The Power of Henry's Imagination (The Secret)

Product Description A boy learns the secret to locating his missing stuffed bunny in this picture book about the extraordinary power of imagination, from the team behind the phenomenally bestselling The Secret. When Henry’s beloved stuffed rabbit, Raspberry, goes missing, he enlists his whole family to help him search for the missing toy. But Raspberry can’t be found. Then Henry’s grandfather suggests that Henry use his imagination to find his rabbit. Will the power of Henry’s imagination bring Raspberry back? Or is Raspberry gone for good? Depicting the love of a boy for his toy and the power of friendship, The Power of Henry’s Imagination is sure to become an instant classic. Amazon.com Review Interview with Skye Byrne & Nic George 1. Did any of this book come from your own childhood? / How did the idea for Henry and his toy rabbit Raspberry come about? Skye: The story of The Power of Henry’s Imagination definitely came from my own experiences. I seem to be someone who loses things kind of easily. As an adult, I have lost some of the most precious things one can lose – my wallet, my journal, my dog. Each time I would visualize that I had them back, believe I would get them back, and they always returned to me (through some truly incredible sequences of events). But as a child I didn’t know to visualize when I lost a favorite toy, and I wish I had known, because I was always misplacing them! Nic: In creating the artwork for The Power of Henry’s Imagination, I referenced many of my own memories of ‘place’ from my childhood. Most notably, the tree where we find Henry and Raspberry settled on the front cover, in the opening of the book, as well as when Henry “begins to use his imagination.” My childhood home had a tree just like it, where my brother and I nailed planks of wood to form a ladder to get to a comfortable branch; perfect for imagining. Now that I think about it, I believe the character design for Raspberry the rabbit may have been subconsciously influenced by the hare-like features of a childhood favorite, Bugs Bunny. 2. Did you have a favorite stuffed animal friend like Raspberry when you were little? Skye: Like Henry, I was given a very special friend the day I was born. Mine was not a rabbit, but a sheepskin blanket that I called Sheppy. Just like Henry does with Raspberry, I took Sheppy absolutely everywhere with me, and I was always misplacing him. When I was without him I was miserable, and couldn’t think of anything else until I found him. I still carry small, subtle pieces of Sheppy around with me to this day – and I’m 32 years old! Nic: My favorite stuffed animal friend as a child was a monkey named Bozo. I don't remember giving Bozo his name, but I remember his character to be very amenable; he was always where I left him. 3. What was the collaborative process like between the two of you, since you’ve known each other since you were both eight years old? Skye: Working with Nic on this book was like working with myself; we almost always see everything the same way. I actually can’t think of a single contentious moment. We are best friends who have known each other all our lives and experienced some really big things together, like moving to another country, and now, creating a book together! I think we’re an amazing team. Nic: I can’t speak highly enough about Skye as a person. We are best friends. We’re generally always thinking or feeling the same thing with regard to creative decisions, and when we aren’t, there is a great deal of trust that can be called upon, because of the long friendship we’ve had. Though we focus on different skill sets (Skye writes and I make pictures), we are able to interpret each other’s work with appreciation as well as a critical mind. I think we have a genuine desire to hear each other’s feedback, and there’s no greater complement than your collaborator’s approval of your work! 4. Have you always wanted to write and draw for children? Skye: I have wanted to write since I