Personification is the commonly used literary device of attaching human traits and characteristics to animals or inanimate objects. I think of personification similar to the way we think about rhyming – tricky to do well, but so wonderful when it works. Since everyday objects are not often seen as sentient or …
JANEE TRASLER is the author and illustrator of many books including the wildly popular Chickies board book series. Each one of these books is fun, adorable, and totally chickified. Evidence: But today I wanted to focus on Janee’s latest picture book, Mimi and Bear in the Snow (FSG, 2014). This is one …
It’s killing me, it’s genius…Patricia MacLachlan wrote a perfect nonfiction picture book using only one sentence. Well, technically there’s two question marks, but still…The Iridescence of Birds is a biography of Henri Matisse that manages to convey most of his childhood environment, his relationship with his mother, his interests, his personality …
We all have favorite picture books. They bring back memories, they remind us a time in our lives, they enchant us. There is one book that has impacted, affected, and influenced me more than any other. And it happens to be a Christmas book. It is The Night Before Christmas,
This new picture book by Katheryn Russell-Brown and Frank Morrison tells the true story of Melba Liston, who started playing her big trombone when she was just a little girl. She went on to become a celebrated jazz musician, playing with Billie Holiday, Dizzy Gillespie, Duke Ellington and Quincy Jones. …
I wanted to start this post with: I fell in love with Henry and Elliebelly the first time… But I feel like I start too many posts that way. Which in no way reflects a sad truth: I rarely fall in love with ANY book. I’m more often disappointed/disenchanted. So when …
A favorite adult book of mine is ABOUT A BOY by Nick Hornby. They also made a pretty good movie based on the book, and currently there is a bearable TV show a little more loosely based on it. There is one premise in the book that has always fascinated …
If you’re familiar with my books, you know I love rhyme. I love writing in rhyme, and I love reading rhyme (good rhyme—no one likes reading the clunky stuff). I love the music, the rhythm, the sound of it. Well-written verse is just plain fun to read aloud. But not …
This past weekend I had a fabulous time presenting at the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators ‘Prairie Writer’s Day’ in Chicago on crafting an inspired picture book. We talked about what makes the picture book a unique art form, which is the interplay between words and pictures. The …
November is PiBoIdMo Month! PiBoIdMo (Picture Book Idea Month) is a come-up-with-30-picture-book-ideas-in-30-days challenge. Tara Lazar is the mastermind behind PiBoIdMo. She invites writers, illustrators, and industry professionals to share inspiring posts on her blog all month long. See? I have been a contributor to PiBoIdMo since the beginning. What an honor! …