Charlie and Matt Ottley (The Tree Of Ecstasy And Unbearable Sadness) discuss Matt's type I bipolar disorder and how it has influenced this, his latest book, and his life in general. As Matt is also a composer and illustrator and the book involves both, we also discuss in detail the creation of the music and artwork.

Please note that there are mentions of child sexual abuse and attempted suicide in this episode.

A transcript is available on my site

General references:
The Sound Of Picture Books on YouTube
Film trailer for The Tree Of Ecstasy And Unbearable Sadness
Tina Wilson set up the Lester Prize

Books mentioned by name or extensively:
Matt Ottley: The Tree Of Ecstasy And Unbearable Sadness

Buy the books: UK

Release details: recorded 16th April 2024; published 26th August 2024

Where to find Matt online: Website || Facebook || Instagram

Where to find Charlie online: Website || Twitter || Instagram || TikTok

Discussions

00:01:36 The whys of the book - why this story, why produce it in this way, why now (this turns into a larger discussion of Matt's bipolar disorder and how it affects him)
00:13:18 Matt's musical initiative for children, The Sound Of Picture Books
00:19:45 The artistic process of the book, the artwork
00:24:35 The image of the pregnant mother in water, Matt's painting of water in general, and the elephants
00:29:08 The animals in terms of metaphors of unreality, evolution, and mania
00:32:32 Where Matt started in illustration, music, and writing - the discussion revolves mostly around music - and also inspirations
00:42:01 All about the music - composing, recording, the orchestra, choir, and so on
00:52:01 [An extract of music from the score, courtesy of Matt]
00:58:34 Discussing the narration and narrator, Matt's wife, Tina Wilson
01:02:04 The book's text - starting point and so on
01:04:38 Matt tells us about his childhood, family, and experience of bipolar growing up
01:09:34 What's next? (A variety of projects are discussed.)

Photo credit: Tina Wilson

Disclosure: If you buy books linked to my site, I may earn a commission from Bookshop.org, whose fees support independent bookshops