Renowned Coraline author Neil Gaiman has a few projects in the works, and one of those is a book for children about an adorable little panda. Gaiman introduces his new furry friend in a promotional video for Chu’s Day.
Neil Gaiman is best known for his dark fantasy novels for adults, but now he’s broadening his repertoire with a few children’s books in the pipeline. As Gaiman reported back in July, he has a deal with Harper Collins to pen five children’s books.
The first of these books features a little panda named Chu, who will make his debut in Chu’s Day, out January 8, 2013. Chu is also set to make a reappearance in a second book that is part of Gaiman’s five-book deal with Harper Collins.
Gaiman has had great success writing for middle grade readers with Coraline and The Graveyard Book, the former was made into a feature film and the latter was awarded a Newberry Medal. He’s written a few children’s books, including Wolves in the Walls and Blueberry Girl, but Gaiman says that Chu’s Day is aimed at younger audiences.
In this new book trailer, Gaiman recalls his experience traveling to China and having the pleasure of a “baby giant panda” sitting on his lap and eating bamboo.
“I think that baby giant panda was the inspiration for a baby giant panda called Chu.”
Gaiman goes on to describe Chu in this book trailer, claiming that Chu is quite a normal baby giant panda and that “he does all the things that baby giant pandas love to do,” which include going to the library and the circus.
There is one catch though, with this adorable little panda cub. Gaiman teases, “When Chu sneezes, bad things happen. Extraordinary, impossible, enormous things happen.”
How could such a cute little baby panda cause bad things to happen?
We’ll have to wait until January to find out.
Of this new children’s book, Gaiman says, “It’s the shortest book I’ve ever written, and right now, I think it may be the one I’m most proud of.”