Below is a story and illustration from Micky. I gave a number of presentations at her school and at the end of the day she presented me with her own work. Thank you Micky!
And then we have an awesome dragon from Nick in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Nice job Nick!
This past weekend I had the privilege of participating in Family Reading Night in Washington, Missouri. The event is sponsored and organized by The Missourian the town's impressive local newspaper. It seemed like every organization in the area was involved in supporting the event. Over 700 people came. It was a lot of fun! Below are some photos from the event. If you hover over the photo a caption appears.
I have some fun events that I will be a part of this March.
On March 1, I will be speaking in Washington, Missouri. As you can see on the right, I'll be visiting a school during the day. Then, at 6PM, I'll be a speaking at Family Reading Night. This is a big event that the community puts together, celebrating and encouraging the joys of reading. I am excited to be a part of this event!
On March 2, at 10AM, I'll be doing a reading at the St. Louis County Library in partnership with Left Bank Books.
On March 11, I 'll be talking to the excellent students at the West Michigan Academy of Environmental Science.
On March 15, I'll be talking to the fine students at Dorr Elementary, in Dorr, Michigan.
On March 27, I'll be talking with the stellar pupils at Baker Elementary and Steeby Elementary, both in Wayland, Michigan.
And did you notice the slick new website? It should be more readable on tablets and smartphones now too.
King Arthur's Very Great Grandson will be one of the picture books used in Portland Stage's theater workshop for kids. The professional actors perform a dramatic reading of a picture book and then lead a workshop based on the story. It sounds like fun to me. I'd like to see the reading. Here is the link.
It looks like I forgot to post here that King Arthur's Very Great Grandson was selected by the New York Public Library as one of their 2012 Children's Books for Reading and Sharing. And today I found out that the Wall Street Journal listed it as one of six picture books on their Children's Books of 2012 list. Below you can see the New York Times and the Bank Street College of Education have both sent their compliments to Henry as well.
What does he think about it all? He seems to be quite pleased. "I really do appreciate these honors, in fact, I can't imagine being any happier even if I had conquered the Leviathan." And that is saying a lot.
King Arthur's Very Great Grandson is this month's pick for the Bank Street College of Education Children's Book Committee's monthly pick. Here is a sweet quote from their website:
"I like stories that are made up that have more
detail and surprise....Henry is six...He fights
monsters because he is brave because he is a
knight. The story is about monsters. They
looked a little scary but they were adorable."
- Eliana, age 6, New York City
Well, King Arthur's Very Great Grandson was listed in the NYT Notable Children's Books of 2012. Woo Hoo! The print version comes out in the Sunday paper. Click here for the digital version.
This one is from Good Reads With Ronna.
There are some fun events coming up in September.
On September 17 at 10:30 at the wonderful children's bookstore, Pooh's Corner in Grand Rapids, Michigan, I'll be reading King Arthur's Very Great Grandson for storytime. There will be a craft afterward and I'll stay around to sign books.
On September 22 at 11:00 at the Magic Tree Bookstore in Oak Park, Illinois, I'll be reading and signing the book. If you are in the Chicago area, come on out!
And on September 29 at 2:30 I'll be reading the book for storytime at the Barnes and Noble in Mishawaka, Indiana. This is my hometown. Maybe I'll bust out some maroon and gold for the event. There will be a craft after the reading and I'll be signing books too.
So there you have it folks. By then the weather will be cooler and the trees will be in their full glory. Won't that be nice.
Well, it is hard to say it any better than the photo to the left. The launch party was a smashing success. There was a wonderful gaggle of kids who brought a lot of energy and enthusiasm to the reading. They asked some spectacular, wide-ranging questions afterward. It was a whole lot of fun. And at the end of the evening all the books were sold! Schuler Books and Music did a brilliant job hosting this event.
We went blueberry picking last evening and brought home ten pounds. I am tempted to go back tonight, but we'll see. I have wondered if there is a limit to how many blueberries I could eat in a year. I think I would be pretty happy with 50 pounds.
The Wall Street Journal surprised me by reviewing King Arthur's Very Great Grandson. It is a very nice review and I was, of course, quite happy to be reviewed by the WSJ.
And King Arthur's Very Great Grandson is NOW FOR SALE! Yee haw!
This is a very thorough and thoughtful review of the book. When I first see a review of King Arthur I never read it very closely because I am stunned that somebody is writing about my book. But now after a few rereadings, I find this review very impressive in its scope and perspective. And I am still stunned.
The big kick-off for the book will be August 1 at 7PM at Schuler Books & Music on 2660 28th Street, Grand Rapids, Michigan. Kids can come in their pajamas. It should be a great time. I'll read the story, talk a bit about how the book came together, answer some questions, and sign books.
I'll also be at the Magic Tree Bookstore in Oak Park, Illinois on September 22 at 11:00.
And I'll be doing a reading at the wonderful Pooh's Corner in Breton Village, Grand Rapids on September 17th at 10:30. Pooh's Corner is a great children's bookstore owned and operated by people who really know children's literature.
Here is a review from Tanya Anderson that she posted on her blog. She gave it five out of five suns and a very thoughtful analysis.
In other news - on my granola this morning I had blueberries, strawberries, and currants. Now I am working through a bowl of cherries.
So, between the berries and the nice book review, this has been a good morning.
I don't know whether to call it a review or a recommendation, but either way, I was happy to see King Arthur's Very Great Grandson appear in the New York Times Sunday Book Review. It is one title in a list of five picture books that feature dragons. Here is the link. And here is a slideshow of the books featured in the article.
Woo Hoo!
Here is the link to the Publishers Weekly Review of King Arthur's Very Great Grandson. It is a very nice review and even got a star!
That is the name of a blog that I really enjoy reading. It is written by Julie Danielson, or Jules, and focuses on picture book illustration. She features and interviews a lot of really impressive illustrators in the field. (She more commonly interviews illustrators who are not in a field, but may be in their studio or kitchen or somewhere else indoors). On the first Sunday of every month she features a student of illustration or a debut picture book illustrator. This month I am honored to be that featured illustrator. You can read it here. On the post there are a few illustratations from King Arthur's Very Great Grandson, commentary on the book by Jules (which is always inciteful and a lot of fun to read), and a trailer for the book.
Yep, I made a trailer for the book, something to give people an idea of what the book is about in 40 seconds. You can watch it on the Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast post, or watch it below.
Thanks to Jules for featuring me on her blog and especially for writing such a great blog in the first place!
I added a Coloring Pages section to the website (at the bottom of the FOR KIDS section). In all of the pages a space is left somewhere in the drawing so that the colorer can add his or her own feature.
Two of my nephews were kind enough to try a couple of the pages out and mail them to me. Aren't they impressive? The dragons in the first two are very long and serpent-like, I like them a lot. And all of the pages have so much detail and color. Wow! Nice work guys!
I love to see what each artist does with these coloring pages. If you would like to email me your finished page, that would be great!
Unfortunately I had to disable the coloring pages. They weren't working on all computers and I didn't know how to fix the problem. Too bad, I was looking forward to seeing what other kids did with the coloring pages.
Yes, that is me holding an advanced copy of King Arthur's Very Great Grandson. Woo Hoo!
Today after reading about a dozen picture books to my one-year-old son, in a moment of great significance, I tried to read my book to him, but he pushed it away and began to cry after a few pages. I pressed on and kept reading out loud and pretended he was listening enrapt from the other room.
It is a surreal experience to see it as a complete book and not the bits and pieces that it had when it was in process.
I was also happy to discover the New York Public Library's Digital Gallery of Medieval and Renaissance Illuminated Manuscripts. It is easy to flip through page by page. I am still trying to get a feel for medieval aesthetic values, and it helps to see these images not as speciman details but as part of a whole. And wow, some are so vibrant, intricate, and well-composed. Of course
