January 28, 2020

BLACK IS A RAINBOW COLOR

Black Is a Rainbow Color by Angela Joy and Ekua Holmes is celebratory, historically-rooted poetry about Black representation in America.


January 25, 2020

Crushes of the Week: January 19-25, 2020

This week's crushes:
  1. The Button Book by Sally Nicholls and Bethan Woollvin (Tundra Books, January 2020)
  2. The Ranger by Nancy Vo (Groundwood Books, August 2019)
  3. Thanku: Poems of Gratitude by Miranda Paul and Marlena Myles (Millbrook Press, September 2019)
  4. Kai and the Monkey King (Brownstone's Mythical Collection #3) by Joe Todd Stanton (Flying Eye Books, October 2019)
  5. Stormy: A Story About Finding a Forever Home by Guojing (Schwartz & Wade, September 2019)
  6. The Big Little Thing by Beatrice Alemagna (Tate, October 2019)
  7. Everything You: A Board Book by Elizabeth McPike and Jay Fleck (Farrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR), December 2019)
  8. You Loves Ewe! (A Yam and Donkey Book) by Cece Bell (Clarion Books, November 2019)
       

January 23, 2020

THE PRESIDENT OF THE JUNGLE

The President of the Jungle by André Rodrigues, Larissa Ribeiro, Paula Desgualdo, and Pedro Markun is a lively primer on electoral democracy.


January 21, 2020

Let's Talk Illustrators #129: Vanessa Brantley-Newton

Get ready, everyone! Today I'm talking to the incredible Vanessa Brantley-Newton about her newest book Just Like Me, which showcases her expertise in using a wide array of mixed media and textures to heighten the overall design of her books. Vanessa took time to chat with me about what it's like to be writing and illustrating books, how her process has evolved, and what she has on the docket next. Enjoy!


January 18, 2020

Crushes of the Week: January 12-18, 2020

This week's crushes:
  1. What's Up, Maloo? (Maloo and Friends) by Genevieve Godbout (Tundra Books, January 2020)
  2. Goodnight, Rainbow Cats by Bàrbara Castro Urío (Chronicle Books, November 2019)
  3. Paper Son: The Inspiring Story of Tyrus Wong, Immigrant and Artist by Julie Leung and Chris Sasaki (Schwartz & Wade, September 2019)
  4. Freedom Soup by Tami Charles and Jacqueline Alcántara (Candlewick, December 2019)
  5. Ninja Boy's Secret by Tina Schneider (Tuttle Publishing, September 2019)
  6. Ignore the Trolls by Jordan Gershowitz and Sandhya Prabhat (POW!, October 2019)
  7. Can You See Me? by Mikhala Lantz-Simmons and Mohammad Rasoulipour (Andrews McMeel Publishing, October 2019)
  8. Iced Out by Isabella Bunnell and Ck Smouha (Cicada Books, November 2019)
       

January 17, 2020

WHAT COLOR IS NIGHT?

What Color Is Night? by Grant Snider is the ultimate bedtime story.


January 14, 2020

Let's Talk Illustrators #128: Rachel Wada

I was moved to tears the first time I experienced Heather Smith and Rachel Wada's The Phonebooth in Mr. Hirota’s Garden. I somehow totally missed it when it published last September, so when I saw it later in the year I knew I had to make my interview with illustrator Rachel Wada the first one of 2020. It was a pleasure learning more about the illustration process behind this beautiful, sobering book. Enjoy.