When we read together, we connect. Together, we see the world. Together, we see one another.

You don't realize what you're going to get, and you can't prepare yourself for it.

I think we sent Tony Fucile pictures of ourselves, photos from like when we were seven years old. That's what he worked from. He captured exactly what we looked like. I'd love to do another one with Alison, not just for the joy of writing, but also for the joy of watching Tony bring it to life with his illustrations. I'm hoping at BEA, or ALA, I'll get to meet Tony and shake his hand and thank him.

No matter how hard you try to be present at home, you're always doing the things that you have to do.

Mercy Watson is pure fun for me as a writer, because I think of her as kind of sorbet - a palate cleanser - between larger works. It's always a relief to come back to her.

There's nothing more fabulous than an adult saying to you, "I think that you might like this one [book]." So I'm grateful every time that happens. It's an amazing thing that people care that passionately.

Did you think that rats do not have hearts? Wrong. All living things have a heart. And the heart of any living thing can be broken.