March 30, 2019

Crushes of the Week: March 24-30, 2019

This week's crushes:
  1. Otto and Pio by Marianne Dubuc (Princeton Architectural Press, March 2019)
  2. Fox & Chick: The Quiet Boat Ride: and Other Stories by Sergio Ruzzier (Chronicle Books, March 2019)
  3. Serena: The Littlest Sister by Karlin Gray and Monica Ahanonu (Page Street Kids, May 2019)
  4. The Ear by Piret Raud (Thames & Hudson, February 2019)
  5. A Scarf for Keiko by Ann Malaspina and Merrilee Liddiard (Kar-Ben Publishing, February 2019)
  6. Killer Style: How Fashion Has Injured, Maimed, and Murdered Through History by Alison Matthews David, Serah-Marie McMahon, and Gillian Wilson (Owlkids, April 2019)
  7. Birds by Carme Lemniscates (Candlewick Studio, March 2019)
   
  

March 28, 2019

MY ISLAND

My Island by Stéphanie Demasse-Pottier and Seng Soun Ratanavanh invites readers to an island where flowers bloom all year round and people can eat clouds straight from the sky.


March 26, 2019

Let's Talk Illustrators #103: Raúl the Third

It was downright humbling to talk to Pura Belpré Award winner Raúl the Third. Raúl's latest series is called ¡Vamos!, and features a little fox named Little Lobo and his dog Bernabe traveling around to different locations (much like a Richard Scarry book). Today Raúl and I talk about the first book––hopefully of many!––in the series ¡Vamos! Let’s go to the Market, and I am so glad to share some of his magnificent insights into the brilliant possibilities of bilingual books. ¡Vamos!


March 23, 2019

Crushes of the Week: March 17-23, 2019

This week's crushes:
  1. The Last Peach by Gus Gordon (Roaring Brook Press, May 2019)
  2. Pigs in a Blanket by Hans Wilhelm and Erica Salcedo (Chronicle Books, March 2019)
  3. I Am a Wolf by Kelly Leigh Miller (Dial Books, May 2019)
  4. Sun by Alison Oliver (Clarion Books, June 2019)
  5. Maybe Tomorrow? by Charlotte Agell and Ana Ramírez González (Scholastic Press, March 2019)
  6. The Bear, the Piano, the Dog, and the Fiddle by David Litchfield (Clarion Books, March 2019)
  7. The Yellow Suitcase by Meera Sriram and Meera Sethi (Penny Candy Books, March 2019)
      

March 19, 2019

Let's Talk Illustrators #102: Julia Sarcone-Roach

I recently talked to Julia Sarcone-Roach about one of my new favorite literary cats, Muffin! Muffin is from Julia's latest book There Are No Bears in This Bakerywhich finds a smart cat and a curious bear in a bakery at the same time. The book is equal parts tender and funny, and I was thrilled to pick Julia's brain about how she made it. 


March 17, 2019

WHEN YOU'RE SCARED

When You're Scared by Andrée Poulin and Véronique Joffre is the story of compassion and bravery set against the backdrop of a chance encounter between a boy and a bear.


March 16, 2019

Crushes of the Week: March 10-16, 2019

This week's crushes:
  1. Llama Destroys the World by Jonathan Stutzman and Heather Fox (Henry Holt and Co., May 2019)
  2. I'm a Baked Potato! by Elise Primavera and Juana Medina (Chronicle Books, May 2019)
  3. Birthday on Mars! by Sara Schonfeld and Andrew J. Ross (Penguin Workshop, June 2019)
  4. Hedy and Her Amazing Invention by Jan Wahl and Morgana Wallace (Penny Candy Books, February 2019)
  5. This Book of Mine by Sarah Stewart and David Small (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, August 2019) 
  6. How I Learned to Fall Out of Trees by Vincent Kirsch (Abrams Books for Young Readers, April 2019)
  
  

March 14, 2019

TIGER DAYS

Tiger Days: A Book of Feelings by MH Clark and Anna Hurley deserves to be picked up based on the dust jacket alone –– it has velour so it's a feelings book that you feel!


March 13, 2019

Sebastian Kadlecik, Kit Steinkellner, and Emma Steinkellner (The Children's Book Podcast #493)

I am so excited to announce that Matthew Winner, host of The Children's Book Podcast, has done the coolest thing ever: he's given me space on his podcast to talk directly to my book creation heroes! I'm going to talk to some amazing folks over the coming months, but I couldn't be prouder or happier that my first conversation on The Children's Book Podcast is with Sebastian Kadlecik, Kit Steinkellner, and Emma Steinkellner about their comic Quince. You can listen by clicking below, but make sure you head over to Matthew's site for show notes and more information about the creators!


March 12, 2019

Let's Talk Illustrators #101: Andrea Tsurumi

Chatting with Andrea Tsurumi felt like talking to a kindred spirit. Her philosophies regarding the fine line between picture books and comics match my own perfectly, and I was thrilled to pick her brain about her newest book Crab Cake: Turning the Tide Together. Crab Cake walks all sorts of fine lines (picture book and comic, fiction and nonfiction, funny and serious), so there was a ton for us to dig into. Enjoy our conversation!


March 10, 2019

#kidlitpicks February Round-Up: 12 Books about Trailblazers

Where would we be as a society without trailblazers? They are often the first people to do something or go somewhere and they show us that it is also possible for other people to do the same. Whether they are the explorers from days before, inventors that chose to make something that everyone said was impossible to current trailblazers that are defying people's expectations of them, these humble heroes inspire both adults and children alike.

During February the @kidlitpicks book club found and shared books that pay tribute to these amazing people. Thanks to Natalie from Living by the Page for the empowering theme!



March 9, 2019

Crushes of the Week: March 3-9, 2019

This week's crushes:
  1. Tiny T. Rex and the Impossible Hug by Jonathan Stutzman and Jay Fleck (Chronicle Books, March 2019)
  2. Lawrence in the Fall by Matthew Farina and Doug Salati (Disney-Hyperion, April 2019)
  3. Bedtime for Beasties by Leslie Staub and Jia Liu (Boyds Mills Press, February 2019)
  4. Luca's Bridge/El Puente de Luca by Mariana Llanos and Anna Lopez Real (Penny Candy Books, April 2019)
  5. Puppy Truck by Brian Pinkney (Atheneum Books for Young Readers, June 2019)
  6. When Pencil Met Eraser by Karen Kilpatrick, Luis O. Ramos, Jr., and German Blanco (Imprint, May 2019)
  7. It Feels Good to Be Yourself: A Book About Gender Identity by Theresa Thorn and Noah Grigni (Henry Holt and Co. (BYR), May 2019)
  8. My Tiny Pet by Jessie Hartland (Nancy Paulsen Books, August 2019)
       

March 5, 2019

Let's Talk Illustrators #100: Kristy Caldwell

Kristy Caldwell's style is part picture book illustration, part comic illustration, and it was so great to pick her brain about how she balances the two. With several paneled illustrations, Away With Words: The Daring Story Of Isabella Bird, written by Lori Mortensen, pays tribute to Isabella Bird, the first female member of the Royal Geographic Society. I got a chance to talk Kristy about the book and her research on Isabella Bird, and I'm happy to share that interview here today!