Authors, Illustrators Unite to Create Picture Book Month
RSSBy SLJ Staff
A controversial October 2010 New York Times article entitled, "Picture Books No Longer A Staple for Children," outlined how unpopular picture books were these days—and it incited a barrage of responses from the children's book industry, many defending the venerable picture book. Picture Book Month is an international initiative to encourage and celebrate literacy with picture books, says founder Dianne de Las Casas, an author and storyteller, who along with authors/illustrators Katie Davis, Elizabeth O. Dulemba, Wendy Martin, and author Tara Lazar have joined forces to spread the word that picture books are alive and well, especially in this digital age where an unprecedented amount of picture books have been made into ebooks and are on ereading devices such as the iPad, the Nook, and the Kindle. Each day in November, a new essay will be posted on the Picture Book Month website from contributors like Suzanne Bloom, Denise Fleming, Leslie Helakoski, Eric A. Kimmel, Tammi Sauer, Dan Yaccarino, and Jane Yolen—each explaining why he or she thinks picture books are important. The website will also feature links to picture book resources, authors, illustrators, and kidlit book bloggers. Additionally, parents, educators, and librarians can download the theme calendar to help plan picture book celebrations and access picture book activities. Librarians are encouraged to help spread the word. The website officially launches November 1, 2011. "We are doing this because in this digital age where people are predicting the coming death of print books, picture books (the print kind) need love," says de Las Casas. "And the world needs picture books. There's nothing like the physical page turn of a beautifully crafted picture book." This article originally appeared in the newsletter Extra Helping. Go here to subscribe. So perfect! We are releasing our first straight-to-iPad picture book on Nov. 1st, so this is perfect! Long live the story book! Picture Book Month is a wonderful idea! A downturn in the economy is no reason to declare an important genre of books to be dead. I hope that people will look at my award-winning fiction picture book about bullying, How the Moon Regained Her Shape (Sylvan Dell, 2006).
Best wishes!
Janet Ruth Heller, author Picture books are how many young children learn to read. There is something precious and special about seeing a child with a book.
Some of my most precious memories are sitting with my parents reading a book to me as well as sitting with my children reading a book to them.
* = Required information
October 27, 2011
Who says picture books are dead? To prove that they're not, a group of authors and illustrators have banded together to declare November as Picture Book Month.
Reader Comments (4)
Posted by Casey Shay Press on October 28, 2011 04:11:34PM
Posted by Janet Ruth Heller on October 29, 2011 04:09:22PM
Posted by Michelle Maddox on October 30, 2011 03:43:40PM
