What child doesn’t like ponies? The Lost and Fond Pony by Tracy Dockray (2011, Feiwel and Friends) is a beautifully written, gorgeously illustrated (I especially like the picture of the pony jumping through the ring of fire.) story about the life of a pony, from birth to old age. The story goes full circle when the little girl who outgrew him comes back at the end to bring him home again. It’s an endearing story with a charming main character and it got me wondering about all the real ponies that have been “outgrown”. Where do they end up? An author’s note at the back of the book offers some insight into the question.   

 Another example of a concept book, Apple Pie ABC by Alison Murray (Disney Hyperion, 2010) is a picture book that focuses on the alphabet. Here the author follows a determined dog from A to Z as he figures out how to get a piece of delicious apple pie. Children will love the cheerful illustrations and endearing main character and will have fun learning their ABC’s. Children will eagerly turn the pages to see what happens next-will the little dog get some pie?

  I believe all dogs have a little bit of wolf in them, or at least they think they do (my little lhasa apso included). Wiener Wolf by Jeff Crosby (2011, Disney Hyperion Books) is about a dachshund who longs for some excitement, so he leaves the comforts of home, sheds his sweater, and joins a wolf pack. He has the best time until he discovers that wolves must catch their own dinner. That’s a bit too wild for him. He realizes that he belongs at home with Granny. And Granny realizes that all her little dog needs is friends. This book is filled with beautiful, realistic illustrations, humor, and drama. I especially like the scenes with the wolves, though the youngest readers may find them a tad scary. Overall, a very enjoyable picture book.

  If Rocks Could Sing: a discovered alphabet by Leslie McGuirk (Tricycle Press, 2011) is perhaps more of a concept book than a picture book as it focuses on the basic alphabet. However, it showcases the alphabet in a very unique way. All of the letters and characters that go with them are portrayed by real rocks. As it says in the back of the book, the author spent more than ten years searching along the Florida shore lines for rocks shaped like the letters of the alphabet. And I’m glad she did because the result is this highly imaginative and thoughtfully done children’s book. I personally take pleasure in seeing shapes and patterns in nature and in everyday objects, so I feel a special connection with this book. My favorites are letter D for Dog and letter G for Ghosts. This book is for all people, children or adults, who like to use their imaginations.

  Great textures and colors in this book by Kurt Cyrus! How did he get the sand to look so real? I thoroughly enjoyed the rhythm and flow of The Voyage of Turtle Rex (2011, Harcourt), a picture book written in rhyme. Any child who is interested in turtles or dinosaurs will like the large illustrations, which in combination with the clever text, make up an interesting, informative, and distinctive children’s book. An author’s note in the back briefly gives more information about sea turtles past and present. This picture book offers the total package. I highly recommend it.

  Ollie & Moon (Random House, 2011) by Diane Kredensor and Sandra Kress, is a beautifully done picture book that seamlessly combines cartoon-style illustrations with real photographs. (I love the vivid photos! The cover is eye-catching.) The story follows best friends, Ollie and Moon, as they explore the city of Paris while playing a guessing game along the way. Young readers will enjoy exploring and playing right along with them. See if you can guess the surprise that Ollie has for Moon at the end of the book. No peeking!

Woo Hoo!! I’ve got an incredible new interview for you today. Author/Illustrator Jef Czekaj has given us some super interesting insight into his background, his workspace, and his inspiration. I especially like his timeless advice to aspiring artists at the end of the interview. And did I see libraries mentioned three times? Awesome!  I guarantee you will enjoy this interview.

Interview With Author and Illustrator Jef Czekaj (5/1/2011)

Q. How did you get your start in children’s books? Were you an author or an illustrator first, or both? 

JC. I loved to draw as a kid. I was shy, and I remember drawing all the time and coming up with crazy little books and comics. I loved Mad Magazine and I drew a superhero parody comic called StupidMan that I thought was the funniest thing ever. I’m fairly confident that it still is. 

Once I went to college for some reason I totally stopped drawing. I guess music became my main creative outlet, but also I was somewhat intimidated by the idea of drawing critiques. I took ZERO studio art classes in college. 

And then after graduation I had a degree in Linguistics and absolutely zero job prospects, so I just started drawing again. It kind of just bubbled up out of my subconscious. Not as some sort of career prospect, just because I was bored. I drew a mini-comic/zine about R2-D2 playing in a rock band (called R2-D2 IS AN INDIE ROCKER). Eventually an issue of it found its way to then-editor of Nickelodeon Magazine, Chris Duffy, who encouraged me to work on kid-friendly material. He’s a great guy who really went out of his way to get underground cartoonists into Nick Mag.  

I drew a comic for them called GRAMPA AND JULIE: SHARK HUNTERS for more than 10 years (there’s an out-of-print collection of some of the strips that you can probably find on Amazon)! Eventually that led to illustrating children’s books and now writing and illustrating them. 

Q. What is your workspace like and what tools do you use to create your art?

JC. My workspace is a mess! I have two drawing desks pushed together that, honestly, is mostly a dumping ground for stuff I don’t have time to put away. At this point I do almost all of my work away from my studio space. Coffee shops and libraries are where I do most of my drawing, specifically Diesel Cafe in Somerville.

As far as tools, my set-up is really basic: I draw the line art with a #2-sized brush with ink on bristol. I try not to get too attached to any particular brand of brush or paper because I get too sad and freaked out if I can’t find that particular product. Then I scan the art and color it in Photoshop on my Mac.

I used to have a very specific regimen, but these days I draw wherever I can with whatever I have.

Q. What authors and illustrators have been inspirations to you?

JC. As a kid I LOVED Ed Emberley, specifically this pretty hard-to-find book called THE WIZARD OF OP. It was very different from his other books; it’s a black and white comic that had all of these trippy op-art effects in it. It’s soooooooo good! I would just check it out from the library over and over again.

I was also obsessed with THE MONSTER AT THE END OF THIS BOOK by Jon Stone and illustrated by Mike Smollin. Right off the bat, that is the best title for a book ever. It’s a Sesame Street book about Grover begging you not to turn the pages of the book, so, of course, you do. My book, CAT SECRETS, is a direct descendant of that book.

Q. You have written and illustrated several picture books. Any favorites?

JC. I guess the diplomatic answer is I love all of my babies equally. As far as reading aloud to kids, HIP AND HOP, DON’T STOP! is my favorite because it allows me to really ham it up. I’ve made loops of popular rap songs (Salt N Pepa, Jay Z, Lil Wayne, etc) that I play and rap over (poorly, but enthusiastically).

Q. What projects are you working on right now?

JC. Right now I am working on a sequel to HIP AND HOP, DON’T STOP! called YES, YES YAUL! And a top-secret book called OINK A DOODLE MOO.

Q. How can fans learn more about you and your work?

JC. www.czekaj.com

www.facebook.com/jefczekajdraws

 

Q. Any closing thoughts or words of wisdom for fans?

JC. When I do presentations at schools and libraries, my main message to kids is that you just need to dive into whatever it is you love doing. Whether it is music, art, animated gifs, or whatever, you just need to do it and not worry about if it’s good or not. I think a lot of kids (and grown-ups too) get really hung up before they even begin a project, worried that somehow they’re not talented enough. 

The great thing about drawing is that you don’t need anything fancy. I just draw in junky notebooks that I buy at CVS, just like I did when I was 8-years-old. If I draw a picture I don’t like, who cares? I just draw a new one!

  Done in a colorful cartoon style, A Call For A New Alphabet (2011, Charlesbridge) by Jef Czekaj is engaging and lively. The author/illustrator managed to create a book that kids will enjoy, and at the same time, they will learn a lot about the alphabet. They will learn about “i before e except after c”. They will learn about consonants and vowels. They will learn about silent letters and how p and h together sound like the letter f and how sometimes the letter y acts more like a vowel than a consonant and they will learn a lot of new words. PHEW! Yes, he managed to cram all of that and more into one picture book and he did it in a super fun way. A Call For A New Alphabet is well worth a read.

  Cat Secrets by Jef Czekaj (2011, Balzer+Bray) is a great pick for the youngest book lovers. The illustrations are cartoon or comic style, colorful, and lively. Kids will have a great time proving they are “cats” by meowing, purring, and stretching. This book would prove popular in a group setting, perhaps in school or in a library story-time session. See if the kids notice the little mouse sneaking onto the pages.

  Can you say “adorable elephant”? Quick, Slow, Mango by Anik McGrory (Bloomsbury, 2011) is a story about friendship. But it also conveys a message to young readers about when it’s appropriate to be quick and when it’s better to be slow. Fantastic pencil and watercolor illustrations adorn this action-filled story. The littlest picture book fans will fall in love with Kidogo the elephant and PolePole the monkey. Along the way, readers will learn some new words. A note in the front of the book says: “The word kidogo means little in Kiswahili. Pole, pole means slowly, slowly and is often used to remind people to take their time.”

  Wolves by Emily Gravett (2006, Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers) is great fun! Would you like to teach your little reader about wolves in a fun and engaging way? This is the book for you. Here’s the gist of the story: A little rabbit goes to the library and checks out a book about wolves. As the story progresses, he learns more and more about wolves while being blissfully unaware that he is getting closer and closer to an actual wolf. This book is packed with interesting visuals from cover to cover and everywhere in between. I love the unique multimedia illustrations! There’s not a lot of color, but this book doesn’t need it. I think the lack of color, with the splashes of bright red, add to the drama of the story. Wolves is a terrific picture book. There’s even a surprise alternate ending! Check it out!

  Wow! This is a gorgeous Christmas/Wintertime book! It’s virtually wordless, but so well done that I didn’t even realize it until-well-right now. The title is Small, Medium & Large. It was created by Jane Monroe Donovan and published in 2010 by Sleeping Bear Press. This book is full of beautifully detailed illustrations that tell the story of a little girl and the three special gifts that she receives for Christmas. I don’t want to give anything away, but here’s a hint-animal lovers of all ages will like this book too. This one is a must see! I’m going to look for more by this author/illustrator.

Update: 3/5/2011

Below is a review of Small, Medium, & Large by Emma Cortese, Ph.D. She offers a different and more detailed perspective than my review above.

This is a truly wonderful illustrated book that conveys a story about a little girl and the gifts of animal friends from Santa.  

Double pages introduce the exterior setting with regard to place and season, followed by more double pages which establish the interior setting and plot line.  The main character writes a letter to Santa, “…”I don’t need any new toys this year, but…”  From this start Donovan sets the stage for children to use critical skills such as prediction and speculation in a narrative that unfolds in linked events. 

Realistic depictions draw the reader in with familiar detail.  For example, the vivid two page depiction of small, medium and large gifts by the tree provides multiple instances where objects and their arrangement are suggestive for guided inferences. 

A series of 13 scenes over 8 pages depicts Sammy and her animal friends at snow play. These action packed vignettes are especially engaging.  The story further unfolds with inside activities of baking, fireside relaxing, and finally there is closure with a thank you letter to Santa.  

Young children will be totally absorbed in the large, soft color illustrations which present ample opportunity for an imaginative reading experience.

Thank you, Emma, for offering your interesting and descriptive take on this truly remarkable picture book.