August 2009 Archives

If you're running low on new books to read with your child, check out this year's winners of the Children's Choice Book Awards. The winners are determined by the votes of over 220,000 kids around the country. What better way to find a good book for your children than by the recommendations of their peers?

The full list is organized by grade level, so you can be sure to find lots of great books that are both age appropriate and tons of fun.

I recently had the opportunity to talk with artist and illustrator Cynthia Aldrich. Cynthia made her illustrating debut in 1989 when she drew the beautiful illustrations for Chara M. Curtis' All I See is Part of Me, which just so happens to be the very first title in our collection of children's books! She and Chara teamed up again in 1992 with the release of Fun is a Feeling. Cynthia had many insights to share about her artistic inspirations for these books and about the illustrating process. She even shared some of her favorite children's books with me, all of which are must-reads!

• You've illustrated two of Chara's Illumination Arts titles. What was it like working with Chara? The thing about working with Chara that was so incredible for me as an artist was that she left everything about the illustrations - from the initial inspirations to the style - entirely up to me. Her realm was in the words, so I had complete control over the illustrations. It was a very freeing experience and I couldn't have asked for a better situation to come up with the ideas for the illustrations.
• Where did you draw your inspirations for the illustrations to All I See is Part of Me and Fun is a Feeling?
  My inspirations came directly from Chara's words and indirectly from the world around me. During the time I was working on All I See is Part of Me, my husband and I were living in an 80 year-old house in Kirkland, WA that we were in the process of refurbishing. Working on the illustrations was an escape from the madness of construction going on around me; they gave me peace of mind. After I received Chara's manuscript, I initially spent a couple of weeks simply reading and rereading the words, letting them sink in. One night, at around one o'clock in the morning, I woke up and had a movie reel of stills of each of the illustrations, one after another, right before my eyes. I immediately got up and sketched them down! In this sense, the inspirations for All I See is Part of Me came from somewhere through me, somewhere deep inside of me. The images came to me from parts of my life, triggered by Chara's words.

  I was living on Whidbey Island, WA when I did the illustrations for Fun is a Feeling. My husband and I had moved because we craved a more rural setting and I drew inspiration from the woods and natural greenery around me. I modeled the images of the inside of the house on our former house in Kirkland. I also drew inspiration from a scene in George MacDonald's adult fantasy novel Lilith for the illustration in which the boy's bedroom transforms into a forest.

To find out more about Cynthia's inspirations and artistic process, read onward!