{"id":3431,"date":"2014-06-15T00:01:08","date_gmt":"2014-06-15T06:01:08","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blaine.org\/sevenimpossiblethings\/?p=3431"},"modified":"2015-07-20T20:01:36","modified_gmt":"2015-07-21T02:01:36","slug":"7-imps-7-kicks-386-featuring-brian-floca","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/blaine.org\/sevenimpossiblethings\/?p=3431","title":{"rendered":"7-Imp\u2019s 7 Kicks #386: Featuring Brian Floca"},"content":{"rendered":"

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“The seal’s coat was silvery brown. She was eight feet long—as long as a long surfboard—and she weighed twelve hundred pounds — as much as fifteen Labrador retrievers. The people of Christchurch knew there was something very special about her. She was strong and powerful and regal — like Elizabeth, the Queen of England. And so they named her, Elizabeth, Queen of the Seas.”<\/em>
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\nGood morning, all. First up, it’s Father’s Day, so happy Father’s Day to you dad-readers out there. And happy Father’s Day to all the father figures in our lives. (It just so happens that I wrote here<\/a><\/strong> on Friday about some great picture books about fathers — and even some grandfathers can be spotted in some of those pages.)<\/p>\n

This morning, Caldecott medalist Brian Floca<\/a><\/strong> is sharing some sketches from his latest illustrated book, Lynne Cox’s<\/a><\/strong> Elizabeth, Queen of the Seas<\/a><\/em><\/strong> (Schwartz & Wade, May 2014), and I’ve got some art from the book as well. And, since Atheneum Books for Young Readers just re-issued (in early June) Brian’s Five Trucks<\/a><\/strong><\/em> (pictured left), originally released back in 1999 by DK Publishing, I’ve got some art from that as well. And<\/em> Brian has some early sketches from that book to share, too. <\/p>\n

Lynne’s Elizabeth, Queen of the Seas<\/a><\/em><\/strong> opens with an Author’s Note about how Lynne once traveled to New Zealand (she is a world-renowned long-distance swimmer and writer and headed there to swim some lakes near Mount Cook), and it was there that she met a boy named Michael, standing along the Avon River near the city of Christchurch, who asked her if she was looking for Elizabeth. When she asked who it was that they meant, the boy explained that Elizabeth was an elephant seal, and both the boy and his sister told Lynne the story of the “Queen of the Seas.” <\/p>\n

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That story is the tale of this sunny picture book: Elizabeth lived not on the beach in New Zealand, but in the shallow waters of the Avon River in the city. The townsfolk named her after the Queen of England, and a young boy (named Michael, of course!) would frequently look for her and call out her name. Often, she’d manage to hoist herself up onto the road in town, Lynne writes, which caused great consternation for residents, as she’d already caused a traffic mishap or two. Volunteers decided to haul her out to the beach, where she belonged. Eventually, she returned, only to be taken back to the shore yet again by a boat crew. Yet she made the long journey back, once again, to the Avon River. <\/p>\n

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Floca’s palette, as you can see below after the sketches (as well as above), consists of warm greens, blues, and yellows, and Lynne’s storytelling is just as bright — it’s an entertaining story (and even closes with “Some Facts About Southern Elephant Seals Like Elizabeth”). It’s a loving story of community, and it’s also funny: As Sarah Harrison Smith wrote at the New York Times<\/em><\/a><\/strong>, “there’s something inherently funny in seeing commuters gawp and swerve around the huge, regal mammal.”<\/p>\n

Five Trucks<\/em> is, essentially, an informational book for children (calling all those children, boys and girls alike, who obsess over things that go vroom!) that describes the five airport vehicles typically seen on runways. Floca brings readers a diverse crew of men and women who work the trucks, and the spare, simple text makes this one a great beginning reader: “Floca offers a book that’s simple enough for a two-year-old (prime age for the young truck enthusiast), without being boring or simple-minded,” wrote Booklist<\/em>.<\/p>\n

Below are sketches and some final art from each book. Enjoy …
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Some sketches from Elizabeth, Queen of the Seas<\/em>:<\/strong><\/font>
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Various “welcome home” sketches<\/em>
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Endpaper ideas<\/em>
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Some final art from Elizabeth, Queen of the Seas<\/em>:<\/strong><\/font>
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Some sketches from Five Trucks<\/em>:<\/strong><\/font>
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Brian: “A sketchbook drawing of airport trucks, done when I got to Logan too early
for a flight in 1996 (!) and the genesis of the book.”<\/em>
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Brian: “Some photos of airport workings that I took when I got onto the tarmac at Logan to get some reference for the drawings. (In 1996, all you had to do to get on the tarmac with a camera and questions was find the right person,
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Storyboard<\/em>
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Brian: “A sketch showing the fuel truck, [which didn’t make] the cut (too few pages) …”<\/em>
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Sketches from an early draft of the book<\/em>
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Brian: “A sketch for the new cover …”<\/em>
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Some final art from Five Trucks<\/em>:<\/strong><\/font>
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\nELIZABETH, QUEEN OF THE SEAS. Copyright \u00a9 2014 by Lynne Cox. Illustrations copyright \u00a9 2014 by Brian Floca. Published by Schwartz & Wade Books, New York. Illustrations reproduced by permission of the publisher, and all sketches reproduced by permission of Brian Floca.<\/em><\/p>\n

FIVE TRUCKS. Copyright \u00a9 1999 by Brian Floca. 2014 edition published by Atheneum Books for Young Readers, New York. Illustrations reproduced by permission of the publisher, and all sketches reproduced by permission of Brian Floca.<\/em><\/p>\n

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Note for any new readers: 7-Imp\u2019s 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. <\/p>\n

* * * Jules’ Kicks * * *<\/strong><\/font>
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1)<\/strong><\/font> Right here<\/a><\/strong>, author David Sedaris<\/a><\/strong> says the following about bookstores:<\/p>\n

Maybe I\u2019m out of touch, but I\u2019d rather go to an actual shop \u2014 preferably a small one \u2014 than to a harshly lit superstore, or, worse still, a website. I don\u2019t want to buy my books and my toilet paper and my clothing all under the same roof. I want beauty in my life. I want charm. I want contact with actual people. It is, for me, a large part of what makes life worth living.<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

2)<\/strong><\/font> This:<\/p>\n