Archive for June, 2018

Chris Raschka’s New Shoes

h1 Tuesday, June 12th, 2018



 
I finally snagged some spreads from Chris Raschka’s wonderful New Shoes (Greenwillow, May 2018) to showcase here at 7-Imp. I wrote about here it at Kirkus last week, if you’d like to read more about it.

Enjoy!

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7-Imp’s 7 Kicks #590: Featuring Calling Caldecott

h1 Sunday, June 10th, 2018



 
I’m taking a Sunday to point 7-Imp readers to the Horn Book’s Calling Caldecott, where since March of this year, we’ve been checking in monthly to talk about some of the outstanding picture books we’ve seen this year, ones that maybe — perhaps and who knows and we can’t read minds, after all — the current Caldecott committee members are taking notice of.

Calling Caldecott is here. Pictured above is one of my favorite picture books this year, which we included in this week’s post (and which I reviewed for the Horn Book’s March/April 2018 issue).

In fall of this year, we’ll have more regular posts, discussing books individually as we look ahead to the 2019 award.

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What I’m Doing at Kirkus This Week,
Plus What I Did Last Week,
Featuring Eugene Yelchin and Hyewon Yum

h1 Friday, June 8th, 2018


— From Hyewon Yum’s Saturday Is a Swimming Day


 

— From Eugene Yelchin’s Pip & Pup


 
Over at Kirkus today, I may ramble a bit about reading.

That is here.

* * *

Last week, I wrote here about Eugene Yelchin’s Pip & Pup (Henry Holt, April 2018) and Hyewon Yum’s Saturday Is a Swimming Day (Candlewick, June 2018). I’ve got art from each book below.

I also wrote about Chris Raschka’s New Shoes, and I hope to have some art from that soon here at 7-Imp. Stay tuned. …

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My Kirkus Q&A with Vera Brosgol

h1 Thursday, June 7th, 2018

Honestly, I was resistant to doing a childhood memoir. I feel like there are a lot of them these days — and good ones. The world didn’t need one from me. My publisher asked me to at least think about it, and I did, crankily. Crank crank crank. But as soon as the camp angle occurred to me, all my crankiness went out the window. I knew I could make a funny book that would be a blast to draw and be different from what’s out there. I’m always telling people about the outhouse. The outhouse needed to be immortalized!”

* * *

Over at Kirkus today, I talk with author-illustrator and graphic novelist Vera Brosgol, whose middle-grade graphic novel, Be Prepared, arrived on shelves in April.

The Q&A is here. Next week, I’ll follow up here at 7-Imp with a bit more art from the book.

Until tomorrow . . .

“Is a lion still a lion if … he wears a hat?”

h1 Tuesday, June 5th, 2018



 
Here’s a quick post about Polly Dunbar’s latest book, A Lion Is a Lion (Candlewick), released in April. It’s the story of a fierce lion, who makes his way into the home of two children by making himself quite dapper — donning a hat and coat and carrying an umbrella. Is he still a lion, Dunbar asks readers, if he makes himself more human-like and even if he puts on certain manners, such as skipping down the street and singing “Hoobie-doobie-doo”? What about if he appears thoughtful? What if he doesn’t forget his please and thank-yous?

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7-Imp’s 7 Kicks #589:
Featuring Up-and-Coming Illustrator, Cat Min

h1 Sunday, June 3rd, 2018


It’s the first Sunday of the month, which means I’ve got the work of a student or debut illustrator here at 7-Imp. Today, it’s the latter, an illustrator and animator named Cat Min, who recently signed with an agent and is working on her debut picture book.

Cat is here to tell us a bit about herself, as well as share some artwork. I thank her for visiting. Let’s get right to it. (And if you want to see even more of her artwork, you can find her on Instagram at: thecatpark.)

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What I’m Doing at Kirkus This Week,
Plus What I Did Last Week,
Featuring Floyd Cooper and Eliza Wheeler

h1 Friday, June 1st, 2018


“Frances was sent to Cottingley so the girls could go out to the beck to summon …
the fairies. But it rained . . . every day. In the two weeks Frances was in Cottingley,
the girls got only two hours of sunshine to try for photos.”
— From Marc Tyler Nobleman’s
Fairy Spell: How Two Girls Convinced the World
That Fairies Are Real, illustrated by Eliza Wheeler


 

“‘My first job,’ Venus says, ‘is big sister. And I take that very seriously.'”
— From Howard Bryant’s
Sisters and Champions:
The True Story of Venus and Serena Williams, illustrated by Floyd Cooper
(Click to enlarge spread and read text in its entirety)


 
Today over at Kirkus, I’ve got a preschool picture book round-up.

That is here.

* * *

Last week, I wrote here at Kirkus about Howard Bryant’s Sisters & Champions: The True Story of Venus and Serena Williams (Philomel, May 2018), illustrated by Floyd Cooper, as well as Marc Tyler Nobleman’s Fairy Spell: How Two Girls Convinced the World That Fairies Are Real (Clarion, April 2018), illustrated by Eliza Wheeler.

I’m following up with art from both books today.

Enjoy!

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