I can’t believe July is already over! What a whirlwind of a month! Now we’re right in the middle of our summer season here at The Carle, looking back at what exciting events we’ve had already.
Earlier this month we unveiled a one-of-a-kind Leo Lionni sculpture in our Great Hall called The Imaginary Garden, during a very special night hosted by Eric Carle and Leo Lionni’s family. You can now come by at any time to admire this amazing piece of art. Here’s a link to an article from The Hampshire Gazette about the sculpture unveiling.
In celebration of this new Lionni sculpture, we’ve launched a new set of postcards in the Shop. You can now find seven images from some of our favorite Lionni picture books. I think this Tillie and the Wall postcard is my favorite, but it’s so hard to choose!
Our biggest event of the month was, of course, Meet Eric Carle day! We had over 400 fans come through our doors to meet Eric Carle and get their books signed!
That day we also released a new version of the favorite resource video, Eric Carle: Picture Writer. This updated version, The Art of the Picture Book, is now for sale in our Shop. It’s a lovely 30 minute video that gives viewers the chance to really get to know Eric Carle, his life, his books and his art.
We added a number of new Eric Carle toys to our Shop this month as well, including the adorable plush Caterpillar Rocker Toy. This is flying out of our shop so fast! It’s no surprise, either. Look how cute it is!
Other July favorites are this wooden Caterpillar puzzle, Blue Horse crib toy, and a new line of coloring and art activity books.
Our Tomi Ungerer exhibit has been pulling in visitors from across the country this month. Here’s a link to the article that appeared in the New York Times about the show, and be sure to check out this lovely photo slideshow. I love hearing customers exclaim “I remember this!” when they pick up a copy of one of Ungerer’s books for the first time in over thirty years. Such a wonderful moment.
In addition to Eric Carle, this month we’ve hosted some wonderful author and illustrator events. Barry Moser gave a wonderful ShopTalk interview in our Auditorium, Holly Hobbie drew a big crowd for her special storytime in the Reading Library and Jeff Mack, David Hyde Costello and Melanie Hope Greenberg each taught their own illustration course in our Art Studio.
Looking forward, we’re sure to have another bustling summer month this August. We’ve scheduled not one, but TWO Shop Talk interviews. Join us this Sunday, August 7th at 11:30 am for an interview with local artist and author Jeff Mack and then Sunday, August 14th at 11:30 for an interview with husband and wife book illustrators Ted and Betsy Lewin. I can’t wait! Be sure to check our website and Facebook pages for more upcoming events.
Hope to see you all in August!
