anyone who glances over at recent reads on my sidebar will know that i read a lot more juvenile literature than adult books. but my real love is for picture books. and, as much as i appreciate a good story, i have to admit i judge a book by its cover. basically i'm really attracted to the illustrations and almost don't care if the story is bad. because even if it's not an enjoyable read, i can at least enjoy the pictures!
i have a pretty large collection of picture books that i purportedly purchased for ian, but are really more for me. some of my favorite illustrators include (* denotes official site):
- holly hobbie
- lauren child
- anne gutman
- amy walrod
- j. otto seibold*
- gris grimly*
- jon scieszka & lane smith
- jarrett j. krosoczka*
- peter sis*
- dick bruna*
- kevin henkes*
of course, there are many others i enjoy but these are a few off the top of my head. i would love to hear what other illustrators parents and kids enjoy.
4 comments:
devin will just be well read about political economy and computers, which is probably handier information than picture books can provide.
This are all amazing selections. I particularly love the woman who also does Charlie and Lola!
I completely agree with you on your picks, and a few I had not seen before! I'll add a few that I love.
I think you would adore Chih-Wei Chang (Look up Baby Born), with the absolutely gorgeous watercolors.
I love what Marla Frazee (Everywhere Babies) and Sam Williams (Tumble me Tumbily) do with babies. Their work is so soft and sweet! Lois Ehlert's collages are a fave with Simon. Hve you seen Dav Pilkey's The Complete Adventures of Big Dog and Little Dog? So simple and so funny. Rosemary Wells' Max and Ruby are in this same vein. We LOVE them! We also all love the magical photorealism of David Wiesner's Tuesday. Have you seen this?
I also have a thing for illustrators who pack lots and lots into their pages, so tht each time you read you see something new. In this category I'll put Bruce Degen (Jamberry), and the woman who illustrates for Jamie Lee Curtis' books, Laura Cornell, who injects a great deal of humor in her work. Also, in this category I'd put Jan Brett, who adds a Scandinavian twist, and uses gorgeous frames and borders in books like Who's That Knocking on Christmas Eve? and Berlioz the Bear and Annie and the Wild Animals and The Mitten.
Have you seen Jiwon Oh's Mr Monkey's Classroom? If you haven't, and I'm the first person to introduce you to this, I will be really really happy. If you have, and you love it too, then we are just awesome some more! It's a win/win!
GG: i knew you would have terrific suggestions and i was not disappointed. i looked at "mr. monkey's classroom" and OH MY GOD, that was too cute. it went straight to my amazon wishlist! "baby born" was really pretty as well, so i added that to my wishlist too.
i have one of lois ehlert's books and i've read a couple others. love that collage/eric carle style of her art. as for dav pilkey, his "dog breath" was a big hit with ian (that's where he learned "halitosis"). we haven't read the one you mentioned but i have some captain underpants i got on sale waiting in the garage. not literature by any means, but i'm sure it'll make ian laugh.
i, of course, love rosemary wells. can you guess which character is my favorite?
i've checked out a couple of david wiesner's books from the library. his illustrations are phenomenal. (i liked "sector 7".)
there are so many great children's books out lately, it's hard to stay current with everything's that coming out.
btw, i finished "the death of vishnu" -- i enjoyed it, but again, i don't think i got the whole deeper meaning of it. i think i'm getting stupider ...
i just remembered: we also like the series, "the high-rise private eyes" with jack and bunny. very cute, short mysteries. it's by cynthia rylant. it might be good for simon.
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