Jorge Cham is author of the Oliver's Great Big Universe series, including Volcanoes Are Hot! (Abrams, September 17, 2024). Originally from Panama, Cham holds a Ph.D. in robotics from Stanford University and was an instructor and researcher at Caltech before becoming a full-time cartoonist. He is the creator of the popular online comic "Piled Higher and Deeper" (or PHD Comics) and the co-creator of Elinor Wonders Why, an animated show that airs on PBS Kids and in dozens of countries around the world.
Handsell readers your book in 25 words or less:
It's Carl Sagan's Cosmos meets Diary of a Wimpy Kid: fun, hilarious, has a heart-warming story AND it's packed with awesome science for ages six to 99.
On your nightstand now:
I don't do a lot of reading in bed because I like to draw and write before going to sleep, but I have two books on my nightstand: A Farewell to Gabo and Mercedes: una despedida, which is a memoir of Gabriel García Márquez's last few days written by his son, Rodrigo Garcia; and A Promised Land by Barack Obama.
Favorite book when you were a child:
My favorite books as a kid were Archie Comics. My father worked in the Panama Canal, and he would often stop at the garage sales of American families that were moving back to the U.S. One day, he brought home a few boxes of old Archie Comics digests, and my brother and I devoured them and re-read them over and over for years. It's partly how I learned English, which helps to explain why I use expressions like, "egad!" and "yikes!" all the time.
Your top five authors:
Bill Watterson: I grew up in Panama, so I only read Calvin and Hobbes in book collections, not the newspaper. I vividly remember that it was the first time reading a book made me laugh out loud.
Charles Schulz: Among the treasure trove of comics that my father brought home from the garage sales were also collections of Peanuts comics. I admire Charles Schulz's dedication, work ethic, and the fact that he oversaw a huge empire, yet remained humble, empathic, and dedicated to his craft.
Hayao Miyazaki: although he is known for his animated film masterpieces, he also drew a long-running epic saga called Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind, which is one of my favorite comic works of all time.
My two kids! I love reading anything they write (or draw, my daughter likes to write comics).
Book you've faked reading:
A Promised Land by Barack Obama.
Books you're an evangelist for:
For families with kids, I always recommend the Land of Stories audiobooks, written and narrated by Chris Colfer. They are great stories and he does an excellent job acting out all the characters. It's a treat for long car rides, as the whole family can get into it.
Books you've bought for the cover:
Basically, all the thousands of comic books I've bought in my lifetime.
Book you hid from your parents:
I don't think I ever hid a book from my parents. I either had awesome parents, or I wasn't reading the right books.
Book that changed your life:
Maus by Art Spiegelman. I read it when I was a teenager, and it's the first book that ever made me cry.
Favorite line from a book:
"Surprise is the essence of humor, and nothing is more surprising than the truth." Written by Bill Watterson in the introduction of the 10-year Calvin and Hobbes anniversary book. It's been one of the guiding principles in all my writing.
Five books you'll never part with:
Understanding Comics by Scott McCloud: A must for comic and visual artists.
Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind by Hayao Miyazaki: The most epic comic series ever created, in my opinion.
The Achievement Habit by Bernard Roth: A book written by one of my Ph.D. mentors, who taught as much about life as he did about theoretical kinematics. It's based on a class he's taught at Stanford for many years, which hundreds (if not thousands) of students--myself included--say changed their lives.
Chikibeans by my daughter. This is a short book my daughter wrote during the pandemic when she was seven years old. It chronicles the hilarious adventures of four of her plushies, all of whom are named Chikibeans.
Book you most want to read again for the first time:
Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell. I had no idea what to expect when I started the book, and when the structure of the book started to reveal itself, it blew my mind.
One thing you want readers to know about Oliver's Great Big Universe: Volcanoes Are Hot!:
That it's funny! And that kids (and curious adults) will learn a lot of great science reading it. It covers the Earth (volcanoes, earthquakes, plate tectonics), so it gives readers a better sense of the giant ball of rock we're all standing on. Like the rest of the series, the book is based on my son, Oliver, and to write it, I just imagined how a funny and earnest kid like him would explain complex topics to other kids.