Читать книгу Writing Children's Books For Dummies - Peter Economy - Страница 26

Picture books, like the ones that have wildly different illustrative styles shown in Figure 2-2, are most often hardcover, heavily illustrated storybooks that cover almost every topic under the sun. They can be fiction or nonfiction, told in poetry or prose, and aimed at the literary or the mass/commercial markets. Teachers and parents who work or live with children from preschool age through early elementary years use picture books to speak to children about everything and anything the children might be experiencing at the moment: holidays, new siblings, moods, a fascination with birds or princesses — you name it, picture books cover it.

a) Wild Colt reprinted courtesy of Schiffer Publishing, Ltd. © 2012 Schiffer Publishing, Ltd. b) The Kissing Hand and c) Chester the Brave reprinted courtesy of Tanglewood Books.

FIGURE 2-2: Example picture books.

One of the most popular picture book series of all time is Ian Falconer’s Olivia series (Atheneum Books for Young Readers). This book provides a perfect example of a picture-book author/illustrator creating a fleshed-out character who looks, feels, and behaves just like the kid next door — even though she’s a pig. The minimal text, limited color palette, and evocative yet restrained illustrations all work together in just the way they should in a picture book. Other bestsellers, all very different from one another, include Knuffle Bunny: A Cautionary Tale by Mo Willems (Hyperion), Anna Dewdney’s Llama Llama series (Viking Books for Young Readers), Seriously, Just Go to Sleep by Adam Mansbach and illustrated by Ricardo Cortes (Akashic Books) (and the children’s version of this duo’s Go the F*ck to Sleep, which is definitely aimed at parents), and Pete the Cat: Rocking in My School Shoes by James Dean, illustrated by Eric Litwin (HarperCollins).