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Wednesday, April 11, 2018

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.

29 comments:

  1. This is so helpful, Suzy! Until this moment my brain had forgotten some of these terms such as "recto" & "gatefold" & I nearly shouted * Eureka!* when I read this column. Also, I had to smile all the way through, thinking how much it is like learning the parts of a plant or flower, which I so associate with busy Garden Girl you. I also love the pages you chose to share. I look forward to returning to follow the links.

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    1. Double *Eureka* to you, Jan! Your analogy of parts of a flower and parts of a book now make me smile. : ) Thank you for your kind words sprinkled with seeds of love.

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  2. Great post, Suzy, on the design of a picture book, its elements, and how these parts of a book help to move the story forward or enhance it or the theme. I have meet Megan Down Lambert and talked with her about her work at the Carle museum which informed much her book book READING PICTURE BOOKS WITH CHILDREN. I also wrote a post a few years ago on this subject, too. https://groggorg.blogspot.com/2016/06/the-picture-book-as-object-yes-steam-of.html

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    1. Wow! I am so pleased that you had the opportunity to meet Megan Down Lambert. I hope to visit the Eric Carle Museum some day.

      Thank you for sharing the link to a previous post you wrote about READING PICTURE BOOKS WITH CHILDREN by Megan Down Lambert.

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  3. great mini-class on picture books! Thanks, Suzy.

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    1. My pleasure to share a PB lesson with you and our GROG followers, Sue.

      Warmly,
      Sue aka Suzy

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  4. Sharing with my my wanna-be PiBo writer friends -:D. Also a great roadmap for a how-to class project for middle grade and junior high students.

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    1. As an instructor of elementary and college-level students, I am thankful for your compliment, Cat. I like your word choice of a *roadmap*. Do hope this post is helpful to middle school and junior high school instructors and students.

      ~Suzy

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  5. Great information here, thank you Suzy!

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    1. Do hope our readers of the GROG Blog find some useful knowledge about picture book terminology. Thank you, Chris.

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  6. Thanks, Suzy, for reminding me to look at every part of the book when reading mentor texts. Now, I will be thinking of "every" part of the books I read, not just the words of the stories!

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    1. There's so much to study, learn, and understand when examining picture books as mentor texts. Do hope these elements support you as a writer, Mona.

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  7. Thanks, Suzy. I have found that truly understanding how all of these parts are connected can make you a stronger, more creative writer. If you know how end pages work, and what options you have for placement of copyright pages, etc., you open up your format opportunities.

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    1. So true, David. Writers understand the importance of studying the craft of writing for children. To become a *stronger, creative* writer, one must examine picture books holistically.

      Thank you for your support of the GROG Blog.

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  8. Verso and recto . . .I had no idea. Interesting, Suzy!

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    1. Such fancy words for the left and right pages of a book, Jarm. As writers, we enjoy learning and growing together.

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  9. Thank you, Suzy, for this breakdown of the picture book :) I had never heard verso or recto! I learn something new everyday :)

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    1. You are correct, Charlotte, learning & growing takes place every day. Thank you for your support of the GROG Blog.

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  10. Fun post! I didn't know gatefold!

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    1. Well, there ya go, Michelle! You've acquired new PB terminology. Thank you for reading the GROG Blog.

      Suzy

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  11. What a unique post! I enjoyed learning some new terms, Suzy.

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    1. Thank you, Sherri. Am pleased to know you acquired new knowledge today.

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  12. I learned some new terminology. Thanks for this lesson, Suzy!

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    1. My pleasure to share new learning with you, Tina. Perhaps your students would be interested in learning about the verso and recto pages.

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  13. Great post for all picture book writers! Well done :)

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    1. Thank you, Eileen. Hope you find some new PB terminology that is useful to you.

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  14. Great explanation of all those book parts, Suzy! Beautiful endpapers make me happy.

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    1. There are so many interesting end papers, aren't there, Patty. I especially the when the endpapers are used to tell the story with additional words and visuals.

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  15. This is a great post and one that I just came back to after reading Part II of this post. I read the book, 'The Girl who Drew Butterflies" and found it very well organized. Thank you for posting both of these. They are very helpful.

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