Blog Tour: Interview with J&P Voelkel

Jon and Pamela Voelkel are the authors of the MG novel, Middleworld (the Jaguar Stones #1) It's a wonderful adventure and I can't wait to read the next book, The End of the World Club (it's a trilogy). My review

Welcome Mr & Mrs. Voelkel to Reading in Color and thank you for doing this interview :)

Thank you for asking us! We’ve discussed all your questions together, but it’s me, Pamela, doing the answering as Jon’s in a whirlwind of trying to finish up the illustrations for Book 2.

Did your travels and various adventures prepare you in any way for being authors (besides giving you great material!)? Do you prefer writing, traveling or both?

Well, both of us have always traveled, even before we met each other, so I guess we both have adventurous spirits. But I’d say it was becoming parents that prepared us for being authors because you’re always looking for great books to read at bedtime. Something I’ve always liked about traveling is the feeling of being on the outside looking in. That’s how I feel when I’m writing too. It’s a tricky question though, because I love traveling – but writing is like traveling in your head. And you don’t need to pack!

*sigh* I'm a notorious day-before-packer so I understand the appeal of traveling without needing to pack! Too bad I'm not a writer ;) It seems like most writers start writing because they can't find books that they want their kids to read. I'm grateful for that because then we are fortunate to read stories that might not have otherwise been shared!

Out of the places you've traveled, which is your favorite? What's the most daring or grossest thing you've ever done/seen while traveling?

Jon’s favorite place is the area around Calakmul in Mexico, because there are so many atmospheric Maya sites around there. His grossest moment was when he was a kid and a big rat was running down a path full pelt towards him. Not being able to stop in time, the rat ran up his leg and up his body onto his shoulder, where it looked him in the eye before springing off. It’s an episode that inspired the live rat on a platter in the Black Pyramid.

Pamela’s favorite place is probably Santiago de Compostela in northern Spain, because it’s so old and mysterious and rainy – and it has great restaurants! (Okay, so it’s not in the Maya region, but it is one of the settings in Book 2.) And the most daring thing I’ve ever done was canoe down an underground river in Belize. I had to be very brave because I don’t like caves or bats or dark places or deep water or water with fish in it. The worst thing was that we forgot to shoot any video, so we had to go back and do it again.

Caves and dark places are not my favorite things either. That stinks that you had to shoot the video again. I've been to Mexico a few times but never Calakmul. The part with the rat would have freaked me out if I was Max (or your husband)! My dream is to go to Spain one day, I'll add Santiago de Compostela as a place I want to visit :)

Which character was the hardest to write (my guess would be Max who certainly starts off as unlikable)? The easiest?

You’re right, Max was the hardest character to write. He’s bratty in the beginning, but fourteen year olds can be that way. (They can also be completely charming and adorable the very next second.) Max is a child of the consumer society and he has to learn to be less selfish. He’s come a long way by the end of Book 1 - but he still has a long way to go. The easiest characters to write were the Death Lords. They’re based on the twelve Death Lords of Maya myth and they’re completely outrageous. They have no redeeming characteristics. Like cartoon characters, they’re one-dimensional and bad to the core.

I like to think that I wasn't a bratty fourteen year old but if my mom ever reads this, she would probably be rolling her eyes right now. Therefore I won't say that I wasn't bratty ;) Max's slow growth was quite rewarding to read about, but he is not there yet. The Death Lords were crazy creepy!

What did you find to be the most fascinating thing about the Mayas and their culture?

Jon is obsessed with the Maya glyphs. He even took a short course at Harvard to learn how to read and write them – which is where he first met the professor who checks all our stuff. I think more about the modern Maya and how much they’ve lost. History is written by the victors and all that. Having burned their books, and outlawed their language and culture, the conquistadors depicted the Maya as ignorant savages. They’ve been oppressed ever since. But the main thing is that they have survived. There are still six million Maya living in Central America. I’m hoping their stars will soon be in the ascendancy again.

I was boiling mad as I read about all the Mayas suffered at the hands of the Spanish. They will continue to survive and it helps to have books like Middleworld which helps to put stereotypes to rest.

Personally I don't believe the world will end in 2012 and it's mentioned in Middleworld that there's no archaeological evidence that the Mayans believed the world will end in 2012. But if the world was to end in 2012, what would you do your last year on Earth?

So you’re saying there’s no time to excavate any more pyramids or save the rainforests, right? In that case, we’d take the children out of school, sell everything we have and blow the money on a small palazzo on the Grand Canal in Venice. Then we’d spend our last days gliding along in a gondola, eating fresh pasta and looking at great art.

That sounds amazing, can I come with? :)

Hopefully this interview has helped inspire you to want to read Middleworld. It's a treat, I highly recommend it. Also Middleworld was picked as one of Al Roker's Book Club picks. Watch the video here

*I will be out of town from July 24-August 1 with no computer access. I look forward to reading your emails and comments when I get back :)

Male Monday: Middleworld

The Jaguar Stones, Book 1: Middleworld by J&P Voelkel 2010
Egmont USA

Rating: 4/5

IQ "I believe in second chances, Son. What has happened before will happen again. But this time, you can change the outcome." Lady Coco pg. 298

Max Murphy is supposed to be traveling to Italy with his parents over the summer. However, his archaeologist parents cancel the trip to Italy so that they can go to San Xavier (which is a fictional country based off of Belize) without Max. Max is beyond upset at this and he intends to make his parents regret their decision, but then they ask him to join them. When Max arrives in San Xavier, he learns that his parents have vanished. In San Xavier Max meets his kid-hating, smuggling uncle Ted, Lola (a Mayan girl who is brave and quick on her feet) and some other interesting characters. With the help of Lola, Max learns about the Jaguar Stones. These five stones of Middleworld ("the ancient Maya name for the world of men" from back cover) are extremely powerful so they can not fall into the wrong hands. Max needs to find his parents and save the world.

Mayan mythology is a complex topic to handle (says the non-Mayan expert) so I really admire the authors for creating this story and explaining aspects of Mayan culture in such a fun and pretty easy to understand way. A few times I did get lost. There's a lot going on, not just with all the Mayan culture references but also with other storylines. Sometimes I would forget who was who when they were talking about all the Mayan gods but that's not too big a deal. The older reader in me didn't always appreciate the translations. For example, Lola would say something in Mayan and then right after she would say it in English. I understood why she would do that, for Max's sake but other characters did that as well and that annoyed me. I would rather figure out the meaning of the words from the context or a glossary in the back. However, I understand that it was probably included for younger readers who may not have the patience or desire to figure it out on their own.

Other than things I pointed above, I really enjoyed this novel. The artwork is great, especially on the title page. The artwork enhances the book, it allows readers to better visualize the ruins of Mayan architecture. By the end of the book I was ready to throttle Friar Diego de Landa. And he called himself a priest! Gah. The characters were all genuine. Max is a complete brat and that doesn't change over night. "You are like a burrowing snake, confined in your own little world. It is time to take wing, Max Murphy, to soar far and wide like a hawk in the sky." (Chan Kan, pg. 180). [Random Tidbit: Whenever Chan Kan came on the scene I though the words read Chaka Khan and I would stare at the page in disbelief. Oh yes, I'm crazy]. Even though Max was a brat and I wanted someone to smack him, I think Lola and others did a good job of telling him off. I found his reactions completely realistic (when it came to the magical/adventurous aspects of the story), he was scared out of his mind half the time and often skeptical of what people told him. I would react the same way for the most part, some of what Max is told borders on the ridiculous and would be hard for any 14 year old to believe. Lola is awesome and I really want to know more about her and her past. Lady Coco and Lord 6-Rabbit are equally great, they are so crazy. Hermanjillo (herman-hee-lio) is eccentric to say the least and I wasn't expecting his storyline, but it makes total sense.

Middleworld is an imaginative, action packed story filled with hazardous events. The characters are all hiding something (well Max isn't really but there's more to him than meets the eye) which keeps the readers guessing about the motives behind certain actions. The story is well researched and you get a real feel for Central America; the weather, the food, the people, etc. I liked the mentions of 2012 and how no archaeological evidence has been found to support the idea that Mayans thought the world would in 2012. Like I said, I understood most of what was going on and the ending left me desperately wanting more. It's not a complete cliffhanger, if you don't like the book (which I doubt) you could finish it and not feel compelled to read the rest of the series. However, there are still some secrets (like what is the deal with Zia? I need to know!) This is going to be a fun series, I can tell. I can't wait to see what's next in store for Massimo Francis Sylvanus Murphy (Max) and Ix Sak Lool (Eesh Sock Lowell aka Lola).

Disclosure: Received from publicist. Thanks Jennifer!

PS Definitely check out the amazing website. It has reviews, Mayan info links and photo albums from the author's travels.