Banana Chronicles: Fishing for Bananas

Project Overview

Banana Chronicles: Fishing for Bananas by Timothy Brower is the first book in the six-part Banana Chronicles series, and it does exactly what a series opener should: it builds a world vivid enough to want to return to and plants a mystery compelling enough to demand the next instalment. Set on the island of Mon-Ki-Key, the story introduces young readers to a place defined by fishing, surfing, friendship, and a way of life rooted in the rhythms of the sea — while quietly laying the groundwork for something larger. At the heart of the adventure is a Big Idea and the shadow of a powerful storm whose consequences will shape everything that follows in the series.

The illustration challenge was establishing Mon-Ki-Key as a fully realised visual world from the very first page — its colours, its light, its community, and the particular quality of island life all needed to feel immediately immersive, giving readers a place they could return to across six books and always feel at home.

Role

Full book illustration covered tropical island world-building for a series-establishing narrative, visual groundwork for multi-book continuity across the whole Banana Chronicles series, and print-ready file preparation.

The core challenge was establishing Mon-Ki-Key as a fully realised visual world from the very first page: its colours, its light, its community, and the particular quality of island life all needed to feel immediately immersive, giving readers a place they could return to across six books and always feel at home.

Process

Every project follows this same structured path, so you always know where we are and what comes next. You review and approve at the sketch stage and the line art stage — nothing moves to color until you’re happy. By the time the final spread is rendered, there are no surprises.