Illustrator Presentation
Name: Chris Van Allsburg
Biographical Information:
-born June 18, 1949 in Grand Rapids, Michigan
-writes and illustrates his own books (15 so far) and does illustrations for other children’s books
-Wife persuaded him to use his drawings to illustrate a story book while he was a sculptor
Awards: (The major ones)
-Caldecott Honor Medal for “The Garden of Abdul Gasazi” (1980)
-Caldecott Medals for “Jumanji” and “The Polar Express”
Interesting Facts: creates a story by posing questions for himself- calls it the “what if” and “what then”
approach- used with “Jumanji” and “The Polar Express”.
-likes to use perspective, light, and point of view to give a mysterious quality to each of his pictures(usually have to look really close to see it).
Major Works:
1. The Polar Express (1985)
Awards- 1986 Caldecott Award; 1986 Boston Globe Horn Book Award for Illustration; 1987
Kentucky Bluegrass Award, and many more…(it’s a long list)
2. The Stranger (1986)
Awards- 1986 New York Times Best Illustrated Children’s Books Citation and Parent’s Choice
Award for illustration from the Parent’s Choice Foundation
3. Jumanji (1981)
Awards-1982 Caldecott Medal; 1982 Boston Globe Horn Book Award for illustration; 1982
Children’s Choice form the International Reading Association; 1982 American Book Award for
illustration from the Association of American Publishers, and many more (it’s a long list)
4. The Sweetest Fig (1993)
Awards- 1995 Rhode Island Children’s Book Award; 1996 Pennsylvania Young Reader’s Choice
Award [Grades 3-8]
5. Two Bad Ants (1988)
Awards-1991 Washington Children’s Choice Picture Book Award; 1992 Georgia Children’s
Book Award; 1993 Maryland Children’s Book Award
Book Featured:
The Polar Express (in case you can’t read the cover)
Summary: On Christmas Eve a magical steam engine train takes children, including the main
character, on an equally magical journey to the North Pole. There they see elves and the big man himself,
Santa Claus, who chooses one of the children to receive the first gift of Christmas. And all of this takes
place just before Midnight when Santa takes his legendary ride.
Why read it?: It tells of a journey that all children at a young age wish that they could take. It
also shows us that if you believe in something hard enough then it will become true, because seeing is
believing. I also believe that it holds a certain magical quality of Christmas that many children see. I’ve
read the book and I wish that the train ride was real so that I could go on it.
Genre: Fiction/Picture Book
Works Cited:
Van Allsburg, Chris. “Books”. Chris Van Allsburg. Glad Works, 2004. Web. 30 January 2013.
www.chrisvanallsburg.com/books.html.
Van Allsburg, Chris. “News: Awards”. Chris Van Allsburg. Glad Works, 2004. Web. 30 January 2013.
www.chrisvanallsburg.com/awards.html.
Van Allsburg, Chris. “About Chris: Biography”. Chris Van Allsburg. Glad Works, 2004. Web. 30
January 2013. www.chrisvanallsburg.com/biography.html.
“Bio: Chris Van Allsburg”. Scholastic, 2004. Web. 30 January 2013.
www.scholastic.com/teachers/contributor/Chris-van-allsburg.
“Who is Harris Burdick?: Chris Van Allsburg”. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company, 2011.
Web. 7 February 2013.
www.hmhbooks.com/features/harrisburdick/about_chris_van_allsburg.html.
DAVID SMALL
Biographical Information:
David Small was born and raised in Detroit,
Michigan. After attempting to launch a career in writing
plays, Small took a friend’s advice and went into
illustration. Once he got his MFA from the Yale Graduate
School of Art, David taught college art. As he was
approaching tenure, he was approached to illustrate a
picture book called “Eulalie and the Hopping Head.”
Although he never got tenure, many illustration
opportunities followed. His illustrations have appeared regularly in The New Yorker and The
New York Times. He has won several awards including the 1997 Caldecott Honor, the
Christopher Medal, and the 2001 Caldecott Medal. So far, Small has illustrated over forty
picture books with an average of forty pages per book.
Awards (The Most Important Ones):
 Caldecott Honor Book for 1998
 Christopher Award
 Randolph Caldecott Medal for Most Distinguished Picture Book of 2001
Interesting Facts:
 David Small’s friend told him that his doodles in telephone pads were very good. That
friend’s words made him switch his major to Art.
 “The Gardener”, which won the 1997 Caldecott Honor and the Christopher Award was
written by his wife, Sarah Stewart.
Major Work:
 “That Book Woman
 “The Underneath”
 “When Dinosaurs Came With Everything”
 “The Mouse and His Child”
 “The Journey”
 “So You Want To Be President?”
 “The Gardener”
 “The Library”
 “George Washington’s Cows”
 “Ruby Mae Has Something To Say”
 “Imogene’ Antlers”
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“Eulalie and the Hopping Head”
Featured Book:
 Title: “So You Want To Be President?”
 The story tells about the various good and bad
things about being the president. For example,
a great thing about being president is that the
president gets to live in the White House and
inside the White House there is a bowling
alley. But one of the bad things, according to
the book, is that the president has to wear
fancy clothes all the time. The book also gives
examples of presidents who didn’t like
wearing bad clothes, or weren’t liked publicly.
Then the book goes on to describe the
similarities of the presidents, such as their first
names and the fact that many were born in a log cabin. The book continues by giving
examples of presidents that were very different from other presidents, like how they
looked or what kind of president they were. Throughout the book, the author continues
to describe how presidents were similar and different and what it takes to be president.
 Children would connect to this book because the comparisons between presidents are
very simple comparisons. For example, this many presidents grew up in log cabins and
this many presidents had the first name “James”. The good things and the bad things
about being president in this book are very simple, such as living in the White House or
getting a cabbage thrown at your head. Children understand these concepts and the
language in this book is appropriate for their age. Children often learn about the
presidents and this book is an interesting way for students to learn about the presidents
and how the executive branch works.
 Genre: Fiction
 Sources:
o davidsmallbooks.com
o http://nccil.org/experience/artists/smalld/index.htm
o http://us.macmillan.com/author/davidsmall
David Wiesner’s books have been translated into more
than a dozen languages worldwide. He has won
numerous awards, including receiving three Caldecott
Awards. He is only the second person to have won
three awards. He also has two Caldecott Honors
Awards and the Japan Picture Book Award. He has also
been on the New York Times Best Sellers List. Wiesner grew up in New Jersey where he was
nicknamed by classmates as “the one who could draw”. He studied at the Rhode Island School
of Design, where he realized that picture books were his passion (Wiesner, 1).
Wiesner as a child had a vivid imagination. He followed his imaginary playmates into the pages
of the books he was reading. He would imagine himself inside the Encyclopedia, wandering
among the dinosaurs. Becoming one with the books gave him his admiration for detail, a love
of the creative process and a curiosity about the drawings themselves and how they were done
(Wiesner, 2).
His major works include:
1.) Tuesday (1991) (Caldecott Award)
2.) The Three Pigs (2001) (Caldecott Award)
3.) Flotsman (2006) (Caldecott Award)
4.) Free Fall (1998) (Caldecott Honor)
5.) Sector 7 (1999) (Caldecott Honor)
6.) Art & Max (2010) (Monarch Award Nominee 2013)
7.) Hurricane (1990)
8.) The Loathsome Dragon (1987)
9.) June 29,1999 (1992)
10.)Night of the Gargoyles (1994)
(Wiesner, 1)
Art & Max
In this story, Arthur (Max calls him Art) is a painter. Max is a
younger want to be painter. Max is not as serious about
painting as Art is. The two friends get just a little creative in
their art. When Max asks Art what he should paint, Art says
“paint me”. Max takes this literally, and begins throwing
paint on Art. Of course this does not sit well with Art, and
through Max attempting to remove the paint, Art becomes
nothing but an outline of his actual self. Max, through ingenuity and perseverance, figures out
how to put Art back together and by the end Art even begins having fun with painting and
begins to paint a cactus, by throwing paint all over it like Max did to him.
My favorite part: After covering Art in paint Art says “This is preposterous!” But Max ignores
Art and says “Ooh! Turn around- I missed a spot!” I love Max’s enthusiasm and that he
completely ignores Art’s objections (Wiesner, 3).
I think children will connect with this book because it is so colorful and funny. I do think that
it is geared a little towards older kids as for the story. It is a little hard to read at first;
understanding who said what and exactly what is going on. Younger kids could get the point
with just the pictures though. Who wouldn’t love two lizards throwing paint all around?
Wiesner uses many elements in this picture storybook. His style is realistic and he uses acrylic,
pastel, watercolors, and India ink throughout his illustrations. He does not use any negative
space in his pictures and he uses a lot of textures and shapes.
CITATIONS
1. Wiesner, David. Copyright © 2013 Houghton Mifflin Company.
www.hmhbooks.com/wiesner/biography.html
2. Wiesner, David. Art & Max. New York, New York. Clarion Books, 2010.
3. Wiesner, David. The Origin of a Wordless Author. Copyright © 2013 Houghton Mifflin
Company. www.houghtonmifflinbooks.com/authors/wiesner/bio/bio.shtml
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Denise Brunkus
Lives in Mass. with her husband and daughter
She has illustrated over 60 books including the Junie B. Jones Series.
She's designed stickers, toys, and greeting cards, and her illustrations have appeared in
national magazines.
Her major works have been the Junie B. Jones series that has won over 40 awards,
including 25 Children’s Choice Awards.
The series was started in 1992.
Another major work of hers is called Read All About It! By Laura and Jenna Bush
It was publicized in 2010.
Junie B. Jones and her Big Fat Mouth starts off with Junie B. blurting out something that
gets her in trouble in class. The next day in class is career day and Junie B. doesn’t know
what she wants to be when she grows up. At recess she runs into the janitor at school
and decides she wants to be a janitor when she grows up. Her
classmates start laughing at her and Mrs. (her teacher) decides to
invite the janitor to the class to talk about his job. Children can connect
because it is something that they go through. These books tell the
stories about the things a kindergartner would go through. Its genre is
humor and realistic fiction.
http://juniebjones.com/illustrator
http://www.harpercollinschildrens.com/kids/authorsandillustrators/contributordetail.aspx?cid=
26798
http://www.jacketflap.com/denise-brunkus/37499
1. Junie B. Jones and Her Big Fat Mouth
2. Junie B., First Grader (at last!)
3. The Principal’s New Clothes
Mary Allin
Illustrators’’ Name:
Leo & Diane Dillon
Biographical Information:
Leo’s parents immigrated to the US from Trinidad. He was born in New York on March 2, 1933. Diane
was born the same year in California. Leo and Diane met in Parsons School of Design in NY. They
graduated in 1956 and married the next year. They have used several mediums such as acrylic paints,
tempura paints, oil paints, watercolor, and India ink.
Awards:
2 Caldecott Medals, 2 Coretta Scott King Awards, 4 New York Times Best Illustrated Awards, 4 Boston
Globe Awards, 1 Society of Illustrators Gold Medal
Interesting Facts:
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Leo was the first African American to win the Caldecott.
Leo and Diane won the Caldecott Medal two years in a row, which has never been done before.
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They would color over the characters in son’s books to make them Black, Hispanic, or Asian.
Although they illustrated several book about African cultures, they have never been to Africa.
Major Works:
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Why Mosquitoes Buzz in People’s Ears (1976) Winner of Caldecott Medal
Mansa Musa (2001)
Rap a Tap Tap (2002) Winner of Coretta Scott King Illustrator Honor
The People Could Fly (2005) Winner of Coretta Scott King Illustrator Honor
Jazz on a Saturday Night (2007)
Featured Book:
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Ashanti to Zulu (1977) Winner of Caldecott
This is a themed alphabet book. It describes the cultures of African tribes from A to Z. The
illustrations depict at least one woman, one man, one child, and one local animal of each tribe.
Illustrations are in watercolor, acrylic, and pastel.
Although written over 35 years ago, children still can benefit from learning about diverse cultural
traditions of Africa. Children of recent immigrants can learn about heritage.
The book’s genre is informational and culturally diverse.
Works Cited:
Leeper, R. (N/A). Leo and Diane Dillon. National Center for Children’s Illustrated
Literature. Retrieved from http://www.nccil.org/experience/artists/dillon/
Fox, M. (2012). Leo Dillon, Celebrated Illustrator of Children’s Books, is Dead at
79. The New York Times. Retrieved from
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/31/books/leo-dillon-illustrator-of-childrensbooks-dies-at-79.html?_r=0
Scholastic. (Producer). (2003). Leo and Diane Dillon Interview Transcript.
Retrieved from http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/article/leo-and-diane-dilloninterview-transcript
Ernest Howard Shepard
E.H. Shepard was born on December 10, 1879 in St. Johns Wood, London. He was born
into an artistically talented family. His Grandfather, William Lee, was a painter who mastered in
water colors. His Father, Henry Donkin Shepard, was an architect. Shepard’s parents required
him and his two siblings to play the violin. They were always performing in plays, and painting
pictures, and occupying themselves playing music. Shepard loved to draw as a little boy. He
grew up with a dream of drawing for PUNCH magazine. He was accepted and attended
Heatherleys School of Fine Art in Chelsea. He went there for only one year till he won a
scholarship to attend the Royal Academy School of Art.
He enlisted into the army and worked for the intelligence department. He would sketch
combat areas from different battle positions during World War I. In 1918 he was given the
Military Cross of Bravery. While in the war Shepard would draw battle scenes and write jokes
and send them into PUNCH. Once he was out of the military his childhood dream came true.
PUNCH magazine hired Shepard as a cartoonist. (PUNCH was a British weekly magazine of jokes
and satires.) He eventually ended up as lead cartoonist. While working for PUNCH Shepard
met a man named E.V. Lucas. It was Lucas that introduced Shepard to A.A. Milne, the writer of
Winnie the Pooh.
At first Milne was not confident about Shepard’s artistic technique but he went ahead
and went with Shepard to illustrate “When We Were Very Young.” It was this book that the
famous Pooh Bear made his debut in the poem “Teddy Bear.” Milne loved Shepard’s finished
work for this book and he demanded that Shepard illustrate his book “Winnie-The-Pooh” as
well. Shepard made Winnie the Pooh come alive, his illustrations were genius. (Shepard was
inspired not by Milne’s son, Christopher Robin’s stuffed bear but by his own sons stuffed bear
“Growler.”) Milne realized that Shepard’s art greatly contributed to the success of Pooh Bear
that he arranged for Shepard to receive a percentage of all Pooh royalties. Even though, Milne
and Shepard worked a great amount of time together, they were never considered friends.
Shepard said that every time they would meet to collaborate he felt as if he left and would have
to start all over again.
Later in life Shepard regretted that he ever agreed to illustrate Winnie the Pooh. He
would speak of Pooh as “that silly bear.” He said that “that silly bear” took a huge chunk of his
time and it outshone the rest of his work. (In fact everyone close to the Winnie the Pooh books
eventually resented the bear.) E.H. Shepard died on March 24, 1976 at the age of 96 years old.
His grave is at Lodsworth Churchyard in West Sussex, England.
Major Works
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
“When We Were Very Young” by A.A. Milne, 1924, Best-selling book of Poetry.
“A Book of Children’s Verse” by Edward V. Lucas, 1925.
“Winnie the Pooh” by A.A. Milne, 1926.
“Now we are Six” by A.A. Milne, 1927.
“The House at Pooh Corner” by A.A. Milne, 1928.
“The Golden Age” by Kenneth Grahame, 1928.
“Dream Days” by Kenneth Grahame, 1930.
“The Wind in the Willows” by Kenneth Grahame, 1931, Mr. Toad #38 in the Top 100
best fiction Characters since 1900.
9. “As the Bee Sucks” by Edward V. Lucas, 1937.
10. “The Reluctant Dragon” by Kenneth Grahame, 1939.
11. “The Cuckoo Clock” by Mary Louisa Molesworth, 1954.
12. “Mary in the Country” by Muriel Wace, 1955.
13. “The Glass Slipper” by Eleanor Farjeon, 1955.
14. “Modern Fairy Tales” by Roger Lancelyn Green, 1955.
15. “Drawn from Memory” by E.H. Shepard, 1957.
16. “Old Greek Fairy Tales” by Roger Lancelyn Green, 1958
17. “Tom Brown’s School Days” by Thomas Hughes, 1959.
Featured Title
The Wind in the Willows
Written by Kenneth Grahame and illustrated by Ernest H. Shepard in 1931. The book
was first published with no illustrations in 1908. Many different artists have published
illustrated versions over the years but it is said that author Grahame was the most pleased by
E.H. Shepard’s illustrations. Grahame believed Shepard made his character’s come alive. This
book is a Fiction, animal fantasy, children’s novel. Children connect to this book because of the
fun fantasy. The animals playing the roles of humans and portraying all human emotions allows
children’s imagination go wild. They connect to a specific character and they get lost in their
adventures.
This novel is about four animal friends. A mole, the home body, who stops his spring
cleaning and leaves his home to discover the world. A water rat named Ratty, the tranquil one,
who loves wondering about in his boat. A toad named Mr. Toad, the irresponsible, spoiled one
who has a need for speed. A badger, the wise old hermit, who was friends with Mr. Toad’s
father. After short adventures we find that Mr. Toad loses his home passed to him from his
father to stoats, ferrets, and weasels. The four friends come together and plot a way to help
their friend to get back Toad Hall.
Works Cited
British Cartoon Archive. (n.d.). Ernest Howard Shepard. Retrieved from
http://www.cartoons.ac.uk/artists/ernest-howardshepard/biography
Pooh Corner. (1999 - 2013). Ernest S. Shepard, illustrator. Retrieved from
http://www.poohcorner.com/Ernest-H.-Shepard-Illustrator.html
Benson, T. (2006, March 06). The Man Who Hated Pooh. Retrieved from
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/4772370.stm
Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. (n.d.). E. H. Shepard. Retrieved from
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/E._H._Shepard
Ezra Jack Keats
Ezra Jack Keats was born on March 11, 1916. It was evident early on that the boy
known as Jacob “Jack” Ezra Katz was an artistically gifted child. A good student who excelled in
art, he was awarded a medal for drawing on graduating from Junior High School 149. The
medal, though unimpressive-looking, meant a great deal to him, and Ezra kept it all his life.
While at Thomas Jefferson High School, he won a national student contest run by the
Scholastic Publishing Company for one of his oil paintings, depicting hobos warming
themselves around a fire. Ezra was unable to attend art school despite having received three
scholarships. His father passed away right before his graduation so he had to work to support
his family. He still continued to take art classes. Ezra got a job as an illustrator and illustrated
comic books, magazine and newspaper articles, and covers. In doing so, Ezra became
interested in writing and illustrating his own works. He worked with Patt Cherr to write My Dog is
Lost. It is a story about a boy who loses his dog in New York City. Several of Ezras’ stories draw
from universal childhood experiences such as getting bulled, losing a pet, etc. The multi-cultural
characters in his stories are from those he has actually met while growing up. One day while
reading a magazine, Keats found a picture of an African-American boy that inspired him. This
young boy became the character, Peter. The book featuring Peter, The Snowy Day, was
awarded the Caldecott Medal in 1963, the most distinguished honor available for illustrated
children’s literature at the time. Peter appears in six more books, growing from a small boy in
The Snowy Day to adolescence in Pet Show! In his evolution from fine artist to children’s book
illustrator, Ezra applied influences and techniques that had inspired him as a painter, from
cubism to abstraction, within a cohesive, and often highly dramatic, narrative structure. His
artwork also demonstrates an enormous emotional range, swinging from exuberant whimsy to
deep desolation and back again. By the time of Ezra’s death following a heart attack in 1983, he
had illustrated over 85 books, and written and illustrated 22 children’s classics.
Major Works:

Whistle for Willie
Publication Date: September 04, 1964
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In a Spring Garden
Publication Date: 1965
Library of Congress Books of the Year, 1965
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Hi, Cat!
Publication Date: 1970
Boston Globe-Horn Book Award for illustration, 1970
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Goggles!
Publication Date: November 01, 1998
Caldecott Medal Honor Book, 1970
 The Trip
Publication Date: 1978
Boston Globe-Horn Book Award for illustration, 1977
The Snowy Day
I
In this book, Peter wakes up and there is snow outside. He decides to go play in the snow. At
first he wants to play in a snowball fight but knows he isn’t quite old enough yet so instead he
plays with a stick, builds a snowman, etc. He comes up with all of these new ideas in this new
world of snow. He has a dream that night that the snow melted but when he wakes up it is still
snowing!
Children would connect to The Snowy Day because Peter is a child as well. Children could get
ideas of things to do in the snow, or see that Peter does the same things that they do.
Genre: Fiction
Ezra Jack Keats
Ezra Jack Keats was born on March 11, 1916. It was evident early on that the boy
known as Jacob “Jack” Ezra Katz was an artistically gifted child. A good student who excelled in
art, he was awarded a medal for drawing on graduating from Junior High School 149. The
medal, though unimpressive-looking, meant a great deal to him, and Ezra kept it all his life.
While at Thomas Jefferson High School, he won a national student contest run by the
Scholastic Publishing Company for one of his oil paintings, depicting hobos warming
themselves around a fire. Ezra was unable to attend art school despite having received three
scholarships. His father passed away right before his graduation so he had to work to support
his family. He still continued to take art classes. Ezra got a job as an illustrator and illustrated
comic books, magazine and newspaper articles, and covers. In doing so, Ezra became
interested in writing and illustrating his own works. He worked with Patt Cherr to write My Dog is
Lost. It is a story about a boy who loses his dog in New York City. Several of Ezras’ stories draw
from universal childhood experiences such as getting bulled, losing a pet, etc. The multi-cultural
characters in his stories are from those he has actually met while growing up. One day while
reading a magazine, Keats found a picture of an African-American boy that inspired him. This
young boy became the character, Peter. The book featuring Peter, The Snowy Day, was
awarded the Caldecott Medal in 1963, the most distinguished honor available for illustrated
children’s literature at the time. Peter appears in six more books, growing from a small boy in
The Snowy Day to adolescence in Pet Show! In his evolution from fine artist to children’s book
illustrator, Ezra applied influences and techniques that had inspired him as a painter, from
cubism to abstraction, within a cohesive, and often highly dramatic, narrative structure. His
artwork also demonstrates an enormous emotional range, swinging from exuberant whimsy to
deep desolation and back again. By the time of Ezra’s death following a heart attack in 1983, he
had illustrated over 85 books, and written and illustrated 22 children’s classics.
Major Works:

Whistle for Willie
Publication Date: September 04, 1964

In a Spring Garden
Publication Date: 1965
Library of Congress Books of the Year, 1965
 Hi, Cat!
Publication Date: 1970
Boston Globe-Horn Book Award for illustration, 1970

Goggles!
Publication Date: November 01, 1998
Caldecott Medal Honor Book, 1970
 The Trip
Publication Date: 1978
Boston Globe-Horn Book Award for illustration, 1977
The Snowy Day
I
In this book, Peter wakes up and there is snow outside. He decides to go play in the snow. At
first he wants to play in a snowball fight but knows he isn’t quite old enough yet so instead he
plays with a stick, builds a snowman, etc. He comes up with all of these new ideas in this new
world of snow. He has a dream that night that the snow melted but when he wakes up it is still
snowing!
Children would connect to The Snowy Day because Peter is a child as well. Children could get
ideas of things to do in the snow, or see that Peter does the same things that they do.
Genre: Fiction
Sources:
http://www.ezra-jack-keats.org/introduction/a-biography/
http://www.brainpopjr.com/readingandwriting/authors/ezrajackkeats/preview.weml
http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/bookwizard/books-by/ezra-jack-keats
http://childrensbooks.about.com/cs/authorsillustrato/a/ezrajackkeats.htm
Fancy Nancy
Fancy Nancy is about a girl who must do everything “fancy”.
She refers to everything with a fancier name. In the book, she
attempts to make her family fancy. They come to her class, and she
teaches them how to be fancy. They decide to go to dinner and at
dinner Fancy Nancy drops the ice cream. In the end, she loves her
family and she says that “there isn’t a fancy-or better-way of saying
[I love you]”. I think it’s easy for children to connect to this book
because every child enjoys being creative and Fancy Nancy is just
that. It teaches them that it’s okay to have an imagination.
Felicia Bond
Biography
-Felicia was raised in New York and Texas. She was the second child from a family of seven. She graduated from
the University of Texas at Austin, where she received a degree in Fine Arts. She lived in New York for about 10
years where she was writing and illustrating and also an art director for a publishing company. She has published
over twenty books. She now lives in Austin, Texas. Her first work was Poinsettia and Her Family which has become
a children’s book staple in the 15 years since its publication.
Fun Facts:
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She has six cats which explain her special interests in animals!
Her other special interests are reading, dancing, and cooking.
Major works:
If You Give a Moose a Muffin 1991
By Laura Numeroff
Illustrated by Felicia Bond
-IRA/CBC Children's Choice
If You Give a Mouse a Cookie 25th Anniversary Edition 1985
By Laura Joffe Numeroff
Illustrated by Felicia Bond
-California Young Reader Medal
-Colorado Children’s Book Award
-Buckeye Children’s Book Award (Ohio)
-Georgia Children’s Picture Storybook Award
-Nevada Young Readers’ Award
If You Give a Pig a Pancake 1998
By Laura Numeroff
Illustrated by Felicia Bond
-IRA/CBC Children's Choice
If You Take a Mouse to School 2002
By Laura Numeroff
Illustrated by Felicia Bond
-IRA/CBC Children's Choice
If You Take a Mouse to the Movies 2000
By Laura Numeroff
Illustrated by Felicia Bond
-IRA/CBC Children's Choice
If You Give a Mouse a Cookie
-It’s about a mouse that is given a cookie and then continues to ask for things as he given what he asked for.
It’s a great book for sequencing of events and predicting what he may ask for next.
-Children love this book because it’s funny and they learn about different things.
-Children’s literature
Sources
http://lookingglassreview.com/html/felicia_bond.html
http://www.harpercollinschildrens.com/
http://www.eduplace.com/kids/tnc/mtai/bond.html
Hans Augusto Rey (H.A. Rey) (1898-1977) - Had started drawing animals at young age, he was
influenced by the Hagenbeck Zoo where he grew up in Germany. He was recognized by a
French publisher who encouraged him to expand his drawings. Rey published his first book,
Raffy and the Nine Monkeys, and one of the main characters was Curious George. Rey decided
that Curious George deserved his own book, and started writing and drawing.
Interesting Fact: H.A. Rey and his wife Margret, both grew up in Germany, moved to Paris.
The day Hitler took over Paris, the Rey’s had already left a couple hours prior on bicycles. The
only had their clothes and a couple manuscripts of Curious George; they traveled for four days
on their bicycles. The Rey’s then sold their bikes for train tickets when they reached the FrenchSpanish border. Then they finally made it to New York City to start a new life.
Major Works: The very first book was Curious George and was published by Houghton Mifflin
in 1941. They Rey’s had only written 7 originals; Curious George: Takes a Job (1947), Rides a
Bike (1952) , Gets a Medal (1957), Flies a Kite (1958), Learns the Alphabet (1963), Goes to the
Hospital (1966).
Curious George Goes to a Chocolate Factory
Curious George goes to a chocolate factory with the guy in the yellow hat, while waiting for the
man to buy his chocolate, he sees people standing around. George ends up in the kitchen and
speeds up the machine causes everyone to work faster; he helps by eating some and putting some
in boxes. At the end of the day he is hero, and is offered chocolate but declines due to all the
chocolate he ate while he was there.
Children love chocolate, and will find it funny that he messes with the machine and all the adults
are running around while George is eating the chocolate. And when the chocolate is listed in the
book, kids will be able to connect and share their favorite as well.
Curious George is a fiction book, due to the monkey travels to a chocolate factory.
Sources:
http://www.houghtonmifflinbooks.com/features/cgsite/history.shtml
http://gr-assets.com/author/show/967839.H_A_Rey
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_ss_i_6_20?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&fieldkeywords=curious+george+goes+to+a+chocolate+factory&sprefix=curious+george+goes+%2Cs
tripbooks%2C182&rh=n%3A283155%2Ck%3Acurious+george+goes+to+a+chocolate+factory
Julissa Diaz
February 4th, 2013
Children’s Literature 386
Illustrator Study
Jack E. Davis was born and raised in Nebraska. Before
becoming a children’s illustrator, Jack E. Davis was a
senior director of a large advertisement agency! Jack lives
in Port Townsend, Washington with his three sons and two
cats.
AWARD:New York Society of Illustrators Gold Medal
Award for Humor
An interesting fact that I read about Jack Davis was that the only reason he started
drawing was because his car blew up! He ended up drawing a picture of it for his coworkers, when he worked at a small printing company, and they recognized his talent.
They then made him the senior art director of the agency. He eventually ended up
leaving the company, and became a freelance illustrator!
MAJOR WORKS: Marsupial Sue (2001), Marsupial Sue presents the Runaway Pancake
(2005), Goldie and the Three Hares (2011), Bunion Burt (2009), T. Rex and the Mother’s Day
Hug (2011), Stanza (2009), Dirty Joe, the Pirate: A True Story (2008), I Am the Dog (2010)
Chosen Book:
Marsupial Sue presents the Runaway Pancake
This book is about Marsupial Sue, and her Australian
friends creating a play. In the play, the characters are
trying as hard as they can to eat this pancake, but no matter
how hard they try they can’t seem to catch the pancake.
I believe children will connect to this book because it will
remind them of plays they have seen. It’s also great for
kids because they get to use memorization and realize that
being creative and being unique isn’t something that goes
away with age. The genre of this book is fiction; animal
fantasy.
SOURCES:
"MB Artists: Jack E. Davis." MB Artists: Jack E. Davis. N.p., n.d. Web. 04 Feb. 2013.
<http://www.mbartists.com/cgi-bin/iowa/artists.html?artist=12>.
"Simon & Schuster." Simon & Schuster. N.p., n.d. Web. 04 Feb. 2013.
<http://authors.simonandschuster.com/Jack-E-Davis/1809686>.
"Jack E. Davis." From HarperCollins Publishers. N.p., n.d. Web. 06 Feb. 2013.
<http://www.harpercollins.com/authors/20917/Jack_E_Davis/index.aspx>.
Pig in Disguise
Directions: The characters of the Runaway Pancake were all actually
animals playing other animals! In this activity, you have to be as
creative as possible to turn this pig into some other animal of your
choosing! Be creative!
Illustrator Presentation
Name: Jan Brett
Biographical Info: Born in Hingham, Massachusetts Dec 1, 1949. She still resides close to where she was
born. She is an American author.
Awards: Jan hasn’t won any big awards for her books. She has been on The New York Times “Children’s
Picture Book Bestseller List” many times since 2002.
Interesting Facts: Travel is her inspiration. She was a co-creator of
Reading Rainbow.
Major Works: Fritz and the Beautiful Horses (1981)
The First Dog (1988)
The Wild Christmas Reindeer (1990)
Berlioz The Bear (1991)
Trouble With Trolls (1992)
Christmas Trolls (1993)
Armadillo Rodeo (1993)
Comet’s Nine Lives (1996)
The Hat (1997)
Hedgie’s Surprise (2000)
Christmas Treasury (2001)
Daisy Comes Home (2002)
Hedgie Blasts Off (2006)
Gingerbread Friends (2008)
The Easter Egg (2010)
The 3 Little Dassies (2010)
Home For Christmas (2011)
Beauty And The Beast (2012)
Annie And The Wild Animals (2012)
Mossy (2012)
The Book Featured: The Umbrella (2004)
A little boy named Carlos takes his umbrella into the rainforest. He goes in search of many animals. To get a better
view of animals, he drops his umbrella and climbs a tree. With each turn of a page, things start to fall into the
umbrella, which causes animals to fall into it. The umbrella tips over. The animals then all fall out. Carlos never sees
the animals that he set out to see. He picks his umbrella back up and goes home.
Children would connect to the book because it is about a little boy in search of animals. I think children would be
captivated to learn about animals that live in the rainforest.
Genre: Animal Fantasy
Sources:
Welcome to the World of Jan Brett. N.p., n.d. Google. Web. 3 Feb. 2013. http://www.janbrett.com/index.html.
Wikipedia. N.p., 2 Feb. 2013. Google. Web. 6 Feb. 2013. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jan_Brett.
Scholastic. N.p., 2013. Google. Web. 6 Feb. 2013. http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/contributor/jan-brett.
Illustrator: Jerry Pinkney
Born December 22, 1939 in Philadelphia, PA, Jerry was the middle son with five other siblings.
Growing up he struggled with dyslexia, but excelled with art. Art Dobbins Vocational High
School Jerry studied commercial art. He won a scholarship and continued his studies at The
Philadelphia College of Art. Jerry’s first commercial art job was with a greeting card company.
His first children’s book illustrating was “The Adventures of Spider” (1964) by Joyce Cooper
Arkhurst. Jerry met his wife Gloria Jean in high school and has collaborated as illustrator to her
authored children’s books. Their sons Brian and Myles also create children’s literature. Jerry
Pinkney has numerous awards and accomplishments from awards and Professorships, to an
appointment to the National Endowment for the Arts.
It is interesting that even the Pinkney daughter in-laws are involved in writing children books.
Jerry is not limited as an illustrator for children’s books. His designs are truly worth money,
because he was commissioned to design stamps for the usps.
Jerry Pinkney is well recognized as illustrator so a full award listing could take up 7 pages, so
here are some Major Award highlights: 2010 Caldecott Medal Winner, and five time Honor,Five
time winner of Coretta Scott King Award,1997 US Nominee for Hans Christian Andersen Award
for Illustration
The Lion and the Mouse. 2009: 2010 Caldecott Medal Winner
Jerry Pinkneys beautifully rendered picture book isretelling of an Aesop fable. Every illustration
is so engaging that there is no need for words, but it helps to know the tale. A lion’s kindness is
rewarded with a helping hand when needed. As a fable and moral story the art is rendered
through realisitic watercolor. We are left to personifying the animal characters’s empathically
because the actions not appereance. Children who like animals would be drawn to look through
this book. The only words written are noises that are part of the illustration, so there is no reading
level restrictions that would deter younger children from lookling through this book on their
own. I connected to this book because of the Wild about books story this class began with. Yes I
believe a lion in a zoo would share this book with a kangaroo mouse.
Some of the Children’s Books Jerry Pinkney has illustrated:
McKissick, Patricia
The Adventures of
C.
Spider:
West African Folk
Rabbit Makes a
Tales.1964.
Monkey of Lion. 1989
Arkhurst, Joyce
.Aardema, Verna.
Cooper
Turtle in July. 1989.
The Song of the Trees.
Singer, Marilyn.
1975.
Tayler, Mildred.
The Talking Eggs.
1989.
Jahdu. 1980.
San Souci, Robert
Hamilton, Virginia.
D.
The Patchwork Quilt.
1985.
Flournoy, Valerie.
Pretend You're a Cat.
1990.
Marzollo, Jean.
Mary McLeod Bethune.
1985.
Greenfield,
Eloise.The
Tales of Uncle Remus.
1987.
Lester, Julius.
The Man Who Kept His
Heart in a Bucket.
1991.
Levitin,
Sonia.
Mirandy and Brother
Wind. 1988.
David's Songs. 1992.
Eisler, Colin.
Drylongso. 1992.
Hamilton, Virginia.
A Starlit Somersault
Downhill. 1993.
Willard, Nancy.
Sunday Outing. 1994.
Pinkney, Gloria.
Aesops Fables. 2000.
Pinkney, Jerry.
Sweet Hearts of
Rhythm. 2009.
Nelson, Marilyn
Puss in Boots, 2012
Adapted by Jerry
Pinkney
Resources:
http://www.jerrypinkeystudio.com
http://www.ala,org/alsc/awardsgrants/bookmedia/caldesottmedal/caldecottmedal
http://www.ala.org/emiert/cskbookawards
Spooner, A. (2010). Jerry Pinkney. Horn Book Magazine, 86(4), 25-31
Jon Muth
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Jon Muth was born on July 28, 1960 in Cincinnati Ohio, whose mother was an art teacher. Jon with encouragement from his mother
grew into an American Comic book artist, and a children’s book illustrator. He is also known for his children’s painted artwork. He
studied abroad in Japan, England, Austria, and Germany studying painting, printmaking and drawing.
Jon has many awards including: Book Sense of the Year Award, Children’s Illustrated, Caldecott Honor
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Zen Shorts, March 1, 2005, Caldecott Honor Book
Come On Rain, March 1, 1999, Gold Medal from the Society of Illustrators in 1999
Stone Soup March 1, 2003, National Parenting Book Award
Three Questions April 21, 2002 Book Sense book of the Year Finalist and a NCSS/CBC Notable Social Studies Trade Book for
Young People
Old Turtle and the Broken Truth October 1, 2003
The Christmas Magic, September 1, 2009
Mr. George Baker, June 12, 2007
Zen Ties June 1, 2010
The Christmas Magic
This is a beautiful magical Christmas story from beginning to end. Jon Muth made this story come to life with his beautiful
watercolors. The bright stars grab your eyes attention the moment you open up the book. The crisp white snow and the reindeer make
you feel as if you were in the North Pole. Santa in this book is very humble, and the twist is he’s all alone. There are no elves, or Ms.

Clause just Santa preparing for his magical journey, in his cozy little house. As the night continues the reindeer continue to ask Santa
is the magic here yet? Santa checks his list, packs his huge bag full of toys for the children, shines the sled, and finally the magic is
here. Santa hops in his slay looks back to his cozy little house, and say’s “The Christmas Magic is here at last. It has come as last, as it
always has and always will.”
Children would connect with this book I think because of the warmness it brings. Santa’s house is so cozy and looks similar to an
ordinary house makes it easier to believe Santa is real. The reindeer are so loved by Santa, continuing to ask “is the magic here yet”.
This book’s makes you want to read from start to finish wondering when Santa’s magical journey is going to happen. I believe this
book would touch children deeply in their hearts and them in the Christmas spirit waiting for Santa to make his magical journey to
their home. I can see myself as a future teacher reading this to my class, and one day to my children.
Genre Legend- story handed down by tradition, or possibly a Myth a traditional or legendary story, concerning someone to be a hero,
or event.
Lauren Thompson “ The Christmas Magic” http://collectedmiscellany.com/2011/12/the-christmas-magicby-lauren-thompson-jon-j-muth-illustrator/
“ The Children’s Book Review” http://collectedmiscellany.com/2011/12/the-christmas-magic-by-laurenthompson-jon-j-muth-illustrator/
“ Amazon.com” http://www.amazon.com/Jon-J.-Muth/e/B001H6UCHW
Sarah Meier
TEDU 386
Law-Reed
February 8, 2013
Illustrator Study
Name: Kadir Nelson
Biographical Information: Nelson is from Washington DC, but went to high school in California.
Afterward, he attended the Pratt Institute in New York City. He was initially simply an artist but got into
children’s’ books after illustrating Jerdine Nolen’s book, Big Jabe. Nelson now resides in Southern
California with his wife and two daughters. He’s still an active illustrator who has recently taken to
writing his own books to illustrate, such as his 2012 book, I Have a Dream: Martin Luther King, Jr.
Awards:
- 2008 Caldecott Honor for Henry's Freedom Box (written by Ellen Levine)
-2009 Sibert Medal for We Are the Ship: The Story of Negro League Baseball
- 2009 Coretta Scott King Award for Ellington Was Not a Street (written by Ntozake Shange)
-2012 Coretta Scott King Award for Heart and Soul: The Story of America and African Americans
-2013 Coretta Scott King Award for I Have a Dream: Martin Luther King, Jr.
-The NAACP Image Award for Just the Two of Us (written by Will Smith)
Picture from: kadirnelson.com
Fun Facts:
-He started drawing at age three.
-He’s done paintings for Coca-Cola, Major League Baseball, and the US Postal Service.
-He has paintings being displayed in the United States House of Representatives and the
Baseball Hall of Fame.
-Drew the cover art for Michael Jackson’s posthumous album, “MICHAEL.”
-He’s designed postage stamps.
A Few Major Works:
-We Are the Ship: The Story of Negro League Baseball, 2008
- Heart and Soul: The Story of America and African Americans, 2011
- I Have a Dream: Martin Luther King, Jr., 2012 (Coretta Scott King Award)
- Moses: When Harriet Tubman Led Her People to Freedom, (written by Carole Boston
Weatherford), 2006 (Caldecott Honor book)
-Henry's Freedom Box: A True Story from the Underground Railroad (written by Ellen Levine),
2007 (Caldecott Honor book)
My Book of Choice:
Title: Thunder Rose (written by Jerdine Nolen), 2003
Synopsis: This book is about a girl named Thunder Rose, who is special because she can preform crazy
tasks that require magical powers, as a baby. The illustrations really make the story come to live and
depict the events throughout the book as they occur. My favorite illustration is the one accompanying
her birth; the contrast of the lightening and the darkness of the rest of the picture is simply brilliant.
Connection: Children would love this book because after reading what Thunder Rose can do as a little
girl, they’ll want to see what they’re capable of and feel empowered. Also, because the story depicts
such a creative tone, I think it would be an awesome way to encourage creative writing or introduce it to
children.
Genre: Children’s Fiction
Sources:
Kadir Nelson’s Website
http://www.kadirnelson.com/
Scholastic Biography of Kadir Nelson
http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/contributor/kadir-nelson
Kadir Nelson’s Wikipedia Page
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kadir_Nelson
Picture of Thunder Rose
http://books.google.com/books/about/Thunder_Rose.html?id=1Z9mJXGakLYC
TEDU 386
Illustrator Presentation
Laura Cornell is a talented illustrator who lives in New York City. She decided in college to switch her
major from pre-med to art and that decision has paved her way to her career as an illustrator.
She works closely with the famous author & actress, Jamie Lee Curtis. She illustrated Curtis’s first book
which grew to be 10 books that they have done together. They have been named the #1 New York
Times Bestselling Team.
Major Works
1) Good Night Pillow Fight, 2004
2) Big Words for Little People, 2008
3) Is There Really a Human Race?, 2006
4) I’m Gonna Like Me: Letting Off a Little Self Esteem, 2002
5)
6)
7)
8)
9)
11)
It’s Hard to Be Five: Learning How To Work My Control Panel, 2004
My Brave Year of Firsts: Tries, Sighs, and High Fives, 2012
Tell Me Again About the Night I Was Born, 1996
The Ghost On Saturday Night, 1997
Pie Magic, 1996 10) Monsters In the Attic, 1995
Travelling Backward, 1994 12)Lenora O'Grady, 1992
Featured Book
I’m Gonna Like Me: Letting Off a Little Self Esteem
Genre: Picture Book
This book features two main characters: a boy and a girl. They take turns throughout the story
sharing different things that they like about themselves. There are a variety of areas that are
addressed: physical appearance, feelings, physical abilities, trying new things, making mistakes, and
more! All the areas talked about greatly influence one’s self esteem. The main message of this book
is to like who you are!
Children will connect with this book because everyone has to learn to like who they are and to be
happy with who they are. This book shows a variety of self esteem areas that can be addressed and
built upon at a young age! Plus, the illustrations are fun and engaging!
Cornell’s artwork is cartoon style. It is silly and playful and she uses bright and lively
colors. The faces on her characters are simple yet expressive!
Works Cited
"Authors Laura Cornell Biography." Simon & Schuster. N.p., n.d. Web. 01 Feb. 2013.
"Cornell, Laura." Something About the Author. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. 6 Feb. 2013
<http://www.encyclopedia.com>.
"Laura Cornell - Books, Biography, Contact Information." Laura Cornell - Books, Biography, Contact
Information. N.p., n.d. Web. 01 Feb. 2013.
"Laura Cornell." HarperCollins Children's Books. N.p., n.d. Web. 05 Feb. 2013.
Lois Ehlert
Lois Ehlert was born November 9, 1934 in Wisconsin where she still lives today. She was raised by artistic parents
that encouraged her to create. She claims that she did not choose art, it chose her. She holds degrees from
University of Wisconsin-Madison and Layton School of Art. She has won many award including:
Caldecott Honor Book, 1989, for Color Zoo
Publishers Weekly Best Book of the Year for Snowballs
Booklist Editors' Choice for Cuckoo/Cucú: A Mexican Folktale/Un cuento folklórico mexicano
IRA Teachers' Choice and NCTE Notable Children's Trade Book in the Language Arts for Feathers for Lunch
American Library Association Notable Children's Book and Boston Globe-Horn Book Honor Award for Chicka Chicka
Boom Boom
The style of illustration she uses is known as collage. She paints paper and then cuts and arranges it in the
illustration.
Some of her most popular works are:
Chicka Chicka Boom Boom by Bill Martin Jr. and John Archambault illustrated by Lois Ehlert; published in 1989
Awards: Kentucky Bluegrass Award Winner 1991, Parent’s Choice Award 2003
Color Zoo by Lois Ehlert; published in 1989
Awards: Caldecott Honor Book, Horn Book Fanfare, ALA Notable Children’s Book
Planting a Rainbow by Lois Ehlert; published in 1988
Awards: The John Burroughs List of Nature Books for Young Readers
Eating the Alphabet: Fruits and Vegetables from A to Z by Lois Ehlert; published in 1996
Moon Rope by Lois Ehlert; published in 1992
Snowballs by Lois Elhert; published in 1995
Chicka Chicka Boom Boom
In this book letters of the alphabet are climbing a tree and once they all get to the top the tree topples over and
the letters get injured. The book covers upper and lower case letters as well as rhyming and patterns.
Children connect to this book because of the bright colors and patterns in the illustration as well as the upper case
letters of the alphabet being the parents of the lower case letters. Early readers would also appreciate the rhyming
and repetitive pattern of this book.
This book is a picture alphabet book.
Works Cited
"Author of the Month." McGraw-Hill Higher Education. The McGraw-Hill Companies, n.d. Web. 8 Feb
2013. <http://www.mhhe.com/socscience/education/kidlit/aom/janaom.html>.
"Lois Ehlert." Wikipedia. N.p., 1 2 2013. Web. 8 Feb 2013. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lois_Ehlert>.
"Meet Authors and Illustrators." Children's Literature Comprehensive Database. N.p., 30 12 2004. Web. 8
Feb 2013.
<http://www.childrenslit.com/childrenslit/mai_ehlert_lois.html>.
Louis Darling
Major Works
Darling was born in Stamford,
Connecticut, April 26, 1916 –
January 21, 1970 and would live in
Connecticut for most of his life. He
attended the Grand Central School of
Art in New York City. He married
zoologist and artist Lois MacIntyre in
1946. Darling was an American
illustrator, author, and
environmentalist. He is best known
for his illustrations for the original
editions of Silent Spring and
the Henry Huggins series. Also in
1946, Darling was soon hired by
William Morrow and Company to
illustrate A River Never Sleeps.
Eventually, he began illustrating, and
then writing, children's books. He
was assigned to Beverly Cleary's first
book, Henry Huggins, in 1950, which
began his best-known association; he
would illustrate most of Cleary's
books until his death.
A River Never Sleeps 1946
Henry Huggins 1950
Henry and Ribsy 1954
Fun Facts

Ribsy 1964
The Mouse and the Motorcycle 1965
The Gull's Way 1965 John Burroughs Medal

After Graduation Louis
enlisted in the United States
Army Air Force.
Darling was also an early
environmentalist and
conservationist
Henry Hoggins is just a third
grade boy who thinks nothing special
will ever happen to him until one day
when he finds a lost puppy. All of a
sudden everything about his life
becomes more interesting. Soon a boy
comes claiming the lost dog Ribsy as
his own but Ribsey chooses his real
owner Henry.
Works Cited
•http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louis_Darling
•Darling, Louis (1963). "Louis Darling". In Fuller, Muriel. More Junior Authors. New York: The H. W.
Wilson Company. pp. 60–61. OCLC 422123346.
•"Louis Darling, 53, Illustrator and Conservationist, Is Dead". The New York Times: pp. 31. January 24,
1970.
•http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/470404.Louis_Darling
Mary Cooke
February 8, 2013
Marc Brown
Marc Brown is both an author and illustrator. He is best known for
the Arthur series. His grandmother really nurtured his love of
drawing from a young age. Brown’s grandmother had an education
fund to help him get through art school, he attended Cleveland Art
Institute from 1964-1969. After creating the Arthur book series
Brown worked with WGBH to develop the ARTHOR television
series. Brown’s inspiration for the Arthur series comes from his own
experiences as a child as well as the experiences of his own
children’s childhoods. He now lives in Massachusetts with his wife
and daughter where he is still creating new books. ("PBS Parents")
("Quail Ridge Books & Music")
Marc Brown has won several awards for his children’s books, including Children’s Book of the
Year of the Child Study Association of America, Children’s Choice Awards of the Children’s
Book Council, International Reading Association, Notable Book, American Library Association,
Boston Globe/Horn Book Award for Illustration, Library of Congress Book of the Year as well as
many more awards. (Taccone)
Interesting Facts
Marc Brown has also been nominated for multiple Emmy’s for the television series of
Arthur; so far he has won five. ("PBS Parents")
Marc Brown illustrates his own books as well as others. Brown illustrated Judy Sierra’s
“Wild About Books” and also “Zoozical.” ("PBS Parents")
Brown hides his children’s names in the illustrations in all of his books.
("Random House Kids")
("Arthur Celebrates Earth Day")
Major Works
1. D.W.’s Guide to Perfect Manners (2006)
2. Arthur’s Animal Adventure (2002)
3. Arthur’s First Kiss (2001)
4. Glasses for D.W. (1996)
5. D.W. Flips (1987)
6. Arthur’s Tooth (1988)
7. Arthur’s Valentine (1980)
8. Arthur’s Eyes (1979)
9. Arthur’s Nose (1976) – Children’s Choice Award
10. What Makes the Sun Shine (1971) – Child’s Study Association of American Children’s
Book of the Year
(Jeffery)
Arthur’s Eyes
In the story Arthur starts off not being able to see very well and
sometimes getting headaches. None of the other students would
want to play with Arthur because he was so bad since he couldn’t
see so his parents took him to the eye doctor and Arthur got
glasses. Everyone laughed at Arthur and called him “four-eyes”
and “sissy.” None of his friends or family wore glasses so he “lost”
his glasses so he didn’t have to wear them. In school one day he
accidently walked into the girl’s room. His teacher then told him
that he wears glasses to help him when he reads and this made
Arthur feel better about wearing his glasses. (Brown)
("Vision Initiative for Children")
Children would connect to this book because many children either have or get glasses at this age
and many of them feel self-conscious about wearing them at first. This would help to show them
that having glasses isn’t that big of deal and that it is okay if you need to wear them. It also shows
the children who don’t wear glasses that they shouldn’t joke on those that do wear and need them.
The genre of this particular book from Marc Brown is contemporary realistic fiction. In fact many
of Marc Brown’s books are contemporary realistic fiction: he has a D.W. series as well as a
Buster’s series and they are all very realistic. All of his illustrations are proportionate as well the
correct color pallet; anyone can look through the majority of Brown’s book and know exactly what
everything is in his illustrations.
Works Cited
"About the Program." PBS Parents. PBS, n.d. Web. 7 Feb 2013.
<http://www.pbs.org/parents/arthur/program/about_mb.html>.
"Arthur Celebrates Earth Day with 5 New Episodes Beginning Friday, April 22, 2011 on PBS
KIDS GO!." Arthur Celebrates Earth Day. Terrain.org, 04 12 211. Web. 7 Feb 2013.
<http://blog.terrain.org/2011/04/12/aurthur-celebrates-earth-day/>.
"Books About Wearing Glasses." Vision Initiative for Children. West Virginia University, n.d.
Web. 7 Feb 2013. <http://www.hsc.wvu.edu/vic/Resources/Books>.
Brown, Marc. Arthur's Eyes. Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1979. Print.
Brown, Marc. Buster Hits the Trail. Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 2005. Print.
Brown, Marc. D.W.'s Guide to Perfect Manners. Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 2006.
Print.
Jeffery, Steven. "Author Information:Marc Brown." Internet Book List. N.p., n.d. Web. 7 Feb
2013. <http://www.iblist.com/author8168.htm>.
"Marc Brown." Random House Kids. Random House Kids, n.d. Web. 7 Feb 2013.
<http://www.randomhousekids.com/authors-illustrators/detail/542>.
"Meet the Author." Quail Ridge Books & Music. N.p., 04 04 2011. Web. 7 Feb 2013.
<http://www.quailridgebooks.com/event/marc-brown-new-arthur-book>.
Maurice Bernard Sendak
(06/10/1928-05/08/12)
Awards:
Hans Christian Andersen Award (lasting contribution)
Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award (career contribution)
Caldecott Medal (Where The Wild Things Are)
North Hollywood, California (Elementary School named)
Facts:
Most of his family was wiped out in the Holocaust. He developed early health problems which confined him to
bed, and caused his love of books to bloom. He decided he wanted to be an illustrator after watching Walt
Disney’s Fantasia. One of his highest compliments was when a child fan of his ate his drawing. “He didn’t care
that it was an original Maurice Sendak drawing. He saw it, he loved it, he ate it.
Major Works:
Atomics for the Millions (by Dr. Maxwell Leigh Eidinoff) (1947)
The Wonderful Farm (by Marcel Aymé) (1951)
Good Shabbos Everybody (by Robert Garvey) (1951)
Singing Family of the Cumberlands (by Jean Ritchie) (Oxford University Press, 1955)
What Can You Do with a Shoe? (by Beatrice Schenk de Regniers) (1955, re-colored 1997)
Seven Little Stories on Big Subjects (by Gladys Baker Bond) (1955)
I Want to Paint My Bathroom Blue (by Ruth Krauss) (1956)
The Birthday Party (by Ruth Krauss) (1957)
Little Bear (by Else Holmelund Minarik, there was also a TV series based on this series of books)
Where The Wild Things Are (1963)
Max is a young child, dressed as a wolf, disrupts his home, and stresses out his mother until she has no
other option besides sending him to his room. While in his room, Max’s imagination takes over as his room
turns into another world where large, grotesque, but really nice monsters live. They welcome Max with open
arms, and make him “king of the Wild Things.” Max spends his time goofing off, and playing around with his
power. However, he soon returns to the real world, where his mother has dinner waiting for him.
We as adults have all been in Max’s situation, either as the groundee or the grounded. We have all
irritated our mothers to their individual breaking points. Children will connect with this book because of the
constant fantasy land that they live in. Most of us can remember times good and bad, that we used our minds to
escape into different realms. Many of us had imaginary friends, or worlds, that we could visit at the drop of a
hat. Is it a surprise the Wild Things made Max king? It should come as no surprise that Max made himself king
in his own fantasy land. It is what all of us do, day in and day out. We might not be the most successful,
beautiful, wealthy, or loveable, but in our own heads, most of the time, we are grand.
Genre: Children’s Picture Book
Works Cited
Various, . "Maurice Sendak." Wikipedia . N.p., 03 02 2013. Web. 6 Feb 2013.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maurice_Sendak>.
Kennedy , Elisabeth. "Children's Classic Picture Books." . About.com, 11 10 2012. Web. 6 Feb 2013.
<http://childrensbooks.about.com/cs/picturebooks/fr/wildthings.htm>.
Rebecca Emberley and Ed Emberley
“A Father–Daughter Team”
BIOS:
Rebecca Emberley was born in 1958 to two talented artists. She developed an interest in writing and illustrating children’s books
many years ago. She created more than 40 books including a bestselling bi-lingual series for children and collaborated on
several books with her renowned father. Her current interests include silk screening, graphic design work, and music production.
She currently lives in Maine, is married to Peter Black and one daughter, Adrian.
Ed Emberley studied painting and illustration at the Massachusetts School of Art in Boston and completed his formal art training at
the Rhode Island School of Design in 1957. He met and married Barbara in 1955 and has two children, Rebecca and Michael. They
currently live in a 1690 saltbox house in Ipswich, Massachusetts. He was the 1968 Caldecott winner for illustrations in Drummer
Hoff. He is the author and illustrator of more than 80 books for children with 20 still in print.
Interesting Facts:
The Emberley’s are a family of artists. The patriot, Ed, his wife Barbara, his daughter Rebecca, his son Michael and daughter-in-law
Marie-Louise Fitzpatrick, are all children's book illustrators while Rebecca’s daughter Adrian and husband Peter Black, both singersongwriters.
AWARDS:
Drummer Hoff by Barbara and Ed Emberley; Pub.10/1/1967 ****Caldecott Medal for Illustrations in 1968*****
Major Works:
My Mother's SecretLife by Rebecca Emberley; Pub.4/1/1998
There Was an Old Monster! By Rebecca, Ed and Adrian Emberley; Pub.07/01/2009
If You're A Monster And You Know It by Rebecca and Ed Emberley; Pub. 9/1/2010
The Red Hen by Ed and Rebecca Emberley; Pub. 10/1/2010
The Ant and the Grasshopper by Rebecca and Ed Emberley; Pub.10/1/2012
The Wing on a Flea: A Book about Shapes, by Ed Emberley;Pub. 2002
Go Away, Big Green Monster!, by Ed Emberley; Pub. 1992.
Picture Pie II: A Drawing Book and Stencil, by Ed Emberley; Pub. 1996
Ed Emberley’s Fingerprint Drawing Book, by Ed Emberley; Pub. 2000
Thanks Mom, by Ed Emberley; Pub. 2002
Ed Emberley's Drawing Book of Weirdos, by Ed Emberley; Pub.2004
Featured Book:
Chicken Little Rebecca Emberley-Author and Ed Emberley- Illustrator; Pub.3/3/2009
This book is an awesome, modern day version of the time-honored classic, Chicken Little...... but, with a twist!
Rebecca Emberley uses her comedic genius to pin this comedy as her father, Ed Emberley, uses bold and colorful
illustrations to make the images and words jump off of the pages. This brilliant collaboration is a remake of the foolish
chicken who thought the sky was falling with a new look. It’s a must read as you experience the crazed, wild-eye
chicken and his friends stumble upon a surprise as they foolishly try to escape the falling sky. Children will easily
gravitate to this book because of the bright colors and masterful artwork.
Genre : Traditional Literature: Fairy Tales
Sources Cited:
http://www.amazon.com/Rebecca-Emberley/e/B001H6W1N0
www.scholastic.com/teachers/contributor/ed-emberley
http://www.rebeccaemberley.com/
http://www.edemberley.com/pages/main.aspx
Robin Preiss Glasser
Biographical Information:
 She was a soloist with the Pennsylvania Ballet for 11 years
(www.freshfiction.com)
 She designed theatre sets, costumes, and has illustrated more than a
dozen children’s books (www.freshfiction.com)
 She lives in Newport Beach, California with her two children, Benjamin
and Sasha (www.freshfiction.com)
Awards:
 #1 New York Times Bestselling Illustrator
Major Works:
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Tea for Ruby
A is for Abigail
America
Lotta on Troublemaker Street
Alexander, Who’s Not (Do you hear me? I mean it!) Going to Move
Works Cited Page
 www.freshfiction.com
Illustrator
Shel Silverstein
Biographical Information
Born on September 25, 1930 in Chicago. He attended Roosevelt University, Chicago College of
Performing Arts, the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and the School of the Art Institute of
Chicago. Joined the Armed Forces in the 1950’s and served in the Korean War. During his time in the
military he worked as a cartoonist for “Pacific Stars and Stripes,” a Pacific-based U.S. military
publication. He passed away May 8, 1999.
Awards
*Quill Award for Children’s illustrated book
New York Times Outstanding Book
Michigan Young Readers’ Award
George G. Stone Away
Buckeye Awards
George G. Stone
William Allen White Award
International Reading Association’s Children’s Choice Award
Interesting Facts
Composer of folk music
Wrote screenplays
Scriptwriter for plays
Major Works
The Giving Tree, published in 1964.
Uncle Shelby’s Zoo: Don’t Bump the Glump! And Other Fantasies, published in 1964.
Where the Sidewalk Ends, published in 1974; New York Times Outstanding Book 1974, Michigan Young
Readers’ Award 1981, George G. Stone Award 1984
Different Dances, published in 1979
A Light in the Attic, published in 1981; Buckeye Awards 1983, 1985, George G. Stone 1984, William Allen
White Award 1984
The Missing Piece, published in 1976; International Reading Association’s Children’s Choice Award 1982
The Missing Piece Meets the Big O, published in 1981
Falling Up, published in 1996
Draw a Skinny Elephant, published in 1998
Featured Book
The Giving Tree is about a boy who visits a tree every single day. In his youth the tree is his best friend.
The tree gives him something to play with, food to eat and a safe haven. The tree likes the attention and
is happy whenever the boy comes and plays. As the boy gets older he visits the tree less and less, which
causes the tree to yearn for the boy to come visit. When he finally does, he exploits the trees resources
for what he needs in his life at that given time without any more attention. The tree by the end of the
story is chopped down and left as a stomp. The boy who has since aged into a man comes back to the
tree. The tree assumes that he needs something else from it and apologizes for not being able to
provide anything. The boy tells the tree he simply needs a place to sit and think and the tree becomes
happy again. The story’s message was a little bit on the mature side as it has been said to describe the
human condition or the relationship between parent and child, which is a more mature audience target.
Connection
Children would connect to this book because it is about seeking things from something that is older and
bigger than the child.
Genre
Children’s Picture Book
Bibliography
Kaufman, J. (2003). Shel silverstein. Retrieved from http://www.shelsilverstein.com/indexsite.html
"Shel Silverstein." Windowsmedia.com Search. 7 December 2002.
Mercier, Jean F. "Shel Silverstein." Publishers Weekly, 24 February 1975.
Works Cited
British Cartoon Archive. (n.d.). Ernest Howard Shepard. Retrieved from
http://www.cartoons.ac.uk/artists/ernest-howardshepard/biography
Pooh Corner. (1999 - 2013). Ernest S. Shepard, illustrator. Retrieved from
http://www.poohcorner.com/Ernest-H.-Shepard-Illustrator.html
Benson, T. (2006, March 06). The Man Who Hated Pooh. Retrieved from
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/4772370.stm
Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. (n.d.). E. H. Shepard. Retrieved from
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/E._H._Shepard
Heather Rice
Works Cited
Biography Tomie dePaola http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/contributor/tomie-depaola
http://www.tomie.com/
The Quilt Story: By Tony Johnston, illustrated by Tomie dePaola
http://www.scholastic.com/teachers/book/quilt-story
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tomie_dePaola
TEDU 386
Illustrator Presentation
By: Heather Rice
1) Books Read:
 The Quilt Story by Tony Johnston, Illustrated by Tomi dePaola
 The Art Story by Tomi dePaola
 Erandi’s Braids by Antonio Hernandez Madrigal, Illustrated by Tomi
dePaola
2) About Tomi dePaola:
a) Thomas Anthony "Tomie A." dePaola
b) DePaola was born September 15, 1934, in Meriden, Connecticut to a family
of Irish and Italian heritage. He had one brother, Joseph (nicknamed Buddy),
and two sisters, Judie and Maureen. DePaola was attracted to art at an early
age and credits his family with encouraging his development as an artist and
influencing the themes of his works. One book he even wrote about his
sister. He attended art school at the Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, New York and
graduated in 1956 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree. In 1969, he received
a Master of Fine Arts degree from California College of Arts and Crafts. His
first illustrated book was a science book, Sound, in 1965. DePaola currently
resides in New London, New Hampshire with is four dogs.(info from
Wikipedia, Tomi.com )
c) Tomie dePaola has published over 200 children’s books over the past 35
years, and has won numerous awards, including both a Caldecott Honor
Award, and a Newbery Honor Award. DePaola was awarded the Laura
Ingalls Wilder Medal in 2011.
d)
e) Interesting Facts:
As a child, dePaola would illustrate the books his mother read to him.
At age 4, he knew he wanted to become a writer and an illustrator.
DePaola has appeared in several episodes of Barney & Friends.
f) Major Works:
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Strega Nona
-Caldecott Honor (1976)
The Friendly Beats: An Old English Christmas Carol
-Boston Globe-Horn Book Honor (1982)
Giorgio’s Village
-Golden Kite Award (1982)
26 Fairmont Avenue
-Newberry Honor (2000)
Night of Las Posadas
-Southwest Book Award (2000)
****(info from Wikipedia, Tomi.com )****
g) Featured Book:
i.
ii.
The Quilt Story
iii.
The book is about a girl, Abigail, whose mom makes her a quilt she loves
so much she does everything with it. It is very special to her. When she
gets older the quilt gets left up in the attic but still continues to be loved by
different creatures that come across the quilt. Years pass and another
little girl found the quilt. She asks her mom to stich it up and the little girl
loves it and thinks it is just as special and beautiful as the first little girl
did.
Children will connect to this through their own experience with something
that was given to then. Whether it is their own baby quilt, a toy, a book,
etc. They will also enjoy comparing the dress and appearance of Abigail
and her family with that of the little girl of the present day.
Genre: Historical Fiction
iv.
v.
Virginia Lee Burton
1909-1968
She grew up in Massachusetts until she was about eight and then her
family moved to California. After one year of living in San Diego,
they moved to a small town called Carmel-by-the-Sea which was filled
with artists of all fields. Her husband, George Demetrios, was a
sculpture and drawing teacher. They met when Virginia took his class.
They had two boys, Aristedes and Michael.
Awards:
1942 Caldecott Medal for The Little House
Interesting Facts:
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Her father would give books for holidays instead of toys and he would read them to his
children.
She viewed her children as “very frank critics” (Burton).
She drew the pictures for a book first and then wrote the text for all of her books
Major Works:
The Little House (1942) - Caldecott Medal Winner
Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel (1939)
Katy and the Big Snow (1943)
Choo Choo (1937)
Life Story (1962)
Featured Book:
The Little House
Written and Illustrated by Virginia Lee Burton
Genre: Picture Book
This book is all about a little house that was built with love out in the country. The story itself is
told from the house’s point of view. She sees the city moving closer to her over the years and
she notices the types of transportation changing. High rise buildings get built over time all
around her and she misses her country scene. No one lives in her anymore and she finds herself
getting lonely. Then a great-great-granddaughter of her builder finds her in the midst of this
large city. She has the house picked up and moved back out to the country where she is happiest.
The little house is lived in once again surrounded by trees and grass – just the way she likes it!
I feel children would love this story because it shows life from the point of view of a house with
a happy ending. It might make the children think of their own home’s history. It also shows the
passage of time since the story seems to start around the 1800s and goes into 1940s. The
pictures are great with tons of things to see.
Works Cited
Burton, Virginia. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. N.p.. Web. 4 Feb 2013.
<http://www.houghtonmifflinbooks.com/features/mike_mulligan/biohome.shtml>.
Helmer, N., ed. "Virginia Lee Burton." University of Oregon Libraries. N.p., 25 Sep 2006. Web.
3 Feb 2013.
. "The Little House." Wikipedia. N.p., 22 Nov 2012. Web. 3 Feb 2013.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Little_House>.