Author Spotlight: Dan Yaccarino

 

I've enjoyed the work of prolific author/illustrator Dan Yaccarino for many years now.  His colorful, painted art often captures the look of mid-20th-century advertising art, and is always fun & eye-catching.  The art is enough to draw me into not only his own books, but those he has illustrated for other authors (all of whom owe him a debt of gratitude).  From the simplest of picture books for the youngest children, to beginner chapter books for independent readers, Yaccarino has a lot of creativity to share.  Here are just a handful of my favorites to get you started:


 

An Octopus Followed Me Home
When a little girl comes home with a new eight-legged friend, her father has to remind her of the troubles visited upon him by the rest of her menagerie. The rhyming couplets & big paintings of a funny range of beasts make this a very fun read.





 
The Birthday Fish
Another book about a little girl & her potential new pet.  Cynthia really, really, really wants a pony. "Every year she put a pony on her Christmas list.  But no matter how good she was, she never got a pony."  When her birthday comes, Cynthia thinks surely the box from her parents must contain "a very small pony!"  Can she learn to accept her birthday fish?



Deep in the Jungle
"The lion was the king of this jungle and he made sure everyone knew it... The animals couldn't stand him one bit."  When a man found wandering through the jungle offers the lion a job in show business, the offer is snapped right up.  Unfortunately, the lion finds itself, caged, whipped & humiliated in a circus--and worse yet, the other jungle animals are being rounded up, as well!  Will the lion be able to win the animals their freedom--and itself their friendship?  Comeuppance can be hard to swallow--or not!

 

Boy + Bot
Written by Ame Dyckman, & illustrated by Yaccarino, this simple, fun story of a new friendship always has children & adults in storytime groups smiling.  Did you know that robots read to each other, too?  Of course, they read instruction manuals...






Doug Unplugged
Freshly-published (February 2013), this book shows a happy little robot boy who is plugged in for downloading each day so his parents can go about their business.  When something outside the window catches his eye, Doug unplugs and ends up discovering an amazing world!  I've enjoyed reading this to storytime audiences in which the adults are too plugged in to enjoy the events along with their children.  For a few moments, at least, this grabs the attention of some of them.



If you'd like to get a look at more of Dan Yaccarino's books, visit his website.  There are even movie-trailer style book preview films! Do YOU have any favorite books by Dan Yaccarino--or anyone else, for that matter?  Please tell me about them!  Also, please spread the word about these great books, check them out, and read up!

Click on this link & READ UP!  I have many more great books to share with you!

Storyteller John Weaver

 

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Check out the new book: How to be a Storyteller: Essays and Advice on the Art of Storytelling (link HERE)!

Read Up: Author! Author!

Did you love elementary school "book club" sales flyers as much as I did?  I'd always bring those catalog circulars home, full of checkmarks of the books I wanted.  The books were cheap, the choices were abundant, and the calls to action were frequent!  The joy came back anew when I had a child of my own in elementary school--a child who also, of course, was the beneficiary of waves of those books.

But do you know what I never appreciated about those book club editions?  I mean, BESIDE the low-quality binding.  Those versions of the popular books almost never, ever had any author biographies at the end!

Shown here, are the author bios from (clockwise from the top) Soup Day, by
Melissa Iwai; Thank You Bear, by Greg Foley; and Truck, by Donald Crews.

Anyone who's been to many of the storytimes I host knows that I talk about the creators of the books I am sharing.  I will pick up a book, show the cover and read the title, followed by the name of the person or people who wrote & illustrated the work.  

For instance, using a book from my previous blog entry here, I might say:

"This book is called 'Thank You Bear,' and it was written and illustrated by Greg Foley.  He wrote the words AND drew the pictures!  Shall we open up the back & see if he's there?"


Flipping back, we find that Greg IS back there (shown in the collage at the top of this post)!  When we are lucky enough to find the author back there (doesn't happen nearly often enough, in my opinion), I'll enthusiastically say, "he IS back here!"  Then I'll share some details from the bio.  Sitting at home with one or two children, or in some classroom or library settings, reading the whole bio is good, but at other times just sharing a couple of pertinent details will be enough.  Being the silly person I am, I read Greg Foley's bio & say to the group, "he grew up in Austin, Texas--JUST LIKE US!"  This gives the children the opportunity to very forcefully tell me where they actually are from.  The detail that Thank You Bear is his first book gives us all the chance to appreciate together what a wonderful first book it really is.  

So, why do I bring so much attention to the people who make the books I share?  It is for the same reason that, when I am making storytelling appearances, I emphasize to my audiences that "we are ALL storytellers."  We all potentially have stories to tell, including our own unique takes on common cultural material.  Anyone who's visited a good preschool has seen the stories that come from children's minds, when enabled by an adult's secretarial skills in getting the words down on paper!  Discussing the author & illustrator makes the book more tangible, something with which the reader & listener can make a stronger connection.  The bios that connect the writer with her story (as in the piece for Melissa Iwai's "Soup Day," pictured above, which shows the author & her child in the kitchen making soup together) also help us connect ourselves better with the story, as well as connect ourselves with the author.  This empathy teaches us about different people, and how we can always find similarities despite our differences.  

Whether or not there is any creator information to be found, we often talk about the the illustrations--not what they portray, but the illustrations themselves. "Do you think you could draw this," I might ask.  To the children who say "no," I'll say, "you can if you practice enough!"  Remember, there are lessons to be found in any book, whether the authors put them in there intentionally or not!  

So talk about the authors of the books you read.  Celebrate them, emulate their work.  Have an "author's day" occasionally for your favorites, where you check out every book you can by that person & talk about the ones you like best--and why.  Help your child right a "new" book based on a favorite character--and send a copy to the author, if that's (you know) a possibility!  Take your child to author events when they happen at libraries & bookstores in your area.  

The more you interact with the book, the more you get out of it on multiple levels, so have fun!



Click here & READ UP!  I have many more great books to share with you!

Storyteller John Weaver

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Author Spotlight: Ezra Jack Keats

Here's what I want you to do: go to your local library, make your way to the picture book area (the "K" row, to be exact), and check out a copy of every single Ezra Jack Keats title they have in stock.  Take those books home, sit down, and read up!  
  

 I'm sure you know Keats for his much-loved book "The Snowy Day," which I've gone back to continually since I was a small child myself--but there's so much more where that came from!  I recently picked up a huge stack of picture books Ezra Jack Keats both wrote & illustrated; the size of my haul was so large, one of my storytime dads did a double-take when he saw me checking out so many books at once!  I've just picked a few to share here, but please do go beyond what I talk about below.  I find Keats's work to be both simple and complex, perfectly real & higly-imaginative, touching and inspiring.  To read several of his books purposefully is to undergo an art lesson.

Enough of my fawning--let's talk about some BOOKS!

The Snowy Day
The most famous one of all!  Such a simple tale: a boy gets up, goes out to play in the snow, and comes back home to bed--that's about it!  The simplicity of the words & shapes, though, allow the reader to insert themselves into the action.  I remember my favorite part has always been when Peter sticks a snowball into his pocket for later!  
Look at the art: Peter's bedding (is that actual fabric attached to the image?); the cut-out shapes of the tree, the snow drifts, the buildings & the big boys; and the stamped snow flurry that ends the story.

Whistle for Willie
Peter's back--and he's got a dog!  Peter wants to whistle to call Willie, but it's not easy.  He keeps at it though!  Like "The Snowy Day," this features Peter engaging in simple play outside: this time, he's spinning in circles, playing with his shadow, jumping, and drawing with chalk.  Also like that book, the text here is brief, and the art simultaneously simple & very, very complex.  I see line drawings, painting, collage, and stamping.  I love how when Peter gets dizzy, the red-yellow-green of the traffic signals bounce like balls in the air.

Peter's Chair
Peter's bigger than he used to be; in fact, he's got a new baby sister!  The bad news is, he's having a hard time giving up the things that are being taken away to give to the new baby.  Read this one to your big kids when they have a new baby brother or sister in the house.  Things to look out for here: the wallpaper!  Did Keats take some wallpaper samples from your parents' or grandparents' house?  Also, look under Dad's feet as he paints sister's high chair--he is actually standing on newspaper!

Hi, Cat!
What I love about this book is the imagination displayed by its protagonist, Archie, and the way the other children in the neighborhood (Peter included) enjoy and support the play.  The only thing getting in Archie's way is that cat he meets, but that'll turn out alright, too.  You may find yourself wanting to touch the walls & curtains in this book--they've got that much texture.

Louie
What an amazing book this is: the title character is not known by any of the other children to speak, but when they put on a puppet show, something vibrant is awakened within him.  I love the dream sequence in this book, as well as the creativity & kindness it portrays.

The Trip
Louie is back, just as imaginative and introspective (but yet tentatively outgoing) as before.  The art is colorful & stunning, a mix of drawing, painting, and paper & photo collage: look for Keats himself smiling from an open window!  An added bonus: Louie shows us how to create a city inside a shoebox.

Kitten for a Day
This one is more simple than the rest of Keats's work I am sharing with you here: there are very few words, and the images are a much more basic, painted illustration style.  When a puppy encounters a group of kittens, they welcome him, and they all do "kitten" things together.  Any child who has ever pretended to be a cat or a dog will love this story of friendship.

This list of books, as I've said, is just a start into exploring the works of Ezra Jack Keats.  Take your time sharing these with your child (or reading them to yourself).  Explore the images, talk about the action.  I think it's great the way most of these books don't take a lot of time ramping up, starting a story: we just join the action, already in progress!  Furthermore, the endings often give us a chance to think about--and talk about--what might be happening next.  There's a lot going on here!

For more on Ezra Jack Keats and his books, including curriculum guides, projects & online games, check out the website of the Ezra Jack Keats Foundation. 

Do YOU have any favorite books by Ezra Jack Keats--or anyone else, for that matter?  Please tell me about them!  Also, please spread the word about these great books, check them out, and read up!

Click on this link & READ UP!  I have many more great books to share with you!

Storyteller John Weaver

The Ten Commandments -- of Reading Aloud

If you've spent much time in your library's picture book section, you've probably spent some time with the work of Mem Fox.  She has created a huge (and growing), well-varied body of work adults & kids love, including The Magic Hat (a favorite of mine), Koala Lou, Whoever You Are, Where is the Green Sheep, Ten Little Fingers & Ten Little Toes, and Tough Boris. 

"Updated and Revised?"  Looks like I may have
 to replace my 10-year-old copy of the book! ;)

In addition to being a prolific author of children's books, Fox is also a well-known literacy expert & advocate.  If you've not seen her book, Reading Magic: Why Reading Aloud to Our Children Will Change Their Lives Forever, check it out!  The subtitle may sound challenging to you, but Reading Magic is so clear & concise, it's actually a fun breeze to read!  If you consider yourself the "multitasking" type, you could probably digest the book while simultaneously sitting through a TV show, updating your Facebook status--and maybe even ironing (who knows)!  See if your library has a copy, & let me know what you think.  

In the meantime, have a look at Fox's "Ten Read-Aloud Commandments."  There are some quick tips in here that can get you & your family on the road to reading magic right away!

MemFox’s Ten Read-Aloud Commandments

1. Spend at least ten wildly happy minutes every single day 

    reading aloud.

2. Read at least three stories a day: it may be the same story

    three times. Children need to hear a thousand stories 

    before they can begin to learn to read.

3. Read aloud with animation. Listen to your own voice and

    don’t be dull, or flat, or boring. 

    Hang loose and be loud, have fun and laugh a lot.

4. Read with joy and enjoyment: real enjoyment for yourself

    and great joy for the listeners.

5. Read the stories that the kids love, over and over and over

    again, and always read in the same ‘tune’ for each book:

    i.e. with the same intonations on each page, each time.

6. Let children hear lots of language by talking to them

    constantly about the pictures, or anything  else connected

    to the book; or sing any old song that you can remember;

    or say nursery rhymes in a bouncy way; or be noisy 

    together doing clapping games.

7. Look for rhyme, rhythm or repetition in books for young

    children, and make sure the books are really short.

8. Play games with the things that you and the child can see

    on the page, such as letting kids finish rhymes, and 

    finding the letters that start the child’s name and yours,

    remembering that it’s never work, it’s always a fabulous

    game.

9. Never ever teach reading, or get tense around books.

10. Please read aloud every day, mums and dads, because

      you just love being with your child, not because it’s the

      right thing to do.

READ UP!  I have many more great books to share with you!

Author Spotlight: Leslie Patricelli

Leslie Patricelli’s books are simple in style & concept, but huge on fun.  The art & action are bright & sassy; the simplicity and the brevity of text keep things moving along quickly, but I always slow down to appreciate the artistry on each page:  look at the texture of the acrylic on canvas—you can almost feel it!  The Patricelli books I’ve read seem to be about different members of the same family; another thing they have in common is a celebration of imagination.  Here are just a few titles to get you started:

The Birthday Box

The baby got a birthday present—what is it?  It’s a BOX! There’s something IN the box, but the baby loves the container so much, he may well be part cat.  It’s a tribute to the joy of imagination that goes will with Antoinette Portis’s Not a Box.

 

Higher!  Higher! 

(previously mentioned here)

How high can you go?  Most children don’t seem to want to be pushed TOO high in a swing—I remember it getting kind of scary once I was above the bar—but for the little girl in this book, the moon is not enough!  As you read this with your child, it’s fun to ask what the girl sees now, what you think she may see next, and whether or not it’s all real.

No No Yes Yes

The baby is back, demonstrating good & not-so-good behaviors: drawing on the walls is a no-no; drawing on paper is a yes-yes.  The behavior gets increasingly outrageous—I express extreme outrage during storytime when the baby tears pages out of a book—and with any luck, way outside the range of what any child of yours would ever do!  The book offers a great opportunity for you & your little one to discuss what is a “no-no” and what is a “yes-yes” in your own home, & perhaps collaborate on a book of your own.

 

Faster!  Faster!

The girl who wanted to go higher now wants to go faster!  She rides her daddy’s back, urging him to go faster than a bunny, faster than a horse, faster than a cheetah!  How fast can Daddy go, and for how long?

 After you’ve checked these out, let me know what you think!  And if there are any books you’re really excited about—by Leslie Patricelli, or not—please tell me all about them!

Storyteller John Weaver

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Author Spotlight: Janet Stevens

Janet Stevens made me bark like a dog in front of hundreds of teachers at the 2011 SCCRC Asilomar Reading Conference!

Stevens was giving a presentation to the group, and got around to a book of hers called "Help Me, Mr. Mutt: Expert Answers for Dogs with People Problems." Lots of confused, barking dogs in this one. Stevens suddenly pointed to the person seated directly before her to get up & do the "heavy barking." That was me. She had no idea she was calling up a professional--and I never told her!

Curl up in a comfy place when you open a book by Janet Stevens, because you (and your child, if you're sharing) will both want to take your time to explore the intricate, witty illustrations on each page. Hidden surprises abound. Janet's artwork has enhanced works by authors including Eric Kimmel and Coleen Salley, and Stevens herself has penned many books, both alone & with her sister, Susan Stevens Crummel. Here are just a small handful:

Tops & Bottoms
The star of this book is a hare who once “lost a risky bet with a tortoise.” Now he has to get his food by tricking a lazy bear. Kids can laugh along with this trickster tale, and learn a little bit about their veggies at the same time.

My Big Dog
Merl the cat seemed very happy to have his home & his family all to himself—so obviously a dog had to come into the picture. Colorful illustrations are integrated with real photographs, and a very cute puppy.

Cook-a-Doodle-Doo!
Fans of the Little Red Hen will be interested to learn that great-grandson is a baker, as well. Rooster has a lot of help—but it is not necessarily helpful help. The story is funny, there are a lot of lessons about kitchens & cooking along the way, and there’s a tasty recipe at the end.

The Great Fuzz Frenzy
This book is the true story of how Janet's dog, Violet the Golden Retriever, dropped her ball down a prairie dog hole—and the fantastical imagining about what may have happened next. You’ll turn the book, fold out pages—and maybe even want to set about puzzling some prairie dogs, yourself!

Plaidypus Lost
A little girl gets a very special homemade plaid friend from her grandmother, and what’s the first thing she does? She loses it! And she gets it back. And she loses it again. Everybody should recognize the pattern, even if they have no idea what a platypus (or plaidypus) is!

The Dish Ran Away with the Spoon
Where did dish & spoon go? Little Dog isn’t laughing—it’s time to round up a search party! Everyone gets involved: Little Boy Blue, Little Miss Muffet’s Spider—even the Big Bad Wolf!

That should be enough to get you started.  You can also visit the author's web page to view a larger list of titles, download coloring sheets, learn about her art process, and more.

Check out Janet Stevens, and let me know what you think!

Author Spotlight: MO WILLEMS

I’ve been a big Mo Willems fan since well before I ever heard his name.

Watching “Sesame Street” in the late 90s with my son, we’d laugh at the “Suzy Kabloozy” cartoons, so hilariously voiced by Ruth Buzzi. Willems (Suzy’s creator) was a writer on the program at the time—an Emmy-award-winning writer. He went on to create still more TV cartoons before leaving the field to pursue his career as an author.

This year, Mo Willems won another honor: the American Library Association’s Theodor Seuss Geisel Award for “most distinguished American book for beginning readers.” The medal honors “There is a Bird on Your Head,” a new entry in Willems’ “Elephant and Piggie” series, a hilarious line about two very good friends.

The Elephant & Piggie stories are indeed great beginning reader books, as they contain simple, large text, repeated ideas, and very appealing cartoony illustrations. The books are also fun read-alouds, giving parents and teachers the opportunity have a great time giving voice to these two silly characters! What’s more, free teachers’ guides are available online, with discussion questions, extension ideas & activity sheets, at http://www.pigeonpresents.com.

I hope you already know that pigeon from that URL—he’s the star of the Caldecott Honor-winning book “Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus,” the first of a growing number of comic Pigeon adventures, and certainly another home & classroom must-read! Read the books together, create voices, and let the children talk back to the books—they’ll love it.

While you’re looking up Mo Willems’ books at your library, don’t forget to pick up the “Knuffle Bunny” books, “Leonardo the Terrible Monster,” “Time to Say ‘Please,’” and whatever else you can find. You’ll have as much fun reading them as the kids will have listening—and that’s why I present them here. Happy Reading!

Author Spotlight: Margie Palatini

Here’s an author for you to look up on your next library visit—in fact, click on the library website right now & have them put a few of her books aside for you!

Margie Palatini has been making readers laugh for years now, with picture books loaded cover-to-cover with humor designed to appeal to adults as much as their kids—just like I like it! Zoom Broom, for instance, has a long riff on the classic Abbot & Costello “Who’s on First” routine (parents, if you don’t get the reference, hand the book to Grandma & head immediately to YouTube). The Web Files deserves a deadpan, “Dragnet”-style delivery. Classic characters get new twists, everyday situations spin out of control, and silly wordplay is the norm!

By the time you’ve taken home several library copies of Palatini’s books, I’m sure your family will have found some real keepers. To add something extra to your experience of the stories, download the activities and study guides at www.margiepalatini.com.