{"id":2143,"date":"2011-05-31T00:01:51","date_gmt":"2011-05-31T06:01:51","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blaine.org\/sevenimpossiblethings\/?p=2143"},"modified":"2011-05-31T08:54:45","modified_gmt":"2011-05-31T14:54:45","slug":"seven-questions-over-breakfast-with-john-rocco","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/blaine.org\/sevenimpossiblethings\/?p=2143","title":{"rendered":"Seven Questions Over Breakfast with John Rocco"},"content":{"rendered":"

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“So we went down and down and down to the street.”<\/em>
(Click to enlarge)<\/em><\/center><\/p>\n

That’s a spread from one of my favorite 2011 picture books, Blackout<\/a><\/em><\/strong> (Disney-Hyperion, May 2011), and it was written and illustrated by John Rocco<\/a><\/strong>, pictured here, who joins me for breakfast this morning. Have you seen this book, which has been met with such praise as “sublime” and “beautifully designed”? If not, I highly recommend you find the nearest copy on your library or bookstore shelf. It’s delightful. And if I were Publishers Weekly<\/em>, I might say Rocco gets everything right in this book. So, I’m not PW<\/em>, but they did<\/em> say that about this book, and I nodded when I read that. Because it’s true. <\/p>\n

Blackout<\/em> tells the story of one busy family’s (and one community’s) magical, intimate evening together after the lights go out. Rocco, in the below video, calls the book his “ode to Brooklyn.” In fact, as Betsy Bird pointed out in this recent post<\/a><\/strong> (where you can see the excellent trailer for this book), New York City experienced its own 2003 blackout, upon which this book is based<\/a><\/strong>. <\/p>\n

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But one of the many ways in which this picture book works is that—as it probably goes without saying—this experience of a harried family, isolated by their own individual activities (dad is cooking, mom is online, and sis is on the phone) yet eventually brought together by the very absence of electricity, is mighty applicable in our 2011 hyper-hypo, cyber, always-online, always-connected, Facetwitter world. It’s downright moving and damn near tear-inducing, the moment when the family is sitting with candles and ice cream cones on the front steps: “And no one was busy at all.” In fact, when the lights come back on … well, I don’t want to ruin your experience of reading this book for yourself—the first time I read it was a lovely moment—but let’s just say the family has a very funny solution to the electricity’s return. It’s a refreshingly uncreative, yet clever, solution. (“Not all young readers will have experienced a blackout,” wrote the Kirkus<\/em> review, “but this engaging snapshot could easily have them wishing for one.”)<\/p>\n

John’s here this morning to share some spreads from the book, as well as early sketches, etc. (Pictured right is a cutting from an early sketch.) He’s also generously sharing art from many of his other titles. (Way back in 2007, I covered his beautiful take on a classic Aesop tale<\/a><\/strong>.) <\/p>\n

As John notes in this recent video interview from Brooklyn Public Library’s Drawn in Brooklyn<\/a><\/strong><\/em> (approximately seven minutes long and embedded here for those wanting to know more), prior to children’s book illustration he worked in the entertainment business as an Art Director. I think I speak for many when I say I’m glad he turned to children’s book illustration. <\/p>\n