Last week was quite the magical week with lots of creativity happening all over the place and now this week we officially open registration for the Craft and Business of Illustrating Children's books, which I'm thrilled to say I will be co-teaching with Kristine Brogno, Chronicle Books' Design Director (and Art Director extraordinaire)!!! Here's the link if you'd like to find out more. It's for the whole range from fearful beginners, to adventurous authors, to award-winning illustrators. Hmmm. Come check it out. Lots of goodies. Kristine Brogno You Know Who Mandy Yates ![]() I also got to see three former students present and do book signings at Sacramento's Fairytale Town and they all did brilliantly!! Congratulations to author/illustrator Linda Knoll for Patience for Pumpkins about farmer's markets and produce, which mixes a lovely story and nonfiction information with beautiful watercolor illustrations. ![]() Fabulous multi-award winning author/illustrator Kathryn Otoshi has followed up from Zero and One to Two, which on the surface is about playing with numbers but is really about friendship, bullying, being left out, conflict, and tons of other meaty concepts. It's quite extraordinary as is Kathryn. When time allows, I'll be reviewing each of these books and doing interviews with them so do check back. ![]() Finally, Gayle Pitman's simple rhyming book This Day in June is one of, if not the only, children's books about Gay Pride and the many different kinds of people and families who participate. The short stanzas are later explained in a section called Reading Guide that unpacks both the words and images for readers. It's quite fabulous. Needless to say, I felt like a proud mama. Interestingly enough, just after my former students finished one of my current co-teacher's, Barbara Bottner's, former students, the inimitable Barney Saltzberg also presented and signed books. He played guitar and sang and drew and was quite the showman. Linda, Kathryn, and Gayle were also super interactive with the audience and that's a whole other topic I'd love to explore in a blog post at some point. Meanwhile I want to share a wonderful book by Barbara Krasner and Kelsey Garrity Riley that's a great new nonfiction approach to biography published by Kar-Ben publishers, an imprint with Lerner. OK and because I couldn't resist, I usually save these for courses, but here's an interview with Joni Sussman, Kar-Ben's publisher. I hope you enjoy all of these. ~ Yours in children's book love ~ Mira
26 Comments
Mira Reisberg
10/2/2014 02:18:02 pm
Thank you Johnell. Yes it is fascinating. Joni is a treat.
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10/1/2014 12:31:00 pm
What a fantastic post and interview, Mira! I love learning about your student's successes also :)
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Mira Reisberg
10/2/2014 02:19:48 pm
Thank you Kirsti. I love learning about our student successes too :) Thank you for commenting.
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Mira Reisberg
10/2/2014 02:21:42 pm
Thank you Dianne. I love doing interviews with smart and talented people and Joni was a treat. Glad that you enjoyed.
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Karen Brady
10/1/2014 01:34:01 pm
Congratulations to your students (and to Barbara's, too!). I'm looking forward to the illustration class. Great informative interview with Joni Sussman, and "Goldie Takes a Stand" looks wonderful. : ) You're getting me more and more interested in nonfiction, Mira!
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Mira Reisberg
10/2/2014 02:23:55 pm
Thank you Karen. I'm excited about having you in the illustration course too!! AS you can tell, I love good nonfiction. Maybe because like you, I'm a lifelong learner. Thank you for commenting.
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Manju Howard
10/1/2014 09:40:29 pm
Mira, thank you for sharing this interesting interview. I'm excited to read Rifka Takes a Bow.
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Mira Reisberg
10/2/2014 02:25:21 pm
So glad that you watched the interview. Rifka takes a bow is a pretty interesting story and I love the illustrations.
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10/1/2014 11:01:58 pm
Thank you for sharing this post, Mira. Really loved seeing this book - perfect for kids. I'm looking forward to the illustration course!
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Mira Reisberg
10/2/2014 02:27:12 pm
I'm super excited about having you in the course too. You are going to really enjoy all the different kinds of books and art that we'll be studying. Thank you for all your support.
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Sita
10/2/2014 03:22:38 am
Very insightful and interesting! I'm now looking forward to reading all the wonderful books mentioned here!
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Mira Reisberg
10/2/2014 02:28:13 pm
Hi Sita, I think you'll enjoy them. Thank you for commenting :)
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10/2/2014 04:22:19 am
Goldie Takes a Stand looks fabulous - and I have fallen in love with Joni Sussman. Thanks for sharing it, Mira! And TOO fun about all your students!
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Mira Reisberg
10/2/2014 02:31:45 pm
Goldie Takes a Stand is quite fabulous. I too am smitten with Joni Sussman. We presented on a panel together this summer and it was like I and everyone else were wearing a cloak of invisibility because she was so dynamic and charismatic.
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Alexia
10/2/2014 04:32:56 am
What a great post and informative interview! Goldie Takes a Stand is terrific! I love learning about all these wonderful plot-driven NF books. Thank you!
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Mira Reisberg
10/2/2014 02:33:12 pm
Alexia, I love learning about all these wonderful plot driven biographies too. This one is particularly good. Thank you for commenting.
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Jenny Turnbull
10/2/2014 08:25:24 am
Mira, your posts are always packed with so much great information.
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Mira Reisberg
10/2/2014 02:35:13 pm
Jenny thank you for your kind words. They mean a lot. And I totally agree about hearing from publishers. She was very generous.
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10/2/2014 08:40:57 am
I am super excited for the upcoming illustration course, Mira! When I think about it, I get butterflies in my stomach. I have learned so much from you and Barbara in the writing course and can't wait to learn more from you and Kristine Brogno in the next!
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Mira Reisberg
10/2/2014 02:39:18 pm
Sadee, thank you for your lovely words. I'm incredibly excited too. Thank you for commenting too :)
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10/3/2014 03:40:41 am
Joni Sussman seems like such a wonderful person! Even though I don't have a Jewish background, I may explore some themes/people just so I may have an opportunity to work with her! Her thoughts and insights into what she looks for in PBs is applicable across the board too. I tried to find the books featured at my local library but only one was available! That seems to be the trend for multicultural stories :(. It's quite sad since I live in the DC area which is so diverse! We need more diverse books! Thank you for this interview, Mira!
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Mira Reisberg
10/6/2014 12:04:10 am
Thank you Pat. Joni Sussman is a wonderful person. Super smart, charismatic, and very generous. That is a shame about your library. You can always request books and they'll often get them in. Thanks again for your kind words.
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10/6/2014 06:37:50 am
Mira, thank you to you and your students for these kinds words. It's wonderful to see this interest by potential authors and, in fact, I've already received a couple of inquiries from members of this class! I very much enjoyed doing this interview with you, Mira, and want to thank you for the tremendous service you provide to authors seeking to become published. It's a pleasure to see authors taking their craft seriously and devoting such time and attention to honing their writing skills.
Mariana Fay
10/7/2014 08:03:56 pm
Such a lovely interview with Joanie, Mira! Thank you for sharing this with us! I loved seeing all of the remarkable books she has on hand, and hearing about her method for choosing a great story. Thank you also for the peek at "Goldie Takes a Stand". I love the feisty little girl who gets things done!
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