2020 has — unarguably — been a difficult year. We’ve been tossed and turned by a pandemic, a contentious presidential election, racial injustices and a variety of natural disasters. That makes I AM THE STORM, a picture book written by Jane Yolen and Heidi E.Y. Stemple and illustrated by Kristen …
I’d like to introduce you to my dear friend, Alfred. Today is his birthday! He and I have gotten very close over the past four years. It all began a long time ago when I saw a cousin of his in our trashcan. This is how Cousin first looked, and …
If you’re a writer or a reader, you may have heard someone say: “There’s no such thing as a new story — there are just different ways of telling the same ones.” That might be true from a thematic or structural standpoint, but I recently read a picture book — …
One of my favorite parts of the picture book process is seeing the final artwork for each of my books. It’s great seeing how a talented artist interpreted my story. And, I was especially excited to see Daniel Wiseman’s art for MY BROTHER THE DUCK, which releases April 21 from …
Have any of you had the pleasure of reading Deborah Marcero’s stunning new picture book, IN A JAR? I bought one for myself. I bought one for a friend. It is that pretty. That precious. That special. Llewellyn, aside from being a darling little white bunny in a hooded sweatshirt, …
It’s time for another periodic installment of “Picture Books I Want to Hug.”™ These are books I love so much that I simply want to read them. And hug them. And re-read them. And re-hug them. Re-lentlessly. Re-peatedly. Re-ally. The last book that inspired this feeling in me — and …
“Sometimes it’s hard being a goldfish. You dream of growing fat and exploring coral reefs. But instead here you are in a bowl. Going round and round in circles. And sometimes it’s hard being a child in the summer in the city. All your friends leave and there’s no one …
I write picture books. And I love doing so. But many of you probably know my day job is being a corporate editor. I turn jargon into conversational language and try to make complicated topics simple. While the two roles may not seem similar, there’s actually a lot of overlap. …
I’ve known Laura McGee Kvasnosky for over 25 years. I met her in an evening class at an art school on how to make picture books. It was taught by Keith Baker and was inspiring and bursting with the kind of info every newbie was looking for. There were several …
Professional Crocodile is a wonderfully wordless picture book that was first published in Italy. I decided to write about it today because it feels so full to me of character and story that I don’t notice that there are no words. Mr. Crocodile wakes up and begins his day. He …