Andy Griffiths, a titan of Australian children’s literature, is embarking on a new chapter as the Children’s Laureate, armed with a singular mission: to ignite a passion for reading within families across the nation. Taking the baton from Sally Rippin, Griffiths, the beloved author behind the wildly popular Treehouse series, aims to champion the magic of shared reading experiences with his theme, “Reading is an Adventure.”
Griffiths’ own childhood fascination with seemingly nonsensical paradoxes, like the idea of hot ice-cream, laid the groundwork for his unique storytelling. “I thought, well, yeah, but how can it be ice-cream? If it’s hot, it’s not ice-cream,” he recalls. He realised that these very contradictions are fertile ground for the imagination. It’s this spirit of playful absurdity that permeates his best-selling books, created in collaboration with illustrator Terry Denton, which are brimming with fantastical scenarios and laugh-out-loud humour.
As the national ambassador for reading and Australian children’s literature, the Laureate’s role is to advocate for the entire ecosystem of the industry. This includes supporting creators, reading advocates, educators, librarians, booksellers, and publishers. Each Laureate brings a distinct focus to their term, and for Griffiths, that focus is unequivocally on the thrilling, mind-expanding journey that reading offers.
The Allure of Adventure, Fantasy, and Humour
Griffiths firmly believes that children gravitate towards stories filled with adventure, fantasy, and humour. These elements, he notes, have remained remarkably consistent since his first book hit the shelves in 1997. “They’re the things I responded to as a kid,” he explains. “I just wanted to have my mind blown – as it says in Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, ‘to imagine six impossible things before breakfast’, that’s a great day. And I know I used to chew on things that didn’t make any sense, like hot ice-cream.”
He observes that what truly captivates young readers is the sheer playfulness of stories. When a book sparks their curiosity, they are engaging with a world of endless possibilities.
- Unleashing Imagination: Griffiths posits that beneath the surface of silliness lies a powerful message: “you are free to think anything you can imagine, anything with possibility and wonder.” This freedom, he finds, often inspires children to create their own imaginative worlds.
- He has observed that this encouragement often triggers them to “run off and start writing and drawing their own wacky, wonderful stories and cartoons and comic strips.”
- By embracing his own silliness, Griffiths feels he is “giving them permission… to be silly and free.”
A Prolific Career and a New Endeavour
Griffiths’ literary output is impressive, boasting 43 books that have sold over 20 million copies globally. His extensive bibliography includes the iconic Treehouse series, the Just! series, the BUM trilogy (featuring the memorable The Year My Bum Went Psycho), and the more recent YOU & ME series, illustrated by Bill Hope.
His 44th publication, Let’s Go!, is set to launch on February 24th. This activity book, also illustrated by Bill Hope, is designed to be an interactive playground for young minds, featuring stories, poems, and comics that empower children to craft their own imaginary adventures.
Rediscovering Creativity and the Joy of Childhood
Griffiths laments what he sees as a societal tendency to undervalue creativity. “In Western society, we tend to devalue creativity,” he states. “There’s very little emphasis or even overt content on imagination. This is something that we neglect to our detriment.”
He contrasts his mission with that of the previous Children’s Laureate, Morris Gleitzman, whose focus was on encouraging adults to read children’s books. Griffiths, in turn, is dedicated to fostering the simple, profound joy of families reading together.
- Reconnecting with the Inner Child: Griffiths believes that a significant benefit of shared reading is the opportunity for adults to “get in touch with your childhood self.” This involves reconnecting with the part of us that wonders, dreams, and isn’t afraid to be lost in the simple pleasures of life, like observing cloud shapes.
- He describes this inner child as possessing “no overt value, but has enormous enrichment for your life.”
Navigating the Landscape of Wonder and Fear
Referencing Maurice Sendak’s timeless classic, Where the Wild Things Are, Griffiths suggests that children naturally desire to explore the wilder, more imaginative corners of their minds. However, he stresses the importance of guiding them safely through these adventures. “I think kids want to go to Where the Wild Things Are,” he says. “And to take them there requires a little bit of skill because you don’t want to terrify them and give them psychological trauma. You’ve got to give them a safe place in the world.”
The key, he explains, is to introduce elements of gentle peril and challenge. “But then you’ve got to take them somewhere dangerous and let them experience that vicarious thrill of terror, just like any child will enjoy a scary game, like a baby will enjoy peekaboo, that slight surprise and slight scare is very pleasurable.”
- Triumph Over Adversity: The most compelling aspect of these journeys, Griffiths notes, is witnessing characters confront and overcome seemingly insurmountable obstacles. “And then to see the characters fighting through impossible tasks and impossible challenges, and usually winning.”
- Even in defeat, the act of trying is powerful: “Even if they don’t win, they’ve fought. That’s something we all love to see – someone trying against the odds to solve a problem.”
- This narrative arc, he believes, offers a vital positive message, fostering “feelings of encouragement and empowerment for a young child.”
The Laureate’s Journey and the Enduring Power of Books
The Children’s Laureate, appointed every two years, serves as a national advocate for the transformative power of reading. This role involves extensive travel across the country, engaging with children, families, educators, librarians, and even politicians.
Griffiths underscores the fundamental value of children’s literature. “Children’s books are a way to enrich your children, to ensure that they have imagination, that they gain skills of literacy, which open doors in all sorts of ways,” he asserts. Ultimately, he states, “That’s what you really want for your kids.”
Beyond literacy, Griffiths hopes to foster another crucial life skill: courage. “To have the courage to follow what makes you happy, what really rings your bell, is another skill that we need to foster as well.”
