Happy New Year! Hooray! We had a totally fabulous year here at The Carle. Let me share with you a few of our favorite highlights from 2011:
Eric Carle Visit and Book Signing
Eric Carle came to visit not once, but TWICE, this year. Once for his annual summer book signing and then again in September to launch the release of his newest picture book, The Artist Who Painted a Blue Horse.
Eric Carle signs his new book. Photo by Kristin Angel
Eric Carle admires the artwork of a young fan. Photo by Kristin Angel
New Sculptures
The Carle’s galleries are no longer the only place to see artwork in the Museum. This year we installed two amazing sculptures by renowned artists Leo Lionni and Mo Willems. Eric Carle and Leo Lionni’s family were on hand for the unveiling of Leo Lionni’s sculpture titled, “Imaginary Garden” in July, which is now on view for the public in our Great Hall.
Photo by Jerrey Roberts
Leo Lionni's "Imaginary Garden"
Mo Willem’s bright Red Elephant sculpture is a cheery new addition to our museum’s courtyard. Here’s a link to Mo Willem’s blog where he documents the full journey of the elephant sculpture from idea to installation.
Mo Willems' Red Elephant sculpture at The Carle. Photo by Kristin Angel
Mo Willems signs books for fans. Photo by Kristin Angel
Exhibitions
We hosted a year full of fabulous exhibitions. I hope you had the chance to come see them. Each event brought a chance to meet the talented creators behind the artwork. Here’s a small sampling of the authors and illustrators who joined us at The Carle this year for these exhibits.
Monsters & Miracles: A Journey through Jewish Picture Books:
(l-r) Neal Sokol, Alix Kennedy, Uri Shulevitz, Nonny Hogrogian, Nick Clark, Lisa Brown and Ilan Stavans. Photo by Kristin Angel
Partners in Wonder: Selections from the Collection of Jane Yolen
Jane Yolen signs Owl Moon. Photo by Kristin Angel
What a Circus! The Art of Etienne Delessert
Etienne Delessert and David Macaulay. Photo by Kristin Angel
Tomi Ungerer: Chronicler of the Absurd
Eric Carle and Tomi Ungerer. Photo by Kristin Angel
Barbara McClintock’s The Heartaches of a French Cat
Barbara McClintock and David Johnson. Photo by Kristin Angel
Growing Every Which Way But Up: The Children’s Book Art of Jules Feiffer
Leonard Marcus, Jules Feiffer and Kate Feiffer. Photo by Kristin Angel
Carle Honors
This year was the 6th annual Carle Honors ceremony in New York City. This year The Carle honored Lois Ehlert (Artist), Jeanne Steig (Angel), Michael di Capua (Mentor) and Karen Nelson Hoyle (Bridge). To learn more about the recipients and about the awards, you can read my blog post from earlier this year here.
Artist award recipient Lois Ehlert
Photo by Johnny Wolf Photography
Angel award recipient Jeanne Steig
Photo by Johnny Wolf Photography
Mentor award recipient Michael di Capua
Photo by Johnny Wolf Photography
Bridge award recipient Karen Nelson Hoyle
Photo by Johnny Wolf Photography
Check out these wonderful decorations from the night to celebrate Artist award recipient Lois Ehlert.
Photo by Johnny Wolf Photography
Guests were greeted by the coconut tree and letters from the well-loved Chicka Chicka Boom Boom picture book and tables featured these absolutely stunning centerpieces. Each centerpiece base is an actual book with beautiful and bright tissue paper flowers bursting from the pages.
Photo by Sandy Soderberg. Sculptures by Marlena Pavich.
Special Events
Other wonderful events hosted here this past year was a viewing of the children’s literature documentary, The Library of the Early Mind, in our auditorium, with a panel of guests featured in the film including Richard Michelson, Grace Lin and Jane Yolen as well as the director Edward J. Delaney and co-producer, Steven Withrow. Here’s a trailer for the documentary:
And here’s a glimpse at the panel discussion that followed that night at The Carle:
David White, Diane deGroat, Bob Marstall, John Gurney, Greg Ruth, Tomie dePaola, Astrid Sheckels, Ruth Sanderson and Linda Graves. Photo by Kristin Angel
The Very Hungry Caterpillar had a birthday party and made some new friends:
Very Hungry Caterpillar greets fans. Photo by Kristin Angel
We had special storytimes in our Reading Library such as Nancy Ekholm Burkert and her son Rand Burkert’s storytime and blues performance of their new book, Mouse & Lion.
Nancy Ekholm Burkert
And Frank Viva led a storytime of his New York Times Best Illustrated book, Along a Long Road, and then led his audience into The Carle auditorium to see the artwork from the entire book in one long frieze along the length of the auditorium.
Frank Viva. Photo by Kristin Angel
Our annual Educator night was hosted by Lisa Holton, Anita Silvey and Betsy Bird who sparked a wonderfully uplifting discussion about the future of books and technology.
Lisa Holton and Anita Silvey at Educator Night.
Betsy Bird at Educator Night
In 2011, we hosted the first in a series of BERL (Barbara Elleman Research Library) Lectures here at The Carle. This year’s lecture was given by publisher, editor, educator and author-extraordinaire Patricia Lee Gauch.
This year we also launched the Shop’s BookTalk interview series. Each month bookseller Andy interviewed an author or illustrator about their books and career, followed by a book signing. In the past year we interviewed Mordicai Gerstein, Norton Juster, Mo Willems, Diane deGroat, Jarrett Krosoczka, Barry Moser, Jeff Mack, Ted & Betsy Lewin, Sophie Blackall, Brian Floca, John Bemelmans Marciano, John Rocco, Sergio Ruzzier, Beth Krommes and Barney Saltzberg. We are excited to be continuing the interview series into the new year and will be making recordings of the interviews available on our website for our faraway friends.
Mo Willems and Norton Juster
This year also marked the 50th anniversary of a beloved classic, The Phantom Tollbooth. We celebrated this November with a pun-filled Phantom Tollbooth Day with Norton Juster and Leonard Marcus, author of The Annotated Phantom Tollbooth, and guests viewed original Jules Feiffer artwork from the book in our gallery. No Phantom Tollbooth day can be complete without a tollbooth and Toc the dog!
Phantom Tollbooth Day
Phantom Tollbooth Day (Yes, that's me)
We hopped across the river for R. Michelson Galleries 22nd Annual Children’s Illustration Show where the Carle Bookshop sold books by the featured artists, including special guests Jules Feiffer and Roger Sutton. There was a quite a turn out! Here’s a photo from the night.
Front Row: Paul Jacobs, Rebecca Guay, Diane deGroat, Richard Michelson, Karla Gudeon, Sara Levine, Carol Weis, Angela DiTerlizzi, Heidi Stemple Second Row: Steven Withrow, Lesley Breen Withrow, Jennifer Swender, Jane Yolen, Jane Dyer, Barry Moser, Burleigh Muten, Barbara Diamond Goldin, Lesleá Newman, Kathy Brown, Tony DiTerlizzi. Third Row: Wendell Minor, Jules Feiffer, Raul Colón, David Hyde Costello, Neil Waldman.
Back Row: Jarrett J. Krosoczka, Tom Warburton, Scott Fischer, Mo Willems, , David Milgrim
Lastly, we ended the year with some great presentations about the best books of 2011. First Horn Book editors Roger Sutton and Martha Parravano shared their picks while talking about their book, A Family of Readers. Click here to see what books they loved from this year.
Roger Sutton and Martha Parravano
In December, Susan Bloom was back for her annual Picture Books of Distinction lecture, where she highlighted her picks for the year’s best picture books. Click here for her list. We’re so excited to see what will win the Caldecott and what the new year will bring.
Looking ahead, we have so many exhibitions and events that we’re excited about. We’re especially looking forward to The Carle’s 10th anniversay!
Did you have a favorite moment at The Carle this year? I’d love to hear some of your memories. Happy New Year!
Happy Thanksgiving! On this day of family, friends and delicious fall foods, I want to talk about one of my favorite Thanksgiving treats…pie! Lovely fall pies like apple, pumpkin, and pecan pie will be filling my family’s table this holiday season, but I’m a sucker for summer fruit pies as well. What about you? Do you have a favorite kind of pie?
Here are some picture books from our Shop’s shelves that highlight this favorite sweet treat.
Pie in the Sky by Lois Ehlert (Harcourt, 2004)
With her beautiful cut paper collage illustrations, Lois Ehlert shows how a cherry pie is made, starting from the tree that cherries grown on. With each turn of the page, the reader observes the natural world of this cherry tree through the seasons, waiting for the time to finally pick the cherries and make the pie. Look closely on each page for hidden details, including Ehlert’s own cherry pie recipe!
Pecan Pie Baby by Jacqueline Woodson, illustrated by Sophie Blackall (Putnam, 2010)
Everyone is excited about Mama having a new baby except Gia. She likes having Mama all to herself and sharing special moments between just the two of them like telling silly stories, snuggling in the morning, or sharing a piece of their favorite treat — pecan pie. But even now, before the baby is born, Gia has to share their love of pecan pie with the baby in Mama’s belly. “This baby sure loves itself some pie,” says Mama, giving in to her cravings. “Well,” says Gia, “I love pecan pie. And you love pecan pie. So that baby’s just being a copycat.” This book gracefully navigates the complexity of a child’s feelings about a new sibling and Gia’s mother is able to gently reassure Gia that the baby won’t ruin their special mother/daughter bond.
Apple Pie ABC by Alison Murray (Hyperion, 2011)
A fresh take on the classic A Apple Apie alphabet book with bold retro-style illustrations. A apple pie B bake it C cool it D dish it out.
Told with great humor in the point of view of a very determined dog who wants a piece of that apple pie.
The Apple Pie that Papa Bakes by Lauren Thompson, illustrated by Jonathan Bean (Simon & Schuster, 2007)
A fun retelling of “The House that Jack Built” cumulative style tale. Instead it’s the pie that papa baked. With a nod to classic Virginia Burton illustration, the reader gets a bigger and bigger view of all the parts of the natural world that go into making one delicious apple pie from scratch. A wonderful read aloud.
How to Make an Apple Pie and See the World by Marjorie Priceman (Knopf, 1994)
In Marjorie Priceman’s beautiful and whimsical style, readers are taken on a worldwide scavenger hunt for the ingredients to make an apple pie. To Italy to harvest the wheat, to France to gather the eggs, to Sri Lanka for some cinnamon and so on, until finally picking the apples close to home in a Vermont orchard. A wonderful reminder for all ages to know and appreciate all the places our food comes from.
For older readers, check out Pie by Sarah Weeks (Scholastic, 2011)
This book is a wonderful and quick middle-grade novel, perfect for ages 9-12, about a girl named Alice, whose beloved Aunt Polly makes the town’s BEST pies. When Aunt Polly passes away, she leaves her famous piecrust recipe surprisingly to her cat, Lardo and then leaves Lardo in the care of Alice. The town goes in a frenzy trying to get the recipe, even including a cat-napping and a suspicious stranger snoping around town, getting poor Alice caught up in the middle of it all. It’s up to Alice to show everyone that Polly’s pies were about bringing family and friends together. This funny and well-written book is interspersed with recipes (warning: don’t read on an empty stomach — it will make you hungry!) so you can try out the famous pies yourself.
On this day of giving thanks, we’re thankful for our food — and delicious pies — and for our family and friends like you who we can share our love of books with. Happy Thanksgiving!
As they did in Chicka Chicka, Boom Boom, Martin and Ehlert combine their talents to provide children with another delightful tale that cries out to be read aloud. These 10 caterpillars are on the move: the first, crawling into a bower, the second, wriggling up a flower, the sixth, carried off to school, and the tenth, scaling an apple tree. Sumptuous illustrations describe their destinations with one, readers will discover, becoming a butterfly. An imaginative, lilting tale for those just learning to count and for those already accomplished — the rhyme, the rhythm, and the journeys will be a most entertaining trip. In addition, Ehlert cleverly winds a botany lesson into a pictorial narrative.
On shelves August 30, 2011.
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Lois Ehlert is this year’s Carle Honors Artist recipient! Click here to learn more about Lois Ehlert and The Carle Honors. Want more recommendations from The Carle Bookshop? Click here to read for Top of the Shelf book reviews.
A dog that can talk? If you don’t believe it, just page through this book. Ralph, cleverly created out of bits and pieces of fabric and other odds and ends, will show you that, indeed, he knows a number of words. When on top of his doghouse, Ralph says — “Roof Roof”, and when next to a tree, he yelps “Bark Bark Bark.” Children will have fun with this book and will undoubtedly have their own ideas for expanding Ralph’s vocabulary. Bright colors and innovative use of actual materials make this a winner.
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Lois Ehlert is this year’s Carle Honors Artist recipient! Click here to learn more about Lois Ehlert and The Carle Honors. Want more recommendations from The Carle Bookshop? Click here to read for Top of the Shelf book reviews.
Each year, The Carle awards individuals and organizations who have shown long-term dedication to the world of picture books, art and literacy. The awards are given in four forms: Artist, for lifelong innovation in the field; Angel, whose generous financial support is crucial to making picture book art exhibitions, education programs and related projects a reality; Mentor, editors, designers, and educators who champion the art form; and Bridge, individuals who have found inspired ways to bring the art of the picture boo to larger audiences through work in other fields.
We are so excited to announce that this year’s honorees are:
Artist: Lois Ehlert
Lois Ehlert is an award-winning author and illustrator of numerous picture books, including the best-seller Chicka Chicka Boom Boom, written by Bill Martin, Jr. and Color Zoo, which won her a Caldecott Honor in 1989. Lois Ehlert is well known for using bright, vivid colors in an unique multimedia collage illustration style. Many of her picture books are excellent and entertaining tools for introducing young children to concepts such as color and shape. I love Ehlert’s dedication to creating books about nature and the natural world. My favorite books are Planting a Rainbow and Eating the Alphabet, which are my go-to books for baby showers and gift giving. Elhert acknowledges the influence of her creative parents in her book, Hands: growing up to be an artist. Uniting a love of sewing, gardening, woodworking, Ehlert shows that creativity (in whatever form) lies within us all.
Angel: Jeanne Steig
Jeanne Steig is the author of several books for children, including my personal favorite, Alpha Beta Chowder, a collaboration with her late husband, picture book author/illustrator and New Yorker cartoonist, William Steig. Jeanne, a multimedia artist herself, has been the gracious donor of the William Steig picture book art archive to The Carle’s permanent collection.
Mentor: Michael di Capua
Michael di Capua has been an editor and art director of children’s books for more than 40 years. Starting as an editor at Farrar, Strauss & Giroux, Michael has worked with children’s book legends such as Maurice Sendak, William Steig, Norton Juster and Natalie Babbitt, among many, many others. Micahel’s imprint, Michael di Capua Books, has published exceptional children’s books since 1987.
Bridge: Karen Nelson Hoyle
Karen is a professor and curator of the Children’s Literature Research Collections at the University of Minnesota. The collections include 100,000 children’s books as well as original manuscripts and artwork from more than 12,000 children’s books. Here’s a wonderful interview online with Karen about the university’s amazing collection.
All honorees will be feted at New York City’s Guastavino’s on Thursday, September 22, 2011. We can’t wait!
For more about past Carle Honors celebrations, including past recipients click here or read my blogs posts from last year here and here.
