Cover to Cover, Part I ~By Suzy Leopold

Can you name and identify the numerous parts of a picture book? I bet you’re thinking, “Of course I can.” 

Writers are readers and readers are writers. It’s a reciprocal process. Therefore, many writers know the importance of being a critical reader when reading picture books as mentor texts. Reading and analyzing currently published picture books includes examining what works for the book and why it is successful.

Studying and recognizing the various parts of a picture book and knowing picture book terminology can help to inform your writing, too. It’s useful to know the terminology used for publication. What parts of a book are included in a published book? Understanding the purpose for the creation and construction of a book can make you a stronger writer. 

While picture book parts vary widely based on the genre, the age of the audience, and the subject matter, they all share several common features of a book. Some have more parts than others.

Let’s see how many parts of a published book you are familiar with. You are sure to recognize many.

back cover
MAMA BUILT A LITTLE NEST
by Jennifer Ward

Let’s begin with the cover—This is the part that everyone recognizes and sees first. Often children and adults, too, look at the cover to determine if its a book of interest and “Judge a book by its cover.” Dig deeper and go beyond the cover. Don't forget to look at the back cover.

front cover
MAMA BUILT A LITTLE NEST
by Jennifer Ward

Most hardcover children’s books come with a book jacket or dust cover to protect a book, making it durable. Open a book to find the book jacket folds into a flap wrapping around the inside of the cover. The front flap shares a brief summary of the book along with superlatives. Biographical information about the author and illustrator are noted on the back flap.

Tom B. at Building a Library is not quite certain about the purpose of book jackets. He asks, “What exactly is the value of dust jackets on kids’ books?” Even his daughter has an opinion and always demands, “Take the wrapper off, Daddy! I don’t like the wrapper!” You can read more in this this post.

Slow down and look at the front matter because “front matter matters,”  

Megan Down Lambert

Open the cover of a picture book and you’ll note endpapers. These are found after the final pages, too. Most often endpapers are left blank. The color may compliment the cover. Some endpapers are illustrated and add to a story. These endpapers may contain additional information, drawings, diagrams, and maps. Sometimes a story begins here and ends here. 

end papers and book jacket flap
MAMA BUILT A LITTLE NEST
by Jennifer Ward

For more information about Jennifer Ward and the books she's written, read a previous post here that I wrote.

More Front Matter  . . . 

Title page--Title, author, illustrator, and publisher are located here. Most often the title page is included in the front matter. Some publishing companies indicate this information in the Back Matter [more on this in a second post].

1. Dedication page--A special message written by the author and illustrator. This is usually a message of gratitude or dedication written to a loved one, family member, or a mentor who supported the creation of the book. Along with a name, the author and illustrator may include a reason why the book is dedicated to this individual.

Copyright page--This page features copyright and publication information--the publisher and year of publication. The Library of Congress cataloging data is included. Sometimes the copyright information is located in the Back matter.

Table of contents--Many nonfiction books include a table of contents listing chapter titles and page numbers.

Table of Contents
READING PICTURE BOOKS WITH CHILDREN
by Megan Dowd Lambert

Preface--A preface may include an author and illustrator's note about the creation. Sometimes a note to parents indicates the content of the book supporting the parents decision to select the title for their child.

Foreword--A forward is a brief introduction usually written by an expert in the field supporting the content of the author's facts and information. The forward gives credibility to the author. The message supports the writer and publisher during the level of marketing and shares a "stamp of approval".

Introduction--An introduction explains why the book was written. It is an opportunity to grab the reader's attention. It may be written by the author or another individual.

Keep in mind, not all picture books include all of these elements.

Now onto the book proper . . . 

Leaves--pages of a book

1. Verso is the left hand page.

2. Recto is the right hand page.

Verso
READING PICTURE BOOKS WITH CHILDREN
by Megan Dowd Lambert

RectoREADING PICTURE BOOKS WITH CHILDREN
by Megan Dowd Lambert

Gatefolds--is an oversized page that is folded into a book. It is typically located in the center of the book and is often called a centerfold. The gatefold encourages the reader to unfold the page to find more information and artwork.

Gutter--The vertical seam between the recto and the verso pages that connects each page to the binding.

"The gutter helps the reader progress toward, 

or resist the pull of, the page turns."

Megan Dowd Lambert

Gutter
BOWN BEAR, BROWN BEAR, WHAT DO YOU SEE?
by Eric Carle
READING PICTURE BOOKS WITH CHILDREN
by Megan Dowd Lambert

How did you do? Were you able to identify all parts of a book, most or some? Can you think of additional important parts of a picture book?

There are many more. This is a two part blog post. Look for Part II on June 6th when I'll share more picture book terminology, including the various parts of back matter.

Sources:

Lambert, Megan Dowd, READING PICTURE BOOKS WITH TO CHILDREN: How to Shake Up Storytime and Get Kids Talking About What They See, Charlesbridge Publishing, 2015.

For a SLJ post, read more about Megan Dowd Lambert in this interview.