passionately sharing, discussing and admiring children's picture books
Today is the day! Not So Scary Jerry by Shelley Kinder, illustrated by me, Caryn Schafer, is officially out in the world. I cannot wait for you to meet Jerry! I’ll be back to posting regularly again very soon and have lots to share about the creation of Jerry and other exciting projects. Pick up Not So Scary Jerry at Clear Fork Publishing, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and ask your local bookstore and library to carry it!
What a crazy couple weeks of spring we have had. So much sickness and completely missing school and Easter and friends and possibly spring too. But I’m thankful to have a constant pile of new books to look through. Last week I received this book from Disney-Hyperion in hopes that I could review it, and they also offered a really amazing giveaway to one of my readers. How could I turn that down? Thankfully, we liked the story. So let’s take a look at a fun, summery, ballerina beach book, with a crazy unique twist. Here is Vampirina at the Beach by Anne Marie Pace, picture by LeUyen Pham, 2017. (And stay tuned in the post for the fantastic giveaway!)
Continue reading “Review & Giveaway! Vampirina At The Beach By Pace & Pham”
Today, I am extremely thrilled to not only get to show Peter’s newest book; but also to gift it to someone else! There is something magical about Peter’s books. They don’t just entertain, or educate, or even just tell a story. His books inspire, and encourage, and invite readers to be. This newest book is the epitome of that. It does not hide or disguise its mission. It is bold. This book is Peter and is his invitation to everyone else who is like him, a happy dreamer. Come take a look at Happy Dreamer by Peter H. Reynolds, 2017 (and stay tuned for the giveaway!).
Continue reading “Review & Giveaway! Happy Dreamer By Peter H. Reynolds”
I have seriously missed blogging! I’m sorry for my consistent absence lately, but all free time is being poured into my book. Yay! The past couple weeks I have been working on background brainstorming for my characters and I needed some serious picture book bedroom inspiration. I filled Pinterest with some ideas, both illustrated and real, and then I realized… this is an excellent thing to post about. It gets the jumbled thoughts and observations from my head into written form and serves for a fun research project. This is in no way exhaustive, (though reading this post will be!) but simply includes every book I currently have on hand that I could immediately think of a bedroom that I liked for some reason or another. So here we go: great illustrated picture book bedrooms!
Continue reading “Research: Picture Book Bedrooms”
Happy New Year everyone! I’m still continuing my sporadic posting thanks to my book project; but as I still have piles upon piles of books that I am loving and hoping to share, I want to pop in with one today. I grabbed this one at a book festival in Brooklyn and we are in love with it! Breathtaking illustrations, vibrant colors, and delightful bilingual nursery rhymes – this book is a must-add to your bookshelf. Come delight in La Madre Goose: Nursery Rhymes for Los Niños by Susan Middleton Elya, illustrated by Juana Martinez-Neal, 2016.
Continue reading “Book Review: La Madre Goose By Elya & Martinez-Neal”
Pardon the post interruption—I have some big news. I have recently signed to illustrate my first picture book!
I am so thrilled and honored to get this project! It is written by Shelley Kinder and due to arrive September of 2017 with Clear Fork Publishing. I’ve got a lot of work set out before me, so bear with me as posts will likely be even more intermittent than usual. Thanks for your support and encouragement as I work towards this goal! If you miss me and want to see what I’m working on in my sketchbook, check out smellingoranges.blogspot.com.
Stay tuned for a revised version of my yearly picture book Christmas countdown!
Three Books a Night 