Jakob Wegelius
About Author
Jakob Wegelius was born in 1966 and grew up with single mother in a suburb of Gothenburg, Sweden. He left for Stockholm after high school and studied history and philosophy, before taking a masters degree in graphic design at Konstfack 1996. Jakob has been working as freelance illustrator ever since. He now lives in a small village in southeastern Sweden with his wife Lena and their two sons, Bruno and Harry.
Jakob's first book was published in 1994. Since then he's written and drawn six more books (five children's books and a travel book from an expedition to Antarctica in 2007-08). He has also contributed to numerous books as an illustrator.
Author link
Interview
THE MURDERER'S APE
SEPTEMBER 2017
PUSHKIN CHILDREN'S BOOKS
While award-winning novel THE MURDERER'S APE is a story packed with invention, detail and adventure, what stands out for the reader is the character of the narrator, Sally Jones, an ape who is also a talented engineer and friend to Koskela, a ship's captain who is accused of murder. The narrative follows Sally Jones's adventures and friendships as she tries to prove Koskela's innocence.
Author JAKOB WEGELIUS is Swedish and his book has been skilfully translated by Peter Graves.
We asked JAKOB WEGELIUS to tell us more about THE MURDERER'S APE:
Q: Can you explain what inspired the first spark of this story?
A: Sally Jones first turned up as a bi-character in a short, illustrated story I wrote many years ago. I immediately grew fond of her, and eventually I wrote, and drew, her life's story. That was the book "The Legend of Sally Jones", which has not yet been translated to English.
After I'd written the life story of Sally Jones - from her birth in the deep jungles along the Congo river, until the point many years later where she and the Chief buy the Hudson Queen, and start their wandering life on the seven seas - I got the Idea to let Sally Jones herself tell her story from there on. And that became The Murderer's Ape. I think because I enjoy mystery stories myself I found myself writing one too.
Q: How hard was it to develop the story and progress the action when you have a main character who cannot speak and who frequently has to stay in hiding?
A: With Sally Jones the story just grew around her, and it made the writing very easy. She didn't need to speak to progress the story.
Q: Sally Jones also faces many different forms of discrimination and has no voice to confront this. Why did you make her so vulnerable - despite her size?
A: Like all animals we see around us, Sally Jones is just as vulnerable in a world of humans. Plus female gorillas aren't as big as male gorillas!
Q: Why did you decide she would be a female ape, and did you intend to break stereotypes in terms of gender - she is a gifted engineer, for example?
A: In the first short story where Sally Jones appeared, she was a female. I didn't think too much about why when I first wrote her into a story.
Q: Why have you put the friendship between Sally Jones and the Chief at the heart of this story?
A: Because this friendship is very much at the centre of Sally Jones's life. And it is her story to tell.
Q: Sally Jones's story reads like a detective story, but you give us the outcome at the start, why did you structure it like this?
A: There was no specific plan behind starting the story in this way. I really enjoyed how the prologue read after I'd written it and didn't want to change it!
Q: Why did you take Sally Jones to India as part of her quest - is it somewhere you have visited?
A: Yes, I have been lucky enough to go to several of the places I've written into the book. I wrote the Indian part in India so I felt very inspired by my surroundings.
Q: How much research did you need to do into some of the areas you cover in this story, for example - sailing and making musical instruments, and not forgetting the historical setting?
A: I have been sailing a fair bit, so the nautical parts were quite natural for me and didn't take too much research. This is also true of the music part.
The historical setting and the political part, on the other hand, took quite a lot of research.
Q: Why did you decide to illustrate the book? The first Sally Jones book is highly illustrated while this has black and white illustrations.
A: Ah, this is because they are from two different books. The Legend of Sally Jones - the earlier book - has colour illustrations, and The Murderer's Ape is in black and white.
Q: Did you expect The Murderer's Ape to be translated into English and were you involved in that process at all?
A: I am really glad that that the book was translated to English. And I was not at all involved in the translation (luckily for the readers). I am so happy Peter Graves took the job!
Q: Do you plan to revisit Sally Jones and the Chief, or is their story told?
A: Maybe, maybe not... I am not sure!
Q: Where do you work and are writing and illustration your main career?
A: Yes, this what I do for a living. And I work close to where I live, in the small village of Mortfors in south-eastern Sweden.
Q: What is your favourite escape from writing?
A: Family, friends, music, sailing, woodwork ....
The Murderer's Ape
