Book: Rickshaw Girl

Putting the A in STEM

Posted by on Nov 5, 2018 in Book: Ana and the Sea Star, Book: Here Come the Humpbacks, Book: Island Birthday, Book: Porcupine's Promenade, Book: Rickshaw Girl, Book: Tiger Boy, Book: Warmer World, Children's Book Illustration, Drawing, School Visits | 5 comments

I was invited to be a volunteer exhibitor at the 5th Annual STEM Expo sponsored by Portland Public Schools and Envirologix last Friday. Since many of my children’s books are nature-themed, I brought my collection of nature objects and some life-like toy models for nature studies with students. The event was held at USM’s Sullivan Gymnasium, and it was like a trade show for careers in science. Over 50 exhibitors, ranging from ecomaine to Maine Total Weather to Engineers Without Borders to IDEXX Labs to the Electro Toy Company drew busloads of local students along with displays...

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cha- cha- Charlesbridge

Posted by on Oct 31, 2014 in Book: John Muir Wrestles a Waterfall, Book: Rickshaw Girl, Children's Book Illustration, Publisher: Charlesbridge Publishing | 0 comments

O October, how I love thee! This month has been super full of everything: deadlines, events, travels. And the San Francisco Giants just won the World Series. How much better can it get? Well, today my advance copy of John Muir Wrestles a Waterfall arrived from Charlesbridge Publishing. This non-fiction picture book details a single episode in Muir’s youth. I learned a ton about him, and sharpened a pile of pencils illustrating it. Last week I received a new version of the book jacket for Tiger Boy by Mitali Perkins due out in spring 2015. I wrote about the cover process here. This is...

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Seven kickers

Posted by on Oct 2, 2013 in Book: Rickshaw Girl, Children's Book Illustration, Maine College of Art, Publisher: Charlesbridge Publishing | 1 comment

1- With yesterday’s news that I am on the New York Public Library’s first Top 100 books of the last 100 years, I am OVER THE MOON. Hooray for Rickshaw Girl by Mitali Perkins! To see what amazing company I am in, see the full list here. This chapter book was my first children’s book published, and Mitali remains an amazing mentor for me in the field of children’s books, leading the way in my first outings at schools and libraries. My portrait barely catches her brilliant smile. 2- Cool news: I will be illustrating another Mitali title, Tiger Boy, still in the...

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Rickshaw Girl rides in India

Posted by on Jul 23, 2012 in Book: Rickshaw Girl, Children's Book Illustration | 1 comment

Wow! I received my Marathi (India) copy of Rickshaw Girl by Mitali Perkins. I love it! The reproductions of my illustrations are good, and they pair nicely with the text I can’t read. I have a cool book with typefaces that I turned to when working on the book 5 years ago.   This was one sketch for the cover that didn’t fly. Anyway, I’m proud to see the cover in all it’s variations, especially the Korean, Japanese, and Indian versions: Bravo, Mitali, for bringing this story to life!...

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labors of love & seaweed soup

Posted by on Sep 5, 2011 in Book: Rickshaw Girl, Book: Seven Days of Daisy | 0 comments

What a fast summer, full of sunshine and seaweed soup. Thanks to the brilliant bookings of Curious City, I had the honor of visiting another round of libraries, including my very own, the small but mighty Peaks Island Branch. A pretend delicacy from Seven Days of Daisy made it’s debut: jellyfish sandwiches!   You can make yours with graham crackers, vanilla icing, red licorice string, and peach gummies. Yummy! It was the final evening of the Summer Reading Program, and the esteemed Pat Crowley Rockwell was a major addition, providing piano music and a song (days of the week, what...

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connections on the book trail

Posted by on Jul 25, 2011 in Book: Rickshaw Girl, Book: Seven Days of Daisy, Maine College of Art | 1 comment

I recently visited Judy Labrasca’s narrative book class at Maine College of Art, scene of the crime 9 years ago when I hatched my own Seven Days of Daisy. It’s a marvelous class, and I enjoy revisiting the space where stories begin. Judy always brings in lots of supplies, all organized in irresistible fashion. She also brings in loads of books for browsing when the mind draws a blank. Quite satisfying that mine are in the mix. Judy shares a ton of information, which might seem overwhelming, but becomes a backdrop to all the inspiration. She made small books for students to start...

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