Alex Latimer

Marigold is a Chicken: a funny and heartwarming picture book about unconditional love

About Author

Award-winning writer and illustrator Alex Latimer introduces Marigold is a Chicken, a hilarious picture book about being content to be oneself, and a companion title to Godfrey is a Frog.

Alex is based in Cape Town, South Africa. He has written and illustrated dozens of picture books which have been published all around the world. He has two daughters who read his books to make sure they're fun and interesting, and a dog named Bernie who goes along on walks with him when he can't think of any good ideas. Alex loves dinosaurs, space, and the sea.

Interview

July 2026

Alex Latimer explores the joy of being yourself in Marigold is a Chicken

ReadingZone caught up with Alex Latimer to find out what inspired his new picture book, Marigold is a Chicken, a funny and perceptive story about being yourself. The story will help encourage children to talk about what makes them special and follows earlier picture books by Alex, Godfrey is a Frog and Frank is a Butterfly, that share life cycles and self belief.

More about Marigold is a Chicken: All the hens are carefully watching over their eggs. One by one, as they hatch, the chicks display their special talents; will they be a great scientist, an artist or a sports person? And then Marigold hatches, with no discernible talent at all. And that, thinks mum, is just right!

Q&A with Alex Latimer: Exploring what makes us feel special in Marigold is a Chicken

"Too often we look around us and determine our self worth by what other people are doing,
instead of appreciating how amazing each of us is."

1. Can you tell us how you started writing and drawing picture books? What kinds of books do you enjoy creating, and do you do other kinds of illustration work as well?

I've always wanted to write all kinds of books, so my thinking was that I'd try a few picture books as practice first before I got onto writing novels. I wrote a few bad ones, but then I wrote a good one and I had to figure out how to make it. At the time I wasn't really good at drawing, but I spent a year practising and then drew my first book. That was called The Boy Who Cried Ninja.

Nowadays I mostly make picture books, but I do write other kinds of stories: short stories, long fiction, poems, even some novels.

2. What's you new picture book, Marigold is a Chicken, about?

Marigold is a Chicken is about discovering your worth. Marigold thinks her value comes from what she can do, rather than who she is.

Images from Marigold is a Chicken by Alex Latimer

3. What kinds of discussions do you hope Marigold is a Chicken will encourage among children and their adults?

I think the book will encourage discussions about comparison. Too often we look around us and determine our self worth by what other people are doing, instead of appreciating how amazing each of us is.

4. What drew you to exploring this question about what makes a child feel 'special'?

I think the idea probably started while looking through social media. It's so easy to look at all the amazing things other people are doing, and to feel 'not enough'. The lesson that Marigold learns is an important one to understand early in life, but it's also important to be reminded of it as we get older.

5. . . . And why did you decide to make Marigold a chicken?

In this series of books (Godfrey is a Frog, Frank is a Butterfly, and Marigold is a Chicken') I've aimed to use animals that have interesting lifecycles and that are often covered in early education. So, as a parent, these books have double value.

6. How did you decide on Marigold and the other chickens' 'look'? Is it hard to draw chickens - and to make them look appealing?

Working on the look of the chickens feels less like a decision and more like a process. I start with drawings that aren't right, but each time I re-draw them, I learn a bit more about what is working and what isn't. I don't find chickens particularly difficult to draw; it's monkeys on bicycles that I find really challenging.

7. Do you have a stand-out moment or spread in the picture book?

I think my favourite spread is where Marigold has finally hatched and her mother is leaning in and looking at her. It's a lovely moment in the book because as readers we can tell that there's nothing really that ‘special' about Marigold. It makes her mother's reaction on the next page all the more powerful.

Also, in the editing process there were some suggestions that the double page was too empty. I think there's often a tendency, especially in children's book, to think we have to utilise every inch of a page and use all the colours. But sometimes, paring it all back is the right choice.

8. For children (and their adults!) who enjoy Marigold is a Chicken, which of your other books do you think they might also enjoy?

Godfrey is a Frog and Frank is a Butterfly are both part of the series and they all talk about self worth in a different way. And they all introduce concepts of life cycles in animals. They make a lovely set. There's an educational element to each one, but the focus is on the story and the development of the characters.

9. Where do you create your books, and what does a day in your life as an author / illustrator look like?

I have a busy house and so I built a small garden shed - and I put nice lights in it and a nice chair and a big table. It's got all of my things in it: my dog Bernie, my computer, my pictures, stacks of books and a lava lamp.

So every day I spend a good few hours in the shed, drawing and writing while Bernie sleeps. I'll often have sport on in the background if I'm drawing, or a podcast or an audiobook - just something to listen to.

Sometimes if it rains too hard on the tin roof, I have to cancel video meetings because it gets too loud in there. But overall it's a really good shed to work in.

10. What's your favourite escape from your studio and what do you do to relax?

A big part of my creative process is walking. I live in a lovely seaside valley and I am very lucky to be able to take Bernie and go for long walks. It's on these long walks that the best ideas usually occur to me and then I have to hurry home to write them down. Sometimes I go for a walk and I return home with no new ideas, but that's all part of the process.

Creative Challenge: Draw your own Marigold

Godfrey is a Frog (OUP Children's Books)

Author and illustrator Alex Latimer shares his picture book, Godfrey is a Frog, a funny and warm story which follows Godfrey through metamorphosis - and beyond!

About Author

Interview

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