Stars, by Mary Lyn Ray and Marla Frazee. What a beautiful, beautiful book. No names are on the front cover. None. Which made me really want to explore this book and look for the answer to ‘why’ that decision was made? The jacket features just the word, “Stars” brighter at the …
It’s the day after Thanksgiving. If you’re a holiday purist like me, that means you can start thinking about what comes next. In my case, the next holiday I celebrate is Christmas. And that means it’s the perfect time to look at STAR BRIGHT, an enchanting picture book written by Alison …
Ever had something slip out of your mouth that you immediately wished you could call back? Join the club. As adults, we know how embarrassing it feels to open mouth, insert foot. We also know it isn’t the end of the world. Well, we eventually know that. But when it happens …
When I was about 17 or 18 a teacher introduced me to a book of short stories called Elephant Bangs Train. It was a collection of some of the most unusually written short stories, similar in vein to what Richard Brautigan was producing at the time. The author was William …
With the recent attacks in Paris—and chronic turmoil and violence elsewhere—I’ve been having bleak thoughts about humanity. How is peace possible when people have such deeply-ingrained beliefs and such intolerance for those who don’t share them? So I wanted to feature a hopeful book. At first glance, One Family (Frances Foster …
‘Wild’ by author/illustrator Emily Hughes (Flying Eye Books), is about a girl raised by animals in the wild. She’s discovered and removed by some hunters, who attempt to tame her into human society. Their attempts fail, and she escapes joyfully back to her native habitat. I’m wild about this book …
Since Election Day was last week, I started thinking about “theme” books geared for certain holidays. So I decided to take a look at several picture books about Election Day and compare how various author handled the topic and what each did to make their book special.
While at the 2015 SCBWI-OK Fall Retreat, I participated on a first page/first fifty panel. The other panelists, Anna Myers and Sonia Gensler, offered feedback on the first pages of novel manuscripts. My job was to offer feedback on the first fifty words of picture book manuscripts. No small task. …
A few weeks ago my family came home to a very grumpy me. Over the next several days my mood worsened. As I explained the magnitude of my situation to my compassionate loved ones, I became aware that most people don’t know the importance of something which is absolutely critical to an illustrator’s vocation— paper. My …
If you’ve read previous posts of mine, you’ll know I’m a fan of picture books that make me say, “Awww.” Somehow, some way, they have to touch my heart and remind me of an emotion I thought I’d forgotten. There are lots of ways picture books can do this. And …