Joe Jacobs is the author and illustrator of the Terry the Monkey sign language series for children.
Joe's books are reviewed in Families, the magazine of the National Deaf Children’s Society, where they are tested by parents and children with deafness and hearing loss. Joe is also a regular contributor to limpingchicken.com, the world’s most popular deaf blog with nearly 6 million visitors. His writing has featured in The Guardian, Little London, and The Mummy Toolbox.
Joe is hearing and says: 'I became interested in sign language when my wife taught our children to sign as babies. Our children's first words were signed, not spoken: 'milk' and 'hot'. Babies can sign months before they can speak. I began drawing signing monkeys because I wanted them to keep signing once they were talking. Signing helped their language development and they enjoyed it.'
Joe studied English Literature at UCL where he was awarded the Campbell Clarke scholarship. Joe lives with his wife and children in Hampshire, England. When not writing and drawing, Joe is an English teacher in a comprehensive school and sixth form. Joe is developing further titles in the Terry the Monkey series, including a sign language dictionary.
Praise for the Terry the Monkey series:
‘This is terrific work…inspiring!’
Steve Backshall, BBC’s Deadly 60
‘Very nicely produced and interesting to me.’
Julia Donaldson CBE, former children’s laureate and author of The Gruffalo
‘I love this! I have recommended them to many friends.’
Rachel Shenton, Oscar winning writer of The Silent Child and patron of the National Deaf Children’s Society
‘I very much enjoyed learning how to sign foods, my parents have a deaf friend who was very pleased to see what I had learnt!’
Tilly Ramsay, BBC’s Matilda and The Ramsay Bunch
'Your illustrations are joyful and we love them!'
Angel Strawbridge, Escape to the Chateau
'‘A gentle and witty introduction for children to this vital skill.’
Joseph Kloska, Netflix The Crown, Disney’s Cinderella
‘The illustrations are beautiful and it’s a lovely book to read and look at…Terry the Monkey is a very likeable character and I hope we see more of him!' Alison, reviewing How to Sign Halloween in Families, the National Deaf Children's Society magazine
'How to Sign Animals with Terry the Monkey is an enjoyable and friendly introduction to British Sign Language (BSL), complete with colourful illustrations and easy-to-follow instructions. The book is a great resource for any family who would like to introduce their family to BSL...Amelie and I have explored the book together and she took it into school to share with her class friends too. It’s an ideal tool to help educate her peers about using sign language. It's beautifully illustrated and the instructions are very clear.' Sarah, reviewing How to Sign Animals in Families
Click here to read an in-depth interview with Joe Jacobs at rosemaryeatherden.com
Click here to read Joe's blog on the world's most popular deaf website, limpingchicken.com