{"id":5134,"date":"2020-06-28T00:01:30","date_gmt":"2020-06-28T06:01:30","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blaine.org\/sevenimpossiblethings\/?p=5134"},"modified":"2020-06-28T10:06:28","modified_gmt":"2020-06-28T16:06:28","slug":"7-imps-7-kicks-697-featuring-charly-palmer","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/blaine.org\/sevenimpossiblethings\/?p=5134","title":{"rendered":"7-Imp\u2019s 7 Kicks #697: Featuring Charly Palmer"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/a>
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“I could get in some laughs with inside toys \u2014
cars and games that bring much joy.”<\/em>
(Click spread to enlarge)<\/center>
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\nI know I’ve said here before at 7-Imp that my favorite thing about Instagram is the feed<\/a><\/strong> of artist and illustrator Charly Palmer<\/a><\/strong> (whom I got to interview<\/a><\/strong> back in 2017). If you missed his recent cover art for Time<\/em>, see it here<\/a><\/strong>. Magnificent. <\/p>\n

So, I was happy to see he’d illustrated a new picture book that, somehow, I missed back in May but finally read this past week. My Rainy Day Rocket Ship<\/a><\/em><\/strong>, written by Markette Sheppard<\/a><\/strong>, is the story of a boy who must play inside on a rainy day \u2014 and decides to take his imaginative play to the next level. <\/p>\n

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The boy, who narrates this rhyming story, uses a rocking chair for a rocket; creates, with assistance from Dad, a “super launching pad”; cushions himself with swimming trunks and goggles; and does much more with little to meet his goals. Making a flag out of a dishrag and a spaceship out of a cardboard box, he launches himself into space (Mom turns off the light, and Dad does the countdown), also known as the living room and the hall. It’s a spirited story of imaginative play from a boy whose parents not only encourage him \u2014 but also join in the fun. The book is published by Denene Millner Books, which is devoted to the work of African American writers and illustrators. <\/p>\n

Palmer’s illustrations with its thick brush strokes feature light particularly well \u2014 light that plays off the faces of this family; light making its way through sheets of rain, as seen through the window; the moonlight through the boy’s window at night, as he sleeps after his day of play. His palette is rich with vibrant colors; blues, reds, and greens dominate with touches of warm yellows to balance them. The dog included in the story adds some humor, as he curiously watches the boy set up his spaceship. <\/p>\n

Here are some spreads so that the art can do the talking. …
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\n<\/a>
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“Like a whole new world in a different place \u2014
a galaxy off in outer space!<\/font>“<\/em>
(Click spread to enlarge)<\/center>
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\n<\/a>
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“And I’ll need a super launching pad.
This will require some tools from Dad.”<\/em>
(Click spread to enlarge)<\/center>
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\n<\/a>
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“Now let me see about a space suit.
These swimming trunks and goggles should do.”<\/em>
(Click spread to enlarge)<\/center>
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\n<\/a>
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“Now if I can just get Mom to turn off the light.
This astronaut’s crew is ready for flight.”<\/em>
(Click spread to enlarge)<\/center>
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\n<\/a>
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“Prepare for landing on Planet XYZ<\/font>. It’s a safe arrival in my B-E-D<\/font> …
also known as the Land of ZZZZZZ<\/font>s.”<\/em>
(Click spread to enlarge)<\/center>
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\nMY RAINY DAY ROCKET SHIP. Text copyright \u00a9 2020 by Markette Sheppard. Illustrations copyright \u00a9 2020 by Charly Palmer and reproduced by permission of the publisher, Denene Millner Books\/Simon & Schuster, New York.<\/em><\/p>\n

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>
<\/center><\/p>\n

1)<\/strong><\/font> Surprise flower blossoms in our yard. <\/p>\n

2)<\/strong><\/font> This powerful essay<\/a><\/strong> by Caroline Randall Williams<\/a><\/strong>. <\/p>\n

3)<\/strong><\/font> Being a student again. <\/p>\n

4)<\/strong><\/font> It’s the time of year for tomato mozzarella salads. <\/p>\n

5)<\/strong><\/font> Talks with friends. Walks with friends, even if we have to stand far apart from one another. <\/p>\n

6)<\/strong><\/font> Yvonne Orji’s new stand-up special<\/a><\/strong>. <\/p>\n

7)<\/strong><\/font> New season of Search Party<\/a><\/strong><\/em>. AND Dark<\/a><\/em><\/strong>! Oh my god, can anyone really be ready for the trippy final season of Dark<\/em>?! <\/p>\n

What are YOUR<\/font><\/strong> kicks this week?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

“I could get in some laughs with inside toys \u2014cars and games that bring much joy.”(Click spread to enlarge)   I know I’ve said here before at 7-Imp that my favorite thing about Instagram is the feed of artist and illustrator Charly Palmer (whom I got to interview back in 2017). If you missed his […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[21,2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5134","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-seven-good-things-before-monday","category-picture-books"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/blaine.org\/sevenimpossiblethings\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5134","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/blaine.org\/sevenimpossiblethings\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/blaine.org\/sevenimpossiblethings\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blaine.org\/sevenimpossiblethings\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blaine.org\/sevenimpossiblethings\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=5134"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/blaine.org\/sevenimpossiblethings\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5134\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/blaine.org\/sevenimpossiblethings\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=5134"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blaine.org\/sevenimpossiblethings\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=5134"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/blaine.org\/sevenimpossiblethings\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=5134"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}