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Ilove great children’s books—particularly “picture books”—
because so many of them aren’t just for children!
Inside Out, Pixar’s latest masterpiece, has nothing on the best picture books. Sure, many of the best books written and illustrated with children in mind shine a light on joy, anger, disgust, fear, and sadness. The best of the best, though, are also distinguished by meticulous craftsmanship, thought- ful design, rich and clever literary textures—and frequently stunning visual delights.
I believe an award-winning children’s book is like a great symphony: I look for melody in the sentences, rhythm in the paragraphs, and tonal harmony between the text and the illustrations. I love evocative and intricate imagery, unique influences, and a signature illustrative aesthetic.
When my daughter was born, I wanted to read to her all the time—and to read to her and show her some of the award- winning picture books produced and published over the past 100 years. And so I set about on a project: We would read together every Caldecott Medal winner. (The Caldecott Medal, named for 19th-century English illustrator Randolph Calde- cott, is awarded each year to the top American picture book for children.) The first award was presented in 1938 for Animals
of the Bible, A Picture Book. I found Animals through the public library’s inter-library loan program—we located a copy in Los Angeles. We read forgotten classics such as Robert McClos- key’s Make Way for Ducklings (the 1942 winner) and the James Thurber-penned and Louis Slobodkin-illustrated Many Moons (1944), the legendary Maurice Sendak’s Where the Wild Things Are (1964) and William Steig’s Sylvester and the Magic Pebble (1970), and recent tour de forces such as The Three Pigs (2002) and The Man Who Walked Between the Towers (2004). Even when my daughter was a teenager, we didn’t miss The Inven- tion of Hugo Cabret (2008).
And now my daughter is 21—but, when she recently returned home from studying abroad, we still read, together, this year’s winner: the extraordinarily imaginative The Adven- tures of Beekle: The Unimaginary Friend. As of today, we’ve read all 77 winners—and I hope, every year, for another 50 years, we’ll keep on reading—together.
Knoxville has an award-winning pic- ture book author, too: My friend and for- mer Whittle Communications colleague Lisa Horstman. Lisa has been writing and illustrating exquisite books for
more than 20 years, and her most recent book, Sabrina: A Great Smoky Moun- tains story—about a misfit flying squirrel who saves her red squirrel friends from certain disaster—is one of her best yet. (You can learn more and buy the book at Sabrinabook.com; the book is published by the Great Smoky Mountains Associa- tion—and all purchases benefit the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.)
Lisa’s process is noteworthy: She cre- ates her illustrations with photographed stop-motion puppets superimposed digitally with background illustrations. She sketches the characters and then makes poseable armatures (a type of skeleton made out of wire, brass, or stainless steel). Lisa cover the armatures with some sort of material—fabric, fibers, or, for the more detailed puppets, foam latex or silicon. (She made the squirrels
in Sabrina from wool fibers wrapped around a wire armature and felted in place with a felting needle.) The puppets are posed, photographed, and then digitally added to painted background illustrations.
I’ve read and re-read Sabrina—and I recommend the book for children and adults alike. Moreover, I propose a summer project for all East Tennessee parents and grandparents: Find a Caldecott Award winner, grab your son or daughter or grandchild—and read. You’ll never regret the joy, the smiles—and the memories.
Steven Friedlander
Editor-in-chief
From the
Editor
28 CITYVIEWMAG.COM JULY AUGUST 2015