11 The Society of Children ’ s Books & Illustration Lovers – Newsletter # 1 – August 2013
� In a good picture book ,
� the illustrator as well as the author has to be a story teller .
� not even one word can be wasted .
� the text and the art need to dance together .
� the design is integral to the story and illustrations . Type should not just be slapped into a space but should be considered by the artist as part of the art ; art and type must work together .
� the book should appeal to the adult reader as well as to the child .
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Of course , what makes a picture book unique is , obviously , the addition of pictures . But pretty pictures will not and should not carry the whole book . The mistake many author / illustrators ( and the editors who publish them ) make is thinking a series of beautiful pictures will hide a bad story or weak character . The reader will immediately see through that and once again put the book down . It is only in books where the words and pictures are married perfectly , where each is dependent on the other , that a good picture book works . It ' s similar to a singer choosing the right song ; can we ever hear anyone singing " Georgia " except Ray Charles ? Can we ever listen to " What a Wonderful World " without hearing Louis Armstrong ? It ' s that perfect match of words and pictures together with a strong central character that will make a picture book memorable and rise above all others .
� What Is a Good Young Picture Book ? Here ' s what it ' s NOT : boring , maudlin , preachy , flat , confusing , or long-winded . What it IS : brief , original , fresh , often funny , satisfying , and possessed of something substantial at the center--call it a kernel of significance that makes it worth a child ' s time . Humor can provide it , so can language , or character , or story . Like the child it ' s written for , this picture book can be cozy and quiet or it can sing and swing , but always it loves language . It ' s told in words that bear repeating--even a grown-up can savor them again and again . It ' s grounded in a child ' s own world , the real world or the play world of a young child ' s imagination . It ' s simple and simply irresistible . And it ' s a hair-puller to write .
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It ' s hard to put it in terms that make sense , but where a picture book differs from the other genres is that its universe has an underlying exuberance that defies containment . Everything is bigger in a picture book--the emotions , the colors , the drama , the intensity . While having the illusion of control , just by their physical brevity , the best picture books actually border on being " out of
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