Pulitzer Prize-winning cartoonist dad, Jules, is well-known for his social commentary, but also writes and illustrates books for young readers. So does his daughter, Kate. Whether working alone or in collaboration, Jules and Kate Feiffer's books are funny and observant, with stories drawn from very real and familiar family situations.
You can watch the interview below, view the interview transcript, read a short biography of Jules & Kate Feiffer, or see a selected list of their children's books. Listen to this interview on Apple Podcasts.
Biography
Jules Feiffer
Cartoonist, playwright, screenwriter, and children's book author & illustrator Jules Feiffer has had a remarkable creative career for more than 50 years. He has created more than 35 books, plays, and screenplays. His work has won numerous awards, including the Pulitzer Prize for his editorial cartooning in The Village Voice, an Obie for two of his plays (Little Murders and The White House Murder Case), and an Academy Award for his animated short, Munro. Feiffer was the first cartoonist commissioned by The New York Times to create comics for their Op-Ed page, and his cartoons have also appeared in The New Yorker, Esquire, and The Nation.
In 1961, Feiffer collaborated with friend and neighbor Norton Juster on the classic book, The Phantom Tollbooth, where his simple expressive line drawings breathed life into the unforgettable characters of Milo, Tock, and Rhyme and Reason. Feiffer reunited 50 years later with Juster on The Odious Ogre. Feiffer has written and illustrated many more picture books, including The Man in the Ceiling, A Room with a Zoo, and Bark, George! He has collaborated with his daughter Kate on four delightful picture books: Henry the Dog with No Tail, Which Puppy?, My Side of the Car, and No Go Sleep, published in 2012. In 2010, Feiffer published a memoir, Backing Into Forward, that talks candidly about all that can be learned from life's failures.
Born and raised in the Bronx, Jules Feiffer continues to live in New York City. He teaches at the University of Stony Brook Southampton and continues to write and draw, including work on a new graphic novel.
Kate Feiffer
Kate Feiffer, a former photographer and television news and documentary producer, turned to writing children's books after moving to Martha's Vineyard 13 years ago. She is the author of many highly acclaimed books for children. Her first book, Double Pink, was inspired by her daughter Maddy's "absolute devotion to pink," an addiction so powerful, Ms. Feiffer says, "that it threatened to consume our lives."
Feiffer has collaborated with her father Jules on four charming and quietly funny picture books: Henry the Dog with No Tail, Which Puppy?,No Go Sleep, and My Side of the Car — another story that had its origins in real life, this time from Kate's own childhood. In the story, she recounts an ill-fated trip to the zoo with dad — if only the weather would cooperate! Feiffer's other books include President Pennybaker and My Mom is Trying to Ruin My Life (also adapted as a stage musical), The Problem with the Puddles for middle grade readers, and the 2012 chapter book Signed by Zelda, about an aspiring 11-year-old handwriting analyst.
Kate lives on the island of Martha's Vineyard with her husband, daughter, and the real Henry the dog with no tail.
