Puppy still charms readers 30 years after ‘Where’s Spot?’

Published 7:25 pm Sunday, June 20, 2010

It began as a simple bedtime story, the tale of a lost puppy that Eric Hill spun one night for his toddler son, Christopher.

Hill’s story had an unusual twist, however. As a graphic designer, Hill was working on advertising fliers with a “lift-the-flap” feature and he decided to adapt that feature to his bedtime story. Thus was born the classic toddler tale of “Where’s Spot?” ($12.99).

This year, “Where’s Spot?” celebrates its 30th birthday.

Hill, 82, still marvels at the success of “Where’s Spot?,” which sparked a new craze among little ones for interactive books. By lifting the flaps in the book, readers could help Sally, Spot’s mother, search for the cheerful yellow puppy with a brown spot on each side.

Since it was published in 1980, the book has sold millions of copies and been translated into 60 languages. Hill has continued Spot’s story in numerous other “lift-the-flap” books, including “Who’s There, Spot?” and “Spot Goes to the Farm.”

“Spot was based on a golden-retriever puppy with a mix of hound to provide the characteristic markings on Spot’s body and tail,” Hill said. “Sally, Spot’s mum, clearly shows the hound mix, whilst Sam, the dad, is pure golden.”

Spot’s name, of course, is descriptive. After doing the first drawings of Spot, Hill said, he suddenly realized Spot’s markings mirror the markings on an aircraft.

“I grew up drawing aircraft — that is how I learned to draw,” Hill said.

Hill chose Sally and Sam as the names for Spot’s parents because they are “simple and soft-sounding words. It’s all to do with basic home-comfort feelings that surround Spot’s family life.”

Over the years, Hill has created a sister named Susie for Spot. Hill also gave him a cadre of friends, including Helen the hippo, Tom the crocodile and Steve the monkey.

These days, Hill says he is considering three new possible “lift-the-flap” Spot books.