Better Pets is a wonderful exploration of finding the right animal for you. Bardugo and Climo chatted with Parade about the collaboration, including how it started and why this story was so important.
I started to feel like we were spirit animals for the way of her love for this style of cartoon art came to her, as it turns out that, like me, she had cousins who were either much older than her or much younger than her, and it led to her spending a lot of time on her own at her grandparents’ house.
Photo by Ceren LeeIt turned out that Bardugo loved Climo’s style, and “thought she would be perfect for [Better Pets].” Bardugo quickly went to her agent to see if The Simpsons storyboard revisionist had the time available to collaborate, knowing that she was a busy woman.
The collaboration dream started from there, and it was a dream. Since the two live in the same city, they were able to collaborate in person. They could take photos of the index cards they would lay out on the table, and discuss in real time about what to do and how things would fit together.
As we got chatting about the book, which follows Yvette and Evan finding the perfect pets for them, we got to the heart of the story. There was a lot of discussion about the type of pets that we already have, and how certain trends on social media or certain expectations of a breed or type of pet can lead to people ending up with the wrong one for them.
Courtesy of MacMillan Children's Publishing GroupAs someone with huskies who are somewhat reactive, especially one of them toward smaller dogs, I get it. They can’t be boarded, so they need a dedicated and trusted petsitter when we go away, and that’s what Bardugo has found with her dog, Fred.
For some people, that means a fish, like Trish has in the story, or it could be a snake for some.
It’s something that she hopes other readers will take from this story, focusing on how all animals are “living creatures with their own needs.” By getting animals for the sake of fancy tricks and social media expectations, or just not meeting the animals at the level they’re at, a lot of pets are ending up in shelters and rescues.
“Picture books are a different kind of poetry to me, and I think they’re an extraordinary art form. They take tremendous skill, and my experience as a writer has been that the shorter the form, the more challenging it is. When writing a novel, I’ve got all kinds of room to play.”
“When I read it, I wanted to start working on it right away. I don’t think I’ve ever read anything that has made me so eager to sit down and start drawing. It unlocked a part of my brain from my childhood that I’ve gotten a little bit further away from, like the fantastical way of drawing animals.”
Courtesy of Leigh Bardugo“I’m curious to know what it’s like to read it for the first time as an adult,” the King of Scars author pondered, “I remember holding the paper back in my hand. It was such a profound experience, and what I say in the foreword, is that everybody who reads the book feels like they’re discovering it for the first time. That Anne Rice wrote it just for them.”
Oh, and accepting the chance to write the foreword was a no-brainer for Bardugo, due to the “powerful influence” Rice had on her on her writing and her presence as an author.
Better Pets is available now, and it’s a wonderful tale for families to read. The Interview with the Vampire 50th anniversary edition will be published on October 6, 2026.
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