Interview by Purbrook Infant School

Hello Mr Rosen,

We are from Purbrook Inafnt School (Doves Class). It is in England, it is near the COOP. During Book Week we have been learning all about you! We have read some of your books and we liked them a lot. You are a little bit older than we thought because sometimes old people aren’t funny and you are really funny. We want to know what it is like to be an author so we have some questions for you. Please can you answer them if you have a little bit of time when you are not writing books. Thank you. We have written our names and our ages as we are getting much older now that we are in Year 1.

How do you think of such good stories? (Jemma, 5)

I think of two kinds of stories: some are the ones that really happened to me. They’re easy to think of because it’s just me remembering things. The other kind of story, where I make up things, is much, much harder and to tell the truth, I don’t think I’m very good at it. I get it right sometimes, but often I get it very wrong, and the people who make books, tell me that I’ve got it wrong!

How do you think of your book titles?

That’s like thinking of anything. You’re probably very good at thinking up new things to do, or interesting places to go. Well, it’s a bit like that with book titles. You just sit and think for a bit, and when a title comes into your mind, you write it down.

Do you write with a pencil or a pen? (Emily, 5)

I usually write with a ball-point pen in my notebooks.

Do you drive a van? (Mitchell, 5)

No, I drive a car.

How do you think of the funny things to put in your poems? (Mackenzie, 5)

Most of the funny things in the poems are funny things that have happened to me. Sometimes I think of funny things to do with words. That’s just because I’m one of those people who thinks about words.

How do you know all those funny words? (Megan, 5)

When I was a boy, my mum and dad said lots of funny things and they could speak other languages. So I got to think about that, and I thought I would like to do things like that. So I can say words in other languages other than English and I can remember lots of rhymes and funny things to say.

Do you know my brother, his name is Matthew Rosen, my name is James Rosen. (James, 5)

Hello James and Matthew. No I don’t think I do know your family, do I? I know all the people called Rosen in this country who are related to me. There are lots more in the USA.

Did you know that my favourite book is We’re Going on a Bear Hunt? I like the bit were they forget to close the door when the bear is chasing them. (Jamie, nearly 6)

I’m glad you like that bit. I made that bit up. Some of that book is what you might call a ‘folk tale’ or ‘folk song’ which means that it was made up by ordinary people sitting about having a good time a long time ago and no one knows exactly who. There are lots of different ways of singing or saying ‘Bear Hunt’. My way is just one other way.

Do you like having beardy whiskers? (Keenan, 5)

To tell the truth, they’re not so beardy or whiskery these days. I use my shaver on them every day, and that makes them a bit short and bristly. My daughter says that I’m all prickly when i kiss her good bye in the morning.

Would you ever like to come to Purbrook Infant School? (Isabelle, 5 1/2)

I love visiting schools. Ask your teacher to ask Jan or Kate at jan@speakingofbooks.co.uk and who knows, I might!

Do you like hot school dinners or packed lunch? (Maisy, 5)

When I come to schools, I like hot school dinners.

What is your favourite book? (Keiron, 5)

It’s probably either ‘Catch 22’ by Joseph Heller. But that’s not a children’s book. A favourite children’s book, is probably ‘Where the Wild Things Are’ by Maurice Sendak.

What do you want to be when you get older? I want to be a firefighter. (Elliott, 5)

I would like to be a poet. I hope you get to be a firefighter.

That is all the questions we have. We hope you have time to answer some of our questions one day.
Thank you from Dove Class

Thank you Doves!
Very best
Michael Rosen