Tomorrow is Halloween. So, of course my post topic pondering drew me to the obvious, “Favorite Halloween Picture Books of Yore.” Which then led me to skip down memory lane and remember my favorites. But that all seemed lovely, predictable, and over-done. So, then I began to wonder about what …
What makes you special? If you can answer that question easily, great! But if you’re like many people, you may have to ponder a moment. You may ask yourself questions like: Am I really special? Are the things I like about myself all that noteworthy? Would anyone else think I’m …
I’m excited today to talk about Beth Anderson’s debut picture book, AN INCONVENIENT ALPHABET. This one had me at the cover. But when I got a look inside, word nerd me was absolutely bowled over. What struck me about this book—other than the delightful story itself and the lively, detail-packed …
I had different favorite animals at different points my life. I remember being smitten with monkeys when I was quite young, pining for a raccoon (after reading Rascal by Sterling North) when I was little older, and in high school I studied crows and ravens for a couple of years …
Hey, it’s almost Halloween! That calls for a scary story. But not TOO scary. Luckily, I’ve got the perfect book: I Want to be in a Scary Story by Sean Taylor, illustrated by Jean Jullien (Candlewick, 2017). Why is it so perfect? Because Little Monster wants to be in exactly that …
Hello everyone. Today happens to be another sorta self-plugging post with the release of the 4th (FOURTH!) FROG book, I DON’T WANT TO GO TO SLEEP by the wonderful Dev Petty. It’s another very funny book that I’ve had the privilege to illustrate. This FROG character is one of …
Earlier this month I flew to Atlanta for a book event and had the opportunity to stop by Peachtree Publishers. A visit to a publishing house is a rare treat for me, so I thought PBB readers might enjoy a quick behind-the-scenes tour. As I approached the front door, …
Oh, how I love finding a wonderful, terrific, amazing use of the rule of threes in a picture book, and Stegothesaurus, written by Bridget Heos and illustrated by T. L McBeth, is FULL of solid gold examples. I’d like to point out THREE different ways that Heos uses the rule …
Do you have that thing, where, if you see something so cute, you want to start smashing and bashing said cute thing, and all things surrounding it? Or maybe you have the urge to hug and squeeze it tightly, risking an ‘Of Mice And Men’ situation. If you don’t have …
When I read RICE FROM HEAVEN — a new picture book written by Tina Cho, illustrated by Keum Jin Song and published by little bee books — I was enthralled by the story behind the story. The book is a fictional take on a real-life event. In 2016, North Korean …