July 2nd, 2015 by jules
Enjoy!
June 30th, 2015 by jules
This is a story of power and ultimately, friendship, as a domineering goat atop a mountain claims it for himself but in the end discovers his own loneliness. It invites, as the Kirkus review notes, “a broader consideration of the ins and outs of ownership than the usual toy-oriented run of ‘sharing’ titles.” Lucas’ geometric designs and angular speech bubbles give the book a distinctive look. Keep your eye on the sky here to note his shooting stars and zooming clouds and rising suns (note the one on the first spread, featured above). These are visually pleasing spreads, ones evoking the Southwest in color palette and border design (though it’s never specifically noted where the story takes place).
Here’s some more art from the book. Enjoy!
June 28th, 2015 by jules
My one giant kick this week—all wrapped around kicks one to seven—is the news from the Supreme Court on marriage equality for all. It was a wonderful day on Friday when the news was announced, and it’s a new day in America. Today’s image is from Christian Robinson. (For those interested, the roosters can be purchased here at Red Cap Cards or as a print from Gallery Nucleus.)
Love wins, y’all!
What are YOUR kicks this week?
Oh, and the necessary spiel:
Note for any new readers: 7-Imp’s 7 Kicks is a weekly meeting ground for taking some time to reflect on Seven(ish) Exceptionally Fabulous, Beautiful, Interesting, Hilarious, or Otherwise Positive Noteworthy Things from the past week, whether book-related or not, that happened to you. New kickers are always welcome.
Illustration is copyright © 2015 by Christian Robinson and used by his permission.
June 26th, 2015 by jules
Last week, I wrote (here) about Eve Bunting’s Whose Shoe? (Clarion, June 2015), illustrated by Sergio Ruzzier, and Laurie Ann Thompson’s My Dog Is the Best (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, June 2015), illustrated by Paul Schmid. Today, I follow up with some early and final art from each book, thanks to Sergio and Paul.
June 25th, 2015 by jules
“The idea of sustainability, respect and nurturing of the land, is not a foreign concept to me, especially because in Hawaii there are lots of traditional morals linking to the earth. …
‘Malama ka aina’ means to respect the land, and they are strong words that resonate in the islands. ‘Ua Mau ke Ea o ka Āina i ka Pono’ is the state motto of Hawaii, and I think shines closer to the book: ‘The life of the land is perpetuated by righteousness.’”
Over at Kirkus today, I talk to author-illustrator Emily Hughes, pictured here, about her newest picture book, The Little Gardener (Flying Eye Books, August 2015), as well as last year’s Wild.
That link is here.
Next week, I’ll have some art here at 7-Imp from each book.
Until tomorrow …
Photo of Emily used by her permission.
June 23rd, 2015 by jules
Today I follow up with a bit of art from the book, as well as one of Matt’s early sketches. The sketch you’ll see below shows that, originally, Matt had considered merely pen and ink with the only color being watercolor splashes, but plans changed and the book ended up in color. “The book,” he tells me, “became less cartoony and more (I hope) realistic — not in the style of art especially, but in the emotion. A more cartoony book wouldn’t have been as personal.”
Enjoy, and thanks to Matt for sharing.
June 21st, 2015 by jules
Boats for Papa (Neal Porter/Roaring Brook, June 2015), which will be on shelves at the end of this month, is about Buckley, an anthropomorphized beaver who lives with his mother in a tiny house by the sea. “They didn’t have much, but they always had each other.” Buckley’s father is gone. One doesn’t really know why—I suppose it’s possible he took off for one reason or another—but it’s also perfectly plausible that he has died. Readers who look closely will see loving family photos, which include Buckley’s father, on the walls of the house.
[Note: Plot spoilers below!]
June 19th, 2015 by jules
Last week, I wrote here about some very summer’y picture books — Andrew Larsen’s See You Next Year, illustrated by Todd Stewart (Owlkids, March 2015); Peter Sís’ Ice Cream Summer (Scholastic, May 2015); Gary Clement’s Swimming, Swimming (Groundwood, May 2015); and Deanna Caswell’s Beach House, illustrated by Amy June Bates (Chronicle, May 2015).
Here’s some art from each book. Enjoy!
June 18th, 2015 by jules
Enjoy the art.
(Note: Some of the text in the spreads featured below varies slightly from the text in the final copy of the book.)
Read the rest of this entry »
June 16th, 2015 by jules
I’ve got some illustrations from Hasel and Rose today, and since I was so taken with her artwork, Caroline even shares some of her other pieces here. I thank her for sharing. You can see more illustrations from the book here. (Some of the artwork was shown at the Chris Beetles Gallery in St James, London, last November. Here’s my favorite moment in the book.)
Enjoy!
