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By René Colato Laínez

Hola Monica, your new book Chavela and the Magic Bubble is wonderful and full of magic. As a child did you like chewing gum? Were you able to make fancy shapes like Chavela?  

As a child, I loved chewing gum, but I certainly didn’t have Chavela’s talent for creating butterflies and dogs out of chicle!  I could, and still can, however, blow a bubble inside a bubble.

Where did you get the inspiration to write this book?

This book was inspired by my daughter Isabella, my Chavelita, who asked me the question, “Mommy, where does bubble gum come from?” I knew I had to do some research to fully satisfy her curiosity and I was delighted to learn about the wonderful Sapodilla trees of Southern Mexico and Central America.  While most chewing gum is now made from other synthetic substances, I found out that there are still chicleros harvesting chicle from these trees and acting as stewards of nature. 

The other inspiration for this book may surprise you.  I had just written a biography of my favorite writer, Gabriel Garcia Marquez, titled My Name is Gabito:  The Life of Gabriel Garcia Marquez/ Me Llamo Gabito:  La Vida de Gabriel Garcia Marquez, and I wanted to write a story for children that explore my favorite literary genre, magical realism.

I know that your daughter Chavela was eager to hold this book in her hands. What was her first reaction when she saw the final book?

She loved it!  It was the first time she had a character in a book named just for her.

What was the process from manuscript to publish book for Chavela and the Magic Bubble? 

It was an unusual journey because I actually wrote the book many years ago and the manuscript was originally bought by Rising Moon/Luna Rising, an imprint of Northland, an independent publisher.  Before the book came out, Northland was bought out by a larger publisher who only wanted their backlist.  The rights eventually came back to me and the illustrator, Magaly Morales.  We were happy to publish the book with Jennifer Greene at Clarion books, who did a fantastic job.  In essence though, my agent had to sell this book twice!

You use a traditional song, tengo una muñeca vestida de azul, in the story. Why did you decide to include it? As a child, what were your favorite traditional songs? 

I included it in part as a homage to my mother, Isabel Brown, who sang it to me as a child and in part because a doll with a blue dress is central to the story!  It is interesting to note that there are many different versions of this song across the Americas.  I learned this version from my mother, who was born in Piura, Peru and gave it my own interpretation. 

If you were able to chew Chavela’s magic chicle where would you go?

I love this question! Well, I just got back from the Feria del Libros in Panama City, Panama and I already want to go back and spend more time in that country, with it’s beautiful people and rainforests.  But it would only be a stop on my way to Peru to visit family.  It’s been three years since I’ve been there and that’s about three years too long.

Your awarded children’s book biographies are very popular. Is there a different process to write fiction than nonfiction?

It is very different, actually.  With a children’s fiction picture book there are no limitations to where my imaginati

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