The Picture Book Buzz - Interview w/Katherine Pryor and Review of Attack of the Hangries

Maria Marshall
11 minutes ago
12 min read

Katherine Pryor is an award-winning children’s book author and good food advocate.

She grew up in California and Arizona before moving to Seattle to study food and farming. Her books are widely used in school garden curriculum, nutrition education, and anti-hunger initiatives and have been recognized by the Whole Kids Foundation Book Club, Ag in the Classroom, and the American Horticultural Society.

In addition to writing, Katherine has worked to create better food choices at institutions, large corporations, and food banks. She lives in Northern California with her husband and two voracious kids.

Collage of the covers of Katherine's seven books.

She’s the author of 10 books, including Hello, Snow!, illustrated by Rose Soini (2025), Hello, Beach!, Rose Soini (2025), Hello, Rain!, illustrated by Rose Soini (2024), Home Is Calling: The Journey of the Monarch Butterfly illustrated by Ellie Peterson (2023), Spring Is for Strawberries, illustrated by Polina Gortman (2023), Hello, Garden!, illustrated by Rose Soini (2021), and Bea’s Bees, illustrated by Ellie Peterson (2019).

Her newest picture book, Attack of the Hangries, was released on September 16th.

Welcome Katherine,

Tell us a little about yourself. (Where/when do you write? How long have you been writing? What is your favorite book to write?)

I’ve been a writer since second grade, when my teacher led us in a creative writing exercise. She turned off the lights, had us put our heads on our desks, and played some classical music. Then she turned on the lights and told us to write whatever we had just seen in our imaginations. I’ve been chasing that feeling ever since.

I spent a good portion of my twenties trying to be a novelist and wrote three novels I couldn’t convince anyone to publish. When I got tired of waiting tables and bartending to support my writing habit, I went to grad school to study sustainable food and farming and graduated into a job I loved. But I missed writing and started waking up an hour earlier than I needed to every day just to write in a journal and be creative. Then one day, I was advocating for Farm to School funding in my state capital, and a dad told a story of how his daughter wouldn’t eat spinach until she had grown it in her school garden, then ended up falling in love with spinach. For whatever reason, I thought, “That would make a great kids’ book.” I didn’t know anything about writing for kids but workshopped my drafts at a night class at my local community college and ended up publishing Sylvia’s Spinach a year later. I loved seeing the reaction it got from kids and families and started learning more about the industry so I could do it again. (Although truth be told, my goal for every book I write is usually something along the lines of, “I hope it’s good enough that they’ll let me do it again.”)

I used to think I needed a special space to write, but I’ve learned that what I really need is time. I need to carve out space for creativity dates with myself, where I set aside time to work on creative projects. Sometimes this is at my desk, but I could just as easily be in a garden or coffee shop, as long as it’s a space free of distractions and demands of daily life.

It's wonderful to "meet' you Katherine. What helps you to be inspired? (perhaps a certain place, music, activity, etc.)

I’m most inspired when I’m out in the world—going for walks, volunteering in my kids’ school garden, or spending time in a beautiful place. I wrote most of the Hello! board book series watching my kids play outdoors and just jotting little notes in my phone about what they were doing. I think play is an incredibly important component of creativity. I don’t think I’ve ever had a single idea sitting in front of my computer and waiting for something to show up, but I’ve had lots of ideas pop into my head when my brain is engaged in something completely different. The trick is taking a minute to jot them down before they fly away again.

That is indeed the magic that can be so very fleeting. What was your inspiration or spark of interest for Attack of the Hangries?

Book cover - surrounded portions of healthy foods, a boy grimaces as five cartoon water-drop like shapes pull his hair, chew on an ear, and demand to be fed.

As a lifelong sufferer of the Hangries AND a food writer, it was a topic I’d wanted to write about for several years but had never been able to find my way into a compelling story. Then one day, I was on a ferry on my way to a doctor’s appointment and read an article about why people get hangry. For some people, when our blood glucose drops, it triggers a release of the stress hormones adrenaline and cortisol. I kept thinking about the concept of our bodies being attacked by stress hormones that whole drive to the doctor’s office and wrote my first draft in their parking lot.

I love it! What a great way to get inspired and a ticking timer to get a draft done before the appointment. What is the hardest or most challenging thing about writing Attack of the Hangries? And what was the most fun?

I loved writing a funny picture book. I’d had funny lines in past books, but had never written an intentionally humorous book, and I loved having the freedom to just get completely ridiculous and escalate the situations beyond the point of reason. I really let myself have fun and didn’t let my inner critic come out. My writing group helped me tone down a few parts and ramp up others, and the whole thing made me want to write another funny book.

The hardest part of writing the book was the backmatter. Yes, I’ve worked in food for years, but it was more on the production and procurement side of things. I don’t have any formal nutrition training and hadn’t taken biology since high school. I read a ton of books about digestion to write one page about the human digestive process and reached out to some nutritionist friends to talk me through the concept of why certain foods make us feel full longer. They answered all my questions and offered up certain things I hadn’t thought of, like the important role fats can play in keeping us feeling full. I learned a ton and am super grateful for the experience, but I spent more time writing those three pages than the entire rest of the book.

Oh my goodness. Thank you for sharing this part of the book's process. It is amazing how much research goes into humorous books - especially if they are informational fiction. Having written both, which do find easier to write – picture books or board books? Why?

Picture books and board books are completely different creatures. I think of a picture book as a mini three-act play, and to me a board book is more about the feelings language promotes and setting a foundation for a lifelong love of reading. They’re meant to be read close up, often held by someone who loves us.

My board books were certainly simpler to write, because I got really lucky that my publisher invited me to create a four-book board book series after Hello, Garden! won a national award. I modeled the next three books on the first in terms of rhyme scheme and length, and they became more like a puzzle to assemble than a completely new concept. I developed such a great working relationship with the illustrator, Rose Soini, that I could trust what she would do with different spreads. It gave me a freedom to focus on language knowing she would make the art vibrant and alive.

But just because my board books were simpler to write doesn’t mean they were easier in any other way. It’s harder to market a board book, and they don’t get quite the same fanfare a picture book does. Like everything in writing, you have to really love what you’re working on and should pursue an idea or a passion rather than a market.

Very well said. Thank you. When you first saw Thiago Buzzy’s illustrations did anything surprise, amaze, or delight you? Which is your favorite spread?

Because I had worked with this editorial team before, they were really great about bringing me into the process early on and allowed me to look at the art from the different illustrators they were considering. I immediately loved how Thiago portrayed the Hangries—they were scary when they needed to be, but they look really sweet and harmless when they’re fed.

Internal spread - on the left, spot illustrations of a boy holding a piece of cheese, a twisty slide with hangries in it, and a boy with hangries all about his head throwing a ball at the coach. On the right, a boy, with his arms on his school desk, mouth open wide screaming, while two kids in the background have a "hair-raising" reaction.

Text © Katherine Pryor, 2025. Image © Thiago Buzzy, 2025.

The page that sold me on Thiago was the scene where one of the characters is yelling “the number one bad word on your do-not say list”— he let the kid be a little naughty and also completely loveable and relatable. It felt like a real classroom to me, not some perfect, polished imaginary setting, which was exactly the feeling I wanted for the book. Just because a kid is misbehaving, it doesn’t make them a bad kid—they likely have a need that hasn’t been met and don’t know how to fix it on their own yet.

I have to admit that the first time I've seen swearing represented in a picture book. How many revisions did Attack of the Hangries take from first draft to publication? How does this compare to your other picture books?

I have seven drafts of Attack of the Hangries on my laptop, plus a handwritten first draft. I think I went through a few additional revisions with my editor, Peggy Schaefer, after she acquired it and once the final art came in. Peggy and I had worked together on Home is Calling, so we already had a good working relationship, and she was able to help me take the text farther than I could have on my own.

All of my books vary drastically in the number of drafts they need to stand on their own. My second picture book, Zora’s Zucchini, took about 40 drafts before I got it right. By the time I got to my third and fourth books in the Hello! series, I was able to send my editor Ann Charles my third or fourth drafts because we had such an established model. I make it a point never to send out a new picture book draft before I’ve revised it at least twice, because it always takes me at least that many to focus on what it is I really want to say.

Two drafts! Wow, that's impressive. What’s something you want readers to know or learn about Attack of the Hangries?

I hope parents and schools learn a little about how what and when kids eat affects their lives. I think we too often make the mistake of thinking kids can eat anything and thrive, but they are just as influenced by what they eat as adults are. Some kids (like mine) really do go a little bonkers with a lot of sugar, and we’ve learned to feed them a savory breakfast before school rather than the sweet cereals we grew up with. School is hard, and we should be feeding kids snacks and meals that fuel their ability to think and play and grow. I also hope the book highlights the importance of things like universal school meals and food assistance programs because kids can’t do well in school or life if they’re hungry. Making sure no child goes hungry should be a fundamental goal for every society.

I totally agree and I hope that the Hangries do make adults pay attention and think. Are there any new projects you are working on now that you can share a tidbit with us?

I’m working on a couple different picture book drafts, but don’t have anything official in the pipeline. I also keep wanting to try my hand at writing a middle grade novel but haven’t been able to get past the murky middle in either of the drafts I’ve started. Writing is hard! But it’s also so much fun I don’t ever want to stop.

Best of luck with your projects. Last question, what is your favorite National Park or Forest, regional park, or city park (anywhere in the world)? Or the one you’re longing to visit. Why?

Courtesy of California State Parks, 2025.

I moved home to northern California this year, and the place that always fills my cup is Sonoma Coast State Park. It’s ten gorgeous miles of coast with more little pocket beaches than I’ve been able to visit so far. I grew up going there, and it’s a place that still inspires a childlike wonder. As an adult, I’m so grateful places like this have been preserved, because it’s easy to imagine what it would have been like if people had been allowed to develop it. Instead, it’s a stunningly gorgeous coastline accessible to anyone who needs to feel a beach beneath their feet, smell the sea, and ponder the vastness of our beautiful world.

Thank you, Katherine, for sharing with us a bit about yourself and your new book.

To find out more about Katherine Pryor, or to contact her:

Website: https://katherinepryor.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/readyourgreens/?hl=en

X (Twitter): https://x.com/ReadYourGreens

Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/katherinepryor.bsky.social

Review of Attack of the Hangries

Who hasn't found themselves grumpy, snapping at others, or picking silly fights, only to discover they were "hangry" and a little snack cured everything. This humorous nonfiction picture book gives kids (and adults) the facts and fuel necessary to counter a hangry attack.

Attack of the Hangries

Author: Katherine Pryor

Illustrator: Thiago Buzzy

Publisher: Worthy Kids

Ages: 5-7

Themes:

Emotions, diet, self-care, biology, healthy eating, and humor.

Synopsis:

Learn how to spot the Hangries and how to keep them at bay with this engaging and kid-friendly look at the science behind our bodies’ need for food and the relationship between hunger and mood.

We’ve all been there—when our hunger slides into anger and suddenly, we feel . . . hangry. And kids certainly aren't exempt from this feeling. Attack of the Hangries explores the scientific reason behind this phenomenon as the author takes the reader through the experience of being hangry in a fun and informative way. What happened? Where did those feelings come from? And why? Kids will delight in the humor and over-the-top characters, while parents will appreciate the subtle message being imparted. Helpful sidebars and accessible back matter explain the science behind hunger and how to properly feed and care for our bodies. For caregivers with hangry little ones, this book will be a welcome tool to encourage regular, healthy eating.

Opening Lines:

They can sneak up on you anywhere:

at home,

at school,

spelunking in the caves

or Quintana Roo.

What I LIKED about this book:

This is a fun opening, with these little hangry characters planning sneak attacks on the kids and even rappelling in the cave. Plus, you have to admit, Quintana Roo is just so fun to say!

Internal spread - within the setting of a cave full of stalagmites and stalactites, on the left two spot illustrations show a girl and boy playing, while hangries peek at them. On the right a girl with a headlamp, hardhat, and a rope wanders into deeper into the cave as hangries hang from the ceiling and peer at her around the cave formations.

Thiago Buzzy does such a great job taking these little bug-eyed, raindrop-shaped characters from cute little curiosities peeking at the kids and reader into . . .

Internal image - three girls, two girls singing, as hangries zoom from the upper left corner toward the middle girl grimacing and clenching her firsts. On the right, a destroyed room - tattered curtain, gouged couch, broken lamp and pot, spilled drink, toppled, table, and books everywhere as the girl sits stunned by the couch as her friends look aghast, dog peers in the window, and the hangries are sprawled about exhausted.

'monsters' that make you "want to SCREAM! AT EVERYONE! FOR ANYTHING!" And then suddenly, "somehow the room is destroyed." The startled expressions of everyone - friends and dog and the worn out hangries is priceless. Even the girl who just exploded looks a little stunned.

Pretty much everyone can relate to this situation and feeling. Whether you're the volcano or the recipient. And what happens when they attack at school? Peek back at Katherine's favorite spread above when the kid yells “the number one bad word on your do-not say list.” I also love that the text and illustrations allow the kids to experience this intense emotion and act out. And I truly appreciate Katherine's comment, "Just because a kid is misbehaving, it doesn’t make them a bad kid—they likely have a need that hasn’t been met and don’t know how to fix it on their own yet."

Using a combination of comical illustrations and zoomed in internal shots, explanatory sidebars, and straightforward text, the kids explore the facts (lack of food) and the science (hormones) occurring within their bodies that bring on an attack of the hangries. Turns out the orange hangry is the hormone adrenaline and the yellow one is the hormone cortisol. The hormones' effect on the body is great "if you were actually in danger" providing a boost of speed or energy, but a bit much "when all you need is a sandwich."

Internal image - upper left, a dog, dressed as a doctor, pushes in a graphic showing emergency alert in the brain. Lower left, a girl zooms across a strip of grass. Upper right, a "foreman" sends three hangries on the attack. Lower right, a boy looks at his chest, where a magnifying glass, held by the dog) shows a hangry in a car rushing through a blood vessel.

The ending offers one more example of the Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde nature of the hangries and provides a happy solution. The illustrated backmatter explores the foods that help and those that don't. It also offers a fun internal diagram of the digestive system, a bit on the vagus nerve, borborygmi (I had to add it here - it's such a fun word to say - the book uses "rumbling."), and some fun facts sure to tickle kids. And a fun wordless image reminding us that hangries can affect our pets, too.

Employing both a textural and visual dose of humor, this nonfiction book engagingly explores the facts and science of hangries and offers kids (and adults) both the "why" and the solution to avoid sneak attacks by these hormones. This is a captivating book which tackles an important aspect of our lives with an infusion of humor.

Resources:

have the hangries ever caused problems for you? Write a description or draw a picture of your worst hangry moment.

Photo collage of animal toast faces, animal rice cracker faces, and a veggie crocodile.

do you have favorite snacks? Try some of these fun ideas for snacks (animal toast or rice crackers or "Guac-Crocs-and-Veggies"). Do you have a snack you should eat less of? When do you tend to eat this particular snack - Christmas cookies in December...?