If you like zany, action-packed adventures full of armour, weapons, dastardly enemies and pint-sized heroes, then this series is for you.
Greg and Myles McLeod are a BAFTA winning, powerhouse duo blending witty storytelling and lively illustrations to create a world where brave (and often very quirky) heroes come to life. Their Knight Sir Louis books have become a favourite for young readers, filled with laugh-out-loud moments, adventurous quests, and a fresh twist on knightly tales. Packed with pictures and broken up into short chapters, they are great for readers who struggle with longer books too.
We are joined by Myles, one half of The Brothers McLeod and pictured right, to find out more about these wonderfully funny, original books. If you are a long-time fan you'll be thrilled to hear about the latest adventure in the series, Knight Sir Louis and the Cauldron of Chaos. And if you are discovering their work for the first time, you’re in for a treat as there are five deliciously absurd books to devour, plus a brain-bending puzzle book starring an interactive KSL. Readers won’t want this adventure to end!
Q. Are you really brothers?
A. This is one of the top questions we are asked when we do school visits. As a result we now show some photographic evidence of us as children in some very interesting 1970s outfits. Yes, we are actual brothers. And we also have a sister too. The latest book is dedicated to her.
Q. What's it like creating books with someone you grew up with?
A. It’s fun. We have a very similar sense of humour, but we have different skills. Greg is an amazing illustrator and I like to think I’m not too bad at telling stories. But together we’re even better because before we even start writing or drawing, we talk through funny ideas for the books. If something makes us both laugh then it’s good enough to go in. If it only makes one of us laugh, that’s not good enough!
How do you go about creating the books – do you sit down together? Do you have a whiteboard? Do you text each other brilliant ideas in the middle of the night?
Each book is slightly different. There’s no one way to begin. Sometimes an idea might start with a theme like ‘spooky’ which was how the new one began. Book four was a snowy adventure and it took ages to work out who the baddy was. But Greg suggested a giant snowball and that just seemed so silly we had to go with it. Once we have worked out who the main characters are for a new book Greg will do very rough sketches and text them over to me. If I have any extra ideas, he’ll tweak them until we’re both happy. Then he’ll start working them up into more finished artwork. Often we’ll have too many ideas and then you have to work out which ones to throw away.
When did you decide you wanted to write books?
I think the first time was when I was a teenager. I loved reading and Greg loved drawing. I was quite shy as a boy, so books were a great way to live through others. And they also seemed a great way to communicate to others. I started writing books but never knew how to develop or finish them. Later we started doing comics and animated cartoons together and I started to work out how to tell better stories with a beginning middle and end. I still love reading and when I find a good book, it still inspires me to want to write more.
You also work in animation. How does that feed into the Knight Sir Louis books?
When you write for animation you have to think visually. You often need to be able to tell a story without conversation and without hearing the character’s thoughts. You have to rely on the pictures and the action to communicate. That can be useful when I’m writing an action scene in Knight Sir Louis. Greg has actually animated a few bits and bobs of the stories, including a chunk of one of the audiobooks. You can watch it on knightsirlouis.com
What advice would you give to young people wanting to write, illustrate or find jobs in animation?
I think the main thing is to just keep creating. Have fun. Try things out. Every artist I know has moments where they are excited by a new idea. And every artist I know has times when they think everything they have created is a load of rubbish. It’s normal to feel both feelings. Don’t worry about the bad feelings. They will pass.
Remember to write or draw the things you like. Don’t try to be like everyone else. And most importantly, don’t wait for permission. There’s nobody out there who has the authority to tell you – you can be a writer – you can be an illustrator. That person is you. Give yourself permission to make things. Start today!
What are you working on at the moment?
Greg and I are doing school events and festivals to spread the word about Knight Sir Louis. We’re going to Stratford Literary Festival and also Hay Festival Winter Weekend.
Also, I’m working on some new books called Fairytale Fixers with my wife Evgenia Golubeva. They will also be published by Guppy Books.
And Greg’s award-winning short animated film Mee and Burd is heading to film festivals around the world.
What's your favourite funny moment in the Knight Sir Louis books?
Here are my favourite funny moments from each book…
Dreadful Damsel – the battle with a giant potato waffle!
Dragon of Doooooom! – there’s a competition to design the new Hogford library. The losing entries are all very silly!
Sorcerer of Slime – the Top Ten Grown Up Nincompoops!
Sinister Snowball – Splint the snowball takes over for one chapter and tries to persuade us he’s nice and does a very bad job of it.
Cauldron of Chaos – there’s a chapter with some ghosts that don’t quite know how to do a proper haunting – I really like that one.
www.knightsirlouis.com to find out where you can catch The Brothers McLeod in events across the country, plus more about the series.
www.youtube.com/@KnightSirLouis for draw-alongs and animated videos.
Find all the books in the series below, read our expert reviews and download an extract, and purchase your copy with LoveReading4Kids knowing that with every penny you spend a school close to your heart will benefit.
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