bloggity sketch blog by melinda beavers: PB reading

Thursday, October 04, 2012

Reading & work… reading & work…

It's been a pretty hectic week… I'm working on several rather large illustrated map projects – which I love, but they seem to be all-time-consuming, leaving with very little energy to check in here and often as I'd like. That and I've been going through an "I-hate-everything-I-draw period" which is always frustrating.

But in the meantime, I've still been reading plenty of picture books, more than 10 this past week.

DANNY AND THE DINOSAUR – Syd Hoff *from Steven Malk's list (LASCBWI12)
THE PHILHARMONIC GETS DRESSED – Karla Kuskin / Marc Simont *from Steven Malk's list (LASCBWI12)
THE SNOWMAN – Raymond Briggs Classic, what more can be said? *from Steven Malk's list.
CHRYSANTHEMUM – Kevin Henkes *from Steven Malk's list (LASCBWI12)
I'LL FIX ANTHONY – Judith Viorst / Arnold Lobel *from Steven Malk's list (LASCBWI12)
MISS NELSON IS MISSING – Harry G. Allard Jr. / James Marshall *from Steven Malk's list (LASCBWI12)
TED – Tony DiTerlizzi
WILD ABOUT BOOKS – Judy Sierra / Marc Brown
BADGER'S FANCY MEAL – Kieko Kasza
THE DOG THAT CRIED WOLF – Kieko Kasza
SCAREDY SQUIRREL – Melanie Watt
TOOT & PUDDLE, A PRESENT FOR TOOT – Holly Hobbie *from Steven Malk's list (LASCBWI12)
WHAT NEWT COULD DO FOR TUTLE – Jonathan London / Louise Voce

GERALDINE, THE MUSIC MOUSE – Leo Lionni
IN THE RABBIT GARDEN – Leo Lionni
THEODORE AND THE TALKING MUSHROOM – Leo Lionni
THE ALPHABET TREE – Leo Lionni
INCH BY INCH – Leo Lionni
LITTLE BLUE AND LITTLE YELLOW – Leo Lionni
CYRUS THE UNSINKABLE SEA SERPENT - Bill Peet *I am a long time, huge, Bill Peet fan from childhood. Every time we went to a book store I looked for a new Bill Peet book. *from Steven Malk's list.
CHESTER'S MASTERPIECE – Melanie Watt
AUGUSTINE – Melanie Watt

*I'm in the middle of one of my first official responsibilities as SCBWI-NM's Illustrator Coordinator: organizing a 2013 Illustrator's Day event for our region. Patti Ann Harris, from Little Brown and Company Books for Young Readers, has graciously agreed to come visit us in NM next year and we're currently planning the event together. As part of this process, I've been reading up on some of Patti Ann's other SCBWI appearances – including the big SCBWI Winter conference in New York, beautifully recapped by my friend Leeza Hernandez here, and SCBWI-Austin, as well as some of the books she's worked on:

SUBSTITUTE CREACHER – Chris Gall
SHARK VS. TRAIN – Chris Barton / TomLichtenheld
DAVE THE POTTER – Laban Carrick Hill / Bryan Collier
WHEN BOB MET WOODY – Gary Golio / Marc Burckhardt

*Books I already own/have read, that are also part of Patti Ann's list:
ME… JANE – Patrick
DINOTRUX – Chris Gall

Wednesday, September 26, 2012

Reading Picture Books, Sans Kid/s

So, I've be a "pre-published" picture book illustrator for more years than I'd like to admit (shortly to to be remedied, hangin' in until November-ish, I think). But after Steven Malk's talk at the the SCBWI LA conference since summer, I brought home his "30 PICTURE BOOKS THAT YOU NEED TO KNOW" list and I realized that I really don't read enough picture books. Sure I always pick up a few when I walk into any bookstore, but that's all haphazard and casual, not a conscious effort. So, along with a couple of my critique group partners, I've decided to work picture-book-reading-time into my weekly routine. The goal is at least 10 per week, but sometimes it's more and sometimes it's less, I just fit in what I can. The library is such a blessing. I have to say, the Hold/Inter-Library-Loan system makes it a lot easier for me, even if I do look funny running in and out of the library with massive piles of picture books and no kid attached. I hit the limit a couple weeks back when I checked out my 50th book (that's 50 books checkout AT ONE TIME … *although it took me a couple visits to reach that ;), oops!
So, here are some images to catch you all up on the several weeks this has been going…