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Our Commonalities Are Greater Than Our Differences: An Interview with Sesame Street’s Leslie Kimmelman
As someone who grew up on a Sesame Street diet, I was thrilled to get to interview author Leslie Kimmelman, who worked at Sesame Workshop for over two decades! In addition to writing her own children’s books, Leslie gets to spend her days hanging around muppets. How cool is that? Her latest book, We’re Amazing 1, 2, 3! is about the newest character to move to Sesame Street, Julia. Leslie tells us all about Julia, and what it’s like to work on this iconic show which is such an important part of so many kids’ lives.
Can you tell us a little bit about Julia?
Julia is an adorable red-headed (actually orange-headed!) Muppet, who happens to have autism. Despite her challenges, she approaches life with a lot of joy. She’s the newest friend on Sesame Street, so the others are still learning about her. She loves to sing and to draw, and she loves to play with her friends. Just like other kids. Sometimes Julia’s way of doing things is a little bit different, but that’s okay. Different is what makes the world such an interesting place!
What was the inspiration behind creating Julia?
More than 1 in 68 children born today in the U.S. are diagnosed somewhere on the autism spectrum. So that’s where Julia began. Sesame Street special projects all begin with a need, followed by a conference at which we gather many people in the particular community we’re addressing—in this case autism experts, teachers, advocates, researchers, etc. That helps determine what kind of material is most needed, and how Sesame Street can use its unique brand to help fill that need. We wanted to grow understanding of autism and what it can mean and look like, but we also wanted to help kids—and adults—understand that their commonalities are greater than their differences. The book We’re Amazing 1, 2, 3! is only part of the initiative, which also includes many other materials. Speaking personally, my inspiration was my son, who is now an adult, but whose characteristics (especially the singing) I appropriated in a big way for Julia.
How have readers responded to this “new kid on the street”?
We’ve given out almost 200,000 copies of the free paperback that was done initially to introduce Julia to the world. And now there’s a hardcover edition available, published by Penguin Random House. There’s been follow-up research that shows both an overwhelmingly positive response to Julia, but also—and perhaps more importantly—a heightened awareness and understanding of autism. Anecdotally, I was signing books at two different book festivals over the last month, and the response to We’re Amazing 1, 2, 3! was terrific. I was very happy to see that many of the people buying the book did not have someone in their family with autism, but someone in a class or in the neighborhood that they were hoping their own children would reach out to. The more that young kids understand and accept that there’s a wide breadth of human experience, that there are many different kinds of people in the world, the more hopeful I will be. The saying is that a good children’s book should both offer a chance for a child to see him-or-herself reflected in its pages; and also open the window to a wider world. I hope my book does both.
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Do you have other book recommendations for parents who have an autistic child?
There are actually more books available than you’d think, though many are for older readers. My personal favorite for younger children isn’t about autism at all, but just about being different. It’s R. J. Palacio’s We’re All Wonders, a picture book adaptation of her sensational Wonder (which is for older readers). Holly Robinson Peete’s My Brother Charlie is also lovely. There are a lot more at the older age range: I highly recommend Rain Reign (by Ann M. Martin) and Rules (by Cynthia Lord).
You have a dream job! What is the coolest part of working for Sesame Street?
It’s incredibly fulfilling to see your work go out into the world and help make a positive difference. But honestly, my first reaction to the question is: Getting to hang out with the Muppets, of course! I was at the studio just this week, and though I’ve worked here for 21+ years, the magic never fades. It’s also a job that comes with a lot of laughs—and who can’t use that these days?
What’s up next for Julia? And for you?!
There’s much more coming with Julia, so stay tuned. You’ll be seeing her on the show, in Sesame Street books, and the web site will be added to as well. Anyone who hasn’t checked the web site out—www.sesamestreet.org/autism—should do so. It’s fantastic. For me personally, I have a few new books coming out next year, starting with a picture book bio of Irving Berlin and a story about Frankenstein.
We’re Amazing 1, 2, 3! is on B&N bookshelves now!