I thought I'd take a minute to talk about my favorite authors and illustrators. Usually it isn't hard to pick out with someone when they mention the same books or series of books from someone over and over and over. My predecessor loved Patricia Polacco and Jan Brett. How do I know? Well not only did I work with her and I heard her say it, but she also ordered EVERY SINGLE BOOK both of them wrote. We have a collection we rotate between daycares, and I swear, there are 30 Jan Brett books in there - and half are duplicated of each other. Now don't get me wrong, I think both are fantastic. Polacco's stories that draw from her own life and her family's are touching and extraordinary. Jan Brett's illustrations are beautiful and extremely detailed. However, neither is my preference. So, here's a post devoted to my favorites (probably leaning more heavily on illustrations, since my degree is in Art, and that's just what I'm drawn to).
William Joyce has SUCH a distinctive style. I just love it. Lots of his books have been adapted into shows or films and it really translates well to screen. Anyone remember Rolie Polie Olie? Yep, that was him. Meet the Robinsons? Based on his book A Day with Wilbur Robinson. His latest book, The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore, won an Oscar for the short film adapted from it. (Made me cry. Stupid film.)
Again, here is someone with a style uniquely their own and instantly recognizable. His latest book (that he wrote and illustrated), The Adventures of Beekle, an Unimaginary Friend, won the Caldecott Medal this year. He also illustrated favorites of mine such as Crankenstein and OH NO! (Or How My Science Project Destroyed the World).
I absolutely adore Oliver Jeffers and his books. He is my Jan Brett. I order all of his books. The stories are simple, but cute and the illustrations are - well, the same. One of my favorite books of his is The Heart and the Bottle about a girl who gets her heart broken when (presumably) her father dies. So she puts it in a bottle so she can't get hurt, but then she forgets how to love, until she meets a little girl who teaches her how to wonder and imagine and love. Stuck is another good book of his about a boy who gets something stuck in a tree, so he just keeps throwing things up there to try to get it unstuck, and it keeps getting more ridiculous. Also, I'd recommend The Incredible Book-Eating Boy. Really, I'd tell you about all his books, but that would be the whole post, and it would be disgusting how much I'd gush over him.
I thought it was time to give a shout-out to someone who is solely an author (as far as I know) now. She has so many books that I use during my story times. Frog in a Bog, about a frog that gets too greedy and almost gets eaten by an alligator. Hilda Must Be Dancing about a hippo with a passion for dancing, who just needs to find the right place to do it. Whopper Cake about a sweet (ha!) old man making the most gigantic cake for his wife's birthday.
Mark Teague
I am sad to say that I am not as familiar with Mark Teague as an author as I am an illustrator. I really think the mark of a great illustrator is when they put their own stamp on things, and he really does. The one book of his I *have* read is The Secret Shortcut, about two boys who have trouble getting to school on time, and whose excuses are the most ridiculous things in the world. They find this secret shortcut, which turns out to be as ridiculous as their excuses. He's the illustrator for the How Do Dinosaurs series and Poppleton. Who doesn't love dinosaurs or animals in clothes?
Maybe the illustrations in the books don't impress you, but you can't deny that his books are just fun to read. (By the way, I like the illustrations. It can be really hard to get something to be simplistic, but still look good and be expressive.) It's no secret that I ADORE reading the Pigeon books aloud in story time. I feel like the Pigeon is the embodiment of my id. Maybe I should get a Pigeon tattoo. Oh - and the Pigeon apparently has his own Twitter account. Cute. The Elephant and Piggie books are great too, AND (how cool is this) they've been made into a play. WHAT?! Yep. Elephant & Piggie's We Are In a Play. Super-awesome! That's got to show you the appeal of these characters. That is Not a Good Idea is a fantastically twisted book. It definitely leads you into thinking one thing is going to happen and then takes a big left turn at the end.
Ok. I think you guys are probably done with me praising and going on about my favorites. I have more, but we'll leave it here for now.
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