS! As I said before the kernels of stories are everywhere, you just have to keep your eyes and ears open – oh and don’t forget to jot them down!
Review
Knick Knacks Attacks is the second madcap, hilarious book in the Happy Hills full-colour graphic novel series.
I loved the introduction to the residents of Happy Hills which is included at the start of the book – with some great asides by the flowers! As Ace wakes up and wonders where he is, he is reminded by Captain that he now lives in Happy Hills, but someone else has sight their sights on the zany residents of his new home …
Knick Knacks loves collecting things and this time, he has set his sights on swiping a collection of new Happy Hills friends – whether they like it or not! As the residents of Happy Hills live their own wacky lives with stare-offs and dance-offs, Knick Knacks plots his first friendship swipe … will the residents realise the danger they are in before it’s too late, or will Happy Hills lose its eccentric residents to a villainous collector?
Wowzers! Giggles are absolutely guaranteed in this chaotic adventure when the mischievous villain Knick Knacks comes up with his brilliantly inventive schemes for collecting his new friends. Meanwhile, the wondrously bizarre cast of characters in Happy Hills are oblivious to what is happening as they are caught up in their own laugh-out-loud stories. And just wait for the flower narrators – genius!
Whilst this is a fantastically funny story, it also has some heart-warming messages about friendships.
The full-colour, vibrant illustrations are absolutely gorgeous and so very expressive with a variety of panel sizes, captions and speech balloons which will appeal to young readers. I loved that there are tutorials to encourage young readers to draw Shroomer and Knick Knacks – maybe they’ll even be tempted to continue the story … before they can get their hands on the next Happy Hills adventure.
A delicious delight that is sure to capture the attention of young readers of 5+ as they head to Happy Hills for another wacky adventure.
Author Information
Sophy Henn is an award-winning picture book author and illustrator with an MA in Illustration from the University of Brighton. She is the creator of the much-loved Bad Nana fiction series, the Pom Pom series, the Ted board books series and has recently created the non-fiction titles Lifesize and Lifesize Dinosaurs. Her debut picture book Where Bear? Was nominated for the Kate Greenaway Medal and was shortlisted for the Waterstones Children’s Book Prize. Sophy was the World Book Day Illustrator in 2015 and 2016. Her books are published throughout the world.
Thank you to Nic Wilkinson and Simon & Schuster for sending me a copy of Happy Hills: Knick Knacks Attacks in exchange for my honest opinion.
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