The Tap Dancing Pigeon of Covent Garden

Hi Chaps

The Tap Dancing Pigeon of Covent Garden, a lovely book that I illustrated has now been published!
Pick up your copy now to read about bravery, passion and our beautiful planet!
It's written by Serena Hassan, see more of her here -
 (www.serenahassan.co.uk)
and has had a few nice reviews here -
https://katestutter.com/2019/08/30/the-tap-dancing-pigeon-of-covent-garden-serena-hassan/

http://thesyders.blogspot.com/2019/08/the-tap-dancing-pigeon-of-covent-garden.html

It was great fun to illustrate, with various spreads of London and Covent Garden and I'm pleased with how it's come out.
Here are a couple of bits of it.

Terrific Toddlers

Hi Chaps,

I recently illustrated a set of three books for Toddlers called Terrific Toddlers, written by Carol Zeavin, Rhona Silverbush and published by Magination Press
They are about a diverse group of toddlers who are learning to share with each other, deal with hurt, and to say goodbye.
The books use simple language and are reflective of children’s realities, based on an understanding of the developmental level of young toddlers.
This series is the first to handle the topics in carefully researched, developmentally appropriate ways for toddlers, and is affiliated with the American Psychological Association
I'm really pleased to have been involved with such worthwhile books.
They were very interesting to illustrate, and I also think the designers did a fab job with the design of them :)
Here are a few illustrations

The Tiger Who Came To Tea Exhibition

Hi Chaps,

I went to Acorn Bank National Trust House at the weekend and there I saw the lovely 'A Tiger Came To Tea' 50th Anniversary Exhibition set up by Seven Stories.
It was a very nice little exhibition, including some rough sketches and old drawings by Judith Kerr, and also facsimiles of some of the actual artwork, which was very interesting.
It's always informative and inspiring to see artists' workings, and also interesting looking back to the pre-digital age.

And, one of the best things was the giant cuddly Tiger, very nicely capturing the look of the illustrations.

If it comes near you it's worth a look :)

Ginger Green in four territoties

Hi Chaps

Ginger Green Playdate Queen, written by Kim Kane and Illustrated by me for Hardie Grant Egmont in Australia has now been published in four teritories :)
After the initial run in Australia, it's now avilable in the US, Slovenia and now the UK.
Very exciting indeed!!
They're a fab series and I can heartily recommend them for early readers.

Here are the Australian, Slovenian and US editions of Fancy Friend.

Keep an eye out or ask for them in bookshops and libraries, they're worth a look at :)

Ginger Green Playdate Queen out in the UK

Hi Chaps,

Ginger Green Playdate Queen, written by Kim Kane and Illustrated by me for Hardie Grant Egmont in Australia has now been published in the UK :)
Very exciting indeed, hopefully I'll get to see it in bookshops.
It's initially starting with a run of the first four stories, New Friend, Crazy Friend, Fancy Friend and Next Door Friend.
They're a fab series and I can heartily recommend them for early readers.

So keep an eye out or ask for them in bookshops and libraries, they're worth a look at :)

Netball Journal

Hi Chaps,

Anyone out there in Blogland involved in netball?
I've recently illustrated a fab new Journal aimed at young netball players, and it's now available to pre-order for Christmas.

This is a great journal with excercises and projects and quizzes, and stickers.
It was great fun to illustrate - there are a set of different characters that feature throughout, so there was a fair bit of character work, thinking of their characteristics and having those reflected in their looks and attitude and gesture -
and all the illustrations had to be technically correct to follow the rules of the game correctly, so I learned a fair bit about netball :)

The website is here at MyIncredibeleJournals so do have a look, and do mention it to anyone you know involved in the sport :)

Knish War

Hi chaps,

Well, a new book I've illustrated has come out recently, called 'The Knish War on Rivington Street'.

It's set in New York in the 1910's and is based on a real sales battle between two bakeries who both sell Knishes.
(In case anyone doesn't know, a Knish is a traditional Jewish food, baked or fried, that is made of pastry with various fillings.
They're not very common in the UK, but would be along similar lines to a Cornish Pasty.)

But it was a great book to illustrate, lots of detail and building chaos through the bok, and also historic detail needed.
And there's a recipe at the back so you can make your own :)

It's written by Joanne Oppenheim and published by the lovely people at Albert Whitman.

And it has now been reviewed in the New York Times as well, here.
That's two of my books that have been reviewed in the NY Times, huzzah :)

But do have a look and grab hold of a copy, it's a v nice book :)

London Book Fair

Hi Chaps,

It was the London Book Fair (or LBF17 for those in the know) last week, and I popped along for a look around on Wedmesday.
I didn't see any seminars this year, but as always it was very interesting and inspiring seeing all the new books on the publishers stands.
Walker Books is always a good stand to look round, they've got the usual fab stuff coming up, as with Scholastic.
And I particularly enjoyed looking round the Nosy Crow stand, with new Hubble Bubble books on the way, and I also managed to have a chat with one of the people there, who gave me a few minutes in between meetings.
A highlight, though was the Little Tiger stand, where I got to say hello, and also see an advance copy of their 'Journeys' book I was one of the illustrators for.
Its under their 360degrees imprint, and it looks great. Lovely design and production values.
Here's a snap of the lovely cover

And here's my name in lovely big lettering on the very stylishly designed title page :)

It's a very interesting book. I recommend it.
For instance, did you know that Amundsen, the first man to the South Pole was successful on that expedition due to his expertise with dogs, which he learned while doing the North East passage?
And that there was also a Japanese expedition to the South Pole?
Here is a photo of the South Pole spread.

I'm going to keep an eye out for this one in the shops :)

New Series, Ginger Green is out

Hi Chaps,

Every play date is different, but Ginger Green rules them all!
The first four of 'Ginger Green Playdate Queen' are now available.
Published in Australia by Hardie Grant Egmont, the books are 'New Friend', 'Fancy Friend', 'Crazy Friend' and 'Next Door Friend'.

They are written by Kim Kane and I can highly recommend them for early readers.
The text is simple, nicely aimed at the target age group, but I would also say that it is deceptively simple, conveying a good amount of depth and emotion in the stories, which have lots going on.

They are published in Australia only at the moment, but you may be able to get international delivery from some of the sites selling them, so have a look around, they're worth a go :)

New York Times Book Review

Hi Chaps,

Well, "Small Blue and the Deep Dark Night" has been reviewed again, and this time in a real life actual paper that you can hold in your hand, which is cool.
Yesterday, 19th October, it was reviewed in the Book Review Section of the Sunday edition of the New York Times.
They say "It's a winning approach to fear of the dark: lots of physical closeness, a few flights of imagination, and a gentle dash of cold, hard logic."
See a scan of the review below, it also featured a section of the goblins spread, further down the page.

Just a small spot, but I do feel chuffed :)

Small Blue Published

Hi Chaps,

Well, 'Small Blue and the Deep Dark Night' has been published in the UK, so now it's all out there and available both in the US and the UK.
Get 'em while they're hot, I love a nice warm book, fresh out of the press :)

Apparently it's in actual book stores in the US, and is available on-line at Amazon and Barbes & Noble, and in the UK it's available on-line at Waterstones, Amazon, Books etc and Foyles.
And, I know my local libraries are getting a few copies in, so I'm looking forward to spotting a copy there.

And another way to get yourself a copy -
 I do know there's one up for grabs in a competition which is currently running at the 'Good Reads With Ronna' blog here.
There are three books to win, including 'Small Blue' and there's a lovely review of it as well, at the bottom of the post.

And, if you're after a few more reviews, there's one on Jen Robinson's Book page' blog, here, and another two, from Kirkus and Publisher's Weekly on my website here.

I've got a 'Small Blue' quiz in the works, so keep your eyes open for that in the near future here, too.

Small Blue review

Hi Chaps,

Well, I've got a picture book coming out in August which I have written as well as illustrated.
Which is a tad exciting.
The book is called Small Blue and The Deep Dark Night, and is published by the lovely chaps at Harcourt in the US.
But, the reviews have started, and there's a nice on Kirkus here
I'll put the text below, and a screenshot too.

I'll post some sketches from it soon, and any other reviews too.

KIRKUS REVIEW

Small Blue (a little bunny) gets a bad case of the middle-of-the-night willies, imagining what spooky creatures might lurk in the dark corners of her home.

“Big Brown, Big Brown!” she wails, in a shrill pitch familiar to all parents. Small Blue’s caregiver, a lumpy, burly bear, offers reassuringly ridiculous counterarguments to assuage the bunny’s fears. Big Brown wonders whether those “[g]remlins and goblins, with empty, rumbling bellies,” weren’t there at all, and instead there was ”a delightful doggies’ Saturday-night unicycle convention” underway. It is dark, after all. Who can tell? Children will get the hang of Big Brown’s loopy logic quickly. The dark could harbor “giant hairy spiders and flappy bats” or, just as likely, host “a smiley spacemen’s zero-gravity birthday party.” Jittery readers come to see it’s probably neither; the dark is just that, dark, and nothing more. Big Brown’s enveloping brawn and fantastically implausible nighttime scenarios turn quivering fears into giggles. Mildly cartoonish artwork, in purply-blues (lights off) and cozy yellows (lights on), offers thick linework and lots of rounded edges, eyes, noses and mouths, softening Blue’s scary fantasies and rendering Brown’s imaginings all the more comical. 

Add this original, illuminating book to any stack of in-the-dark, nighty-night anxiety tales right next to the bed, alongside that last glass of water—but leave the door open a crack!

Pirate Game Book

Hi chaps,

Look here's an actual copy of the pirate game book I illustrated with the guys at Hallmark.
This is a picture book with games in it as well. Like the Mouse's birthday book I posted about before.
But I think it's worth having a bit of a look at, worth showing you a few pictures, because the design is really interesting.

To start off with, it's got a nice big cover, which has a spinner on it, here designed as part of the steering wheel. So you don't need any dice that might get lost, you just need a couple of counters.


And you can open it up and read the story as with a normal book.
Like this.


But, here's the interesting design bit. The cover has an extra fold on its edge, so you can fold it out flat like this.
Which means you can still see the spinner when you reach one of the games, like so.

And you can then carry on reading the story with the spinner there.

And it'll be there ready for when the next game comes up.


Clever huh?
But I'll post some pictures of the Mouse's Amusement park book as well soon.

ABFFE 19th Annual Children’s Book Art Auction & Reception

Hi chaps,

I've donated some of my sketches to this year's Children's Book Art Silent Auction at the 19th Annual Children’s Book Art Auction & Reception.
The event is to help raise money in support of The American Booksellers Foundation for Free Expression (ABFFE) which champions the free speech rights of young readers.
The auction is in New York on 29th May, but is also open to the public online, from Saturday May 18 at 9am, closing on Friday, May 24 at 9pm, so anyone can try and win something

Here's the website of the organisation: http://abffesilentauction.wordpress.com/
and here's the auction: http://myworld.ebay.com/abffe.
There's alot of good stuff there, so have a look, it's all for a good cause.

The sketches I've donated are character studies for my book Stuck With The Blooz, and also included is a copy of the book signed by both me and the author, Caron Levis.
As Caron is based in the US and I am in the UK, this copy will be the only copy in the world signed by us both!

The actual auction will take place on Wednesday, May 29 form 5:30 - 7:30pm in the River Pavilion of the Javits Convention Center in New York, in case you happen to be nearby,
and bestselling authors Jack Gantos and Lauren Myracle are co-hosting.

But here are my sketches so you can have a look

London Book Fair

Hi Chaps,

Well, I was at the London Book Fair this week, so I thought I'd do a bit of a post about it.

The best bit was seeing a couple of the RSPCA books I illustrated up on the Scholastic stand.
You can see them here, Puppy Gets Stuck and The Abandoned Kitten on the top shelf, above books by Julia Donaldson, Alex T Smith and Sarah Warburton, so I feel in very good company here.

I didn't do the covers, but here you can see one propped open and one of my illustrations peeping out :)

But it was nice to look round the show, had some chats with a couple of publishers who I'm gradually getting to know after seeing them here year after year, and a nice pepping chat with my agents.

But I always feel inspired after seeing all the new good stuff coming out, keeps me trying hard.

But I'll post some sketches from the Scholastic RSPCA books soon, so you can see what it's all about.

Box of Blooz

Hi Chaps,

I got a big box in the post the other day, here it is.

And it's my copies of Stuck With the Blooz. It's great fun to open something like this. Thanks to they guys at Harcourt.

I was tempted to dance on the bed, flinging them up in the air, like people do with money in films.

But they are hardbacks, so I decided to just make a nice curved pile instead.

 

Also, there has been another review of the Blooz, this one at publisher's weekly, you can read it here - publishersweekly.com
But it strikes me as being a very intelligent review, I like the way they say the story has an impressively light touch and that the readers are given room to feel the arc of the girl’s struggle.
I think that captures it nicely. So that makes me pleased with what they write about the art too.

The Art of Children's Books Exhibition

Hi Chaps,

I wanted to write about 'The Illustrators: The Art of Children's Books Curated by Julia Donaldson' exhibition, which I saw a few days ago.

Basically it's an exhibition of illustrators who've illustrated Julia Donaldsons's books.
It was at the Rheged Centre just outside Penrith, info here - http://www.rheged.com/illustrators-art-childrens-books-curated-julia-donaldson-0
Here's the leaflet -

But it was very interesting indeed, it had examples of work by Axel Scheffler, Lydia Monks, David Roberts,
Emily Gravett, Joel Stewart, Paul Hess, Anna Currey and Thomas Docherty.
It was great to see the actual artwork, and some artists had supplied pencil roughs too.
There were some great ones by Anna Currey, which I enjoyed seeing.

It was especially good to see stuff by David Roberts and Lydia Monks, who I'm particular fans of, and own books by.
And there were some great streets and bulky clouds by Thomas Docherty.

The exhibition also had some great activities. there was a giant magnetic wall-mounted Gruffalo jigsaw and they had a Deep Dark Wood reading corner too, see the picture below.

And also a short film of Quentin Blake talking about his illustration, showing him working from roughs and idea sketches, very inspiring indeed.
So, if you're up by Penrith till 2nd Sept I recommend popping along.
Otherwise, I believe it's a touring exhibition, so keep a look out.

The Blooz Arrives

Look what arrived in the post, an actual copy of my book 'Stuck With the Blooz'.
Here it is just out of the package.

It's great to see it in real life and see all the pictures properly in real life on paper rather than on screen.
And with my Artist's head, rather than my Reader's head on, I do think it's been designed as a package really nicely.
Just noticing all the bits and bobs that the design team did with the cover etc.
I like the way they've echoed the stripes on the Blooz's Victorian swimsuit on the back cover and dust jacket, and have used the goldfish, crayon and paper plane on the dust jacket flaps and back cover.
Also, the picture of the Blooz dripping on the child was a favourite with everyone, but it had to be lost from the story on the inside, but a use was found for it on the back there, which was very nice.
Here are some pics of said bits.

And the paper texture is lovely. Really nice feel, and it shows off the colour and texture in the art really nicely too.
Well done indeed all the chaps at Harcourt.

But enough of me talking about the design and paper texture like some pretentious artist with a funny haircut and silly trousers.
Here's a sneak peek at one of the spreads.

Lawks, my book is out.

"Watch Your Tongue Cecily Beasley" is now actually available to actually buy.
It's published by Sterling in the US, but is also available in the UK.
You can get it on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and The Book Depository.
It's a fun rhyming story written by Lane Fredrickson, and it was great to illustrate.
Here's Cecily -

And there are already a few reviews out for it, this is from Publishers Weekly
"It is said that the tongue is one of the strongest muscles in the human body, and the one belonging to ill-mannered Cecily Beasley is a whole lot stronger by the end of her ordeal in this cautionary tale. Cecily has many bad habits—“She tap-danced on tables./ She cartwheeled in dirt./ And she wrote, ‘I won’t share’ on the front of her shirt”—but worst of all is her tendency to stick out her tongue at friends and family alike. She is warned that her tongue might get stuck that way, and, wouldn’t you know it, it does just that. Debut author Fredrickson doesn’t stop there: a bird promptly builds a nest on Cecily’s tongue, forcing the girl to carry it around in front of her face. It’s not until the Mockingbeak Tongue-snatchers hatch (and promptly stick out their tongues at Cecily) that she has a change of heart. Fredrickson’s galloping verse delivers the story’s message with a light touch (and some clever rhymes), while British illustrator Davis’s loose, expressive cartoons make the most of the comic absurdity of the premise. Ages 4–7"http://www.publishersweekly.com/978-1-40277-089-0

And this is from Parents & Teachers Blog
“Cecily Beasley was never polite. She never said, ‘Thank you,’ or ‘Please,’ or ‘Good night.’”
Cecily Beasley is, in fact, a rather rotten little girl. She sticks out Her tongue at her teachers and ruins her friends’ birthday parties. Will she ever learn to be a polite young lady?
Lane Fredrickson and Jon Davis’ rhyming book about a girl who learns manners the hard way will be a laugh for children and parents alike. Kids will enjoy the tale of Cecily’s misadventures, and the book will give parents the opportunity to help their own children learn a lesson about how to be polite.
Not only does the book teach young readers a lesson, it’s also a joy to read. I love the humor of Fredrickson’s rhyme about Cecily, and Davis’ colorful illustrations are fun from the very first page. This book is great for those who need a brush-up on manners and those who enjoy a funny story."
http://parentteacher.uskidsmags.com/2012/07/26/watch-tongue-cecily-beasley/

So that's good, they're nice and positive.

So everyone rush out and buy it :)

The Blooz Is Coming!

Hi Chaps,

Well, I've got another book available to preorder.
This one is called 'Stuck With The Blooz', due out in October, published by the lovely people at Harcourt Children's Books in New York.

The story is about a child who is feeling blue, and is visited by a manifestation of a blue mood, called the Blooz., a big soggy lump of a thing.
But the story is about the child dealing with and coming to terms with the Blooz, and so the blue mood.
It's a very nice story indeed, written by Caron Levis, who you can find out more about here. But it was great fun to illustrate, and I'm really pleased with it.
I had the idea that the illustrations could start out quite washed out, with muted colours, and then gradually get more colourful as the child's mood lifts.

Everything was done via email for this, so I've not met or even actually spoken to the editors or author, but nevertheless it worked very well.
Even though the only communicated was via emails and with a 5 hour or so time difference too, I found it to be a good way to exchange feedback and ideas and get some really good creative stuff going.

So, here are a few spreads from the book, as a bit of a sneak peak.

As this was done with US publishers, it's available on Amazon and Barnes and Noble over there, and they are also publishing it over here in the UK too, so it's available on Amazon and The Book Depository here too.
Here are the links.
US
Amazon, Barnes and Noble
UK
Amazon, Book Depository