Blogger: Wendy Lawton
We always try to engage in trend spotting. Sometimes the trends are good but others break our hearts. I generally look toward the future with optimism but I always allow myself time to mourn what used to be. Happily, everything has a way of circling around again so we usually don’t need to mourn long.
One of the trends I mourn is the decline of the picture book. Parents are too often jumping over picture books to hurry their children into chapter books. How sad.
As an agent I don’t often represent picture books but I’m a dedicated fan of the art form. I’d hate to even admit to how many feet of bookshelf space in my house is dedicated to these slim volumes. I consider them story and art. I originally bought picture books to read to my children but it didn’t take long for me to stop using children as a ruse to buy the books. I buy them because I love them. With today’s blog I’m sharing photos of a few feet of my children’s picture book collections.
For me the books are a bound art form that combines both art and words– a feast for the eyes and the heart. Everyone who knows me knows that there is no gift I love better than a fine picture book. I’ve previously mentioned some of the writer/illustrators I collect but if you want to see some of the best, check out contemporary authors Patricia Polacco, Jan Brett, Susan Jeffers, Michael Hague, Trina Schart Hyman, Barbara McClintock, my own client Andy McGuire, and many others. In the “antiquarian” category I love Johnny Gruelle’s early Volland Press Raggedy Ann books, Rumer Godden, Tasha Tudor, Maud Humphrey, Kate Greenaway, H. Willabeek LeMair, Beatrix Potter’s Peter Rabbit books, The Babar books and so many more there’s not room to list them. There’s barely enough room to shelve them all. One of my all time favorites is All the Places to Love by Patricia MacLachlan. These are works of art.
Illustration is one of my favorite art forms. Over the weekend, Lauraine Snelling and I spent some long hours poring over the illustrations of the Swedish artist, Carl Larson, as inspiration for her upcoming Norwegian novels.
But, of course, the real consumer of picture books is the child. There are so many reasons parents can’t abandon picture books with their little ones. Books are critical in the development of the child. A few of the reasons:
- The very act of reading a picture book to a child brings the adult and child together in something other than play– a quest, an experience.
- Picture books not only introduce the child to words but to both story and art.
- Picture books give the young child the tactile pleasure of turning pages. He is in control of the experience as opposed to media like television which is passively delivered to him.
- Picture books allow the child to discover more over time. They reveal themselves slowly. It’s one of the reasons I’ve always loved Jan Brett’s illustrations. If the child studies the illustrated frames around the pages she can uncover the secrets unfolding in the story.
Deciderius Erasmus wrote, “When I get a little money, I buy books. And if there is any left over, I buy food.” That’s how important I feel picture books are for children. Strike that. That’s how important picture books are for all of us.
We need to reverse this unfortunate trend. Let’s lavish picture books on the people we love.
Your turn. Tell us why picture books are important. What picture books are not to be missed by us? How have you incorporated them into your own personal library?
My first chapter books had glorious artwork, too. An Uncle Wiggily book is my only happy memory from a first-grade hospital stay. I remember studying the full-page pictures in detail. And there was a James Thurber book of fables with high-gloss pages filled with animals in action. More than five decades later, I clearly recall the bright colors, the touch of the pages, the smell . . . and the comfort. I doubt that today’s children will have similar memories of their screen time.
Wendy, you’ve inspired me to search my mother’s book shelves for treasures to share with my grandsons.
I remember one of my most important childhood books was Fifty Famous Fairy Stories. I read it over and over. Those ignited my lifetime love of myth and fable and inspired my artwork.
Can’t remember much of my childhood, so kids’ picture books are kind of lost to me, but picture books are alive and well in the aviation field. The late Jeffrey Ethell, in particular, made a point of hunting down early Kodachromes from WW2, and organized them into several volumes. Most were published by. Osprey, which has developed a good name in that pgenre.
The Smart Phone invented a new word, ‘pgenre’. And added an unneeded period! It’s on a roll.
Picture books actually present visual information in a powerful way, whether for children or for a reference book. The publisher DK has redefined the picture/ reference genre.
So glad you mentioned DK, Wendy. Their travel guides and Eyewitness series are fantastic!
What Ethell did, in organizing the rediscovered colour pictures, was to tell a story that brought that generation out of the shadows of the black and white world they so commonly inhabit, for us. He let the pictures tell a poignant story, more of the men – and women – than of the machines.
I love picture books! I fell in love with them in college when I began purchasing books for my one-day classroom. I still have most of the books I purchased because they spoke to my heart, through their stories and their illustrations. And yes, Jan Brett!!! I loved her, The Mitten. Graeme Base—the illustrations are amazing! And, Molly’s Pilgrim, by Barbara Cohen tells the story of an immigrant’s perspective on Thanksgiving. I could go on but I won’t. 🙂 I’ve also collected Christmas picture books which we still read on occasion.
I think picture books help children fall in love with the art of story. We began reading to our kids when they were three months old, and they are both avid readers today.
My friend and client, children’s librarian Judy Gann, is an expert in the field of books and children. You should see what she cites as the benefits of reading to our babies.
This is wonderful, Wendy. We definitely love picture books at our house, and are proponents of letting kids choose the books they enjoy and are interested in, as opposed to hurrying them along. Interestingly enough, in Surprised By Joy, CS Lewis talks about the impact Beatrix Potter’s books had on his childhood when he discovered them at age 6 or 7. How sad that so many children are being rushed into early reader chapter books by that time, which are often silly and lacking substance, when there are so many beautiful and artfully written picture books they could be reading instead.
We love a lot of the books you mentioned, but some favorites I’d like to add are the original Curious George books, the Winnie the Pooh series (of course!) and the work of a modern writer and illustrator, Jerry Pinkney. His pictures are gorgeous and his stories never pander. Also the Church Mice series by Graham Oakley is absolutely laugh out loud funny and not to be missed, particularly if you like British humor as opposed to the slapstick found in a lot of current children’s stories.
All of those as well. I have a number of Jerry Pinkney books. Our now-retired agent, Etta Wilson, worked with the Pinkneys and represented Jerry’s wife if I remember correctly. She also represented the estate of Elizabeth Orton Jones (Big Susan, Twig, etc.).
You should see the Curious George and Pooh characters I have in felt. Exquisite.
Laura, I love Jerry Pinkney’s Lion & the Mouse.
Jenni, that is my three year old’s absolute favorite book! I’ve told our version of the story so many times that she can pretty much tell it exactly the way I do. The page where the lion is swept up in the trap…my goodness, you’d think she hadn’t read the book a hundred times, she’s so shocked and horrified when we turn to it! I love books that are able to spark a young child’s imagination so strongly.
Beautiful post, Wendy. I’ll never part with my girls’ picture books. I so wish my mom would have saved mine from when I was a child. My collection would be that much more special. My girls loved to be read to … to look at the pictures. I’ll still get them out sometimes, and even as teens, they’ll sit just as entranced as I read them. When my oldest was a toddler, we’d keep her book collection on a bottom floor shelf right under the television, so that she could reach them. With me sitting crisscross applesauce on the floor, she’d go grab a book, and back up to my lap … back up … I had to ensure my lap was where her bottom landed! One of our favorites when they were tiny was this little book that had fish and sharks in it … the shark had a hole through its mouth … and we would stick our pinky finger through it … I can still see her shudder a bit and then laugh so much. They loved books so much that I taught them to read when they were four years old, using Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons. It was great. Picture books are comprised of more than words and pictures … they are comprised of precious memories.
Just wait until you can gather your girls and their own little ones and read to them all over again. Books connect us over the generations.
My favorite book as a child was Liza Lou and the Yeller Belly Swamp by Mercer Mayer. The pictures are gorgeous and full of amazing detail. I still own a copy, although I wore that first one out. I fell in love with Chris Van Allsburg’s books as an adult. Such imagination!
I missed Liza Lou (need to remedy that?) but I, too have Chris Van Allsburg’s.
Sarah, I adore Mercer Mayer! My very favorite titles are Professor Wormbog in Search for the Zipperump-A-Zoo, and the Scratch and Sniff Mystery with the Evil Smell Switcher.
A hearty amen, Wendy! As a child, I remember the pictures fascinating me as much as the words. When I had children, I would read to them for an hour or more at a time, until they were tired of it. One of our favorites now is the If You Give a Pig a Pancake series. Such simple yet fanciful designs! When I started writing again, my first few projects were books for my children for their birthdays, illustrated by my oldest.
I didn’t mention that the best picture books open children’s ears to lyrical use of language– like Give a Pig a Pancake.
What a treasure to have family-created picture books in your collection.
I love picture books and I have some in my collection. Sometimes I buy them for me and for others (not necessarily children) as gifts. I have one friend who has given them to me as gifts. I love the McDuff books by Rosemary Wells and illustrated by Susan Jeffers. This is mainly because I had a Westie for 13 1/2 years. I also enjoyed “Dewey’s Christmas at the Library,” a picture book about Dewey the library cat.
With a great-niece or geat-nephew on the way, I have an excuse to buy more picture books.
Of course, who needs an excuse? It’s art we can keep on a shelf in a 1/2 inch space.
Picture books are some of my fondest memories growing up. When my mom and I would go shopping instead of buying me candy at the check out line, she would always buy me a little golden book. By the time I started school I had a small library.
I hope you still have those.
I still have some Little Golden Books. I also have many Eric Carle, Tomie de Paola, Maurice Sendak and Jan Brett books because I went on to become a teacher. Now that I’m finishing my own book illustrations are extremely important to me because I know how important they are to children.
I read to my boys every night. We read a novel out loud, some science (astronomy lately) maybe a little history or a funny poem. And although he just finished reading a 300+ novel all on his own, my youngest still loves picture books. On library day he brings picture books home from school, last week it was “Ball” and the book only uses one word. But oh the pictures! So fun. This is a good reminder, Wendy. Thank you. I need to dust off some of our favorites, even thought they are getting so self sufficient with their own reading, we still read together and there is still something about a picture book. Oh, has anyone read “Shine Man” or “The Angel of Mill Street”, those are two of my favorites.
I’m glad your son already realizes that story can be rich and engaging with a minimum of words.
Picture books are a joy. I often begin my research of a new subject with picture books. I have quite a few along the lines of “If You Lived With The Iroquois.”
What a gift to glimpse your beautiful collection, Wendy! Children’s books can be so timeless, and often profound in their beautiful simplicity but unquestionable depth. Some of my favorites are the Mother’s Day Mice by Jan Brett, My Mama Had a Dancing Heart by Libba Moore Gray (I know you’d love this one!!), Miss Rumphius by Barbara Cooney, the James Herriot’s Treasury for Children (oh! The pictures!!), A New Coat for Anna by Harriet Ziefert, The Year of the Perfect Christmas Tree, and of course, Beatrix Potter and Tasha Tudor’s works.
You know that quote from You’ve Got Mail where Kathleen Kelly gets “carried away” as she makes her treatise on children’s literature? “When you read a book as a child, it becomes a part of your identity in a way that no other reading in your whole life does,” she says. I love this so much, but like you I agree that you don’t have to be a child to experience the treasures of children’s literature.
Amanda, I recently highlighted Miss Rumphius’ cottage (among other houses) on a blog post. The contest is closed now, but if anyone wants to hop over to my blog and guess the picture book houses I used in a quiz, you’re welcome to do so. Hope to do more quizzes like this in future.
http://jennibrummett.com/books/quiz-giveaway-8-storybook-houses-you-might-know/
Jenni, those are such fun!! I love Miss Rumphius’s cottage, and her Lupine-Lady stamp of beauty on the world. (Spotted some other favorites in there, too! Harry the Dirty Dog’s house, Miss Clavel’s old house in Paris all covered in vines… such fun tales.Thank you for sharing!)
I heard Trina Schart Hyman speak at the Hawai’i children’s book conference some twenty years ago and she showed slides of some of her artwork–and then told us who some of the characters were in real life.
The only one who stands out was her former mother-in-law, who played the part of a witch in one of those fairy tales!
I can quote long sections aloud, still, and my adult children will often join in, totally confounding their children! 🙂
Nonfiction picture books were very popular with my boys. Gail Gibbons comes to mind.
A delightful post, calling to mind the shelves of picture books in our home. Some of them are from childhood days of my own children, some I have purchased since they were grown and married, some I’ve bought and read to my grandchildren, and to my great-grandchildren. One of the favored ones is a Weekly Reader book called The Summerfolk, written and illustrated by Doris Burn. On long summer vacation days as the grands visited in our home, they all–every day–wanted to hear and see that book. One of the suppers described in the book included pickled pig’s feet, a food item none of them had ever even heard of. A trip to the grocers was imperative then, where I bought a jar of said item, and of which we all partook. Not too many of them enjoyed the treat.
What a great piece of writing today. Thank you.
Love picture books, love this post! My mother took me to get my first library card sometime in first grade, as soon as I could read, and there was one particular picture book I fell in love with … and have never been able to figure out what is was. So sad! I have a collection too, though not as extensive as yours, Wendy.
I often think of picture books as mini movies. The text, like a good script, is essenial, but so much more is required–page breaks in just the right places (like camera angles and scene changes), good pacing too (like the soundtrack?), illustrations that tell much of the story and move it along (like great acting).
Parents who don’t share picture books with their kids are missing out on so much. I’m happy to see that at least the big secular chains and independent bookstores (like our Joseph-Beth Booksellers) and children’s bookstores (there are some left, thank goodness!) keep many in stock and feature them well.
Christian parents seem to always want a Christian picture book to teach a big, obvious lesson, and that is sad too, since most of the time children want to read for the same reason we do–to be entertained. But I haven’t figured a way around this yet!
Thanks again for the post.
Picture books are memory makers. Some of my sweetest moments with my boys happened while snuggling up with books at bedtime. I can still hear Christian’s three-year-old voice “reading” The Very Hungry Caterpillar, mimicking every inflection that I’d used while reading it to him. Years later, I sat in awe as three-year-old Nathan “read” Green Eggs and Ham to me word-for-word. I’d always known he was a genius! I couldn’t keep every book from my boys’ childhoods, but I held on to the most special stories and hope to pass them on when they have kids.
Picture books were immensely important to my daughter when she was younger, and they still are today, in her tenth year. Because she’s dyslexic the images give her context when she’s stumped over a word. We especially enjoyed wordless picture books. Pouring over the artistic details brought a lot of joy as we cuddled close for story time.
Wendy, since you prodded us to recall not to be missed picture books, I will now jump in to the lake. 🙂
Classics include the Frances titles from Russell Hoban, Where’s Wallace? by Hilary Knight, and anything by Mary Blair, Garth Williams, or Edward Gorey.
One title I really enjoyed from childhood was Rosie & Michael by Judith Viorst.
More modern day authors and illustrators I love are Marla Frazee, Colin Thompson, Sarah Stewart, Chris Van Dusen, & Loren Long. Then there’s Good Night, Gorilla by Peggy Rathmann, the Charlie & Lola series by Lauren Child, The Teddy Bear by David McPhail, and The Red Lemon by Bob Staake (his retro art is vivd and memorable).
https://www.pinterest.com/jabrummett/childrens-book-illustrators/
Wendy, you knew I couldn’t let this post slide by without commenting. 🙂 Perfect timing! Right now my spare room/office floor is covered with picture books. I’m preparing to talk to a MOPS group about sharing books with children.
At the end of my presentation on children’s books I read Rosemary Wells’ Read to Your Bunny. Love the introduction: “Reading together twenty minutes a day is the most important gift you can give your child.”
I too bemoan this decline of picture books trend. But I’m encouraged by a new generation of picture book authors and illustrators who are bucking the trend. Jenni mentioned Marla Frazee and Sarah Stewart. I’d add Kate Banks (wordsmiths, you’ll enjoy Max’s Words), Lauren Castillo, Karma Wilson among many others.
If you’d like a list of both classic and new picture book titles, I recommend “100 Books Every Child Should Hear Before Kindergarten.” Here’s a link to my library’s copy of it:
http://www.piercecountylibrary.org/booklists.aspx?list_id=173&type=list
On behalf of children’s librarians everywhere, thank you for this post, Wendy!
I was hoping you’d chime in, Judy! I’ll look forward to looking these suggestions up! 🙂
Sharing the love of stories with a child we’ve tucked next to our hearts produces memories that become richer with time. I regret many things, but I don’t regret reading to my son. I bought him a cloth book about farmyard animals he could chew on in his crib. When he learned to talk, he’d bring me a picture book for our “quiet time” together. Picture books helped him learn more about the connection between words and their meaning. They also helped us connect with giggles and questions.
As a young adult, I read “The Littlest Angel” in “Reader’s Digest.” I loved the story so much I gave my son the picture book (1962 edition) for his sixth Christmas and we read it together many times. He’s grown up and moved away, but I still have the book and read it from time to time–for both the message and the memories.
I have picture books from my childhood, my children’s childhood, and my years as a preschool teacher. Now I read them to my granddaughter when she visits.
Years ago I read about a scientific study to discover the best method for teaching reading. The researchers interviewed the highest functioning students at the top universities in America and discovered they only had one thing in common: when they were little their parents had read to them every day. E-books may say the words out loud, but they’re not the same as picture books read to kids by adults who love them.
What a great post. I love reading picture books to my children (second grade and pre-k). My daughter can recognize certain illustrators by their style. Growing up, I loved the Raggedy Anne books, the Peter Rabbit books, and Richard Scary’s works. My current favorite is Owl Moon.
A few years ago I made a list of 100 pictures books I planned to read my children during the summer. We didn’t make it all the way through the list, but we gave it a good try!
http://casselcrew.blogspot.com/2011/04/100-picture-books-everyone-should-read.html
Yes! I completely agree that picture books are a necessity! I’ve seen it in my own home, in the schools I’ve worked with, in the Sunday school setting, and as both an author of picture books and an editor for a small press, I hear about their influence on little ones’ lives on a daily basis.
Last year I attended the huge SCBWI conference in LA. There, I was heartened by the State of the Industry Address by Justin Chanda, senior editor at Simon & Schuster. He said picture book sales are strong, and that the industry continues to grow despite predictions of it being swept away by video games, or changed by ebooks, or oversaturated with too many products… And at the press that I work at there has only been well-paced growth, continual sales, and appreciation for the art form, despite the fact that picture books are the most costly (outside of coffee table books) product to manufacture.
I appreciate your collection of beloved books, Wendy! There is great wisdom and beauty found in so many picture books, and some of my favorite titles are those by Marie Louise Gay, Elsa Beskow, Peter Brown and Marjorie Priceman. Plus, have you seen The Boy Who Loved Math? And/or Little Pea? Both of those books, in my opinion, are examples of perfect picture books. 🙂
I so miss you as a doll maker but love all the same children’s books as you. My house is also loaded with children’s books. I met you many times through Judene Hansen. Sadly she has closed her doll shop due to poor health. I have been helping her and as you know, it is a tremendous job due to so much stock. I collect all the authors you do.if you don’t grow up you can’t grow old so here ‘s to us young at heart.