For those of you who are wondering where the posts went--- I had the draft of a post ready to go in January. Then, my mom passed away two days before the end of 2020. I didn't want to celebrate the new year, or anything else. 

Those of you who use my blog to help find book suggestions, here are a few links to other blogs I personally refer to that have helped to get the word out about fantastic new picture books while I was on hiatus.

Susanna Leonard Hill's Perfect Picture Books: https://susannahill.com/for-teachers-and-parents/perfect-picture-books/

Kirsten W. Larson's Books for Curious Readers on IG and Youtube: https://kirsten-w-larson.com/2020/07/27/youtube-ig-tv-book-reviews/

 John Schu: Books. Connect. Read. http://mrschureads.blogspot.com/

The Brown Bookshelf : https://thebrownbookshelf.com/

 I haven't been totally absent from the writing world. I've been drafting and writing shorter pieces. Some for "work" and some just for my own fun. Amanda Davis' #haikufromtwo Storystorm challenge is one example of the fun writing. (Select two words at random from a book you just finished and write a haiku--it doesn't have to have anything to do with the book). Today was my sixth haiku post for IG (PAPBwriter):

#HaikufromTwo #6 by Wendy Greenley

Two random words from Disappear Doppelgänger Disappear by

Matt Salesses

Writing Exercise inspired by amandadavis_art #Storystorm

 

Trouble and Troubling

Startling words selected

Karma, Fate or luck

 I'm also part of a panel discussion this weekend. The book festival is FREE, so register now:

 Hopefully, I'll be back to the regular picture book review posts soon. Meanwhile, I wish everyone a belated Happy New Year.

Eastern PA #SCBWI workshop March 7, 2015

     I often blog about writing workshops I’ve attended.

     This time I’m looking forward -- to March 7^th.

     I belong to a local critique group with other eastern-PA SCBWI members, and when our RA’s sent out a call for people to host “intimate” workshops (smaller than the 75-150 that show up for the big conferences) we answered. 

     On March 7^th you are invited to "Spring into Writing!"

     From 9AM-12:30 at the historic Moland House in Hartsville, PA you can ask ANY question about kidlit to prolific local authors Debbie Dadey and Kay Winters, and agent Marie Lamba. There will be a first page session (get those pages in by Feb 22!), a presentation about what to do and not do, and open informal question time.

     Oh, and you’ll get to talk to me AND have a snack.

     I hope to meet you there! (may the weather be in our favor)

     For more information: ‪ check the SCBWI calendar of events for March 7 or just click here.https://epa.scbwi.org/events/spring-into-writing/.

Why a Writer Writes

     When I was at a picture book "boot camp" last summer, my mentor Pat Cummings challenged me to share more of myself on my blog. Not just industry updates and book reviews, but personal stuff that gave readers more insight into my personality.
     Be careful what you ask for.
     Here goes.
     A friend of mine who also writes gave me a compliment recently. She told me that I was one of her favorite critiquers. She said that I was smart, and I didn't focus on minutiae when there were big picture issues involved. I thanked her with a smile. It's good to feel that I'm helping fellow writers.
     She knows that I've been writing for children but haven't received that elusive first picture book contract yet. Then she asked me if I had considered becoming an agent instead.
     Instead.

http://www.copyright-free-images.com

     Instead of writing for children.

     I think I smiled again politely and acknowledged the question, shaking my head, no. I'm not sure, exactly, because I was already having another conversation in my head as I backed away.
     For a moment, I was aware of the effort to breathe and move in an intelligent manner.
     There might have been foul language involved in the silent talk..
     Don't get me wrong. I think agents are great! I'm in the process of looking for one. And I know that some agents are also writers. Win-win.
     It was the word "instead."

     This post isn't "calling out" anybody. The friend involved isn't part of my online 12X12 writing community and to the best of my knowledge doesn't read my blog. In truth, the words were well-meaning. It's my reaction that may have been "off" but then that's me.
     I think I reacted as strongly as I did because the word "instead" marginalized my passion. I'm not dabbling, I'm pursuing a dream. A career. It felt like asking me if I wanted to eat "instead" of breathing. Eating is good, but I've gotta breathe. And I am writing because at some level I have to. There isn't an off button that I''m aware of.
     So there, Pat, this one was for you.
   

Perfect Picture Book Friday - Bridget's Beret by Tom Lichtenheld

Perfect Picture Book Friday- Bridget’s Beret

Author/Illustrator: Tom Lichtenheld

Publisher: Henry Holt & Company, Christy Ottaviano Books, 2010

Intended for ages 4 and up

Themes: Self-confidence, Artistic expression

Opening: Bridget was drawn to drawing. She liked to draw as much as other kids liked ice cream.

When the beret that Bridget believes gives her artistic talent blows away, Bridget has a crisis in confidence. Throughout the text, Lichtenheld pays homage to a host of famous artists. And in the end, our heroine gets her mojo back.

When the experts say that this book is for ages 4 and up, I’ll endorse the up! It’s a great story for anyone who occasionally suffers from artist’s/writer’s block. Good advice for finding your way back to anything you really love.

Bridget’s Beret is a 40 page picture book, but doesn’t feel over long. It was a 2011 Bank Street – Best Children’s Book of the Year.

I love the bright colors in this book. I have a purple beret in the drawer somewhere--I think it's time to break it out!

Thanks for stopping by...

A Kernel of Writing Advice

While it is a wonderful to get caught up in the heat of writing, the words flowing from a pen (or onto a computer screen) unbidden—the fact is that the words ultimately need to make sense to an audience. 

One of the best pieces of writing advice I’ve received was that a scene I wrote didn’t have to be true—readers had to believe that it was true. This advice works on two levels. 

First, if you’re writing something that is based on events or emotions that really transpired, unless you are writing nonfiction and are in essence telling the reader “this happened,” it doesn’t matter that it’s true if it isn’t believable. Conversely, if something is believable, it doesn’t matter if it’s the biggest whopper or scientific impossibility on the planet.

Writing for kids is especially fun because kids embrace the absurd. But within the parameters of a story, the absurdity still has to make some sense. In recent Caldecott winner  Jon Klassen’s “I Want My Hat Back,” because the rest of the plot makes sense, no reader stops to ask—why was a bear wearing a hat in the first place? Mo Willems makes us believe that a pigeon really could drive a bus if we only gave it the chance. In the subtle interplay between the believable and the absurd we can see these authors’ craft.

Last month I was fortunate to attend an SCBWI picture book workshop with Christopher Cheng. Next month I’m heading to the MD/DE/WV SCBWI conference. I’ve found that attending workshops is an investment in craft that repays itself many times over.

What’s one piece of writing advice that has helped you?

Writing Space - Part 2

As long as it’s quiet, I’m not too fussy about my actual physical writing space. But finding the quiet space, ah, there’s the rub.

If I’m at home and no one else is around, I prefer working on the kitchen table.. It meets three important criteria.

1.      It’s close to the range so I can make copious amounts of tea.

2.      It has good lighting.

3.      And I like to look out a window now and then.

But when I want to write and I’m not alone at home—I head to my “office.” That's what happens most of the time.

The space I call my office probably wasn’t intended to serve that purpose. You have to walk through the bedroom to get to it. I’m guessing that when the house was built, the space was meant for extra storage or a sitting area. But our family isn’t “sitting alone by ourselves” kind of people, so for the first year or so after we moved here the space was empty.

If you tried to walk around the perimeter of the room you would bonk your head because the walls angle in, following the roof line. But you don’t need all that much headroom if you’re seated!

My amazing husband took a sheet of plywood and laminated the top to make it smooth and pretty. Voila! A huge desk, perfect for the way I like to spread out and look at drafts while I revise (which I do a lot of). With the walls painted the both soothing and inspirational colors of the air/sea and jungle, I am happily settled in. Artwork make by my children is over my left shoulder.

The only problem with the space is that it’s over the unheated garage. Even though it has one heating vent, if any heat comes out of it, I have never felt it. A small space heater, parked directly behind my chair, solves this issue in the colder months.

I have to go downstairs to refill my mug, but that’s not altogether a bad thing. I don’t know if it’s the blood flow to my brain or the change of scenery but walking around often helps me find the right words when I’m stumped.

I’ve tried to write on a treadmill, but I’m not that coordinated. The treadmill I tried to work on wasn’t a fancy set-up intended for writing and I found I could either walk and hold the pad, or hold the pad and write, but every time I tried to hold the pad in place and write I ended up sliding precariously backwards. It’s okay. I can shoot a decent free throw. Writing while walking isn’t a necessary skill. 

I’ll bet a lot of people won’t agree with me here, but I believe that one extra bonus of the “office” is that our wireless network signal doesn’t reach there (yes, the router is ancient!). This means no cheating with peeks on the internet. When I need to do research, I have to come downstairs. And that’s a little inconvenient. But I’d rather have it this way. In my writing space there’s no email, no Facebook. Just me and my writing. 

And the best thing the office space has going for it compared to the kitchen is—I can leave it as messy as I want. If I’m mid-thought when I have to stop, it’s no problem. Paper can stay where I left it. I don’t have to constantly shuffle through the stack again, trying to find the places where I marked my notes. It’s a wonderful thing.

Do you have a special place where you get your best writing done?

Finally, the winner of the giveaway announced last week on my post about the 12x12 picture book group--drum roll, please--Everyone's a winner! When I pulled one name out of the hat, the other slips of paper looked so forlorn. And I know how excited I am when I get a new book to read. So, this time the only luck you needed was to have commented on that blog post during the one week period that ended today. I'll be contacting the winners later today to get mailing information.

Writing Space - Part 1

This should be obvious, but in order to be a writer you have to write.

Thinking about writing ideas is important, but it isn’t writing. Unless you’ve got a new-fangled   standing writing station, writing means putting yourself in a seat and putting the words down.

For me, the writing process involves two kinds of writing space.

1.      Mental space

2.      Literal, physical space

Sometimes, the mental space is the hardest part of the equation. Family time is a number one, code red, priority to me. I’ve realized, however, that I’m a lot better mom, wife, daughter, just a better person in general, when I’m happy. Putting my writing goals at the top (or at least near the top!) of the list is necessary to my happy balance.

The ten minute layovers—standing in line at the grocery store, waiting in the car line to pick up kids—are good times to noodle with ideas. If I forget my pocket notebook, I often come home with pockets full of scribbles on paper scraps. However, when I’ve finished noodling the ideas around and I finally want to put the words in order, my writing process works best if I can tune everyone and everything else out. Forgive me for sounding like Greta Garbo  but—I want to be alone!

I have always been fascinated by other writers’ routines. The Brain Pickings website has a great compilation. Personally, I find Ray Bradbury’s approach works the best. My writing should pull me to the desk. If it doesn’t, that doesn’t mean I shouldn’t write though. That just means something’s wrong with what I’m working on. Either I need to try a new angle or ax the project altogether and move on to something else. If I’m not feeling passionate about a story, how could I expect a reader to be?

The worst moments for me are when I literally have the time, but my head’s not in it. Sitting and staring at a blank page isn’t productive. But I don’t usually have that problem. My problem is writing along merrily and then looking back and realizing that what I just spent time on is the embodiment of the reason that there is a delete button. I wasn’t in a creative state of mind and my work showed it. Cut. No paste.

At times like these, I remind myself—writing isn’t necessarily a linear process. I’m reminded of something the pediatrician told me when I was worried that our kids weren’t eating balanced meals. “Look at a week,” he said. Applying this to my writing has freed me from the disappointment of individual bad writing days. As long as it’s occasionally two steps forward, the step back now and then is just part of the dance.

Now it’s off to dance with some of my favorite characters! We haven't reached the final frontier. (Something you should know about me, I love bad puns.)

And where do I write? That’s Part 2, this Friday.

Picture Book Boot Camp - June 2014

     I have been lying low the last two weeks. Ten days was vacation, which I will post about later because it was the most amazing volunteer vacation ever. The last four days was a picture book book camp hosted by the Highlights Foundation in Honesdale, Pa.

Cabin #18 (19 and 20 in the background)

     The faculty for the four day experience included Pat Cummings, Bruce Degen, Denise Fleming, and Paul O. Zelinsky.
     Re-read that last sentence, picture book writers!
     Yes, I spent four days with picture book rock stars. The especially great thing about it was that these rock stars weren't twerking twerps, they were talented, generous, funny people who came with the purpose to help the nineteen writers who were accepted to the program.
     If that isn't enough to get your heart beating fast, the last two days of boot camp added Laurent Linn, Rachel Orr and Rotem Moscovich to the faculty. In addition to their vast knowledge of the picture book industry, these folks also shared their expert techniques on how to make s'mores. Count me among the initiated. Good stuff.
     I can't possibly capture everything I learned in this post, but I will share a few highlights of Highlights.
     
     1. Emotions are everything in a picture book. Your character MUST elicit an emotional response from the reader.

     2. Follow your passion in writing a story but before you submit the story to agents/editors be sure you know who the audience for your story will be.

My group leader, Pat Cummings, and me

     3. Black bears are big! Baby bears are cute. We got a visit from Mama and her baby before sunset of  the first night session. Sadly, I took a photo but in the excitement forgot to click "save" and so it is lost to the digital ether.

     4. Writers are a multi-talented bunch. Be prepared to share your talent(s) at a moments notice. I am hoping no one was taping my moment in the spotlight. . . .

     5. Keep working on new material. It may take ten years (or longer) to sell your story. 

    6. Set writing goals. Put in the work. Never stop.

    7. Hearing praise for your work and having supportive writing friends make #6 easier.

     8. The staff at Highlights will provide delicious food, morning yoga and a quiet place to work. Just do it.
     9. Everyone looks better in a mustache.

Paul O. Zelinsky

Laurent Linn

Denise Fleming and Pat Cummings

     My antiquated flip-phone photos of some of the other faculty didn't turn out. I'll post a few more in the writers and writing section of my blog.
     If you have any specific questions about this great event, shoot me an email or PM.

THE THREE WIGGLY WORMS BLUFF

     Springtime is here!
     How do I know? I don't need to listen to the weather forecast. Susanna Leonard Hill told me it's here!
     If you don't follow Perfect Picture Book Fridays, you should. Not just for the great picture book reviews, but also because Susanna shares fun writing contests for pitches and short stories. Today is the kick-off (I know, imagery for the wrong season)--okay today is the first pitch (but that could be confused with a writing pitch)--today a new challenge SPRINGS forth, hosted on Susanna's blog. Can you tell I'm giddy with excitement?

public domain image by Vera Kratochvil

     The challenge was to write a fractured fairy tale of less than 400 words, post it on our blogs and link to Susanna's. I chose to incorporate the theme of Springtime in my story. It's based on TWO fairy tales. Can you guess which two?
     So here is, drum roll please: THE THREE WIGGLY WORMS BLUFF
    

THE THREE WIGGLY WORMS BLUFF          

“Melting snow is swamping the soil! Time to head to higher ground,” said Papa Worm.

Papa, Mama and Baby Worm squirmed to the surface and wiggled up the grassy slope to face—

the dreaded sidewalk.

“Ow! It’s rough,” said Baby.

“Go as fast as you can.” Mama gave him a pat. “And keep a lookout for birds.”

Baby wiggled as fast as he could.

But he was only halfway across when a robin swooped down.

“I’m going to gobble you up and take you to my babies!” the robin squawked.

“I’m a baby myself. Barely a bite, and not worth your flight. Mama is coming, she’s more than a morsel. Why don’t you wait for her?” said Baby.

The robin thanked Baby and sent him on his way.

When the coast looked clear, Mama wiggled as fast as she could.

But she was barely halfway across when the robin hopped out from a bush.

“I’m going to gobble you up and take you to my babies!” the robin squawked.

“I’d make an adequate dinner, but if you want to treat your babies to a feast you might want to wait for Papa worm. He’s coming next,” said Mama.

The robin thanked Mama and sent her on her way.

Papa did calisthenics, warming up his wiggle. Between the birds and the pavement heating up, He needed to be fast!

Papa wasn’t halfway across when the robin landed in his path.

“I’m going to gobble you up and take you to my babies!” the robin squawked. “You are plump perfection!”

“Is it true that the early bird gets the worm?” asked Papa.

“That’s true.” The robin opened wide.

“Stop! How do I know you’re the early bird? Maybe someone else is supposed to eat me,” said Papa.

A second bird saw its chance. “I was here first.”

“No, you weren’t!” the robin screeched.

“I’m the early bird!” they both insisted.

The two birds went beak to beak, pecking and pulling feathers.

While the birds quarreled, Papa wiggled,

across the concrete and—Ploop!—down a hole in the grass.

“No worm for the early bird today.” Papa hugged his family.

They wiggled down to enjoy their damp, but not flooded, springtime home. . .

until summer heat baked the soil and they had to return across the sidewalk again.

For those of you who are counting-that's 383 words! Welcome to Spring. :))

Another Auld Lang Syne - Goal setting

No end in sight, it's all about the journey

     I'm not sure why New Year's has such significance. After all, the calendar is an artificial construct. I'm more than a little bit jealous of the folks in the Southern Hemisphere who get to celebrate in warm summer weather instead of bone-chilling temperatures. In fact, if anyone wants to petition our government to move the calendar back six months, I'd be all over it. It's as good as an idea as many of the other ones I see floated in DC.
     Regardless of the reason, it feels right to stop and mull over my goals occasionally and this is as good a time as any. 

     So what are my goals for 2014?
     1. Do my best. (stole this one from the Cub Scouts)
     2. Try to enjoy each moment (this one is from a life with dogs)
     3. When I fail at #1 or #2---let it go. Look to the future.
   
     So, that's it. I'm not setting a number of words to be written every day. I know from experience that the stuff I grind out isn't close to as good as the words that burst forth, clamoring for my attention, refusing to let me forget them. But I know that isn't going to happen every day and I'm not going to set myself up for failure. There's enough to feel bad about in the world without adding to it.
     This doesn't mean I'm not ambitious or competitive. Just talk to my kids after board game night.
     I just recognize that my ambitions aren't fully within my control. And who wants to "lose" at something they have no control over? Not me. So I have decided to keep goals and ambitions separate. 

  I would like to thank everyone who has ever critiqued my work for me. Every criticism has helped me improve. Every word of encouragement has helped me persevere. Every comment has let me know I'm not alone. It has all been much appreciated.

     I think I might use this goal list for every year going forward. Do you have any goals to share?

Picture Book Word Smackdown Workshop

Recently, I was fortunate to attend two helpful events for writers.

The first was an in-person event held by the NJ SCBWI specifically for picture book writers. It’s hard to believe the next bit. 

It was led by the uber-talented Ame Dyckman, the author of Boy + Bot, and it was free!

Honestly, if you want to write kid lit and you aren’t already a member of the SCBWI, stop reading my blog post for a minute. I'll wait. Join the SCBWI. You can do it online. No, it isn’t free, but if you make the commitment to attend their events, you will get more than your money’s worth. I live in Pennsylvania and belong to the SCBWI of eastern PA but find that the events in New Jersey fit my schedule more often. I have friends with budgets that permit them to fly across the country or even to chapters on other continents, visiting SCBWI conferences to meet particular agents and editors. Doesn't that sound lovely? In the SCBWI, the world really is your oyster.

The subject of Ame’s ninety minute workshop was writing shorter. Now, I’m only five foot three inches tall so you might think I have an advantage here but durn, it wasn't that kind of shorter. The workshop pushed writers to cut their picture book word count; to make the work more marketable and also to make better picture books.

Now, I’ve heard these general words before. Several times. But that’s the beauty of going to workshop events. You never know which is going to be the one where things click for you. 

This one clicked!

The day after listening to Ame, I took a 511-word story that I hadn’t been able to make “zingy” enough and, without losing the heart of the story I wanted to tell, I revised (again!) and created a 349-word manuscript I was really proud of. I got that tingly feeling when the words are working and the story plays visually in my head. Is Ame magic? I guess you’d have to poll everyone else who attended to say for sure. I wouldn't bet against it.

A full book bag is a happy book bag

          What did I do after the workshop that really helped? With Ame’s advice about avoiding backstory and focusing on action, I went to the library (I should get a cot there). I copied the first lines from a stack of picture books I admired. I had read these words before, but for me the act of re-writing the words on a pad of paper helped me see the structure.

When I went back to my manuscript, I was ruthless. Lovely phrases that weren’t absolutely necessary to the story? Deleted. Next, I imagined what my perceptive illustrator would be able to include. I cut more.

Is any one workshop the answer to publication? Probably not. But it's a good step in the right direction. One thing I know for sure is that the world is full of talented writers and it isn’t enough to be good. The work needs to scream “publish me!”

I’ve prattled on long enough today. My second writing event was an online webinar on plotting held by Delve Writing. Look for my post on that upcoming.

One of my talented critique partners, MarcieColleen, posted about Ame’s workshop, too, and you can read her post here.

It's Useful to Have a Duck - Perfect Picture Book Friday

First, a note: If you missed my blog post on Tuesday last week, you have until May 5 to leave a comment on that post to enter the BOOK GIVEAWAY for Debbie Dadey's newest chapter book in her Mermaid Tales series with Simon & Schuster. 

    Now, on to today's "business."

    Last Friday I reviewed Isol's Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award winning book, Nocturne: Dream Recipes. I'm pleased to say that I didn't order just one of her books to get to know this author. The second book is just as original. And although I'm calling it the second book, because it's the second to be reviewed here, it was actually published five years earlier. So here's more charming work from Isol.

Title: It's Useful to Have a Duck

"Sleeve" on right

Author: Isol  Note: her website is NOT in English

Illustrator: Isol

Publisher: GroundwoodBooks/House of Anansi Press, 2007

Audience: ages 3 and up 

Themes: Point of View

Opening and Synopsis: I said this last week, and now I'll say it again. I can’t start with the words. The structure of the book is part of the experience. A little boy finds a rubber duck and uses him as a hat, a straw, a nose. But how does the duck use the little boy? 

By turning the book over, readers find the same story told from the duck’s point of view. This picture book/board book crossover uses the same images, shaded yellow from the boy's point of view, and shaded blue from the duck's point of view.  

While it looks like a board book, I agree with the assessment on Kirkus Reviews:
   "Do not be deceived by the simple-looking board format: This is not for babies. Rather, it      
    challenges children who have accepted the initial premise with developmentally appropriate 
    narcissism to regard the world from the opposite perspective."

The boy's opening line: I found a duck and I picked him up. 





 


 

The duck's opening line. I found a boy and he picked me up.
     

The book sleeve has all the publisher and copyright information. I'm probably a lot more careful than a kid would be, and the edges of the book cover are already getting that chewed up look, I assume from the effort needed to get the book back in its sleeve. Other than that, it's a winner. Note that the pages are hooked to each other accordion-style, so there's no page turning in the classic sense. It's sixteen linked pages on one side and another sixteen on the reverse. Some of the spreads are laugh out loud funny. I especially liked the duck "waxing" his bill in the boy's ear.

There's a good Youtube review of this book here. 
Sharing this book is a good opportunity to talk about the adage that there are two sides to every story! Literally two sides to this book.


This review is part of PPBF (perfect picture book Friday) where bloggers share great picture books at Susanna Leonard Hill's site. She keeps an ever-growing list of Perfect Picture Books.

Inspiration for Writers - In a Book!

     The box arrived yesterday. A beautiful brown cardboard box with Simon & Schuster’s name on the side.

     My name isn’t on the cover or the spine, but it’s “my book.” 

     In bookstores May 21, Chicken Soup for the Soul: inspiration for Writers.

     My sixth story for the Chicken Soup for the Soup conglomerate is one of the 101 included in this anthology. Four of my previous stories you can find in the Chicken Soup for the Soul books at your local bookstore, the fifth you’d have to hunt for because it’s on a forty pound bag of dog food (did you know Chicken Soup for the Soul has a pet food line?). But after five stories, I’m still as excited as I was with number one. And I have to say that this story is a big one. 

     Why?

     Look at the title! This is a book for WRITERS. Writing something for other writers was intimidating. Go to any writer’s conference. There are hundreds of people there at various stages of their writing careers. I've met people who have authored over a hundred books. I’m a relative newbie.

     But I felt I had something to say. It came from my heart. And I guess it flowed onto the paper with words that spoke to the editors, too. So look for me on page 230!

     My story is titled “Getting Started.” Because everyone has to start somewhere.  

     “You block your dream when you allow your fear to grow bigger than your faith.”—Mary Manin Morrissey (page 6).

     It’s an inspiration to be in the book—and it will be an inspiration for me to read the 100 stories new to me. If you get a chance to read my story, come back and let me know what you think!

    

Nocturne: Dream Recipes by Isol - Perfect Picture Book Friday

    First, a note: If you missed my blog post on Tuesday, you have until May 5 to leave a comment on that post to enter the BOOK GIVEAWAY for Debbie Dadey's newest book in her Mermaid Tales series with Simon & Schuster. 
Don't you want to know what role the vampire squids play?

    Now, on to today's "business." Is it possible to be speechless and still write a blogpost?

     Wow! I am in love.

     Don’t worry, my husband knows about my obsession with books. 

     To back up, a few weeks ago I saw that an Argentinian author/illustrator I wasn’t familiar with had won the Astrid Lindgren MemorialAward. This award, established in 2002 and presented by the Swedish government, comes with a cash prize, equivalent this year to $770,000! Maurice Sendak was one of the prior award winners. The 2013 award winner’s name? Isol.

(If you want to see a photo of Isol, click here for the Reuters article announcing the prize winner. I couldn’t find any images of her in the public domain.)

     I had to learn more.

     My library didn’t have any of Isol’s books. The internet was my next stop. I ordered, and waited---and it was more than worth it! 

Title: Nocturne: Dream Recipes

Author: Isol  (Elisa Amado, translator)- Note: her website is NOT in English

Illustrator: Isol

Publisher: GroundwoodBooks/House of Anansi Press, 2012

Audience: ages 4 and up 

Themes: Dreams, imagination, sleep

Opening and Synopsis: I can’t start with the words. The structure of the book itself blew me away. Look at the photo! You don't see this in the image on Amazon. Instead of being bound down the side in traditional book fashion, Nocturne has vertical spiral bound pages. As the subtitle hints, the book is organized like a cookbook.  Ahead of the title page are musings about the nature of dreams, then following the title are step-by-step instructions to follow each night for a new dream. Eleven pages of dream prompts follow. And what's the icing on the cake?
     
     The pages are simple drawings, in muted colors, with a single line of text such as the "Dream of being another." Big deal, right? Ah-h, but the point of the book is that dreams are part of the world usually unseen. So, Isol has made drawings in glow-in-the-dark paint that are only visible after you prop the book under a bright light and then head to the dark. 

     Remember I said I was blown away by the structure of the book? The back cover is actually TWO layers accordion hinged together so the book can be stood up bedside to inspire little dreamers. Note: some of the hidden pictures are meant to inspire creative thought, not necessarily prompt peaceful sleep. It all depends on how your little one feels about the suggestion that wild animals may be watching while he/she sleeps.
Kirkus didn't like the book for little ones. feeling the sparse inspiration was more suited for ages 10-14. I'm not with them on that. I think younger elementary school age kids would enjoy the novelty and creative fun. My book is new, so if the glow-in-the-dark paint doesn't hold up, I'll let you know!

   Finally, the opening words: 
     "There are many kinds of dreams:
     adventurous dreams, dreams with ridiculous scenes, dreams in which nothing happens, 
     confusing dreams, dreams about people we've recently seen, dreams in other languages, 
     dreams we can't remember...

Activities: Publisher's Weekly will tell you the text of a few more of the prompts that I didn't want to "give away." The book itself is an activity--the last page of the book is one for kids to draw themselves. Make a dreamcatcher. Talk about good and bad dreams. Older kids may want to start a dream journal. All ages can draw a dream they remember. Try drawing in the dark, with only the light of a flashlight. Craft and hardware stores have non-toxic glow-in-the-dark paints suitable for use with kids. Maybe you want to create your own flip pages, or a mural size glow-in-the-dark masterpiece!

  And yes, I have another Isol book waiting in the wings for its review! How did I miss these before? (too many books, too little time...!)


This review is part of PPBF (perfect picture book Friday) where bloggers share great picture books at Susanna Leonard Hill's site. She keeps an ever-growing list of Perfect Picture Books.