I love to study maps, so it’s no wonder I’ve been drawn to the work of Jennifer Thermes. She’s the author-illustrator of map-centric books for young readers that feature places I personally know, from the Appalachian Trail (I hiked 500 miles there years back), Manhattan (I went to art school there) and America (born and still live there). I think her latest book has me covered too! I caught up with Jennifer to learn more:
Me: Congratulations on EARTH: One Planet’s Epic Story (Abrams Books for Young Readers, Nov. 2026)! It is an epic story – beautifully told – not just about our world but about us. What inspired you to create this book?
Jennifer: Thank you so much! This may sound dorky, but I was enamored with the names of the various eons and epochs in Earth’s time—from the Precambrian to the Eocene, Oligocene, and so on—and realized I didn’t know much about what happened in each one. Many of my books come from a deep curiosity about the world and how it works, how places change over time, and our human connections to those places. I also love the process of learning about a subject as I’m working on it. Since ideas seem to flow out of other ideas, EARTH felt like the next logical progression from my books MANHATTAN and A PLACE CALLED AMERICA. And, I mean, Earth itself is just endlessly fascinating!
Me: Each couple pages spans millions of years. How did you go about researching and organizing so much material and then distilling it down?
Jennifer: That’s always the challenging part. I read widely, take lots of notes, and make lists of what I’d like to include. At some point an overall picture starts to form in my mind, and I can see the story play like a movie in my head. Since there is limited space in a picture book, I think about the core idea I’m trying to communicate on each spread, while keeping in mind the overall throughline of the book. And then there’s a lot of back and forth between what to show in the illustrations vs. the text. Inevitably I worry more about what isn’t included, but that’s just the way it is. It’s definitely a messy, non-linear process!
Me: Your illustrations have so many engaging details big and small, yet are also clear and readable. Each spread would work great as a poster on a classroom wall! How do you create your art?
Jennifer: I start with pencil and paper and about a zillion tiny thumbnail sketches, trying to puzzle everything together. I went to art school for design and think that background has really helped when it comes to organizing visual information on the page, since design and illustration are so intertwined. From thumbnails, I move on to full size sketches, and then use a lightbox to transfer the drawings to watercolor paper. I work traditionally in pencil, ink, and watercolor for the final art. For me, half of the fun of making books is the physical part of it! By the way, sometimes I’ll re-start a piece if it’s not working, because what’s in your head doesn’t always translate to the way you’d like it to appear on paper. But I think it’s good for kids (and everyone!) to know that experimenting and making mistakes is part of the creative process.
Me: How did you get into creating books for young readers?
Jennifer: I kind of backed my way into it. I had been doing freelance map illustration work for magazines when an editor asked my agent at the time if I had any picture book ideas. That was the beginning of it all! It did take many years to find my voice and figure out how to combine maps with stories and the kind of books I wanted to make. That’s pretty much how I fell in love with nonfiction.
Me: Can you share what you’re working on next?
Jennifer: I have several books in the works! I’m just finishing up final art for a picture book biography of a very cool and passionate birder who traveled the world and was the first woman to see 8,000 bird species. It will come out sometime in Spring of 2028.
Thank you for this interview, Jonathan! I really enjoyed it.
Me: Thank you so much for chatting, Jennifer. Wishing your book much success!
To learn more, please visit Jennifer Thermes – Children’s book & map illustration.
