The High King
by Lloyd Alexander
Ages: 9+
Interests: fantasy, magic, war, violence, bravery, coming of age, ethical dilemmas, romance
The High King
12 Mar 2018 Leave a comment
in Books, books 9+, Illustrators, Uncategorized Tags: bravery, coming of age, ethics, fantasy, Magic, romance, violence, war
Vintage Children’s Book List
03 Jul 2013 1 Comment
in Books, Illustrators
The blog No Time for Flash Cards has a nice list up now, 27 Vintage Books Every Child Should Read.
The Story of Ferdinand (Wikipedia)
One book jumped out at me from the list, The Story of Ferdinand by Munro Leaf. Just reading the title conjured up in my mind the amazing, amazing illustrations by Robert Lawson: the odd-looking men from the city, the expression on Ferdinand’s face when he sits on the bee, the cork tree with actual corks dangling from it, the ladies at the bullfight, the rage of the matador… This book is a masterful example of the power of illustrations, as well as a wonderful tale of pacifism and remaining true to yourself.
If books from my childhood are now considered vintage, does that make me vintage too? I prefer the term classic…
Books on the list that I’ve reviewed here:
Sylvester and the Magic Pebble
Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day
Other books illustrated by Robert Lawson:
Rabbit Hill
Oliver Jeffers, funny guy
12 Feb 2013 6 Comments
in Authors, Illustrators
Here’s a great little video about Oliver Jeffers, creator of many picture books such as Lost and Found. It’s entertaining but also gives a glimpse into what goes into the making of a children’s picture book.
Charming video, and yet… I can’t wait until filmmakers stop doing all those distracting out/in focus pulls. (In the good old days camera operators checked the focus before starting to shoot!)
You can check out his website here.
Polish Children’s Book Illustrations
09 Jan 2013 Leave a comment
in Illustrators, Just Fun Stuff
On the blog 50 Watts, check out 3 marvellous collections of vintage illustrations:
and from the 1970s.
Gorgeous stuff. (Warning, once you visit this site, you may never leave! An incredible image archive.)
Illus. by Jan Marcin Szancer for Gulliver’s Travels, 1958
From the collection of Hipopotam
Illus. by Zdzisław Witwicki for Z przygód krasnala Hałabały, 1960
From the collection of Hipopotam
Illus. by Maria Szymańska for Dar Królowej Róż, 1971
From the collection of Hipopotam
Oh Maurice, you Old Curmudgeon…
08 Jan 2012 Leave a comment
in Authors, Illustrators
Maurice Sendak gives an interview and, as always, speaks pretty candidly. (The interview was done for TateShots in the UK and I came across it via writerswrite.com.)
RIP Ronald Searle
06 Jan 2012 Leave a comment
in Illustrators
Here’s the Guardian article on the great illustrator Ronald Searle, best known for his hilariously dark St. Trinians cartoons…
Rarest Kind of Best 