Tell us a little about the style of illustration. What influenced the style when your parents began creating the books, and how has the illustration changed over the years?
I’ll answer this with an anecdote. When I began working with my parents as an illustrator, the Berenstain Bears style book was kept entirely in my mother’s head. She was the ultimate authority on just how the characters should look, move and act.
An incident early on in my work on the books illustrates this fact. I had created a sketch version of a book and given it to my mother to look over for any changes or improvements needed in the drawing. She informed me that the sketches looked fine except for one problem. The Bears’ ears, she pointed out, were all too low—they should be shifted up a little higher on their heads. I accepted this pointer and, when I got the sketches back to my studio, set about to correct them.
But as I studied the sketches, I grew increasingly puzzled. The ears certainly didn’t look too low to me—how could I be so mistaken about so simple a point of drawing?
So, I got out dozens of copies of earlier Berenstain Bears books and studied the position of the ears on the Bears’ heads. As I did this, my perplexity deepened. Finally, I got on the phone and called my mom.
“Mom,” I said. “It’s fine with me if you want me to move the Bears’ ears up a little. But I’ve been checking the ears on all your old books and I can’t figure it out—it looks to me like I’ve drawn the ears exactly where they always have been.”
“That’s right,” my mom shot back. “They’ve always been too low. Your father always draws them too low and I’m tired of it. They need to be a little higher.”
Okay, Mom, you’re the boss!
What is your goal in writing these stories?
There are several:
First, I want the books to achieve a specific creative standard. That is, I want the story and illustrations to conform to my own mental model of that which is satisfying and pleasing in a children’s book.
Second, I want to create books that are popular. This is partly because I have no desire to do books just for myself—I want my work to be appreciated by a wide audience—and, also, because I want the books to sell. After all, this is what I do for a living.
Third, I want the books to be a positive influence in people’s lives. This is not because I’m some sort of aggressive, ideologically-driven do-gooder, but because the alternative—to be a negative influence—seems unattractive.
Do you have a favorite Berenstain Bears book?
I have always had a soft-spot in my heart for one of the early stories, The Bears’ Picnic, published in 1966. This is partly because it nostalgically reminds of my own childhood and watching it being created in my parents’ studio.
But, partly, because I just find it very amusing and entertaining—especially the hilarious scenes of various mishaps occurring to poor Papa Bear—getting garbage dumped on his head or actually being struck by lightning. Papa is a survivor!
Click through to learn about the Stan & Jan Berenstain Healthy Kid Foundation…