Readers: The Third Leg of the Picture Book Stool by Julie Phend

 

It might seem obvious: books are made for readers. Yet, as creators of picture books, we are trained to think of the interplay of writer and illustrator. But the stool cannot stand on two legs. It’s not complete without the reader.

The First Two Legs: Writer and Illustrator

Let’s begin by talking about the first two legs of the stool: writer and illustrator. In a joint session at the 2020 SCBWI Annual Summer Conference, writer Mac Barnett and illustrator Jon Klassen spoke about what makes a successful picture book. Using their book Sam and Dave Dig a Hole as an example, they discussed how pictures and text lean on each other to tell a story.

When you’re writing a picture book, they remind us, you are writing an incomplete story. The illustrator is an equal contributor. Illustrations add energy and often humor. They add detail that’s not in the text. The pictures can amplify the text—or they can say something different.

No treasure?

Sam and Dave Dig a Hole falls into the latter category. The story is about two boys digging for treasure. They dig straight down and don’t find any. They split up and go different directions. They still don’t find any. But, as the illustrations show, the treasure is there—they’ve been digging around it all along. There’s no hint in the words of what the pictures clearly reveal.

It takes a reader to see the joke.

 

The Third Leg: The Reader

As Barnett and Klassen point out, Sam and Dave are left out of the joke, but the reader is not. The reader seems to know more than the characters—more than the writer, even. And that’s funny.

Sam and Dave Dig a Hole leaves many things unsaid, including the ending, and invites the reader to figure them out. A good picture book encourages kids to participate. In this way, they become active readers.

I saw this principle in action many times in the past year. When the pandemic shut down school for my grandchildren, then aged 5 and 8, my husband and I started a daily story time with them on FaceTime. Over the course of the year, we read more than 100 books to them, and they read about half that many to us. We quickly learned that they preferred books with illustrations, whether picture books or chapter books, fiction or nonfiction. They loved stories with built-in humor and surprises—and books that gave them an opportunity to predict outcomes.

I noticed how often their predictions were based on the pictures. “I think he’s the bad guy. See how he’s smiling when she falls down?” Or “Look! The shark is coming closer. That diver better turn around.”

Among their favorite read-alouds were the Amelia Bedelia stories by Peggy Parish and Fritz Seibel. Amelia Bedelia takes figures of speech literally, which gets her in all kinds of hilarious trouble, as the illustrations demonstrate. They also loved the Good Crooks series by Mary Amato and Ward Jenkins and the Olivia books by Ian Falconer for their humor and fun illustrations.

 

Another huge hit was Jim Benton’s Franny K. Stein series. Franny, a third-grade mad scientist, gets herself into scrapes and uses scientific principles of observation and experimentation to get out of them. The illustrations say so much about the characters—my grandson was in tears when Franny was mean to her dog Igor because “His face is so sad!”

Poor Sad Igor

These books have humor and surprise at their core, yet each one carries a deeper message: about friendship, resiliency, determination, or creativity. But nowhere does the author say that. It’s left to the reader to figure it out.

Picture Books Promote Literacy

Author Eileen Meyer reads to children

That’s how picture books teach best—by allowing the child reader equal participation in the story. In this way, picture books help children become good readers.

A large body of research into reading shows that good readers engage with text in an active way.

They:

• visualize what they are reading (and pictures help them learn to do it).  
•  use patterns to make predictions (children’s stories are filled with pattern.)
•  adapt their predictions in relation to new information. (Surprise!)
•  use context clues (both text and illustration) to create meaning.
•  connect emotionally with characters.
• compare content to their own experience or prior knowledge. 
• use connections to make inferences. 
• and enjoy reading! 

Early Literacy Favorites

I talked with children’s librarian Michelle Pursel, who says, “Storytime is the perfect introduction to the early literacy skills children need to become lifelong readers. I look for books that have an engaging story with vivid illustrations, elements that play a crucial role in audience participation."

Michelle's storytime favorites include Duck, Rabbit! by Amy Krouse Rosenthal, Mama Cat Has Three Kittens by Denise Fleming, Muncha! Muncha! Muncha! by Candace Fleming, and Grumpy Bird by Jeremy Tankard.

Children’s writer Katherine Patterson famously said, “Once a book is published, it no longer belongs to me. My creative task is done. The work now belongs to the creative mind of my readers.”

 So, as you write or illustrate books for children, keep in mind the third leg of your story: your readers. Give them opportunities to figure things out, connect, laugh, and be surprised—and grow into excellent readers. 

They'll enjoy the journey!

 

Good Morning Sunshine by Kathy Halsey

Good morning Sunshine! Today we talk about my version of Morning Pages. I first heard this term about a year ago from writer friend, Pam Vaughan. Morning Pages is the brainchild of Julia Cameron from her seminal book THE ARTIST'S WAY. By ridding the mind of the mundane, the everyday practice on paper can help the writer stop thought loops from interfering with what is really important. Morning Pages (MP) can clear clutter from the mind and give us a fresh slate with which to begin our true work for the day.

Julia's advice is to write three longhand pages uncensored as a daily practice. It is a goal of mine that I dip in and out of  every few months. My discipline is not yet a habit, but for this go-round I am in a "pinky swear" with Pam to write MPs. We check in weekly and motivate each other.  No admonishments because writers are very good at piling on the blame.

My Version 

My version of MPs doesn't involve the first thing that pops into my head and the time suggestion has morphed from morning to afternoon on occasion, too. I do find a peace in my yellow legal pads waiting for me to start the day and the sound of a smooth pen gliding across the surface, a writer ice skating with words that flow. 

I don't just get out the mental detritus the has built up overnight, but, rather freely write on ideas that I've been massaging in my brain. I want to capture that first set of ideas and "can" the freshness of the moment I first write them down. I don't edit or revise, I just spill ink on a particular topic.Through writing I discover ideas and sometimes I like the shape they take and sometimes I don't. But, that's OK. Lately my ideas center around my parents and family times when I was young: listening to baseball games on a radio with my dad, a special weekend in Shaker Village with my mother, what the library felt like to me as child. I consider these "pre-writings" of stories that may bear fruit, but for that morning, it's enough to get them on paper. 

Candy's Crazy Pages

Candace Fleming (3rd from left) and several GROGers at WOW Retreat 2015

Candace Fleming's insightful morning session on the first day of Kristen Fulton's WOW Retreat 2015, gave my hybrid practice of MPs some validation. Candace bravely shared her "messy writing," her longhand pages on wide-lined paper and a Bic pen. This is her discovery process, random thoughts, her "crazy pages," as she calls them. In Candy's crazy pages, she 

writes about her story,  

writes around her story,

writes about not writing it.

She talks to herself on paper to discover the heart of the story.

This felt so organic and freeing for me, personally. I bet most, if not all, the conference attendees felt lighter and happier knowing that we were being given permission by Candace Fleming to mess around with our work. 

Other Ideas

Earlier this year, one of my favorite manuscript's defied me, and I couldn't begin it. I desperately wanted to write this picture book biography. Why was it being so stubborn? One critique partner suggested I write a letter to my main character. Another suggested I write diary entries in her first person voice. Finally, a critique partner suggested that I write about why I could not begin the story. 

I wrote six-some pages for two or three days. I purged the whys out of me in cathartic MPs sessions and found the heart of my story. I also found what drew me to my main character and how we were similar but different. Now, that manuscript is on submission because I overcame my writing block. 

I am a firm believer in creating your own version of Morning Pages, Crazy Pages, Afternoon Pages, whatever you choose to name the practice. Free yourself up, play, or purge on paper, so you can get to your true purpose and motivation. Good morning, sunshine, your words say "hello".

   

Biographies: Boring No Longer by Pat Miller

If you think biographies are boring, then you haven’t read any recent ones. Long gone are birth-to-death yawners of two-dimensional dead guys.

Current biographies are attention grabbers. The recent ALA Youth Media Awards included 12 biographies. Titles like The Right Word: Roget and His Thesaurus by Jen Bryant won multiple awards.

Today’s biographies are like potato chips—it’s hard to read just one. And they offer new details and fresh perspectives on people you may think you know.

For example, here are five fresh looks at our Founding Father:

• Anne Rockwell wrote Big George: How a Shy Boy Became President. She surprises us with the story of how George mastered his hot temper and overcame his shyness.

• GEORGE: George Washington, Our Founding Father  by Frank Keating relates Washington’s life in first person, bringing George vividly to life. Included are some of the rules he used to guide his life. “Rule 56: Associate yourself with men of good quality if you esteem your own reputation, for ‘tis better to be alone than in bad company.”

Farmer George Plants a Nation by Peggy Thomas reveals that George had three loves—his country was number three. Martha and farming were closest to his heart. Thomas details George’s passion for farming, including his labor-saving inventions and agricultural innovations

George Washington’s Teeth by Debora Chandra and Madeleine Comora relates the amazing chronology of Washington’s dental disease and loss alongside his accomplishments. Considering he was in chronic mouth pain, Washington’s achievements are even more remarkable.

 The House That George Built by Suzanne Slade divulges that the White House was Washington’s “baby”. He chose its location and helped survey the lot. He held a design contest and chose James Hoban, an Irish immigrant, as winner. Washington then set out to improve the design. Throughout his two busy terms as president, he kept a close eye on the construction and was responsible for bringing it in on time and under budget. However, completion came too late for Washington to spend a single night under its roof.

Besides adding personality to the well-known, biographers are resurrecting well-researched stories of forgotten women who risked their reputations, their fortunes, and their future.

• Rough, Tough Charley by Verla Kay tells of a shy orphan who was good with horses and eventually gained fame as a fearless and expert stagecoach driver. Even when a horse kicked him in the face and he lost an eye, Charley continued to drive a dangerous route, losing not a single passenger or coach. After retiring, Charley raised cattle and ran a stage stop. At his death, it was discovered that Charley was a woman. Despite the discovery, Charley remained an esteemed member of the Oddfellows Club. She had voted 52 years before the federal government gave women the right to vote!

• Irena Sendler and the Children of the Warsaw Ghetto by Susan Goldman Rubin is a heart-pounding story of a nurse who smuggled doomed Jewish children from Warsaw literally beneath the prying eyes of the Germans.
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• Cheryl Harness tells of a remarkable woman in Mary Walker Wears the Pants: The True Story of the Doctor, Reformer, and Civil War Hero. It will be difficult for children to imagine how shameful it was for women to wear pants—but Mary did. A skilled surgeon, Mary fought prejudice and red tape to serve on the front lines of the Civil War. She is still the only woman to have earned the Congressional Medal of Honor. 
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• Wild Women of the Wild West by Jonah Winter is one wild read. Fifteen women from Calamity Jane to Esther Morris are portrayed in two pages each. One of them, Mary Ellen Pleasant, became rich by operating a high-end boarding house where she was known as the best cook in San Francisco. She made smart financial investments and became a wealthy member of high society. When she was 51 the Civil War ended and Mary Ellen revealed her African American heritage and early life as a slave. She sued the city for discrimination on cable cars—and won. What she didn't reveal was that she provided the last station on the Underground Railroad for most of the slaves that escaped to San Francisco, providing them with jobs, shelter, and freedom.

Of all the biographies I read in the last few months, my favorite is The Family Romanov: Murder, Rebellion & The Fall of Imperial Russia by Candace Fleming. It has been named a 2015 Siebert Honor Book, Orbis Pictus Award winner, and a YALSA finalist for Excellence in Nonfiction. This is deeply researched book that reads like a novel, building detail upon ominous detail until the Romanov story becomes a Jenga tower. The tragedy is compounded because of all the ways it could have been avoided. This is one biography you can’t put down, and it’s a great example of all that is well with biographies today.

Candace Fleming and Peggy Thomas are two of the speakers at the  NF 4 NF Nonfiction Conference for Children's Writers. Join us!

More From Cheddar's Summer Reading Pile -- by Christy Mihaly

Hello friends -- Welcome to August!  Is your heap of summer reading diminishing? Have you enjoyed some of our earlier recommendations?  (Click here for Cheddar's first post.)  

  
In case your late-summer pile (or your writerly inspiration) is in need of replenishment, we've collected a few more book suggestions: fiction and nonfiction, for kids and adults.  Read on!

Americanah, by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie.  
Novel, 2013.  588 pages.

The kid lit world has been buzzing about the need for diversity in children's books. What better way to expand our own horizons, as writers and readers, than reading the insightful and funny work of a prize-winning novelist steeped in two cultures? Adichie, born in Nigeria, divides her time between the United States and her country of birth. This multi-layered third novel is a love story, an illumination of immigrant experiences, an education about modern Nigeria, and a meditation on identity and race.  My book club unanimously loved it -- and let me tell you, in my book club, that's a rarity.

The Family Romanov: Murder, Rebellion, and the Fall of Imperial Russia, by Candace Fleming.
Nonfiction, for ages 9-12 (or above).
2014.  292 pages (including back matter).

Candy Fleming is one of my favorite writers -- and she has done it again with her latest kids' history book. After I heard her read the enthralling beginning of her WIP (this book) at a Highlights Foundation workshop, I knew I had to read The Romanovs as soon as it came out. Snatching up a copy the day it arrived at my indie bookstore, I dove in.  I wasn't disappointed! It's filled with well-researched, dramatic descriptions of the last years of Tsar Nicholas and his family, as the Revolution closed in on their insulated lives of obscene luxury. The author uses, and reproduces, a wealth of original documents, including many direct quotes from the young Romanovs and those around them. First-hand statements by Russian workers describing the harsh conditions in which they lived, unbeknownst to the tsar and his circle, are particularly striking. Powerful photographs add depth to the story.  A riveting read -- this is history come alive.

The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics, by Daniel James Brown.

Nonfiction, 2013.  404 pages (paperback, including back matter).

This was assigned summer reading for my 15-year old, and the high school soccer team. I don't normally go for sports books, but this one is exceptional -- I've talked to readers of all ages who love it. The book centers on the personal sagas of nine working-class kids from small towns in the state of Washington, especially Joe Rantz, who faced appalling trials with uncommon grace. Brown details the years-long preparation and training of the rowers of the University of Washington boys' crew, as they coalesced into a team.  He weaves in both the national context of the misery of the Great Depression and the parallel history of Germany's preparations to host the 1936 Olympics. Throughout the book, historical photos provide additional insight. The climax is the dramatic account of the Olympics eight-oar crew final. The book's magic is that by the end of the story, we have come to know the boys in the boat intimately, and to care deeply about the outcome of the race. This near-unbelievable tale is enriched by the author's deep research and obvious love for his subject.  

The Fault in our Stars, by John Green.
Fiction, YA
2012.  318 pages.

You can't let the summer pass you by without reading the book the teens, preteens (at least the girls) and many of their parents have been talking about, can you? John Green does a fine job creating attractive, three-dimensional, literate, believable teenaged characters coping with the pain and terror of cancer, and facing death. Plenty of humor and plenty of tears. If you're going to see the movie, be sure to read the book first.

Are you tired of Cheddar pics yet?   Her buddy Kaia is also a bookworm:

Photo by Jack Miller

Before we go, Cheddar insisted we include one of her personal  nonfiction faves:

Happy Reading, all!