Pouch! Starred Review

Booklist has honored my forthcoming book Pouch! with a starred review.

Since I don't subscribe to Booklist, I can't link to the review, but here's an excerpt:

. . . Neatly embodying the way a young child’s drive toward independence seesaws with fear of the unknown, the panicky little kangaroos are vulnerable, appealing, and funny. The short, pithy text tells a story young listeners will immediately understand, right down to its heartening conclusion. . . . The artwork has a fresh, energetic quality that suits the story well. Stein, who won the Ezra Jack Keats New Writer Award for Leaves (2007), once again shows his talent for creating a fresh story in a few well chosen words and illustrating it with humor and verve.

School Library Journal also wrote a very lovely review, and here are some tidbits as well:

Stein continues to create deceptively simple yet very affecting picture books. . . . Stein’s choice of easily identifiable animals (a bee, a rabbit, and a bird) is particularly apropos, giving the book universality. . . . The repetition will appeal to the intended audience, as will the chance to identify each animal Joey meets. The subtle sophistication of the story gives it broad appeal. . . .

Thank you Reviewers!
David

Award

Hey folks,

Back in February I wrote and illustrated a wee reader called Tim and Sam for Hooked on Phonics' total revamping of their Learn to Read program. In doing so, I was pleased to join the company of such children's book stars as Rosemary Wells and Michelle Knudsen.

I was assigned the kindergarten level, and given a list of a hundred or so 3-letter words with which to write a compelling story. This resulted in Tim and Sam, the tale of a race between a fox and a bulldog. It is based on the sentence, "the quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog." I had a lot of fun with the vocabulary challenge, and with letting the art speak the volumes that the text couldn't.

So now iParenting has awarded HOP with their Media Award for Outstanding Products. My book is a small part of the total package, but I'm glad to have been involved. Congrats to HOP.

[Thanks to Amy Kraft for the last two photos used here. (They are from the HOP blog.)]

See ya at the races,
David

Three Years On

It's my third anniversary as a published author! Yes, my very first book, Cowboy Ned & Andy, came out July 11, 2006. Which seems like forever ago.

Yesterday, I handed in the art for my EIGHTH book, Interrupting Chicken! It will come out next summer.

In three years as your author, I feel I have learned many things. One was to lose the hat.

See ya in the book-o-sphere,
David

We Have a Chicken in Progress

After a little time off to recalibrate the ending and iron out some things, Interrupting Chicken is underway again. Luckily the weather has been pretty uninviting, so I am happy to stay in and work! Cutting stencils, putting down watercolor, scribbling with crayons—fun.

This book probably looks a lot different than my previous work, but there is a logical progression. I used crayon in The Nice Book as an accent. I used stencils to get sharp edges with watercolor, and more crayon in Pouch! (coming September 2009). Then I used complex multi-color stencils and more crayon in a book I did for Hooked on Phonics in the beginning of this year.

When Chicken came around, I decided to use multi-color stencils for the characters, and build the backgrounds out of a dark wash (working dark to light). Crayons take a much more central role. And I don't mean Crayolas—I am using Caran D'Ache water soluble crayons. It is a real joy to build up areas of light; I feel like I am really starting to paint. (Come to think of it, I always was a big fan of Degas's pastel work. . . .)

See you in the studio,
David

A Good Book for Kids

The blog Good Books for Kids has a new review of The Nice Book. It includes suggestions on how to use the book in working with children. Very nice.

So why is there a strawberry with a face up there? Well, it looks like a nice strawberry, doesn't it? It looks like this strawberry has read my book, doesn't it! So there you are.

Click here to read the review.

See you in the classroom,
David

State Prizes

I am officially on the short list for two State prizes: in Ohio for Monster Hug!, and in South Dakota for Leaves! Also there is some buzz about Cowboy Ned and Andy in Arizona. . . . I will keep you posted!

DES

SPRING DRAWINGS

The weather is great and that means I've been out drawing! Babies, gardens, friends, family, pets. . . . While these drawings may look very different from my book work, they are really at the core of it. All the observation, color, and light carries over. And (to paraphrase a quote I recently heard about meditation) drawing cultivates love of, and interest in, the world.

See you in the sun,
David