Tuesday Kidlit Trivia for December 19, 2023

 When this Massachusetts writer read an article about the "pallid primers" featuring "abnormally courteous, unnaturally clean children" that kids learning to read found boring, he came up with an early reader in 1957 that featured wild misbehavior--subversive for that time. The book became the first of  17 books in the Random House series Beginner Books, which featured limited vocabulary but unlimited creativity, fun language and zany illustrations. This was Theodore Geisel, aka Dr. Seuss and that first book in the series was Cat in the Hat.

Tuesday Kidlit Trivia for December 12, 2023

 This author/illustrator was a successful artist in Italy and earned a degree in economics before moving to the US in 1939 and working as art director for magazines and as head of the graphic design dept. at Parsons School of Design. On a train trip with his grandchildren, he tore up a magazine and created a story, which led to his later career as a children's author. He is one of the very few who had four books listed as Caldecott Honor Books for their illustrations. His collage story Swimmy, about little fish who join together to form one big fish to avoid being eaten, is one of his most famous. This is Leo Lionni.

Tuesday Kidlit Trivia for December 5, 2023

 This author grew up struggling to read, and he credits his storytelling grandmother and his 5th grade teacher who read aloud to the class twice a day with his ability to appreciate the sounds of language. He became an editor and created reading programs at a publisher and then began writing books of his own, meant to be read aloud, that featured repetition and rhythm and encouraged the child audience to participate. His most famous books were illustrated by Eric Carle (Brown Bear Brown Bear, What Do You See?) and Lois Ehlert (Chicka Chicka Boom Boom). This was Bill Martin Jr., 1916-2004.

91 Submissions in 2023, My 25th year of subbing, and some successes!

 I joined SCBWI in 1998 so this marks my 25th year subbing stories. I had no sales for the past ten years, but this year was luckier. I submitted 91 times. A local paper printed seven of my poems, I had a poem in the British on-line magazine Dirigible Balloon, I sold a poem to Highlights, and I signed a contract for a rhyming picture book with Familius Publishing! Which goes to show--keep submitting. Don't quit!

Tuesday Kidlit Trivia for November 28, 2023

 For this author/illustrator, born in Michigan in 1949, drawing was just a way to relax after sculpting. But his curious illustrations in pencil made him famous, starting with his first book in 1985, which became a holiday classic. Another book was inspired by the thought, "What if kids were bored and found a board game..." and another sees the world from the perspective of ants. His most widely read book is The Polar Express and the creator is Chris Van Allsburg.

Tuesday Kidlit Trivia for November 21, 2023

 This Grand Junction, Colorado author is a retired teacher and mother of five. She's written early readers and edcational books, but her best-selling picture books feature a loveable turkey. Turkey Trouble came out in 2012, followed by 6 more, including Turkey Trick-or-Treat, Turkey's Eggcellent Easter, and her most recent, Turkey's Sandtastic Beach Day which came out in May of 2023. Happy Thanksgiving to Wendi Silvano!

Tuesday Kidlit Trivia for November 7, 2023

 When this author/illustrator moved from Honolulu to NYC hoping to become a children's book illustrator, he met: a) his future wife and b) an art director who told him his portfolio of sketches was so bad he should throw it away. He did, but then created a new collection of drawings that got him a contract with Dial Press for his first book in 1967--A Boy, A Dog and A Frog. It was wordless, as were his next several books. He went on to create over 300 books, including There's a Nightmare in My Closet and the Little Critter series. This is Mercer Mayer.