Providence Activities

Interview with Robert Sabuda:

Robert speaks out on his favorite mouse, Providence Traveler.

Where did the idea for Providence Traveler come from?

I’ve always loved the idea of exploring history. Unfortunately we can’t experience it the way we would like to because it’s already passed! Many of my picture book stories have taken place long ago, not to mention in different cultures, so I decided why not have one main traveler, or a group of travelers experience all the times and places I haven’t yet explored? Many years ago, when I was experimenting with cut paper I happened to make a mouse in renaissance costume. Providence grew directly from this image.

Providence creates a time-traveling machine based on Leonardo da Vinci’s designs, named Topo. Where does the name Topo come from?

I just couldn’t seem to come up with the right name because Topo is so many things, a machine, a robot, a cry baby. Finally I realized the answer was looking me right in the face. What would Leonardo call his invention? Since he is Italian and would be making a mechanical mouse, wouldn’t he refer to it as a mouse, too? The word Topo is Italian for mouse.

Why are Providence’s (and even her brother Malcolm’s) sketches included in Uh-Oh, Leonardo?

Whenever I’m telling a story the words and images always come from my mind, my imagination. Since the book is really about Providence (not Robert Sabuda) I felt that she would want to share what she saw DIRECTLY with her readers. She keeps a sketchbook to help her with her inventions, so it just seemed to make since that she would want to show her sketches of her experiences. And any good sister wouldn’t mind if her little brother wanted to show what he saw, too!

Where is Providence going next?

I haven’t decided yet! I get so many people coming up to me and asking the same question and I just don’t know what to say! There are so many choices. I think maybe I’ll have a contest and the best idea will help push me in the right direction. I do know, however, that Providence will visit a mysterious woman. Don’t ask me which woman, though, it came to me in a dream and you know how confusing and fuzzy dreams can be.

-Why did you pick Leonardo da Vinci to be the first historical figure that Providence and gang visited?

Leonardo da Vince has always been one of my greatest heroes. He was interested in absolutely everything he encountered and was extremely curious and inquisitive. His ideas represent some of the greatest leaps human kind has ever attempted. The fact that many of his ideas and inventions never came to pass during his lifetime doesn’t really matter. That he could actually VISUALIZE, not only the idea of heavier- than-air flight, but a machine that might make it happen is extraordinary. Considering that it took more than 400 years for this to happen is a testament to his visionary genius. I guess the question should really be how could Providence NOT visit Leonardo on her first trip?!

This artwork for Providence is pencil and watercolor. Is this a technique you’ve used before?

No! And working in it practically scared the pants off of me! As I’m sure you know I’ve used many different techniques in my books and just decided to give this one a try. Part of me thought it might be somewhat easy because so many other illustrators use it but I couldn’t have been more wrong! Unlike paper, which I have had many years to tame and make “obey my will,” watercolor doesn’t obey anything, let alone a first timer like me. It just goes where ever it wants to on the paper and once you’ve put that color down there’s no turning back. It is very difficult to go back into watercolor to make corrections so I really had to plan things out in advance. But still, there were always surprises. I suppose that why so many artists like the media, for the surprises.

How long did Providence Traveler take to complete?

A general rule for 32 page picture books is that they should take about 6 to 8 months to complete. This usually includes the time it takes to write the manuscript and complete the finished artwork. Because Providence Traveler is 48 pages it did take me close to 8 months for all the work. But I have to tell you, that writing is by far the most difficult part for me. I don’t really consider myself such a great writer so I lean very heavily on the guidance of my editor.

Did you have to do a lot of research?

If I told you how much research I had to do you probably wouldn’t even believe me! We take so many things for granted today. The pen you write with is full of ink. Well, where does that ink come from and what exactly is it made of? I like to think of myself as a pretty good researcher but I just couldn’t find out where the ink used in renaissance printing came from. The Internet is a great research source but there just isn’t a www.renaissanceink.com website! I spent days pulling together obscure sources to finally get the information I needed. (See Providence's sketches of Flippo's Print Shop in the book for the answer!)

Mice have appeared in many of you books. What’s up with that?

I know that when most people are kids one of the things they really want is to be big, to be grown up. Well, when I was young I was always fascinated by the idea of what it would be like to be even smaller. I loved the book The Borrowers because they were so tiny and all the stuff they borrowed, which was regular human size, seemed so big. They could scurry around anyplace they wanted to, unseen because they were small, just like mice. It’s not that I loved mice as a child, I just loved the idea of experiencing the world from a different perspective.

Will Malcolm ever become a real magician?

I didn’t know that he WASN’T! He certainly whipped up some pretty clever tricks to help Providence out of a very tough spot.

Is there any research you left out?

Not too many people today realize this, but when they complain that something outside, like car exhaust, stinks they don’t know what REAL stink is! In 1503, and practically up until the late 19th century the western world STUNK! People threw their garbage and the contents of their “chamber pots,” which is fancy word for portable toilet, directly into the gutters of streets or down the outside walls of the building they lived in. Horses and other livestock roamed the streets and no one handed their owners a ticket if they didn’t use a pooper scooper to clean up after them. So I did leave this one fact out, although Providence does notice that the water in the city is not clean enough to drink. I didn’t want to start a trend because then any story that took place before 1900 would have the same comments about the terrible city smell!

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