Today, I have the privilege of sharing with you an interview I did with two creative and talented women. They are the ladies behind the new children’s book about recycling called, The Recycos: Bitter Litter Attacks Conservation City by Valarie Hayes and illustrated by Anita Martino.
What is this book about, you ask? Eco-superheroes, of course! Mr. Earthly and The Recycos are a group of environmentally friendly superheroes whose mission is to keep the earth free of useless garbage. Their motto is to “Reduce, Reuse, Recycle” and they travel to different cities to keep our earth green and clean. This is their first adventure where they will try to stop Bitter Litter, a bad guy, who is anything but “green”.
Interview
DGL: Valarie, tell me a little about what brought you to write this book.
Valarie: I’m a retired school teacher and when I used to teach and read stories to the children, I always said to myself, “I could write a book”. One night, I had a dream about bottles, cans and papers. I said I could write a book for children based on recycling and so I did.
DGL: Anita, tell me about your background as an illustrator.
Anita: For as long as I can remember, I wanted to be an artist. The type of art I wanted to do has changed as I learned and tried different things, but I always enjoyed drawing. I have Chris Zmijewski, a Philadelphia based artist who paints mostly cityscapes and scenes of Philadelphia, and my grade school art teacher, Mrs. Laurenzi to thank for my beginnings in art. In high school, I was granted a 4 year scholarship for a weekend program at Moore College of Art and Design in Philadelphia. I always thought of myself as a “fine artist”; which meant I would paint and draw in a very classical style, seek out galleries in hopes of displaying my work. However, when I got to college, I took my first illustration class and was hooked. I loved children’s books and decided that I could still use my fine arts background for illustration purposes and continue to do more “traditional” paintings and drawings on my own time. So I graduated with my Bachelor of Arts and majored in Illustration.
DGL: How did you two meet and decide to collaborate?
Anita: I truly believe Valarie and my meeting was kismet. By chance, I attended this lecture taught by Dr. Michael Edmondson at The Starting Point in Westmont, New Jersey. He was a guest speaker who talked about so many of us who have goals and dreams that we never achieve. Your goal or dream could be anything; going to law school, getting out of debt, writing a book, etc. Personally, I had completely stopped creating art for about 15 years and I missed it, but it overwhelmed me to think about getting back to it. Michael’s workshop put me back on my creative path. It was a small group, about 8 of us, and that first day, we were asked the reason why were were there. I said I was an illustrator who just illustrated her first children’s book and wanted to continue to do more. Valarie sat across from me and said her goal was to write a children’s book and find an illustrator. The rest is history, as they say.
DGL: So, I hear that you have a very special event coming up this weekend.
Anita: Both Valarie and I will be featured as workshop presenters at The Discovery Museum in Cherry Hill, New Jersey. It takes place this Saturday, April 23rd, from 11:00am-3:00pm. Valarie will be talking about how to create a character and have the kids as a group create one which I will draw on a big white board. Then, they will each draw one to take home with them. My workshop will follow Valarie’s and I will talk a little about how I started illustrating. And then in true Earth Day fashion, I will help instruct the kids to create a sculpture using recycled objects that the museum has collected.
DGL: Valarie, what is your favorite line or saying in the book?
Valarie: My favorite line in the book is actually the introduction statement before the book. It tells readers exactly what they have to look forward to:
“We are the Recycos!!! We are environmentally friendly superheroes. We live in Recycoville. Our job is to keep the Earth clean. We visit different cities with one mission: Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle as much as possible. Whenever there is a crisis concerning the environment, we jump into our Earth- mobile and zoom to wherever we are needed. Our mission is to keep Earth free of useless garbage. Our quest to make the Earth sparkling clean is endless. “
DGL: What do you hope for kids to get out of this book?
Valarie: I would hope the book raises awareness of the importance of recycling, and to view recycling as something fun.
DGL: How can we get a hold of it? Is it on sale, details?
Valarie: Yes, it is on sale. You can purchase it by contacting me directly at, vrowell@juno.com or PayPal $7.99 plus $3.00 shipping to recycos7@gmail.com. It also may be purchased at the upcoming event this Saturday for $7.99.
For more information about the book, please visit her website at; recycos.com
Valarie Hayes is the author of The Recycos, Bitter Litter Attacks Conservation City, a children’s book about an environmentally friendly cast of superheroes. She was a teacher for 32 years in the Philadelphia School District and is certified in Special Education and History.
Anita Martino, illustrator, graduated from Rowan University with her BFA in Illustration. She has illustrated two other children’s books; “How Many Feet in the Bed“, and the Mom’s Choice Award winning, “Free to be Gluten-Free“, both by Heather Spergel. To see more of Anita’s work or to commission a drawing, please visit her website, anitamartino.com
Don’t forget to visit Valarie and Anita at The Discovery Museum if you are around the Cherry Hill area this weekend!
And keep up the great work, ladies!
xo
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