Adam Rubin has been delighting young readers with books like "Dragons Love Tacos," "Secret Pizza Party," and "High Five" (just to name a few) for years. Rubin along with illustrator and cartoonist Liniers will be in Fairhope April 28, for a special story time with their new book, "The Truth About The Couch."

Yes, you read that right. Rubin wrote a book about the household staple, the couch.

Gulf Coast Media had the opportunity to interview Rubin and Liniers via Zoom this week and beyond being delightful humans, they are both extremely talented and funny.

If you caught yourself asking, "A book about a couch?" you aren't alone. It was the first question we had for Rubin and Liniers was curious to hear the answer as well.

"The truth is that everybody has a couch, but we don't really think about them too deeply after we put them in our house," Rubin said. "We sit on them all the time. They are a constant in our lives, but nobody has really paid them the respect they deserve."

Rubin makes a good point. It isn't often you hear a conversation at the coffee shop about couches unless someone is asking a friend if they should buy a new one. Couches are also not a playground subject overheard by anyone.

"I thought it was high time for someone to write an ode to the couch and all the wonders that get trapped between the cushions, all the lovely times you have with your family on the couch and the mystery that remains unsolved that swirl around this popular piece of furniture," Rubin said.

Liniers is a cartoonist, illustrator, artist and author from Buenos Aires, Argentina. His art has graced the cover of "The New Yorker" more than once. We asked what his first thought was when he received Rubin's book and his answer was quite funny.

"The first thing that went through my mind was, so Adam sold a bunch of books about dragons, 'cause dragons are super cool and kids are really into dragons. And then I felt like he was like OK, let's give this guy a harder sell. You know kids are really into parent furniture," Liniers said with a laugh. "By drawing the book and thinking about it, I came to realize that the thing about Adam, the way his brain works is very interesting, is he found something that is a constant in every kid's life and it is a super important part of their little geography in their tiny world, which is the couch."

Liniers recounted a memory of his childhood couch that he treated as a swimming pool to jump into on sizzling summer days. Couches are a place for children to play, hide, build forts and watch cartoons. It is almost surprising there hasn't been a couch children's book before.

Rubin credits Liniers with bringing his words to life in a way he couldn't have imagined.

"One of the most exciting things about working with a really talented illustrator is that they bring the words to life in a way I never would have expected. I am always surprised when I see the artwork," Rubin said. "I remember laughing out loud looking through the paintings or even the sketches. The first time I saw the thumbnails, like that humor comes through and that is why Macanudo (Liniers' comic strip) and Liniers are so famous around the world."

The book is about the secret life of couches, what they like to eat, how they behave but there is an underlying message.

"The whole book is really centered around this question that is what is all right to share with the curious young mind? What information do we shield from them and is it even possible to prevent them from learning every single thing they could ever want to know about," Rubin said.

The question of what we shield our children from is something parents struggle with every day. Rubin also shines a light on how we know what is true.

"There are a couple of things playing behind the scenes of that red curtain and one of them is the attempt we make to shield our children from the things that feel dangerous to us and feel exhilarating to them," Rubin said. "But the other element or dimension is this question of what is true and who do we ask to be sure that the things we are finding out about the world are real."

The book and illustrations are fantastic and will definitely keep the children as well as the adults engaged.

"Let us put couches in the place where dragons are right now for kids," Liniers said.

Rubin and Liniers will make their first visit to Fairhope April 28 for a ticketed story time and book signing at Page & Palette. The event begins at 2 p.m. The ticket to the event is the purchase of one copy of "The Truth About The Couch" either in-store or online by visiting, www.pageandpalette.com.