Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast

I’m not normally in the habit of posting other people’s interviews in full at my site, but what the hell, I’m doing so today.

And that’s because I was very excited to hear on Monday of this week that graphic novelist Gene Luen Yang (pictured left in his self-portrait) was named the 5th National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature.

Below is a five-question chat he had with Gina Gagliano at First Second Books. I’m merely hosting them here today.

I can’t wait to hear more from Gene in his two-year term as Ambassador.

As the new Ambassador of Young People’s Literature, what changes would you like to see in America’s reading culture?

Gene: I want us to diversify our reading in every sense of the word “diverse.” I want us to read stories from different cultures about different topics in different formats. I want every person to read at least one book that others don’t expect them to like, at least once a year.

What draws you to YA books and literature?

Gene: I started in the comic book industry, which isn’t as tightly categorized into age demographics as the traditional book market. I didn’t really think of myself as a YA author until I began publishing with First Second Books. They looked at my stuff and decided it fit best in Young Adult.

I think they’re right. My friend and fellow author Marsha Qualey says there’s an equation at the heart of all YA:

Power + Belonging = Identity

Most of my stories are about that equation.

What do you like better — hardcovers or paperbacks?

Gene: You know, I’ve never really thought about it. Each format has its advantages. Hardcovers feel solid and substantial in your hand. Paperbacks are more portable.

I do a lot of my reading on the go these days, so I guess right now I prefer paperbacks.

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“Baby has fallen into a nest, / Cozy and snug now, starting to rest. /
Mama Crow frets, ‘This bird is too big!’ / Nudges the babe …”
(Click to enlarge spread)

 
If you’re talkin’ nursery rhymes/Mother Goose rhymes and their inherent eccentricities (the rhymes themselves and their origins), I think many people would agree that one of the oddest of all is “Rock-a-bye Baby,” what with the falling baby from the treetops. It’s macabre, to say the least.

One of my favorite picture book authors is Linda Ashman. She consistently brings the goods. Her brand-new book (Nancy Paulsen Books/Penguin Random House), illustrated by Italian artist Simona Mulazzani, is an early-2016 treat. (It’s coming to shelves this month.) It’s called Rock-a-Bye Romp, and it almost reads as Ashman’s response to this bizarre traditional rhyme, yet it’s not as if she’s trying to fix the rhyme. It’s not as if she’s saying anything is wrong with it. In fact, she does her part to extend the wonderful madness of the tale — yet brings it all full-circle with lots of warmth.

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It’s the first Sunday of the month, fellow kickers, and that means a student or debut illustrator. I’ve got the former today, a student from Montserrat College of Art. Erin McLaughlin is nearly done with her studies, tells us all about herself below, and also shares some of her art with its bright palettes and simple shapes. (It’s almost as if a child’s toys have come to life, her pieces below.) So, let’s get right to it. I’m handing it over to Erin now. …

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Over at Kirkus today, I’ve got a sneak-peek at some early 2016 picture books. Well, a couple might be Summer releases, as I can’t help myself.

That is here, and pictured above is my favorite of the lot.

Until Sunday …

“A white blanket lay humped and piled over everything in sight.
Could this be the New York he had known in the green of summer?”

 
Last week here at Kirkus, I wrote in part about Rhoda Levine’s Arthur, illustrated by Everett Aison. Arthur was originally released in 1962 but re-released in October by the New York Review Children’s Collection. I’ve got a bit of art from the book here today.

(I also wrote last week about John Burningham’s Harvey Slumfenburger’s Christmas Present. You can see a spread from it in this previous 7-Imp post.)

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“All of the sudden an enormous whale came puffing up to him and cried out,
‘Who said you could catch the subjects of my realm and take them away with you?
This will cost you your life!'”
— Andrea Dezsö’s illustration for “The Three Sisters”

 

“Little Red Cap opened her eyes wide, and when she saw the sunbeams dancing back and forth as they shone through the trees, and all the lovely flowers growing in the forest, she thought: if I take Grandmother a bunch of fresh flowers
she’d like that, too.”
— From Little Red Riding Hood, illustrated by Sybille Schenker
(Click to see spread in its entirety, including the text)

 

“The hedgehog shut the door behind him and took the path to the field. He had not gone very far from home, and was just rounding the blackthorn bush which stands at the edge of the field, when he spied the hare who had gone out on business
of the same kind—namely, to visit his cabbages.”
— From The Hare & the Hedgehog, illustrated by Jonas Lauströer
(Click to enlarge spread)

 
Good morning, dear kickers. Last week over at Kirkus, I had fairy tales on the mind (that is here, if you’re so inclined to read it), and so today I’m following up that column with art from the books I wrote about. This means I have illustrations from the following books:

• The Brothers Grimm’s The Hare & the Hedgehog from German illustrator Jonas Lauströer (Minedition, October 2015);
• The Original Folk and Fairy Tales of the Brothers Grimm: The Complete First Edition, translated and edited by Jack Zipes with illustrations from Andrea Dezsö (Princeton University Press, 2014);
• Sybille Schenker’s Little Red Riding Hood, translated into English by Anthea Bell (Minedition, 2014).

In that column, I also mentioned Schenker’s Hansel and Gretel (2011), and I’ve got art from that here at 7-Imp.

Enjoy!

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I write about picture books for Kirkus, but sometimes … well, you read a children’s novel so great that you ditch your plans and write about that novel instead. That’s what I’m doing today over at Kirkus, writing about Katherine Rundell’s The Wolf Wilder. That is here.

* * *

And, because freelance writing deadlines don’t stop for the holidays, I’ll have a column up over there tomorrow about my favorite Christmas picture books — one is a long-time favorite (Burningham!), and the other is an older one I just discovered this year. That will be here on Friday.

See you Sunday!

Just have to take a moment to post Lauren Castillo’s holiday art (which she gave me permission to do):

 

(Click to enlarge)

 

Happy merry to all!

 
This is a guest post from Oksana Lushchevska, a PhD student in Reading, Writing, Children’s Literature, and Digital Literacy in the Department of Language and Literacy Education at The University of Georgia. Oksana visits 7-Imp occasionally to contribute guest posts on contemporary Ukrainian children’s literature. She’s back again today to talk about, of all things, an app.

I’ve never written about a picture book app here at 7-Imp; this is probably the first appearance of the word “app” here in 7-Imp Land. The closest I’ve ever come to a picture book app myself is occasionally looking at the Horn Book’s reviews. But I like to hear what Oksana has to say, and I enjoy when she writes about Ukrainian artists and illustrators, so here she is (below).

Happy holidays to all! …

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(Click image to see spread in its entirety)

 
The year is nearly over, and I want to be sure to highlight a beautiful nonfiction picture book from UK illustrator Anna Wright, called A Tower of Giraffes: Animals in Groups (Charlesbridge, September 2015). This book, as the sub-title tells you, explores the collective nouns for groups of animals — towers of giraffes, flamboyances of flamingos, parcels of penguins, parliaments of owls. Wright’s writing is accessible and spirited, but it’s the art that really stands out.

Wright—who studied at the Edinburgh College of Art in Scotland and who has a particular fondness (per her author bio) for fabrics and wallpaper—uses feathers and fabrics to bring her ink and watercolor animal drawings to life. Each spread includes a small handful of each animal, some looking right at the reader. The fabrics are all textured and appealing — you want to reach out and touch these spreads. The Kirkus review calls the art “spectacular.”

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