LS 5603 Picture Book Review #3

BIBLIOGRAPHY
Marcus, Leonard S. 1998. A CALDECOTT CELEBRATION: SIX ARTISTS AND THEIR PATS TO THE CALDECOTT MEDAL. New York: Walker & Co. ISBN 0802786561

PLOT SUMMARY
Marcus interviewed six Caldecott Award winners for the sixtieth celebration of the award, with one illustrator from each decade. The award is named after Randolph Caldecott, an English illustrator, although the award is now given to American artists for the most distinguished picture book for children. The artists included in this celebratory book are McCloskey, M. Brown, Sendak, Steig, Allsburg, and Wiesner. Each illustrator has a photo and a quote from their acceptance speech which is followed by some biographical information and details of the journey of the development of the book.

CRITICAL ANALYSIS
Quite interesting and detailed collection which contains photos of the illustrators and their dummies used to prepare the illustrations as well as copies of sketches. The text is an easy and informative format, beneficial for both teachers and students. I have always found wordless books a bit disconcerting at first, yet, David Wiesner gives great perspective in his quote from his Caldecott acceptance speech for TUESDAY: “A wordless book offers a different kind of experience…Each viewer reads the book in his or her own way….As a result, there are as many versions of what happened that Tuesday night as there are readers.”

REVIEW EXCERPT(S)
School Library Journal “Anecdotes about the relationship between the illustrators and their editors are also included, reinforcing the idea that this collaboration is very important in the creation of excellent books.”

Booklist “Marcus, who interviewed each artist, provides a lively, informative introduction to each book and its maker. A beautifully made book, this will serve as a fine resource for children interested in illustration and for teachers researching author/illustrator studies.”




CONNECTIONS
Super resource for both teachers and students who may be doing a book study of one of these featured books.
Attractive book lends itself to being approachable by children, especially for biographical research on any of the six artists.
Great resource for introducing Caldecott award winning books.