A few months ago, Henkes joined School Library Journal as opening keynote speaker at our annual Day of Dialog (DoD), in which he told the children’s librarians, publishers, and children’s book authors and illustrators in attendance that he was a lifelong book lover and, in fact, “built by books.”

SLJ is happy to be sponsoring another event featuring the author, an exclusive webcast live from Bank Street College of Education in New York City next week, on September 17, 2013. As we look forward to hearing him speak and answer questions from kids, parents, and teachers, SLJ sat down with Henkes for an in-depth chat about his career so far, his creative process, and his next projects.

Can you tell us more about your lifelong relationship with books?
From the very beginning, I grew up in a house that didn’t have very many children’s books, but going to the library was very important to my mother, and we went to the library the same way you’d go to the grocery store or to school. So it was part of life. And I grew up loving books.

You’ve spoken before about the importance of sharing books with children. Can you tell us more about your experiences reading aloud to your kids?
I had a large collection of children’s books, and when I became a parent I was, I think, at the very beginning very stingy with my books because they were in perfect condition, and I knew what happened to the books my kids “read.” But the same person inside me knew that that’s what books are for. And I think it has been wonderful to watch my kids grow up with books. I’m sure I’ve made many mistakes as a parent but every day, [reading aloud to them] was one thing that I think was so right, and it exposed them to a lot. I think it broadened their horizons. I think it made them more empathetic.

How did you choose which books to read aloud to your kids?
Some were things that I wanted to read, that I remembered loving and I wanted to share it with them. They also read independently, but sometimes they would have something that they would want me to read aloud as well, and they would decide what they wanted. We chose them in different ways.

What were your favorite books growing up?
I loved Call it Courage by Armstrong Sperry. I loved Beverly Cleary’s books. I went through a phrase where I really loved Garth Williams illustrations, so the head children’s librarian at the Racine [WI] public library would show me books that he had illustrated. Those books were favorites. What else did I love? I went through different phases as I suppose all kids do, but I loved Charlotte’s Web—how could one not? And I remember the Henry Reed books—they aren’t very much around now, but I remember loving those. I read them to my kids! They’re still loved.

What about books of your colleagues that you newly discovered as a parent?
You know I read Harry Potter aloud. It was fun! It was! My son was also a huge Redwall fan. One book that they both really loved was James Marshall’s Rats on the Roof. It was a huge, huge favorite. I read aloud Kate DiCamillio’s The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane, that was fun. And I read Vera Williams’s Scooter aloud when they were a big younger, and that was a big hit.

How do you create your characters’ unique voices and personalities?
I think about my characters long before I begin writing, and I really try to get a very clear picture in my mind who they are—how old they are, what they like. I try to create that whole family. And then when I feel pretty confident about them, I will jot things down, not writing the story yet but really just writing down facts about the character so by the time that I do begin writing, I’m pretty certain who they are. And if I begin too soon for me, I’ll quickly find it out.

Do you make scrapbooks or storyboards?
I have notebooks and folders. I often will have a notebook and I’ll make little tabs for the characters and write down my facts about the different characters in their section, and add to it and refer to it. And sometimes I don’t use a  lot of it. It’s not in the book per se, but it’s still helps me know who they are. Sometimes I will write down what a character’s favorite color is or favorite food, and it won’t end up being in the book, but it helped me create him or her.

So, in a way, you are conducting research for your characters?
Someone once asked me about the way kids were taught to write in schools—prewriting, etc.—and at first I thought I don’t do any of that, but then I realized that I do all of it. I just do it differently. I don’t think of it as prewriting, my notebooks about characters.

[But ] with Billy Miller, in the third section, it was based on a restaurant my kids loved when they were little that I hadn’t been to in years, so I went one day by myself for lunch, with my notebook. So that was research! But when I hear the word research, I think of it differently.

Your notebooks sound like they would make a great kit lit exhibit!
I did an exhibit at the CCBC with my novel Protecting Marie, and I had the notebooks, and I even had a few handwritten paragraphs and how they morphed into the finished book. It was nice for me to go back and organize it. And again the thing that was most surprising to me was that there was so much of it. It was the first time I looked at it, I suppose, in a more academic way.

What inspired you to write The Year of Billy Miller?
 The last novel I had written was Junonia, and it was about a 10-year-old girl, and I really had spent a lot of time with her, and so I thought I wanted to spend time with a boy. I had just finished doing the three “Penny” books, beginning readers, and even though they were longer than picture books, there was a lot of art, [so]  I really wanted to do a novel or a chapter book. And because Junonia was set on an island and she was an only child, I wanted something different. I knew from the start there would be at least a sibling. That book was a away from home, so I wanted it to be a book at home—wherever, whatever home was—and so that’s sort of the way I began this book.

 So you wanted a more domestic, familiar book?
Yeah! And those are the kinds of books I’m drawn to anyway. All of my books—even one that took place on an island—I still think of them as pretty small, domestic stories. The one thing that is sort of funny to look at is the list, when I’m trying to come up with names. I had pages of names! I wanted him to have sort of a common name. I loved the internal rhyme. It just sounded right.

Is there a lot of you in the character?
I volunteered in my kids’ first- and second-grade classrooms once a week. I think all of the characters have a piece of me in them, but I was really trying to remember that and channel that experience, when my son was 7 and my daughter was 3. I really made an effort to stay in Billy’s head. It’s in the third person, limited, but I wanted to remember he’s a 7-year-old boy. I wanted the prose to reflect that.

He does have a great vocabulary.
Yeah! But I think reading to one’s kids allows him to have that. One thing I would love when I read aloud [was] when my kids would ask, ‘What does that mean?’ It would open the door to not only what a dictionary is, but [for them] to try to guess what it means. And that was wonderful.

But for Billy Miller, I tried really hard to not dwell on descriptions that Billy wouldn’t, and I love describing things, and I really had to hold back. I think I’m an artist first, and I love describing things, but I really had to watch myself. I had to cut as I went.

Do you think you will write a Billy  sequel?
I’m thinking about it…he’s still in my head. But I don’t know yet! I have a couple thoughts, but for me, one of the greatest joys about working on a novel is creating the characters, the family, the setting. And to have it already be done sort of takes away one of my greatest pleasures. There is something so satisfying about creating that whole new world.

Which is easier to do, a picture book or a novel? What’s your process like?
If I’m working on a novel and I’m getting towards the end, I sometimes think, ‘Oh I wish I was working on a picture book. They’re so much more fun and they’re easier!’ And then, if I’m working on a picture book and I have to redo a picture four times and I’m not loving it, I’ll think ‘Oh a novel is so much easier. It’s just words, and I can write in a coffee shop and I can go anywhere.’ [laughs]

I do like them both, but there are days when I think the other is easier or more fun. With a picture book, I always get to the point where I think the words are perfect before I do any kind of drawing. I don’t even let myself sketch anything until I have the words.

Do you have a favorite character or characters from your books?
I have to say that I do. I love Lilly, and I think she lends herself to story quite well. I’ve gone back to her a couple of times, and that’s been nice. Right now, [maybe] because it’s still really fresh, I do have a soft spot in my heart for Billy Miller. I do like him.

The book has been getting nice reviews so far.
Yeah, it’s been really nice! And I think it’s interesting because one never knows. I think some of the books of my own that I love most sell the least. It’s funny how that works. I don’t understand it.

I have a fondness for Junonia, I think in part it’s because it’s set on Sanibel Island, and we’ve gone there every year since my son was 6 months old, so it’s really become a part of what my family does. I wrote a lot of it during the winter, and it was really wonderful. Every day I could escape to this sunny blue warm world; I really remember that very vividly. I’d have to go out and shovel, but I could come back in and be on the beach. It was nice.

What can you tell us about your next project?
I have a picture book written called Waiting for Spring that my wife, Laura Dronzek, is going to illustrate. We’ve collaborated twice before, on my books Birds and Oh!
And I’ve just written the words for a picture book that I am illustrating myself.

How intense is the collaboration with Laura? Do you brainstorm together?
No! I try not to really say much of anything, to let it go. Laura can do with it what she wants. I really want it to be hers as much as its mine. It is [hard] at the very beginning, but once it’s gone—as long as I have something else to work on—then it’s great! I do like to just focus on one thing. And now that I have my thing to work on, it’s time.

You are known for your many animal characters, especially mice, but each one is its own unique person, its own mouse.
[laughs] Yes! I hope.

Can you tell us more about how those came about?
The first four books that I did had humans as the characters fairly realistically rendered, and the fifth was Bailey Goes Camping. My texts were starting to become more humorous, and I thought I could better tap the humor in the words by drawing more loosely and using animal characters. I tried rabbits for Bailey Goes Camping, and I liked it.

The next book I wrote was A Weekend with Wendell, and I wanted to try something else. And I sketched several different animals and I thought, ‘Oh! Mice would be fun!’ And I had such a good time with Wendell that the next book I wrote was Sheila Rae the Brave, and I wrote Wendell into the story. And Sheila Rae the Brave was really the first book of mine that had a bigger sales bump than the other ones, and I really had a good time doing it, so I kept doing it. But it wasn’t anything that I planned.

If someone would have told me some 30 years ago, ‘When you’re 52, that you’re going to have 13 books with mice,’ I would have [denied it]. It just happened, it did! [laughs]

My career just happened very slowly and steadily. I was young when I began, too, so I’ve had a lot of time to grow. But I think it would be really difficult to have the first book be a smashing success. I’m really grateful for the slow steady way things progressed.

Attend the Kevin Henkes LIVE webcast event on September 17 for a chance to win one of 25 signed copies of his new book The Year of Billy Miller, courtesy of HarperCollins.
It’s not too late to register! Click the link below to sign up:

Stripes, Dots, and Swirls
From a Madagascan ring-tailed lemur, to a North American zebra swallowtail butterfly, to a sixline wrasse swimming through an Indo-Pacific Ocean coral reef, Susan Stockdale shows readers that animals with Stripes of All Types (Peachtree, 2013; PreS-Gr 2) populate the globe. Simple, lilting rhymes and enticing action verbs spotlight critters in their natural habitats: “Prowling the prairie,/perched on a peak./Crawling on cactus,/and camped by a creek” (handsome acrylic illustrations depict an American badger bounding through tall grass, a bongo profiled against a moonlit African sky, black-and-yellow cactus bees sipping nectar from a flower, and a Malayan tapir nestled by a stream). The final double-page image brings the action close to home as two children cuddle a pair of black-and-gray tabbies.

An afterword identifies each species and provides insight about the significance of its stripes, which are used for camouflage, communication, to warn off predators, or to attract mates. An interactive game challenges readers to match close-ups of the various patterns with their animal owners, encouraging kids to look more closely at the pictures, hunt back through the book to extract information, and make comparisons between these unique and striking designs.

Blending breezy rhymes with lovely collage artwork, Betsy Franco and Steve Jenkins’s Bees, Snails, & Peacock Tails (S & S, 2008; K-Gr 3) presents a sampling of the patterns and shapes found right before our eyes. For example, a beehive is constructed from tiny hexagon “fit side/by side/by side,” a sturdy and space-saving design; a moth’s wings are adorned with perfectly symmetrical “eyes” (thought to frighten away predators); migrating birds fly in a graceful V-shape (“By forming a wedge,/the swans and the geese/slice through the air/and travel in peace”); and when threatened, a puffer fish swells up to a larger-in-size—and harder-to-eat—sphere. Whether depicting the repeating pattern of footprints left behind by a scampering mouse or the straight-line scent trail followed by foraging ants, the textured illustrations make each concept crystal clear.

In Swirl by Swirl: Spirals in Nature (Houghton Mifflin, 2011; PreS-Gr 3) Joyce Sidman and Beth Krommes focus on a particular shape that occurs repeatedly, revealing itself in many different ways. Lyrical and concise, the narrative describes the broad characteristics of this versatile form, expanded upon in the spectacular scratchboard illustrations awhirl with specific plant and animal species and examples of natural phenomena.

A spiral can be “Coiled tight,/warm and safe,” like a woodchuck hibernating underground; start small and grow larger “swirl by swirl” like a nautilus; or unwrap itself, “one/soft/curl/at a time,” like a lady fern unfurling feathery fronds. A spiral is “strong,” like a rolled-up bristles-out hedgehog or the impact-absorbing horns of a merino sheep, and “and clings tight” like the curled trunk of an Asian elephant or a spider monkey’s tail. It is “bold” (the whorl of a wave before it hits shore), “beautiful” (the precisely arranged petals of a chrysanthemum), and awe-inspiring (a spiral-shaped galaxy “stretches starry arms/through space,/spinning and sparkling,/forever expanding…”).

A brief afterword provides a bit more info about the featured examples and a quick mention of the Fibonacci sequence. Elegant, captivating, and imagination-stirring, this amazing meld of poetry, science, and artistry will inspire discussion and enthusiasm for spiral-seeking expeditions.

Color, Color, Everywhere
Melissa Stewart’s A Rainbow of Animals (Enslow, 2010; K-Gr 3) takes it color by color to introduce a menagerie of mostly monochromatic creatures. From red to purple, each section spans the globe to present an assortment of species (range maps appear at the end of each chapter).Each critter is allotted its own spread, bordered by the appropriate hue, and vibrant close-up photos are paired with an accessible introduction to the animal and the role played by its color (protection from predators, to warn enemies away, attracting mates, etc.).

Particularly interesting examples include the mandrill, monkeys that use their bright red noses to locate one another in the dense forest; the brown-throated three-toed sloth, featured in the green section because of its algae covered fur, which provides camouflage in the forest; and the blue darner dragonfly, which adjusts its color to the temperature (dark blue for warmth on cool mornings, light blue to cool down on hot afternoons). The eye-catching format and mix of familiar and exotic animals make this book fun for browsing and whets appetites for further investigations.

Also arranged by shade, Steve Jenkins’s Living Color (Houghton Mifflin, 2007; K- Gr 5) introduces several species per spread. Set against neat white backdrops, the cut-paper collages are amazingly lifelike and gracefully dynamic. Each section begin with a statement (e.g., “Red says…”), and a lively caption playfully sums up the connotation of each animal’s color—“Step carefully” for the extremely poisonous stonefish (adorned with 13 venomous spines along its back and lethal if trod upon by a swimmer), or “I stink” for a shield bug (which releases a foul-smelling chemical when threatened). Well-written paragraphs percolating with fascinating facts fill in the details.

The book’s layout encourages readers to search out similarities and differences, discovering, for example, that the male blue bird of paradise uses his rich-hued plumage to attract a mate, the color of the cobalt blue tarantula allows it to better hide in the dusky shadows of the forest floor, and the mostly brown blue-tailed skink twitches its bright appendage to fake out predators (when grabbed, the tail breaks off, and the lizard can make its escape; it eventually grows a new tail). Back matter provides more information about animal color and its uses and the creatures featured in the book (size, habitat, diet, etc.).

Explore Your World
In Ashley Wolff’s endearing tale, Baby Bear Sees Blue (S & S/Beach Lane, 2012; PreS-Gr 2)—and a rainbow of other colors—after he awakens in his den and steps out with his mother to investigate his environment. The gentle question-and-answer narrative shimmers with concrete details, sensual imagery, and a buoyant mood of wonder: sniffing the meadow air, the cub asks, “What smells so good, Mama?” She replies, “Those are the strawberries”….and “Baby Bear sees red.” After a busy day, mother and child curl up together in their cave, and Baby Bear “closes his eyes and sees nothing but deep, soft black.”

Balancing realism with soft-edged sweetness, Wolff’s linoleum-print-and-watercolor illustrations are filled with dazzlimg shades and pleasing textures. Their large size and the text’s repetitive structure make this charmer a perfect choice for sharing aloud in a classroom.

Presented with a similar sense of invigorating discovery, these books remind students that a multitude of shapes, colors, and patterns can be found in their own day-to-day worlds. On an “Apple crisp October day,” a father and two children take a trip to a pumpkin farm to Pick a Circle, Gather Squares (Albert Whitman, 2013; PreS-Gr 2). Felicia Sanzari Chernesky’s rhyming text and Susan Swan’s harvest-hued collages depict a delightful excursion as the youngsters point out circles (“Here’s the sun./Apples, pumpkins—/such round fun!”), square-shaped bales of hay, ovals (squash, corn, and speckled eggs), hexagons (honeycombs and pen-protecting chicken wire), and more. Filled with splashes of bright color and appealing textures, the artwork depicts lively action, engaging details, and additional shapes to find.

Jane Brocket’s Ruby, Violet, Lime: Looking for Color (Millbrook, 2012; PreS-Gr 2) presents a gorgeous gallery of vibrantly hued photos of flowers, foods, clothing, buildings, and other commonplace objects. Spreads focused on a particular color are aglow with varying shades, and the accompanying text utilizes descriptive adjectives and sense-based imagery to add resonance and a touch of imagination: “Green is crisp and lively. Lime frosting, mint-green striped socks, emerald lettuces, and jade gardens are fresh and zingy.” A visual and verbal feast, this book encourages kids to take a closer look at their surroundings.

Get Creative
Emily Gravett expands upon basic concepts of color and shape—and the science of animal coloration—in a playful tale filled with surprises, humor, and a message about remaining true to one’s self. With head held in hands, body slumped, and eyes despondently downcast, Blue Chameleon (S & S, 2011; K-Gr 3) is looking…well, blue, a mood expressed in his scratchy azure and cobalt body shading.

In the spreads following, the lonely lizard searches for companionship, mimicking in both color and form each of the objects or animals he comes across—yellow and crescent shaped as he approaches a banana, swirly tailed with two toes extended over head like tentacles as he creeps up to a snail, round and purple-dotted as he rolls toward a beach ball. Alas, no one will respond, and he finally gives up, sitting still as stone on a “Gray rock.” A page turn reveals what seems like a plain white backdrop, but a closer look—or perhaps even touch—reveals the chameleon outlined in a glossy same-colored ink. Readers will also notice a foot, similarly camouflaged, and accompanied by a tentative, “Hello?”

At last, the protagonist has made a friend, and two “Colorful chameleons” cavort together on the final spread, brightly arrayed in a kaleidoscope of colors, shapes, and patterns. Filled with gentle humor, the spare text and outstanding artwork invite readers to make visual comparisons between objects, recognize instances of symmetry, recount and contemplate the book’s changing moods, and think anew about the wonders of colors and animals. Use this book to initiate color-related creative writing and art projects.

After sharing some of these titles, take students on a nature walk in a nearby park or a ramble through the neighborhood. Have them focus on looking for, pointing out, and identifying the colors, shapes, and patterns that they come across, whether natural or manmade. Encourage them to look closely at familiar sights and utilize their observation skills. Youngsters can record their findings by drawing or writing in a field journal.

Kids can also scour their classrooms to search out colors, shapes, and patterns. Have them browse through books, magazines, or other resources about wildlife and nature to identify interesting visual designs. Check out National Geographic’s website, which includes a “Patterns in Nature” photo gallery filled with spectacular images organized by topic (animals, butterflies, sea creatures, trees, rocks and lava, snow and ice, etc.). These crisp, beautifully composed photos show the astounding spectrum and variety of nature’s designs. Using their own artwork and/or photos, clip-art images, or photos clipped from magazines, students can create their own concept books and perhaps share them with younger children just learning color and shape basics.

The Common Core State Standards below are a sampling of those references in the above books and classroom activities:

RL. 1.1. Ask and answer questions about key details in a text.
RL. 1.4. Identify words or phrases in stories or poems that suggest feelings or appeal to the senses.
RI. 1.1. Ask and answer questions about key details in a text.
W. 1.2. Write information/explanatory texts in which they name a topic, supply some facts about the topic, and prove some sense of closure.
W. 2.7. Participate in shared research and writing projects.
SL. 1.2. Ask and answer questions about key details in a text read aloud….
K.G. Identify and describe shapes.

BUNTING, Eve. The Cart That Carried Martin. illus. by Don Tate. Charlesbridge. 2013. ISBN 9781580893879. JLG Level: I+ : Independent Readers (Grades 2–4).

“The cart was old. Its paint had faded. It was for sale outside Cook’s Antiques and Stuff. Nobody wanted it.” That was before it carried something heavier than the burden it bore. The wagon that no one wanted was borrowed for use in a funeral procession. Two mules led it through the streets while thousands of people sang, cried, and grieved. It was the funeral cart that carried Martin Luther King, Jr. whose spirit could not be contained in the coffin that bound him. Reading a newspaper article inspired Bunting’s latest picture book―a powerful tale of the modest artifact that now motivates men to remove their hats.

HOPKINS, H. Joseph. The Tree Lady: The True Story of How One Tree-Loving Woman Changed a City Forever. illus. by Jill McElmurry. S & S/Beach Lane. 2013. ISBN 9781442414020. JLG Level: BE : Biography Elementary (Grades 2–6).

When Kate Sessions first saw San Diego’s City Park (as it was then called), it looked like the rest of the desert town―there was very little green. She became a tree hunter, asking for seeds from gardeners all over the world. Soon Kate’s seedlings were growing all over the city. In 1909, city planners met to discuss the upcoming Panama-California Exposition. Kate was hired to plant thousands of trees in what was now called Balboa Park before the visitors arrived in 1915. Could the young gardener (the first woman to graduate with a science degree from UC) prepare a treeless city park in such a short time? Hopkins’ first picture book explores the powerful impact of a woman who changed the landscape of San Diego.

MARCUS, Leonard S. Randolph Caldecott: The Man Who Could Not Stop Drawing. illus. by author. Farrar/Frances Foster. 2013. ISBN  9780374310257. JLG Level: BE : Biography Elementary (Grades 2–6).

Seventy-five years ago, a new award was established to celebrate the most distinguished work by an American children’s book illustrator. Seventy-seven years earlier, the man for whom the award was named took his first job at age fifteen. He was hired as a clerk in a British bank. Though the job was stable, especially for a young man who had experienced health issues, banking was not his heart’s desire. More than anything he loved to draw. Whenever he could, he doodled ―even on his banking papers. He knew that he would have to move to London where editorial cartoons could give him the break he needed. Armed with a small portfolio, Caldecott took the opportunity to share his work with important editors. One of them liked his art, publishing the first of many illustrations in London Society. As his popularity rose, the artist was approached to take over the work of retiring illustrator, Walter Crane. His new job would be to create the drawings for children’s toybooks. Completely changing the format, style, and design, his first book immediately sold the first printing’s 10,000 copies. From doodles as a young boy, he became the most sought-after illustrator of his time. Today, his name is recognized by children and librarians all over the country. His name was Randolph Caldecott.

McCARTHY, Meghan. Daredevil: The Daring Life of Betty Skelton. illus. by author. S & S/Paula Wiseman. 2013. JLG Level: BE : Biography Elementary (Grades 2–6).

In 1942 women weren’t allowed to be commercial pilots, but Betty Skelton was determined to fly. She became a stunt pilot, calling it “aerobatic flying.” Turning her plane upside down, she became known for her daring ribbon cuts, using her propeller to slice the banner. She flew barefoot and took her dog, Little Tinker. In 1951, Skelton broke an altitude record, soaring an amazing height of 29,050 feet―higher than the top of Mount Everest. From there she drove racecars, continuing her need for speed and record-setting daredevil deeds. McCarthy’s fascinating account includes quotes, a time line, and an extensive bibliography of a woman who became “The First Lady of Firsts.”

For audio/video versions of these booktalks, please visit JLG’s Shelf Life Blog.

Junior Library Guild is a collection development service that helps school and public libraries acquire the best new children’s and young adult books. Season after season, year after year, Junior Library Guild book selections go on to win awards, collect starred or favorable reviews, and earn industry honors. Visit us at www.JuniorLibraryGuild.com.

Children’s book classics such as Green Eggs and Ham (1960) and The Cat and the Hat (1957) will be available in ebook format for the first time beginning on September 24, says publisher Random House Children’s. Written and illustrated by the beloved Dr. Seuss (aka Theodor Geisel), 15 titles will make their digital debut on that date, and by November, a total of 41 ebooks will be available for children, parents, and educators. All the Seuss ebook titles will keep the original layouts and iconic illustrations from their print editions.

“The introduction of ebook editions to the Dr. Seuss canon is an exciting milestone that we know will enhance Dr. Seuss’s legacy,” says Susan Brandt, president of licensing & marketing for Dr. Seuss Enterprises, L.P. “When Dr. Seuss wrote The Cat in the Hat more than fifty years ago, he revolutionized the way children learn to read. Today, we celebrate that his impact on reading will thrive for generations to come with these new ebooks.”

Dr. Seuss’s books have sold more than 600 million print book copies worldwide.
The new digital versions also will be published simultaneously as Read & Listen editions that feature brand-new audio recordings of the full text. Perennial favorites such as Horton Hears a Who! (1954); Oh, the Places You’ll Go! (1990); and The Lorax (1971) continue to top the bestseller lists decades after their original publication. Every year, people across the country celebrate Dr. Seuss Day on the author’s birthday, March 2. This year marked the 75th anniversary of The 500 Hats of Bartholomew Cubbins (1938), his second published children’s book, as well as the 50th anniversary of Dr. Seuss’s ABC (1963, all Random).

See also:
E-Seuss: The Cat in the Hat and Other Dr. Seuss Titles Go Digital, Coming Very Soon as Ebooks

This year marks the 75th anniversary of the Caldecott Medal, the prestigious award bestowed annually by the Association for Library Service to Children (ALSC), a division of the American Library Association (ALA), to the “artist of the most distinguished American picture book for children.” First presented in 1938, the medal is named in honor of the 19th-century English illustrator Randolph J. Caldecott and features a scene that encapsulates the humor, vitality, and charm of his ground-breaking artwork (based on 1878’s The Diverting History of John Gilpin, the image shows the title character clinging to a runaway horse as flapping geese, yapping dogs, and gaping bystanders look on).

Encompassing an eye-tempting array of artistic styles and beautifully wrought images, the books adorned with the familiar gold Caldecott seal (or silver for honor books) present a treasure trove of tales ready to be discovered and enjoyed by enthusiastic young readers. For older students, the decades-spanning assemblage offers a rich opportunity for examination and discussion, providing a glimpse at the evolution of the picture book and children’s literature in the United States, an avenue for exploring the influence of historical events and cultural trends on bookmaking, and means for tracing changes and innovations in illustrative techniques and tools.

The award’s diamond anniversary is also the perfect occasion for launching a mock Caldecott election in the classroom, an endeavor that will engage youngsters in a wide range of grade levels. In addition to providing the impetus for lively debate, such a project can improve listening skills, help students to develop the vocabulary and thought processes needed to evaluate and discuss literature and art, encourage active participation, and engender a of love of reading. Visit the ALA website for a list of medal winners and honor books. A dedicated 75th Anniversary page includes a free-to-download bookmark featuring a special commerative logo created by 2008 Caldecott medalist Brian Selznick starring characters from past winners along with clues to their identities.

Why Should Kids Have All the Fun?

Indulge your own love of picture books by perusing some lovely coffee-table compendiums that treat renowned illustrators and their work. In addition to being a pleasure to read and browse, these books can inform classroom author and literature studies and provide insight into the amazing process of creating art.

Meet the Founding Father

In Randolph Caldecott: The Man Who Could Not Stop Drawing (FSG, 2013), Leonard S. Marcus provides a vividly written portrait of the father of the modern picture book. Born in Chester, England, in 1846, the “tall, lanky, and good-looking” young man with “light brown hair that occasionally stood on end” left behind a boyhood spent sketching and wandering the countryside for a position as a bank clerk, eventually striking out for Manchester to take a similar post as “quill-driver” while testing the waters of a possible career in art.

Identifying mentors while always honing his craft, Caldecott sold numerous drawings to newspapers and magazines—now a burgeoning nationwide industry due to the invention of steam-engine-powered presses—before settling in London and making a name for himself as a book illustrator (critical acclaim and fame came with his work in 1875 on Washington Irving’s Old Christmas). When he finally turned his drawing pen to making books for children, his vivacious filled-with-motion style, irrepressible sense of humor, and innovative ideas about layout and design would forever change the genre.

Marcus’s articulate narrative incorporates keystone details and events to evoke the backdrop of Caldecott’s life—cherished pastimes, his penchant for poking fun at himself, and the invigorating spirit of change ignited by the Industrial Revolution—while pinpointing the enduring essence of his artwork. Handsome reproductions of Caldecott’s illustrations, unpublished drawings from his sketchbooks, and other works appear throughout, along with other 19th-century images that set time and place and make for easy comparison.

A Sendak Gallery

Elegant, oversized, and packed to the brim with gorgeous images, Maurice Sendak: A Celebration of the Artist and His Work (Abrams, 2013) is a delight to both browse and delve into.  Published in conjunction with an exhibition at the Society of Illustrators in New York City, the book coincides with the 50th anniversary of Sendak’s game-changing Caldecott-winner, Where the Wild Things Are (Harper, 1963), as well as what would have been his 85th birthday (Sendak passed away in May of 2012). More than 200 reproductions are presented, many from private collections and never before published, representing the amazing scope and breathtaking spectrum of Sendak’s career.

In addition to studies, preliminary sketches, and variant illustrations made for well-known picture books, the volume also includes his advertising and commercial art (e.g., Bell Atlantic’s 1997 “Wild Things Are Happening” campaign), posters, storyboards for animation sequences, designs for stage productions (of his own work as well as operas and ballets), illustrations for magazines (a 1976 Rolling Stone cover showing the “Moishe” Wild Thing decked out as a Christmas tree), and more, each given context with thoughtfully written captions. Twelve essays penned by individuals with whom Sendak’s life intersected range from Leonard Marcus’s piece on Sendak’s seminal picture book trilogy to author/illustrator Paul O. Zelinsky’s reminiscence of taking Sendak’s picture book course at Yale. This stunning visual compendium is part critical exploration, part personal remembrance, and all-out tribute to a remarkable artist and his outstanding body of work.

The Power of the Doodle

Young fans of Knuffle Bunny, that beloved and beleaguered pigeon, and the “Elephant and Piggie” series (all Hyperion) know that Mo Willems is a funny guy, and in Don’t Pigeonhole Me!  (Disney, 2013), he proves that he can illicit just as many laughs from adults. For 20 years, this three-time Caldecott Honor recipient has been compiling an annual sketchbook intended to be distributed as “a calling card for clients and/or holiday card for friends.” Though the format has evolved since the stapled-together mini zine of his “starving artist” days, these booklets still serve as a “continuing experiment,” a place where Willems holds complete creative carte blanche and freedom “from any restrictions.” This cartooning crock pot has helped him cook up ideas for at least three of his picture books, including Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus (2003).

‘Don’t Pigeonhole Me! ‘(Disney)  © Mo Willems

Twenty sketchbooks are reproduced, each set in the context of Willems’s career and life with a funny introduction. Earlier editions showcase adult-pitched New Yorker-style vignettes and sequences that treat relationship woes, offer wry glimpses of city life, and present droll perceptions of art and artists. Later volumes reveal Willems’s experimentation with a longer narrative form, design elements, and storytelling rhythms, including a tale about an “unaccomplished baddie” wolf would later inspire 2005’s Leonardo, the Terrible Monster; an early—and definitely not-for-kids—version of 2012’s Goldilocks and the Three Dinosaurs; and a “hard reader” starring an inebriated bunny who spouts a “drunken diatribe of words that merely sound like what they mean.”The final installment collects together doodles originally drawn on the butcher block paper that adorns the Willems family dinner table (characters that may, or may not, someday appear in a picture book). Great fun to browse and unabashedly hilarious, this book also reminds readers of the importance of experimentation and taking chances, of allowing one’s self the space to daydream, and of the awesome power of the doodle.

Why Picture Books?

Compiled and edited by Marcus, Show Me a Story!: Why Picture Books Matter (Candlewick, 2012) presents conversations with 21 renowned illustrators. Whether interviewing longtime picture book mavens such as Robert McCloskey, Eric Carle, Maurice Sendak, Ashley Bryan, and Tana Hoban, or relative newcomers including Yumi Heo and Chris Raschka, philosophical thinkers like Mitsumasa Anno or humorous tale-tellers like James Marshall, Marcus focuses on teasing out the “vital thread that links an artist’s life story to the stories and images for which he or she is known.”

Why does a child grow up to become an artist? Who encouraged or mentored these individuals? What experiences inspired them? Why did they choose to make picture books? The lively interviews, each introduced with an insightful recounting of the artist’s career and important innovations, convey much about each individual’s personality as well as revealing truths about the creative process and the role picture books play in the lives of children.

The illustrators reflect on wide-ranging themes, touching upon the impact of historical and political events on one’s life, the realities of racial discrimination, milestones such as becoming a parent, the origins of their beloved characters, or the evolution of the art form. An inset of full-color reproductions showcases a selection of sketches, studies, dummies, and other pre-production work that sheds light on each artist’s illustrative process. An interesting read for anyone who loves picture books, this volume can be used to expand author studies and is s gem worth sharing with older students considering a career in the arts.

DAVIES, Matt. Ben Rides On. Roaring Brook/Neal Porter. 2013. ISBN 9781596437944. JLG Level: P+ : Primary (Grades K–1).

Ben’s life revolves around two things: avoiding his bully, Adrian, and dreaming of revenge. After his tormentor steals his bike, Ben discovers an opportunity to retaliate, ridding himself of an unending threat. He finds Adrian hanging off a branch on the side of a cliff. “How extraordinarily terrible,” he thinks. It would be so easy to take his broken bike and walk away, but would that be the right thing to do? In his first book for young readers, Davies captures the emotional upheaval of confronting bullies and choosing right from wrong.

MACDONALD, Ross. Henry’s Hand. Abrams. Oct. 2013. ISBN 9781419705274. JLG Level: P+ : Primary (Grades K–1).

Having removable body parts had disadvantages for Henry. He might misplace a foot or lose an eye under the couch. Happily, Henry’s best friend, Hand, is never far away. They go everywhere together―until he begins to take his friend for granted. Running away from the ungrateful companion seems the only thing Hand can do. His new life instantly changes when he crosses a downtown street and saves a man from being hit by a car. He becomes a hero, surrounded by admirers. But he still feels alone―he misses his friend. Henry realizes it’s his fault that Hand is never coming back. Is it too late to mend their friendship? Humor and tenderness in text and illustration create a timeless fable.

VERNICK, Audrey. Bogart and Vinnie: A Completely Made-Up Story of True Friendship. illus. by Henry Cole. Bloomsbury/Walker. 2013. ISBN 9780802728234. JLG Level: HE : Humor Elementary (Grades 2–6).

“Vinnie, a crazy-happy dog, was lost.” Finding a home in a wildlife shelter seems to be the mostly unlikely place for a lost pet to find a friend. With dogged determination, the canine bonds with Bogart, a lonely rhinoceros. When their uncommon relationship becomes big news, Vinnie’s owners rush to rescue their pet. How can anyone separate a true friendship? Beloved illustrator Cole adds balloon captions to Vernick’s charming story of two unexpected pals.

YOON, Salina. Penguin on Vacation. Bloomsbury/Walker. Dec. 2013. ISBN 9781596437944. JLG Level: P+: Primary (Grades K–1).

Penguin needs a vacation; he’s tired of skiing, sledding, and skating on the ice. Heading north, he sails for the beach. It was, however, nothing like he expected. He can’t ski, sled, or skate on sand. He has no idea how to have fun there. “Are you lost, says Crab?” Being willing to learn―even while playing― helps Penguin make a friendship that will last. Yoon’s simple text and bright illustrations make this a great read aloud for young readers no matter where they live.

For audio/video versions of these booktalks, please visit JLG’s Shelf Life Blog.

Junior Library Guild is a collection development service that helps school and public libraries acquire the best new children’s and young adult books. Season after season, year after year, Junior Library Guild book selections go on to win awards, collect starred or favorable reviews, and earn industry honors. Visit us at www.JuniorLibraryGuild.com.

FLEMING, Candace. Papa’s Mechanical Fish. illus. by Boris Kulikov. Farrar/Margaret Ferguson. 2013. ISBN 9780374399085. JLG Level: E : Easy Reading (Grades 1-3).

“If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again” goes the well-known saying. Papa was an inventor, so he made a mechanical fish. It sunk. He added a fin and propeller. It almost worked, so he added a steering wheel and protected the surface with copper. Papa’s inspirations for improvement come from the fish themselves (and a little prodding from his daughter). How do fish know where they’re going? Papa adds portholes. Will his invention ever work well enough for use in war or transportation? Fleming’s inspirational tale of little-known inventor, Lodner Phillips, presents a creative mind that continued to think, whether he was immediately successful or not.

HEILIGMAN, Deborah. The Boy Who Loved Math: The Improbable Life of Paul Erdös. illus. by LeUyen Pham. Roaring Brook. 2013. ISBN 9781596433076. JLG Level: BE : Biography Elementary (Grades 2–6).

Paul loved math more than anything. He counted and subtracted all day. Between his mother’s over-protectiveness and his obsession with equations, the young boy never learned to do things for himself. When he was 21, his work took him to places where he was alone. Another mathematician would take him home, wash his clothes, provide his meals, and pay his bills. Shouting “my brain is open,” Paul would announce that he was ready to do calculations early in the morning. His personal quirks were tolerated by friends and colleagues who loved him anyway. Heiligman’s picture book biography of an eccentric genius reveals a man who was good at his job and was willing to share his talents with others.

MARKEL, Michelle. Brave Girl: Clara and the Shirtwaist Makers’ Strike of 1909. illus. by Melissa Sweet. HarperCollins/Balzer + Bray. 2013. ISBN 9780061804427. JLG Level:  NE : Nonfiction Elementary (Grades 2–6).

Typical examples of leaders in American history include figures like George Washington or Benjamin Franklin. Clara was a five-foot-tall, nineteen-year-old girl when she took a stand for thousands of garment industry workers to strike for the improvement of their working conditions and benefits. If a worker bled twice on her cloth, she could lose her job. If she were a few minutes late to work, she could lose half a day’s pay. Working under unbelievable conditions (two toilets and one sink for 300 hundred girls), these teenagers made women’s clothing instead of getting an education. Clara was determined to improve things, so she took a stand. Though beaten and arrested 17 times, the immigrant seamstress dared to challenge the establishment and make a difference for those around her and the workers yet to come. Sweet’s brilliant collage and watercolor illustrations weave Markel’s words into an inspirational story of fighting for equality.

ROCHE, Suzzy. Want to Be in a Band? illus. by Giselle Porter. Random/Schwartz & Wade. 2013. ISBN9780375968792. JLG Level: E+ : Easy Reading (Grades 1–3).

What does it take to start a band? A little sister can ask her two older siblings. Then they can teach her everything they know. A new musician’s fingers may tire while playing the guitar, but practice is important. Performing for others may give a novice stage fright, but playing for her parents is a baby step in the right direction. After the band chooses a name, they can have a public performance. Maybe it will lead to a gig in a club, but the sisters shouldn’t worry if it’s not a big-time appearance. Based on her own experiences, folk-indie rock band The Roches, the author’s advice continues as she encourages budding musicians in the process of starting a band.

SAY, Allen. The Favorite Daughter. Scholastic/Arthur A. Levine. 2013. ISBN 9780545176620. JLG Level: CE : City Elementary (Grades 2–6).

Yuriko is upset when her Japanese name is mispronounced at school. Even her teacher calls her “Eureka.” As the teasing continues, she decides she wants an American name. Her wise and patient father goes along with her wishes and takes his “new” daughter, Michelle, to a Japanese garden in San Francisco. While looking for a souvenir with her name on it, they see a Japanese ink painting artist. After learning her real name, he paints a lily and uses traditional characters to write it out. She’s delighted with her special remembrance and decides to learn to paint it too. On their trip to the Golden Gate Bridge, father and daughter are disappointed to see it buried in fog. He encourages the youngster to use her imagination to recreate the bridge for her school project. Her father points out that she wants an ordinary name, but something different from everyone else for her artwork. Perhaps he’s given her more to think about than a school assignment. Say’s illustrations accompany the thought-provoking dialogue.

Junior Library Guild is a collection development service that helps school and public libraries acquire the best new children’s and young adult books. Season after season, year after year, Junior Library Guild book selections go on to win awards, collect starred or favorable reviews, and earn industry honors. Visit us at www.JuniorLibraryGuild.com.

Journey Far
In A Long Way Away (Little, Brown, 2013; PreS-Gr 4), Frank Viva brilliantly utilizes book design to delineate a dazzling there-and-back-again adventure and express the wonder intrinsic to a journey of discovery. Held sideways, the story unfolds from top to bottom as a young octopus-like alien bids farewell to loved ones and gently descends through space along a winding yellow pathway, gliding past snoozing planets and other whimsical objects, entering Earth’s atmosphere, sinking through ocean depths, and nestling on an underwater cliff to fall “Deep/Asleep.” Read in reverse, this two-way tale depicts the return trip, as the voyager awakens and soars upward through sea and space and into his family’s welcoming arms (“A Happy Place/A Happy Face/A Hug/A Home”).

Large yellow arrows on front and back endpapers point out the appropriate direction, and the fun-to-finger-trace yellow line keeps readers on the narrative pathway and in the action. The terse poetic text works remarkably well in either direction, and the graphic-style artwork makes striking use of stylized outline images and a restrained color palette. Like the intrepid protagonist, readers will delight in exploring the universe of possibilities presented here.

Germano Zullo and Albertine’s Line 135 (Chronicle, 2013; K-Gr 4) describes a youngster’s train trip from her city home to her grandmother’s house in the country, and the book’s long, narrow trim size is perfectly suited to convey both the physical logistics and fanciful facets of her excursion. As the lime-green train glides along the tracks, the girl muses about journey-taking in a broader sense, expressing her determination to one day venture everywhere and “know the entire world”—despite adults telling her that it’s impossible. Meanwhile, the finely detailed black-line drawings show the train passing through realistic city and country backdrops that give way to vistas of fantastical beasts and dwellings, before returning to the mundane at trip’s end.

Both the day-to-day and imaginary are rendered in the same artistic style, lending equal weight to both realms. The interplay between text and illustrations communicates the narrator’s determination to chart her own future and compellingly conveys a child’s boundless ability to dream big. Invite your students to write about and illustrate their own journeys, whether real or imagined.

In the aptly titled Flight 1-2-3 (Chronicle, 2013; K-Gr 2), Maria van Lieshout introduces the iconic airport signage used around the world. As a family arrives at the airport (“1 Airport”) and embarks on their trip, readers identify the symbols for and count “2 Luggage carts,” “3 Check-in desks,” etc., all the way to “10 Gates” (presented as a schematic diagram map) and beyond.

The book is deftly illustrated in the same graphic style as the well-known symbols, so the dynamic spreads are peopled by outline figures (some sport colorful clothing, but only the featured family members have pin-point eyes) and contain simple, easy-to-identify shapes. In addition to flexing counting and symbol-deciphering skills, this book can be used to launch discussion of universal signs and how they are used to wordlessly convey information.

Play with Words and Images
Treading lightheartedly into the realm of proper punctuation usage, Amy Krouse Rosenthal and Tom Lichtenheld tell the tale of an Exclamation Mark (Scholastic, 2013; Gr 1-5) who feels like a misfit until he finally discovers his true purpose. The simple, tongue-in-cheek text and thick black-line images are neatly arrayed across backdrops of wide-ruled paper. Portrayed in a parade of periods—each depicted as a circle drawn with mouth and eyes—the protagonist’s long stem clearly makes him different, despite his efforts to conform. When he meets a question mark who peppers him with endless queries, he finally explodes with a loud “STOP!” that reveals his ability to put the POW into declarative sentences. Gradually gaining confidence, he shows off his skill to his appreciative fellows and then sets off “…to make his mark.”

A pun-filled narrative, just-right book design, and buoyantly expressive artwork tell a tale so charmingly clever that it’s impossible for readers not to smile. Art and functionality combine in a story that entertains while imparting a painless grammatical lesson and underscoring the importance of allowing one’s own essence to shine.

Rosenthal provides more witty wordplay in I Scream, Ice Cream! (Chronicle, 2013; K-Gr 5), a book of phrases that sound exactly the same but have different meanings. Serge Bloch’s zestful illustrations—a combination of comical cartoon characters, block printed images, and collage—drolly depict each scenario, and the layout allows readers a shot at guessing the second sentence before a page turn reveals the answer. “I see!” is accompanied by a full-page picture of a man balancing tippy-toed on a stool and peering into an antique telescope. The next spread shows a pirate ship sailing across an ice-floe-laden ocean; one buccaneer declares, “Icy!,” while a second agrees, “Aye, sea!”

The pairings range from straightforward to more complex, with some taking on a narrative context (and providing possible story starters for creative writing). Inventive and silly, this book of humorous homophones hones listening skills, illustrates how artwork expands a text, and provides a fresh approach to thinking about language and its usage.

Jesse Klausmeier and Suzy Lee invite readers to Open This Little Book (Chronicle, 2013; K-Gr 4) and dive into an enchanting celebration of reading. Inside, a series of die-cut pages reveal story beginning after story beginning (“Open this…Little Red Book/and read about Ladybug, who opens a…Little Green Book/and reads about Frog, who opens a …Little Orange Book,” etc.), the trim size growing ever smaller with each new start. When it’s Giant’s turn, she is unable to open her tiny tome because her hands are too large (as evidenced by a blue thumbnail engulfing the entire cover), but the other characters enthusiastically come to her aid. Afterward, each individual book is closed in succession, with its featured animal waving farewell. They are all reunited on the final page to read another tale.

The volume’s design is striking, as is the use of color and varied artistic styles (while the individual book covers have an old-fashioned look, with faded washes and crisp lines, the overall effect is bold-colored and contemporary). Children will enjoy manipulating and exploring the pages, and thinking about the idea of a story within a story. The offering’s delightfully delivered message about the wonders found in books and the joys of sharing them with friends can also spark discussion—and sharing—of students’ most-beloved tales.

Characterized by an explosion of color and creativity, Hervé Tullet’s I Am Blop! (Phaidon, 2013; Gr 1-5) introduces a marvelously versatile shape—its outline similar to a four-leaf clover—and spins off a whirlwind of variations, possibilities, and interpretations. At first, images are paired with simple statements to show Blops of various sizes and colors, but the presentation soon bounds beyond the realm of basic concepts.

There is a “Blop Family,” Blops organized in classroom rows, museum-inspired Blops, Blop animals (with tiger stripes or painted to look like butterflies), and much, much more. Several multi-page sequences relate tales of different-colored Blops (e.g., yellow and blue) merging together to create a new Blop hue (green). Some examples broach more thoughtful territory, such as when “Blop Discovers” (the text is printed backwards on the recto page and read with the help of a reflective surface on the verso) or “Blop Has a Secret” (delicate dashes transform a sherbet-pink Blop into two joined hearts, one upside-up and one upside-down).

The book ends with questions (“What do Blops eat?” “Can a Blop get into mischief?” “Can Blops fly?”) that will ignite readers’ curiosity and inspire creative writing and illustration. Easy to cut out, draw, paint, decorate, and adapt, Blops are ready and waiting to go as far as a child’s imagination can take them.

Introduce Graphic Design Basics
Just what is it that makes these titles so incredibly eye-grabbing? In A Book about Design: Complicated Doesn’t Make It Good (2005; Gr 1-5), itself an eye-grabber, Mark Gonyea provides an accessible look at the principles of design. Chatty, humor-warmed text and clear graphic shapes presented on clean white backdrops illustrate how changes in size, shape, and color alter and manipulate the viewer’s perceptions. Ten brief chapters touch briefly upon topics such as the visual impact of straight vs. diagonal lines (one indicates “strength and structure,” while the conveys “speed and movement”), use of a 1:3:9 design ratio, the crash-bang affect of contrast, and the different impressions made by warm and cool colors. A smiley face that starts out minimalistic and ends up garishly over-adorned underscores the elegance of simplicity. The bold-colored artwork makes each concept crystal clear. The discussion continues in the author’s Another Book about Design (2007) and A Book about Color (2010, all Holt).

Utilizing a similarly playful tone and elucidating visual examples, Chip Kidd’s forthcoming Go: A Kidd’s Guide to Graphic Design (Workman, Oct. 2013; Gr 4 Up) delves a bit more deeply into the subject matter. An introduction defines the term, points out why it’s important to know about graphic design (individuals are constantly exposed to and affected by images), and provides a history of iconic images. Next, well-organized chapters discuss various components: form (the elements that delineate what an image looks like—scale, image quality, symmetry/asymmetry, color, positive space/negative space, etc.), typography, content (matching form to function), and different methods for conveying concepts. A final chapter presents 10 design projects for kids. Addressing readers directly, the writing is clear and lively, and Kidd, a book designer, frequently and effectively uses covers that he and other professionals have created as examples for his points, along with an array of striking graphic images. Beginning with this book’s cover (the word “GO” emblazoned on a stop sign backdrop, a juxtaposition intended to grab viewers’ attention and encourage them to explore further), Kidd will have kids thinking about the images that surround them and the responses they inspire. Fun for readers, this offering will also be helpful for educators exploring these concepts in the classroom.

Have students compile a list of basic design precepts from these resources and see how they are utilized in the picture books mentioned above. Encourage youngsters to think about how visual elements affect the perception of subject matter. Expand the discussion by examining some of the images that are pervasive in our culture: What makes a road signs easy to understand? How do advertisements use color or contrast capture the viewer’s eye? Does a product’s packaging—color, design, style of typeface—affect consumers? The possibilities are endless.

The Common Core State Standards below are a sampling of those references in the above books and classroom activities:

RL. 2.7. Use information gained from the illustrations and words in a print…text to demonstrate understanding of its characters, setting, or plot.
RL 5.7. Analyze how visual…elements contribute to the meaning, tone, or beauty of a text.
SL. 1.2. Ask and answer questions about key details in a text read aloud….
SL. 3.4. Report on a topic or text, tell a story, or recount an experience with appropriate facts and relevant descriptive details….
RI. 1.7. Use the illustrations and details in a text to describe its key ideas.
RI. 3.7. Use information gained from illustrations…and the words in a text to demonstrate understanding of the text.
W. K.3. Use a combination of drawing, dictating, and writing to narrate a single event or several loosely linked events, tell about the events in the order in which they occurred, and provide a reaction to what happened.
W. 3.3. Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events…

The Caldecott Medal was awarded to 32-year-old Jon Klassen for This is Not My Hat (Candlewick). In accepting the award, Klassen fondly referred to his book—about a sneaky fish and the stolen hat he adores—as his “little guy,” and said he was happy that its subtle humor and message had resonated with readers. Klassen is also a Caldecott Honoree this year for Mac Burnett’s Extra Yarn (HarperCollins); he is only the second illustrator with this achievement in the award’s history.

Katherine Applegate, winner of the John Newbery Medal for The One and Only Ivan (HarperCollins), spoke about her long road to the Medal after a varied writing career, commenting that she was not ‘a late-blooming” success. The 56-year-old winner read from a Harlequin Romance novel that she once wrote. “A woman’s body is like a piano,” she said. “You are definitely a Steinway, baby.”

Unlike her early work, Applegate’s Newbery-winning turn is a poignant YA story of a long-captive gorilla. In her remarks, Applegate recalled her youth and specifically the time that she was introduced to Doctor Doolittle and Charlotte’s Web, books in which, like the Ivan of her book, the principal protagonists were talking animals. “You have to write the book that has to be written,” she quoted Madeleine L’Engle. “And if the book will be too difficult for grown-ups, then you write it for children.”

Applegate went on to praise the optimism of children and to thank the members of the Nerdy Book Club, whose online enthusiasm brought recognition to Ivan.

In accepting the Laura Ingalls Wilder Medal, Katherine Paterson thanked “all the librarians and teachers,” noting, “many children would never know my books if it was for you.” The award is given to an author whose books have made a substantial and lasting contribution to literature. The 80-year-old Paterson is a two-time Newbery and National Book Award winner, and has served as the National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature. The Wilder award comes forty years after the publication of her first book, The Sign of the Chrysanthemum. In closing, Paterson praised the audience and the event, which she said was for “celebrating all of you who nourish the lives of the young.”

Librarian Suzanne Walker donned pins representing the 75 Caldecott Medalists.

The evening’s entertainment was not only found on the stage. The audience was filled with many librarians dressed in their Caldecott-themed fashions and accessories, such as Starr LaTronica, youth services/outreach manager at the Four County Library System (NY) and president-elect of ALSC, who sported earrings and shoes adorned with Caldecott Medals. Elizabeth Bird of the New York Public Library, picture book author and SLJ blogger, wore an outfit that featured all of this year’s Caldecott books. And all 75 Caldecott winners were present on the dress of Suzanne Walker from the Indiana State Library in the form of individual pins that she created for each winning book.

Katrina Taylor and Charlene Mckenzie, librarians from St. Paul, MN, are annual attendees of the dinner; both enjoy the event for different reasons, they told School Library Journal. While McKenzie appreciates getting to see the authors and illustrators who “create the magic of the book,” Taylor says, “it is so inspiring to have a celebration of children’s literature.”

Photo by Sonya Sones

Longtime School Library Journal blogger Elizabeth Bird, the New York Public Library’s youth materials collections specialist, can add published author to her name this year. Her festive debut picture book, Giant Dance Party (HarperCollins, 2013), is about a girl who overcomes her stage fright by teaching blue fuzzy giants how to dance. SLJ caught up with Bird recently to discuss her unique path to publication, how her work as a children’s librarian informed her experience as a first-time author, and whether Lexy and the giants will be making a repeat performance.

Can you tell us about your path to publishing Giant Dance Party—from writing the manuscript to publication?
It all began in 2009. I had already intended to write a picture book, but I’m the kind of person who waits for the universe to dump something directly into my lap, which is exactly what happened. So when they give people advice about how to get a picture book published, don’t listen to me. My story is strange and wonderful. I found an email from the illustrator Brandon Dorman. I love his work so much. I had mentioned him several times on my blog, and included him on an end-of-the-year roundup list of best book jackets for his work on Jack Prelutsky’s The Wizard (HarperCollins, 2007). He’s just the nicest man ever born. Brandon emailed me and said, ‘Hey, let’s do a picture book together. You write and I’ll illustrate.’ He just had one stipulation: ‘I want to do giants leaping.’

And I responded, ‘Ok!’ We came up with three different picture book ideas, all of which involved giants leaping in some way. He presented them to his editor at Greenwillow, and they picked up two of them, which was remarkable! I got my full two-book deal.

Brandon is the [busiest] man in the world. He does the covers for all of the good books out there, like the “Fablehaven” series (Atheneum), and pretty much every fantasy title on the shelves today. We just couldn’t schedule it. Then our editor left Greenwillow, and whenever that happens you’re left in limbo. We ended up with Virginia Duncan, who turned out to be a godsend. She took one look at my manuscript and said ‘we’re going to have to make some changes.’ And thank God she did; she had the greatest notes. When we began the project, the giants were gross and disgusting, like typical giants. And now, they’re furry and blue. There’s something about furry blue giants that kids adore. I hold up this book in front of kids and they just gravitate towards it like nothing else. The giants’ clothes have never changed, but the giants themselves have become seriously fuzzified.

That took about four years, then.
There were a lot of starts and stops along the way. And then publication dates get pushed back. You think you’re coming out one season and woops, no, you’re coming out on another season. As it turned out, my 35^th birthday was the book release day, so it was fate. It was ‘happy birthday to me.’

What was it like working with Brandon Dorman as an illustrator, especially with your unique relationship?

Usually you submit a manuscript to a publisher and the publisher pairs you up with an illustrator. Author and illustrator usually have no contact at all, working separately with their own edits. Our [collaboration] was very strange in a way. He would send me sketches of what he was thinking of, and I would email him storylines. A few things changed without us being in contact. The blue furry giant thing happened when we were between editors. I didn’t have much say in that, but I was very happy with it. It worked out incredibly well.

And I don’t know how often this happens, or just that Greenwillow is very invested in the quality of their books, but they had me go through the art when it was almost done and I was able to give notes. For example, at one point Lexy was writing with yellow paint, and I couldn’t see the letters very well. And I mentioned that I’d like a little multiculturalism in a scene with a group of girls, and they changed that. I was allowed to make changes to the art because Brandon is a digital artist. That would not have been possible, or even an option if I was working with someone like Paul Zelinksy, who works with more traditional methods.

Do you think your work as a librarian informed your experience as a debut author?
Absolutely. On the one hand, it informed the writing. The book had to be something that could be read aloud. Not every book has to be read aloud to a large group, but it really helps, particularly when you’re doing bookstore appearances. I’ve seen authors and illustrators use PowerPoint, music, and all sorts of things for presentations. I knew that it would just be me reading the book. I do involve furry blue dance warmers and have kids do a dance party, but I needed the words to work. It had to be a story I could read aloud over and over, so that a parent could potentially read it over and over, and not get sick of it.

On the other hand, I was prepared to read in front of groups, because as a librarian I have to do storytimes as part of my job. So far, I’ve had to share Giant Dance Party to classes of three-year-olds one day, and a group of eight- and nine-year-olds the next. And I also have read for adults. You have to be able to read for any group. And each time you have to do it in a different way, and I wouldn’t have been able to do that if I didn’t have my children’s librarian experience. They don’t tell you that to publish a picture book you have to be a performer.

Tell me a little bit about your life after publication. What kind of promotion did you have to do?

For all that I do promoting other people, it is hard to promote myself. It’s hard to go out there saying: ‘Look at me. Me, me, me.’ I kind of already do that in my line of work, but when I usually promote myself, I’m also talking about library events or free programs. But this time is different, because I’m asking people to spend money on me. There’s actually a really good blog, called The Shrinking Violets Promotions, done by two authors who were really shy in terms of self-promotion, which focuses on very simple things that writers can do.

Slowly, I’ve been getting more comfortable with it. It’s fascinating what now constitutes book promotion. Of course you have to make your book video, so I made four. And they involve me being a giant and demonstrating the four different dances highlighted in the book. That was fun. And the publisher had a request that didn’t occur to me: create a Pinterest page for Giant Dance Party, so I did that. I had never created a Pinterest—let alone Tumblr—account. Now these are things that you kind of have to do. My sister made me a website, which is fantastic. On it, I have a teacher’s guide, and recently my publisher asked me to add Common Core guidelines, which I will be doing next. That’s the advantage of being a librarian: I have access and knowledge of these things already.

Now that you’ve had a picture book published, does it change the way you review books on your blog?
Book reviews are a huge part of my blog. There’s another dance picture book this year called Flora and the Flamingo (Chronicle, 2013) by Molly Idle. I had to stop myself from saying, ‘if you buy only one dancing picture book this year, buy that one’ and say instead, ‘if you buy two dancing picture books, buy mine and Flora’. And that’s what I’ve done at my appearances: share related picture books about dancing, parties, and giants. I usually suggest titles like Flora and Jack Prelutsky’s Awful Ogre’s Awful Day (Greenwillow, 2001).

In terms of how I review picture books, my respect for published authors has increased tenfold. You can respect how well an author does something, but until you try to do it yourself, you really don’t respect them enough. My appreciation has also increased for writers of easy readers. It’s like writing a haiku. If you can write a good easy reader such as Mo Willems’s “Elephant and Piggie” titles (Hyperion), then you are a god, as far as I’m concerned.

What would you like children and parents to take away after reading Dance Party?
The book is based very much on my own youth. I took ballet and Scottish dance classes as a child. Lexy, the main character, has stage fright, and is afraid of performing on stage. She finds a way to overcome her fear by helping other people. Dancing with a group was not a problem for me, because on the stage you can’t see the faces in front of you. I didn’t suffer from that particular stage fright, but I was afraid of speaking in public. I want people to take away from the book the fact that these things can be overcome. If you have a fear of some sort, you’re not stuck with it for your entire life. Lexy as a character is very proactive. She thinks that she’s avoiding the problem, but in fact it’s leading her to the solution. And I think that’s actually not a bad way of tackling your problem: hitting it from a different side.

I can’t imagine you having stage fright.
Isn’t it crazy? I was the quietest. In school I never said a word in class. Even now, if you put me in a classroom setting, I never will speak. It’s sort of a holdover. It took me a long time to get over that. I credit librarianship for helping me break out of my shell.

How did you come up with the name of Lexy?

I have a niece named Alexa. The main character was named Alex at first, and then I realized that it was probably not a good idea. She was much younger when I first started the book, but she’s going to pass out of the picture book world very soon. There’s a reason writers don’t put their nieces, nephews, or children’s names into books. I didn’t want to set a precedence for my kids, who would one day ask me, ‘Why is my name is not in a book? You put Alex’s name in the book.’ So I amended it slightly. Let’s just hope that my daughter never catches on to that.

Will we be seeing Lexy and the giants on another adventure?

Probably not with the giants. Spoiler Alert: There are leprechauns at the end of the book. And when they get to the end of it, kids assume that there will be another story, and it will involve leprechauns. But not all books with an ambiguous ending lead to a sequel. Mo Willems’s Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus (Hyperion, 2003) ends with him seeing a truck and wanting to ride it, but there is no sequel with him driving a truck. There are definitely more picture books in my future, but I don’t know if it will be a sequel. We’ll have to see.

Despite her usual policy of abstaining from heated political interactions on social media, Messner continued the conversation, refusing to be intimidated.

“I’m a writer. Recommending books is probably what I do most in my social media life. Those who follow me are accustomed to that,” Messner tells School Library Journal . “This book connects with what’s going on in the news today. I didn’t think anything of it.”

She explains, “I was at first perplexed about how someone from outside of my Twitter feed, who does not even follow me, could have found my tweet.  And when I looked at the person’s feed and profile, I realized that he or she had to be someone that has set up a search for Islam, and made it their mission to seek out anyone that had something positive to say about the religion.”

The Twitter battle of words was witnessed by many of the author’s supporters and friends, including educators and librarians. A few of them added the title to their future purchase lists, or brought awareness of the book to their own audiences.

Educator and writer Michelle Cusolito, who teaches at Lesley University in Cambridge, MA,  was spurred on to suggest Golden Domes to her local bookstore, Eight Cousins in Falmouth, MA, and to create a Pinterest page for World Religion resources, with Khan’s title its first entry. “What most upset me about the situation was that all Kate wanted to do was promote openness and diversity, and this person was trying to stop that and intimidate her,” Cusolito tells SLJ. “My immediate response is, ‘I have to buy it.’ The second it hit my table, both my kids read it.”

Lauren Strohecker, a school media specialist at McKinley Elementary outside of Philadelphia, PA, tells SLJ that she sympathizes with Messner’s situation, and was disappointed that what Messner meant to be an act of sharing incurred such blowback. “It’s really hard to find books on religion appropriate for younger age groups in a K-6 school library,” Strohecker says. “But it’s important to have these titles available. Kids should have the opportunity to expand their worldview at any age.”

Strohecker has already added Golden Domes to her purchase list for the next school year because of its broad appeal, and plans on using it in a unit about colors. “It’s a book that I can integrate on subjects other than religion,” she explains.

The discussion took place over the course of a few days, with both sides coming to a standstill. Messner says she was shocked at the other party’s continuous harassment and religion bashing, but ultimately chose not to block the person, “Because that conversation—the fact that it happened—opened a lot of people’s eyes to the need for more conversations. Sharing books is powerful, and I think responding to hate with poetry and education is just about the best we can do in this world.”

Strohecker agrees. “We have the choices every day. How do we respond to hate? More hate? Or hope and stories and education? That’s a better route. And if we have that conversation with kids now, we’ll be less likely to see reactions like this one in the future.”

For a list of resources that can be used by parents, classroom teachers, and librarians, see also: Islam in the Classroom