I constantly have various characters chatting away inside my head. For me, most of my time “writing” doesn’t involve writing down anything at all. By the time I’m able to sit down and type out a manuscript, or even just a few lines of text, those characters have existed in my mind for a good long while. Especially when it’s a character from a series. It’s really kind of bizarre to put into words, but I have spent so much time with Gilbert, in my head, that it’s less about me deciding what Gilbert will say or do, and more about imagining him in any given situation and “seeing” how he reacts. I guess there was some point, when I first thought of these stories, where I created his character, but at this point I feel like he’s steering his own ship.
― Alex Willan, Interview, Children’s Bookroom
What booksellers are saying about Elves are the Worst
- Oh, holy night! I love all of Alex W.’s books in this series, and this one is no exception. Elves Are the Worst is the star on top of the troll’s tree with all the right stripes on all the wrong candy canes! Love, love, love another tale of judging a book by its cover.
― Stephanie Staton, Coffee Tree Books in Morehead, KY | Buy from Angel Wings Bookstore
- Super cute picture book for the holidays that is laugh-out-loud funny for kids and their grown-ups. Written in the style of a graphic novel, younger kids will gravitate towards this format that makes them feel like they’re reading a big kid book. Behind all the humor, this book has a great message of appearances aren’t everything.
― Jamie Southern, Bookmarks in Winston-Salem, NC | Buy from Bookmarks
About Alex Willan
If it was Alex Willan, and not Gilbert the Goblin, who was in charge of writing the stories, he’d make a book called Anchovies Are the Worst!. Alex is the author-illustrator of Unicorns Are the Worst!, Dragons Are the Worst!, Yetis Are the Worst!, and the Jasper & Ollie series, as well as the illustrator of Got Your Nose, written by Alan Katz. Alex lives in Chicago with his dog, Harley, who is the absolute best. Visit him online at AlexWillan.com.
