To celebrate Going All In this year for the National Year of Reading, we sat down with Hannah Jayne Lewin to find out more about what inspired her to become a children's book illustrator.

What inspired you to become a children’s book illustrator?

Ever since I was a young child I have loved to draw and growing up the desire to be creative never went away. From a young age I knew I wanted to do some kind of creative job, but it wasn’t until I was a teenager that I realised I could actually create and illustrate for my job. I love that books can contain so many different stories and there is never a dull day bringing so many different characters and worlds to life through my artwork. 

Was there a book or illustration from your childhood that made you fall in love with stories?

I had a book called ‘Who loves you little Beetle?’ and at the end it had an amazing colourful pop up spread with many different beetle characters. I remember it was so bright and joyful and it was one of my favourite books when I was little. I also had the picture book ‘Winnie the Witch’ and loved the detailed illustrations, especially those of Wilbur the cat. When I was a bit older I really enjoyed the Twits by Roald Dahl. 

Tell us about some of the children’s book you have illustrated.

I have really enjoyed illustrating ‘Somebody Crunched Colin’ and ‘Somebody Woke Wilson’ by Sarah Roberts and published by Scholastic. Both books involve a lot of different characters/environments so it makes them interesting to illustrate having such a variety of imagery to depict. I have also enjoyed creating artwork for “Amazing Me, Amazing You’ and ‘The Magic Is Me, The Magic Is You’ By Christine McGuiness and published by Scholastic. These books used a much more graphic style of artwork but it was nice to explore a different way of working. 

What do you hope children feel when they see your illustrations?

I hope children feel a sense of excitement and are engaged with the story. I hope they can see the humanity/handmade qualities in my drawings and feel inspired to be creative themselves. Most of all I hope my work makes them smile and brightens their day.

What does National Year of Reading mean to you?

I love that National Year of Reading is encouraging people to read into topics which they are already passionate about. There are so many books out there that cover all kind of interests and topics so there will be something for everyone to get stuck into. 

Why do you think encouraging reading from a young age is so important?

I think it’s important to encourage reading from a young age because it can open so many doors to opportunities. It helps children to learn vocabulary, and engaging with stories helps to develop emotional literacy. Books I read as a child have certainly inspired me and helped to grow my imagination and I hope that future generations are able to read something that inspires them too.

To see Hannah's Artist Portfolio, click here.