Hooray for Papa's Way!

The Cooperative Children's Book Center has just come out with their CCBC Choices 2010 annual best-of-the-year list, and That's Papa's Way is on it! The Cooperative Children’s Book Center (CCBC) is a unique examination, study and research library of the School of Education at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. The complete CCBC Choices 2010 publication will be available March 6th, and will include annotations and recommended ages for all of the books included, as well as an author/title/subject index, and a commentary on the publishing year. Thanks so much to this years panel of ladies, Kathleen T. Horning, Merri V. Lindgren and Megan Schliesman and Tessa Michaelson, for selecting Papa's Way!
*You can check out the complete list of titles right here

ALFIE in Japanese!

My editor just shared the exciting news that my new book ALFIE RUNS AWAY, written by Ken Cadow, is going to be published in Japanese! Holp Shuppan will be publishing the edition in the next 24 months~I can't wait!

p.s. the U.S. edition hits shelves this Spring. More info on ALFIE to come!

brooklyn blizzard

I love that it is snowing today while I'm wrapping up my Christmas book. Perfect timing. And I also love how cute the little green car looks right across the street~~Yay for snow days :)

It's still Christmas over here...

I refuse to take down my fake mini tree until I finish this book! Nearing the end of final art for a project with Simon and Schuster, now titled CHRISTMAS IS HERE. In three weeks all the art will be complete, and on its way to China to print in time for publication this Fall. Fastest turnaround on a book I've ever experienced. I'm used to waiting a good 1.5 years to see a final product, so it's pretty fun that I'll be holding a bound copy of this sucker in just a few short months (well, maybe 6 or 8, but still FAST). I'll share more about the project later on this year, as publication time approaches...For now, back to the drawing board. Got a deadline to make!

Happy 2010!

A new year, a new studio! Well, very soon! And while the new studio is being renovated, I am temporarily set up in my living room, in the back of the apartment. I'm loving it because my desk faces the windows, where I can watch the neighborhood cats and squirrels walk wires and fences between backyards all day long. And each evening as the sun says goodbye, the buildings become one beautiful silhouette against the darkening sky. This evening I was inspired to make a little ink and watercolor because it was just that pretty :)

Wishing you all a very happy 2010, filled with much beauty & wonder~

Feature on 7-imp

Today, Jules over at the fabulous Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast blog has featured my two books that came out this year~Thank you, Jules! Please drop on by and take a look at some of the art from That's Papa's Way, and Big Cat Pepper. Jules also highlighted some of the beautiful art from Leslie Evans newest title, Faces of the Moon. Maybe you are still in search of that last minute Christmas gift for a child you know...books are always a wonderful present :)

Happy Holidays everyone!

Come out to the Brooklyn Museum!

This Saturday I'll be signing books, along with many lovely and talented authors & illustrators, at the Brooklyn Museum's 3rd annual Children's Book Fair. Come say HI, and grab some early Christmas gifts for your friends and family!

It's beginning to look a lot like

Christmas?? Yup, that's right. Well, in my studio that is. I've just started final art for a really awesome Christmas book project that will come out next year (Fall 2010). Lots of sheep and shepherd drawing! Will share more later on this year~

trick-or-treat

Society of Illustrators Opening

In front of my piece (from That's Papa's Way). It was fun that Peter's piece was below mine, and Julia's piece was to the left of mine~ Goooo Team Rodeen!
A small part of the crowd, right before Chris Van Allsburg came up to accept his Lifetime Achievement Award. It was so wonderful to hear him speak, especially because his incredible books were part of what inspired me to work toward a career in this field!
SVA MFA unite! Taeeun Yoo, You Byun, me, Paul Hoppe, and Chris Butzer. Congrats to Tae and Chris, and to all my other friends who had their work on display (AND to all my other incredibly talented and hardworking friends who did not, and should have!). It was a great exhibit, and an event that I look forward to every year. The show is up through November 25th, so go check it out if you can!