The Cat in the Hat

"This was the book that was in my head when I was child. I like to remember the effect that a book has on you when you are young. I used to have nightmares about this book, about the cat in the hat. It’s exciting and creepy at the same time. I was looking at it again the other night. There’s so much fear and fret in it, and that sense that you know the mother’s coming back. Will there be time to clean up the mess? And the cat is alarming—I mean, you are never quite sure about him. Yes! He could do leave you with a horrendous mess that’ll get you into terrible trouble. He’s no fairy godmother. He isn’t going to wave his wand and sort everything out. The children are running around, nervously trying to control it. There’s so much anxiety in it. But, of course, it does get resolved. And mum comes back, and it’s all fine. It gives me a knot in my stomach thinking about it—I think that it’s funny that that this doesn’t put me off the book. It’s also brilliantly drawn—that use of line, the spot colour. Because print technology was different then, he has two colours and black and the white paper. He has to make so much use of each colour. I absolutely think that you do better work if you limit yourself. I can open up Photoshop, and do anything. But each project needs some limits so that you test yourself, so you push yourself. Of course, once you’ve set the rules, you have to break them a bit and push them around. Support Five Books Five Books interviews are expensive to produce. If you're enjoying this interview, please support us by donating a small amount . I’m looking at an illustration now of the cat. He’s got a tray balanced on one foot, an umbrella, a boat, a fish, and a cake. Plus a couple of books. And he’s on a ball! The exuberance and the sheer energy of it is just fantastic. The rhyme and the repetition give it even more momentum and energy. It’s tremendous. I love the energy. I love the chaos."