Mac Barnett

I'd much rather have a book that a few people love intensely than a book that a lot of people like okay.

— Mac Barnett

Kevin Cornell and I have worked together a bunch.

— Mac Barnett

“I live well! I may have been swallowed, but I have no intention of being eaten.”

— Mac Barnett

“A clue! From M!" "Who's M?" "Maybe M is for Mackintosh! Maybe Grabes ans Mackintosh are in cahoots!" "Or maybe M is…

— Mac Barnett

Danger is the snack food of a true sleuth.

— Mac Barnett

I think the trick of writing a good picture book manuscript is to leave that space for illustration. An illustrated novel can…

— Mac Barnett

Every Librarian is a highly trained agent. An expert in intelligence, counterintelligence, Boolean searching, and hand-to-hand combat.

— Mac Barnett

Not only is a good prank harmless, but, like a good story, it reveals an essential truth that would otherwise be hidden.

— Mac Barnett

Too often we tell kids pleasant stories devoid of truth, and stories without truth are not good stories. Our audience deserves more…

— Mac Barnett

We put authors on such a pedestal, and it's a moment that humanizes the whole thing, and lends an absurdity to what…

— Mac Barnett

Pranking is a great way to indicate the underlying absurdities of the world.

— Mac Barnett

“He checked out his surrounding. More books. A drinking fountain. A poster showing a guy slam-dunking a basketball with one hand and…

— Mac Barnett

I love those adult writers with the pranking ethos, [Don] DeLillo and [Donald] Barthelme and David Foster Wallace. I don't see any…

— Mac Barnett

“Dana was what Steve called a "silent partner" in the Brixton Brothers Detective Agency. Being a silent partner meant that Dana didn't…

— Mac Barnett

“I may have been swallowed, said the duck, but I have no intention of being eaten.”

— Mac Barnett

“No no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no no…

— Mac Barnett

“This was so unfunny, Steve had to laugh.”

— Mac Barnett

“It's nice," said the mouse. "It's home," said the duck. "You live here?" "I live well! I may have been swallowed, but…

— Mac Barnett

It's a sort of patronizing idea that literature for children has to feature role models of exemplary behavior. I think not only…

— Mac Barnett

“Leave it to Niles Sparks to prank his pranking partner in the middle of a prank.”

— Mac Barnett

I read The Stinky Cheese Man as an adult. I missed that book when I was a kid. I grew up mostly…

— Mac Barnett

Pranking exposes the truth that underneath this appearance of order is joy, laughter, and disorder.

— Mac Barnett

“In 1836, due to a balloting error, a cow was elected mayor of Yawnee Valley. (After earning record-high approval ratings, the cow…

— Mac Barnett

I'm not sure we're presenting ourselves as real role models. I don't think literature has ever been a real place for role…

— Mac Barnett

“Dear Mom, I won't be home this weekend because I'm wanted for treason and I have to clear my name. Also, I…

— Mac Barnett