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Back to Featured Interviews >> MEET MARY NETHERY
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| Mary Nethery |
I loved to write, draw, ride horses, design clothes, and spend time with animals. I began my first novel, complete with illustrations, in the first grade. It was a big endeavor—I don’t think I ever finished it! I was a romantic as a child and it began with a rich imagination and lots of daydreaming. My mom still likes to tell the story about sending me to the bakery for cupcakes. I came back with a bag of donuts. I’m not sure what universe I was inhabiting when the order went out for cupcakes.
TWhat books influenced you when you were growing up?
My father would bring books home from the library for my two sisters and me. My favorites were always animal books, horse stories, mysteries and series. I remember reading Gone with the Wind in sixth grade and being totally annoyed when I found out Margaret Mitchell hadn’t bothered to write a sequel. My favorite novels today include HOW I LIVE NOW by Meg Rosoff; Philip Pullman’s HIS DARK MATERIALS Trilogy (especially the animal daemons); Frank Cottrell BOYCE’S MILLIONS and FRAMED; and M.T. Anderson’s FEED. My favorite picture book is MARTHA SPEAKS by Susan Meddaugh—I adore the sentient Martha! I also like Martin Waddell’s OWL BABIES; Graham Oakley’s CHURCH CAT books; Mark Teague’s DEAR MRS. LARUE; Jack Gantos’ and Nicole Rubel’s ROTTEN RALPH books; and Maira Kalman’s OOH-LA-LA (MAX IN LOVE).
What are the topics of some of your books?
I seem to create universes populated with animals, chocolate, spunky characters, and a sense of the exotic and the adventurous. I tend to gravitate towards the themes of love, friendship, courage, and nobility of character. THE TWO BOBBIES: A True Story of Hurricane Katrina, Friendship and Survival, Bloomsbury, US, is due out on the third anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, August 2008, and is co-authored with my dear friend Kirby Larson and illustrated by Jean Cassels. Kirby, by the way, is a 2007 Newbery Honor Medal winner for her beautiful YA novel, HATTIE BIG SKY. This is an unforgettable story of friendship between a puppy and a cat, and how it saved their lives during and after Hurricane Katrina. Bobbi the dog and Bob Cat’s story was first reported by Anderson Cooper on CNN’s AC 360. THE FAMOUS NINI: The Mostly True Story of How a Plain White Cat Became a Star!, Clarion, will be illustrated by John Manders. Nini was a plain white tom who lived at a coffee shop in Venice during the 1890’s and rose to the world stage! He was visited by Guiseppi Verdi, the King and Queen of Italy, Pope Leo XIII, Czar Alexander III, and the Emperor of Ethiopia, to name a few. No one today knows why Nini became such a star. This story seeks the answer by asking the question, What does a cat have to offer that no other creature possesses? My first book, HANNAH AND JACK, is about separation and reunion, and the inseparable bond between a girl and her cat. Mary Veronica’s Egg explores the themes of unconditional love, perseverance, and faith rewarded.
What are you working on now?
I’m currently working on a new picture book, MAKE WAY FOR DUMPLING, the story of a diva pig who performs on Broadway and, after a dreadful stage debacle, must find the chutzpah to overcome her vanity in order to save the show. I’m also working on a middle grade mystery/adventure novel, LION’S PAW, starring a gutsy eleven-year-old animal activist/photographer.
What’s the best thing you’ve ever written?
I always hope that the book I’m currently working on will be the best I’ve ever written.