Interview with Ursula Vernon, Creator of Princess Harriet

Last month I posted a review of Whiskerella, the latest book by Ursula Vernon about Princess Harriet Hamsterbone and her latest fantastic adventure.

You can find the review HERE – in includes a step by step downloadable craft to make a stuffed Harriet with your child in an afternoon of fun.

This month I would like to introduce the author, Ursula Vernon to you.

Author Bio:

Ursula Vernon is a full-time author and illustrator whose work has won a Hugo Award and been nominated for an Eisner. She loves birding, gardening, and spunky heroines, and thinks she would make a terrible princess. Ursula lives with her husband in Pittsboro, North Carolina.

And now, the interview!

My kids and I asked Ms. Vernon a few questions we had all been dying to know about. And today I am sharing the answers with you. . .

1. My kids and I loved Harriet the Hamster Princess’ spunky and fearless character! Did you draw her personality from someone you know in real life?

I would love to say that it was me, but alas, no. I can’t say she’s exactly drawn from life. I do know lots of tough, fearless people, but none that routinely swing swords! Harriet is more the person I would like to be than a person I know.

2. If Harriet could talk to kids about her latest adventure, what would she tell them?

I suspect she’d be very excited about the fact that she got to turn into a quail for part of the book. She also saved a friend from having to marry an awful prince, but that’s all in a day’s work for Harriet.

3. If children are interested in being an author like you when they grow up, what can they do now to get ready?

Read a lot! Reading is what leads to writing! I read so much as a kid, and then I started writing because I needed somebody to write the stories that I wanted to read!

4. What will Harriet’s next adventure be?

A retelling of Little Red Riding Hood! Only with weasels, because wolves are very large and hamsters are pretty small.

Thank You for taking the time with us, Ms. Vernon! My children and I cannot wait for the next book to be released!

Publisher’s Book Summary:

A funny, feminist twist on the Cinderella fairy tale for fans of fractured fairy tales

Princess Harriet Hamsterbone is not the kind of princess who enjoys fancy dresses or extravagant parties. Cliff-diving, fractions, and whacking people with swords are more her thing. So when she’s forced to attend a boring ball in honor of a visiting ambassador, Harriet is less than thrilled–until a bewitchingly beautiful stranger arrives. Who is she? And where did she come from? The mystery leads to a not-so-wicked stepsister, an incontinent lizard, and a fairy’s spell that’s really more of a curse. Luckily, Harriet knows a thing or two about curses…

Smart, funny, and filled with swashbuckling adventure, book five in the critically acclaimed Hamster Princess series is a hilariously re-told fairy tale for the modern age.