时间：2022-04-30 05:48:03
Kevin Henkes是难得一见的天才型作家。从十几岁开始，Kevin Henkes就知道自己想创作儿童书。除了文中提及的作品，他还创作过其它儿童小说和不少的图画书，如《阿文的小毯子》（Owen）和《朱利叶斯：世界的婴儿》（Julius， the Baby of the World）。这些作品表现了人类的柔软心灵、聪明才智和细腻情感，正是这些，促使人类不断追寻自己的童年梦。Kevin Henkes说过，优秀的童书需要花很多时间创作，而优秀的作品也值得我们花时间去等待。
Those Excellent Kids’ Books Are Worth the Wait
On Waiting
Kelly McEvers （Host）： His fans may not know his name， but they love the characters in his books―Chrysanthemum， Wemberly， Kitten and her saucer of milk， Lilly and her plastic purse. They’re the creations of award-winning children’s author Kevin Henkes. His latest creations are 1）figurines―five of them sitting on a windowsill waiting for something to happen.
Kevin Henkes： （Reading） The owl with spots was waiting for the moon. The pig with the umbrella was waiting for the rain. The bear with the kite was waiting for the wind. The 2）puppy on the 3）sled was waiting for the snow. The rabbit with stars wasn’t waiting for anything in particular. He just liked to look out the window and wait.
McEvers： Kevin Henkes’ reading from his new book titled simply Waiting， something he says kids spend a lot of time doing.
Henkes： Wait your turn. Wait for your birthday. I mean， you wait for the end of the school day. You wait for snack time. You wait to graduate from your car seat. There is so， so much waiting in childhood.
M c E v e r s ： I w a s wondering if you could just read for us a little bit.
Henkes： Sure.
McEvers： Could you start the section that starts with sometimes？
Henkes： （Reading） Sometimes one or the other of them went away， but he or she always came back. Sometimes they slept， but mostly they waited. Sometimes gifts appeared. Once， a visitor arrived from far away. He stayed a while. Then he left and never returned.
McEvers： And he was a little elephant figurine...
Henkes： Yes.
McEvers： ...Who appeared on the windowsill， and then he got knocked off the windowsill and was broken.
Henkes： Yes， yes―never returned.
McEvers： （Sighing） Big stuff dealing with loss. I mean...
Henkes： Yeah， and it’s interesting. I’ve read the book now―I’m out on a tour， and when I read it to large groups， there’s this huge gasp. And then at the end when the cat arrives and there’s a surprise and there are kittens， there’s this huge collective sigh.
McEvers： You take on tough things―right？―in kids’lives？ You...
Henkes： Well， kids are tough， and kids are 4）resilient. And kids―you know， sometimes， I think， as adults， we think of them as―because they’re small in size， that they’re small in all ways. And they’re not. I mean， they have big feelings， and they， you know， have big eyes. And they see things. They hear things. They’re living life just the way andoes. And I think sometimes， as adults， we forget that.
On how he became a children’s book author
McEvers： You seem like somebody who was pretty impatient， actually. You’ve known that you wanted to be a children’s book writer and illustrator since you were pretty young. Like， high school you knew. Is that right？
Henkes： Well， I grew up always wanting to be an artist， and it was in high school when I started to really like writing. And I was， you know， a junior in high school thinking about what I wanted to do with my life， and I thought it would be great if I could find a job in which I could both draw and paint， which I loved， and write， which was this new thing that I loved. And I thought children’s picture books would be the perfect job for me. It was a great combination of those skills. And that’s when I decided that’s what I wanted to do.
McEvers： Because I think a lot of people might say， oh， you know， I should probably write a children’s book someday.
Henkes： （Laughter）
McEvers： But， like， you were very determined. Like， by your...
Henkes： I was.
McEvers：...Freshman year of college， you were studying the art of publishing and you went to New York. I mean， tell us that story.
Henkes： Well， I went to New York from Wisconsin the summer between my freshman and sophomore years of college. I made of list of my 10 favorite publishers. I’d studied them and I knew who I wanted to be published by. And I was so lucky my first choice―Greenwillow Books―Susan Hirschman， editor in chief―accepted my book while I was in New York. And it was one of the most memorable days of my life. But it’s interesting. Looking back， I think at 19 I had a certain confidence that I don’t know if I have at 54.
McEvers： （Laughter）
Henkes： I really thought I’ll fly to New York and I will come home with a contract for a book. I really， truly believed it.
McEvers： Well， your characters since then with that publisher and going forward all these years， have been， you know， hugely popular. The Lilly’s Purple Plastic Purse and Lilly’s Big Day were these big hits. Kids line up at book stores to meet you. And yet， we don’t see these characters out there on purses and clothes and movies and comic books. You know， you’ve not franchised your characters. In fact， you haven’t done that many “Lilly” books， you know？ You take a long time to write your books. Why is that？
Henkes： Well， there are a lot of things that I’ve said no to， just to keep it pure. And also， you know， after Lilly’s Purple Plastic Purse， which was very successful for me， I wrote another “Lilly” book right away. And Susan Hirschman， my editor at the time， rejected it， saying anyone would publish this， but I don’t think it’s good enough for you. And I think if we published it， you would probably be unhappy down the road. And I think that that was true. I really want everything that’s out there with my name on it to be as good as I think it can be. So they do take time and I do―there is a lot of waiting in this job. But I do want anything out there to be， you know， really， really good and the best that it can be. And so I’ll keep waiting until it’s right―till something seems exactly like.
On wanting his books to give kids a sense of home
McEvers： Did you ever read your books to your kids？
Henkes： A little bit， not a lot. I did because I wanted them to know what I did every day up in the 5）attic room. The thing that I started doing was reading to them at breakfast， reading novels， which was a great thing because I would read to both of them and my wife would be making the lunches. So all four of us， over the course of weeks， we’d have this shared experience where we discuss it and talk about it. My daughter said she didn’t want old-fashioned books， but we raced through the “Little House” books. My son decided he didn’t want any books in which the 6）protagonists were girls. But I said， let’s just try Ramona and he， of course， loved it. So it was， I think， a good experience for them. I think it opened their eyes. And it was a great， great thing to do. And we kept track. We made a list in the back hall of every book that we had read together， and I think―now they’re 20 and 18 and I think the list was， you know， 120-some books.
McEvers： Wow， nice.
Henkes： Not novels.
McEvers： （Laughter） Did your writing change as the kids grew up？ I mean， did you get a different perspective on things？
Henkes： I don’t think so. People used to assume that I had kids long before I did. And then when my wife was pregnant with our first child， people would say， oh， now you’re going to have so many more ideas， and it didn’t really happen. And I think some of the greats in this field were not parents. And I think it probably comes from some other place deep inside. I don’t think you have to have children to write for them.
McEvers： You were born to do this from the beginning.
Henkes： I think so. I kind of feel that. I sense that.
McEvers： Well， Kevin Henkes， thank you so much for talking to us.
Henkes： You’re welcome.
关于《等待》
凯莉・麦克弗斯（主持人）：他的粉丝也许不知道他的名字，但是他们喜欢他书中的角色――克丽桑丝美美、温布利、小猫咪和她的那碟牛奶、莉莉和她的小皮包。他们都是荣获多项大奖的童书作家凯文・亨克斯所创作的角色。他创作的最新角色是一群小雕像，他们的其中五个坐在窗台上等待着某事发生。
凯文・亨克斯：（诵读）满身斑点的猫头鹰在等待月出。打着伞的小猪在等待下雨。拿着风筝的小熊在等待刮风。雪橇上的小狗在等待下雪。满身星星图案的兔子没有在等特别的什么。他只是喜欢望向窗外，然后等待。
麦克弗斯：凯文・亨克斯朗读的文字出自他的新书，这本书的名字很简单――《等待》，他说这是孩子们花很多时间做的事。
亨克斯：等着轮到你。等待你的生日。我的意思是，你等着放学。等着吃点心。等着长大不用再坐汽车的儿童座椅。童年就是这样，有那么多需要等待的事情。
麦克弗斯：你能否再为我们读一些呢？
亨克斯：当然可以。
麦克弗斯：你能从“有时候”开头的那部分读起吗？
亨克斯：（诵读）有时候他们中的一个或另一个会离开，但他或她总会回来。有时候他们会睡觉，但大部分时间他们都在等待。有时候，礼物也会不期而至。有一次，一位拜访者从很远的地方来，他只停留了一小会儿，就离开了，之后再也没有回来过。
麦克弗斯：那是一只小象的雕像……
亨克斯：是的。
麦克弗斯：……他在窗台上出现过，然后掉下窗台，摔坏了。
亨克斯：没错，没错，再也回不来了。
麦克弗斯：（叹气）如何看待失去是个大话题。我的意思是……
亨克斯：是的，很有趣。我现在读的这本书――我在巡回演讲时，当我将它读给一大群人听，他们会发出这种巨大的倒抽气声。然后，最后当猫咪来到的时候，很出乎意料，居然有小猫咪，他们会集体发出这种巨大的叹气声。
麦克弗斯：你在呈现棘手的事情，对吗？在孩子们的生活中的？你……
亨克斯：这么说吧，孩子是很坚强的，恢复力也很强。你知道，孩子有时候，我觉得，就和大人一样，我们认为他们――他们身量小，就在各个方面都很弱小。可是并非如此。我的意思是，他们有很大的感触，你知道，他们有大大的眼睛。他们看得到，听得到。他们就像大人一样过着自己的生活。我想，有些时候，就和大人一样，只是我们这些大人忽略了而已。
如何成为童书作家
麦克弗斯：说真的，你似乎是一个非常热切的人。大家都知道你在很小的时候就立志成为一名童书作家和插画家。好像是高中的时候你就知道。对吗？
亨克斯：说实话，我从小就一直想成为一名艺术家，那是在高中的时候，我开始非常喜欢写作。你知道，我那时还是一个高中二年级的学生，就在考虑我以后想要做什么，我想，如果我可以找到一份工作，既可以继续我之前喜欢的绘画，又可以从事我现在的新爱好――写作，那就太完美了。我觉得创作儿童绘本图书对我来说就是一份再适合不过的工作。它将这些技能完美地结合。就在那时，我决定了想要做的事。
麦克弗斯：因为我想很多人都会说：“噢，你知道，或许有一天我会写一本童书。”
亨克斯：（笑）
麦克弗斯：但是，你是下定决心了的。就像，在你……
亨克斯：确实如此。
麦克弗斯：……大一的时候，你在学习出版艺术，去了纽约。我的意思是，给我们说说那段经历吧。
亨克斯：好吧，我是在大一要上大二的那个夏天从威斯康星州去的纽约。我给自己中意的10家出版社列了一张清单。我对它们进行了一番研究，然后就知道我想要哪家出版社出版我的作品。幸运的是，我在纽约的时候，我的第一选择――绿柳图书公司的主编苏珊・赫斯曼认可了我的书。那是我人生中最难以忘怀的日子之一。但有趣的是，回过头来看，我想，19岁的时候，我有某种自信，可是这种自信，我不知道在54岁的时候是否还会有。
麦克弗斯：（笑）
亨克斯：那时我是真的认为我飞去纽约，然后我就可以带着一纸出书合同回家。当时我确实，确实是那样坚信的。
麦克弗斯：嗯，自那次与那家出版社的合作以后，你创作的角色，这些年不断发展，你知道，一直非常受欢迎。《莉莉的紫色小皮包》和《莉莉的大日子》都风靡一时。孩子们在书店排着队见你。可是，我们并没有看到这些角色出现在钱包上、衣服上、电影里和连环画中。你知道，你至今没有出售你所创作角色的特许经营权。事实上，至今为止你都没有写那么多的“莉莉”丛书，你知道吗？你写书需要很长时间。为什么？
亨克斯：这么说吧，我对很多事情都会拒绝，只是为了让它保持一种纯粹。同时，你知道，在《莉莉的紫色小皮包》取得对我来说非常大的成功之后，我马上写了另一本“莉莉”的书。那时，我的编辑苏珊・赫斯曼把它退掉了。她说：“任何人都会出版这本书，但我认为对你而言它还不够好，如果我们出版了它，将来的某个时候你也许会不快乐。”我认为她说的是对的。我确实想要有我署名的所有出版物能和我认为的一样好。所以，写书确实需要时间，我也一样――在这份工作中有很多等待。我确实希望所有发表的作品，你知道，是真的，真的非常好，完全达到了它的极致。所以，我会一直等待，直到它足够好――直到它看起来（和想象中的）完全一样。
希望自己的书给孩子一种家的感觉
麦克弗斯：你给你自己的孩子读过你的书吗？
亨克斯：一点点，没有很多。我那样做是想让他们知道，我每天在阁楼的那个房间里捣弄什么。我开始做的是在吃早餐的时候读给他们听，读小说，那是一件非常棒的事，因为我读书给他们两个听，而我的妻子在准备午餐。所以，我们四个，在几周的时间里，我们共有这段一起探讨，一起谈论的经历。我女儿说，她不喜欢老套的书，但是我们快速掠过了“小木屋”系列丛书。我儿子不想要那些主人公都是女生的书，但是，我说，让我们试试《拉蒙纳》，然后，当然他很喜欢。所以我觉得那对他们是很好的一种经历，开阔了他们的眼界，是非常非常值得做的一件事。而且我们还记录下阅读的动态。我们在后厅列了一张我们一起读过的书的清单，我想――现在他们一个20岁，一个18岁，你知道，我想那时清单上的书是120本一组的。
麦克弗斯：哇，好极了。
亨克斯：不是小说。
麦克弗斯：（笑）在孩子长大后，你的写作方式变了吗？我的意思是，你会从另一个角度看事情吗？
亨克斯：我认为并非如此。在我有孩子很久之前，人们就常常在猜想我已经有了孩子。然后，我妻子怀第一胎的时候，人们会说：“噢，现在你会有更多的想法。”可事实并非如此。我认为在这一领域的一些大师并没有做父母。我想它可能是来自内心深处的其它地方。我认为你没有必要为了给孩子写作而去生孩子。
麦克弗斯：你一开始就是天生做这一行的。
亨克斯：我想是的。我似乎能感觉到，能领悟到。
麦克弗斯：好吧，凯文・亨克斯，非常感谢你与我们交流。
亨克斯：不客气。