Celebrating 30 Years of Handa’s Surprise – A Q&A with Eileen Browne
On the 30th anniversary of its publication, we talk to author-illustrator Eileen Browne about the ongoing appeal of Handa’s Surprise
Celebrating an important anniversary, Eileen Browne was kind enough to answer some of our questions about the success and longevity of her book, Hand’s Surprise whilst also keeping an eye to increasing the diversity of children’s books and representation.
It’s been 30 years since the publication of Handa’s Surprise – congratulations! Did you expect to be enjoying such a celebration when you originally published the book and how well it would resonate?
Thank you, AOI for your congratulations on staying in print for so long. I absolutely didn’t expect this to happen because by 1994 I’d illustrated more than 30 children’s books & most went O/P (out of print) within 2-3 years. The brightly coloured Handa’s Surprise cover however, seems to ‘jump off the shelves’. The humour inside definitely tickles children’s imagination and despite disasters along the way, the story has a happy ending – essential for youngsters!
“You’re an illustrator”. Nobody had ever said that before! It was enough to give me the confidence to “go for it”!
Could you tell us a little about the inspiration behind the book?
Well, it was visual inspiration which came suddenly and unexpectedly from a TV documentary about the comedian, Steve Martin: (there’s a similar clip on my first ever Instagram post: Sept 2024). This sparked a wordless picture book where the pictures told the story. (Words for Handa’s Surprise were added later.)
You regularly collate and share a resource around diverse books, would you share with our readers a bit more about this commitment and why it’s important?
Over the many years that I’ve been an illustrator & author, UK picture books have featured mostly male characters. Studies in the UK (& USA) showed that they outnumbered females by 2:1, which is crazy as 50% of children are female. So in 2016, to raise awareness of this gender inequality, I began emailing quarterly lists of recommended female-led titles to publishers & others. By 2023, I’d read over 3,000 books & chosen 500+ (1 in 6). Currently, The Federation of Children’s Books Groups and I are looking at 2022’s books to see if, at last there is equal gender representation. Watch this space!
Secretly, I always wanted to illustrate children’s books – so much so that I was too scared to try
What’s the best piece of creative/career advice that you have been given, which you could share with fellow illustrators?
The most encouraging advice came when interviewed for a job as a lettering designer. I’d done a Graphic Design degree where illustration was not encouraged. Secretly, I always wanted to illustrate children’s books – so much so that I was too scared to try. I did all sorts of jobs, then at this interview, where I’d sneaked in a few illustrations amongst the lettering designs was told, “You’re an illustrator”. Nobody had ever said that before! It was enough to give me the confidence to “go for it”!
Handa’s Surprise has also been toured around the UK for the last two decades and is testament to how an engaging story can take different forms – what have you enjoyed most about this experience?
It’s been a privilege to have theatrical and musical creatives interpret the story in new ways. The best thing ever is seeing live performances and the children’s responses to the talented actors, musicians and puppeteers performing their own take on Handa’s Surprise.
With our sincere thanks to Eileen Browne for answering our questions and continued celebrations!
The Federation of Children’s Books Groups
Walker Picture Books Instagram Instagram
Back to News Page