Following on from the success of her first Teeny Mouse kids' book, All You Need, Katie Piper is releasing the second book in the series, Together We Are Stronger on 18th July 2024. In the first book, Teeny Mouse went on an adventure to overcome fear and self-doubt and follow her dreams, and now we see Teeny Mouse once again on an adventure but this time, when she sees a distant fruit tree, which she knows she can never reach on her own, Teeny Mouse accepts the help of the different animals she meets along the way to get to the tree and enjoy a tasty treat together. The children's book celebrates diversity because the characters embrace each other’s diverse gifts and talents, and use them as part of a team.
We caught up with Katie to chat about the release of her new book, the writing process and why it was important to her to write a book about diversity as part of her Teeny Mouse series. We also chatted about how to encourage kids to read, the books she likes to share with her children and challenges facing younger children today.
Tell us about your writing process and the inspiration behind your kids' books?
"I wanted to translate the message of affirmations and self worth into a book for kids. Having my own children I know young children need a lead character they can see themselves in and so Teeny Mouse was born. It was really important to me that she was female and she was a mouse because she is small but she is mighty. She represents that you can't judge somebody from their shape, their size, their appearance." Talking about sitting down to write the second book, Katie explains, "I wanted a different message and this second book addresses the issue of beauty and the power of diversity. I felt like as an adult the world is becoming quite divided so for little ones growing up, in what feels like a divided world, I felt they really need this message which is the title of the book, Together We Are Stronger."
The book sees Teeny Mouse on another adventure, when she sees a fruit tree that she knows is too far to reach on her own. About the storyline, Katie says, "I introduce lots of different animals who are her friends and on every page they use their unique abilities to help her reach the fruit tree. The whole book is supposed to be very empowering and very uplifting and it is teaching children to celebrate these diverse gifts that we have and actually talents and use them as part of a team. I really feel at the moment that it is a really important message in schools to deliver to young children at the start of their lives and their development."
How did you choose each character?
Katie chose to use animals as characters because kids love animals, especially when they are cute, or colourful, or even dressed up and anthromorphised. She says, "it was something that had to have a lot of thought. As adults when we grow up and go to work we will meet people who are completely different to us and our family and whether that is different creed, colour, disability, gender, sexuality, whatever it is, everybody will be different, so I wanted to translate that through the animals and make them farm animals, woodland animals, completely different, to show children this is the world you will step into and that's not a reason to fear people or turn away from them and actually if we embrace them we benefit. The things we are lacking can be enhanced by other people's unique qualities."
How can we build children's confidence?
Katie shared with us her thoughts and tips on how to build the confidence of young people and children in general. She believes that building confidence "is never a fixed thing in children or adults, it is ongoing, it is fluid, it is about always talking and having open dialogue and normalising that, even as adults, we struggle too and have self-doubt." Katie suggests that "things like books are really important, so bring lots of visual aids into the home, whether it is television, audio books or physical books, and lots of stories and experiences." Katie says, "I think younger kids won't naturally sit down and talk to you about this, you need to sit down and read with them and then at the end, say to them, have you ever felt like Teeny Mouse? Do you have different friends at school?" Katie also explained that at the end of her children's books she puts a note to parents and carers and she gives them some suggested questions to start conversations. At the end of Together We Are Stronger, some of the suggested questions include:
•What makes you different?
•What are you really good at?
•How can you share this gift with others?
•How can you show love to people that are different?
Katie says, "I know myself, as a mum, asking my kids direct questions I literally just get a shrug or they just turn away and carry on watching telly, so you need those stories, imagination and characters to draw that out."
How do you target the 3-5 year age group with serious messages?
Just like using diverse toys to help children understand the world they are growing up in, Katie says "it is a challenge. You can't talk to an age 3-5 year old about beauty and diversity directly, you need to make it fun and relatable and enjoyable. It is about having it there from a young age and having open dialogue at home and I think anyone who becomes a parent knows you change your dialogue at home. You don't look in the mirror and say, 'I'm fat' or 'I'm ugly,' because you don't want to push that narrative onto the kids. In a positive way, kids make you speak in a kinder way about yourself and make you a little bit more conscious of being a role model to them."
What are the challenges for 3-5 year olds that worry you?
"Life is difficult," says Katie, 'it doesn't matter if it is now, 2024, or back in the 80s or 90s there has always been comparison, a fear of failure, there's always been self-esteem issues and now we just have a different platform with more sharing and more voice. It is about accepting that life can be tough and like the title of this book, Together We Are Stronger, it is about not trying to navigate these things alone. It's also preempting that our children will face adversity and that is not us failing as a parent. Our children will struggle with friendships and group dynamics and that is not anything you have done wrong, that is just life, and life's rich tapestry. I think the more we talk about this and share information honestly, the more we normalise it."
What are your favourite books to read with your children?
Katie has a 6-year-old and a 10-year-old so she loves that she has the luxury of reading two totally different genres because of the age gap. She says, "the youngest loves books with illustrations, Julia Donaldson, and she does like some of the classics like Roald Dahl." Katie's oldest daughter likes David Walliams and also Diary of a Wimpy Kid. Both of her girls love reading and Katie says, "that is my time with them. I get home from work, I put my pyjamas on and I get into bed with them and read to them and we have a little chat afterwards. It is our quality time."
How can we encourage children to read, especially with distractions like TV, tablets and video games?
Katie agrees that it is hard, commenting, "a lot of people are single parents and they might be working from home and giving their kid the iPad means they can do a meeting, so it's about not shaming people that struggle to get books in and finding a way to make it fun." Katie continues, "at breakfast when I am doing my kids' hair I will give them a book, or at bedtime it's time together or join the local library." She suggests, " make a routine that on Saturday you go to the library and they get to pick books. It's finding somewhere in your family and your schedule where you can shoehorn it in and not feel bad if it doesn't happen every day, because that is not possible for everybody. Screen time can still exist too, it's not about saying no screens, books only, it's making it work for your family and knowing that looks different for each family."
Illustrations help to engage children, how does it feel seeing your story come to life through the illustrations?
"It is such a privilege,' says Katie. The illustrations in both her children's books were created by Tilia Rand-Bell and Katie says, "she is extremely talented and collaborating with another woman is really special." The illustrations are so important, which is why Katie partnered with an illustrator because as she says, "having my own own kids I knew that for younger kids to use their imagination, and to get the message across, they need beautiful , bright, colourful images." She continues saying, "the Teeny Mouse series is my way of reaching a much younger audience with the same affirmations that have transformed my own life. Doing this through stories with the illustrations from Tilia means that children can really engage with and relate to them." Katie says, about writing her stories for younger children, and encouraging hope and confidence in little ones, "I never take for granted that I am doing something I love and I am passionate about."
Do your children enjoy reading your books and do you read them together?
Katie says that her daughters got the first draft of the kids' book and rejected it which was funny, laughing, "they are really critical." However, she adds that they have never read her adult books because they are too young. Although, she does share the affirmations with them. In fact, Katie's adult titles, A Little Bit of Faith and A Little Bit of Hope are packed full of bite-sized affirmations, offering nuggets of encouragement for the most difficult days and she says, "as a mother, I know that children respond just as well to messages of hope as adults do." Katie lovingly jokes that "when I did my kids books I was able to go into my children's school and it was the first time they were interested in my career!"
Would you ever write for older children?
When Katie started writing her first Teeny Mouse book, her youngest daughter was in the 3-5 year age group, however, now they are older than the age group she writes for. She says it is interesting because despite being older, her eldest daughter, when she saw the book, wanted to read it and Katie said, "it's too babyish." However, her daughter absolutely loved it and Katie adds that "it made her talk to me about confidence and some of the emotions in the book. " Plus, Katie says her eldest daughter still wanted her to go into her year group and share the book in her class at school. Katie did and says, "it encouraged a really good chat afterwards." With regards writing books for older kids, she says, "never say never, but at the moment she is enjoying writing about Teeny and taking her as far as she can go."
As children grow, parenting is constantly evolving, what challenges do you find as your children grow that you didn't expect?
"When you first have kids, you think you get to a milestone and you've got through it but as it goes on it is more and more humbling when you realise it is just new challenges and a new set of problems and the further it goes on, I think, you probably become a bit more relaxed and confident and realise this is just parenting. You probably become more able to cope with that and not expecting things to be solved. We are not experts, we don't have the answers, we just try to navigate it together, me and my husband."
What is the plan for Teeny Mouse?
Katie plans to release a third book in the Teeny Mouse series in 2025 and when we asked her if she has started writing it she said, not yet, because she plans to go on a book tour with Together We Are Stronger in schools. She loves book tours in schools because, she says, " it is when I get to meet children face to face and start conversation and that's when you get the inspiration for what they want, what they need and what could come next. I think you need to go out and meet the readers."
Katie Piper's new book, Together We Are Stronger, the second book in the Teeny Mouse series, is published by SPCK Publishing and is available from 18th July 2024.
Laura Healy is a Commercial Content Writer for Mother&Baby. She is a mum-of-two girls and loves writing about all things parenting, she is particularly interested in the toddler years and eco-friendly baby products, as well as children’s literature. She has a PhD in Creative Writing and has published short stories in the UK and Ireland, as well as previously writing freelance for her local paper.