12 The Society of Children’ s Books & Illustration Lovers – Newsletter # 1 – August 2013
control." Who can not turn the page of a good picture book? Once you open the book, there ' s no controlling the turn of pages--you have to do it. A perfect example is the work of Denise Fleming-- her books spill out of the covers, so that it feels like the action extends beyond the edges of the paper and boards. I love this about picture books--the feeling of vibrancy even in so called " quiet " books. They hum, these books do, even when they are closed.
�
“ What make a good young picture book?” Maurice Sendak once said that, with very little people, you need to tempt them into turning the pages to see what’ s next, rather than trying to eat the book like a cookie. He was speaking primarily about his drawings, but I think the same holds true for the words. So... language that is vital and seductive. Contagious language— words so delicious a young child will wish to taste them, possibly repeat or chant them. A story that originates in the author’ s heart, rather than head, since young children are nearly all feeling. And, of course, a wonderful story( in the true meaning of wonderful). A story that stimulates and simulates the fabulous imagination of young children. A“ me, me, me!” story--one in which there is barely a boundary between the child who is being read the story and the child or child substitute in the story. In other words, a story into which a young child can easily step in his or her imagination.
�
Picture books must appeal not only to the child, but also to the adult who reads them aloud, or simply hands them joyfully over to the child. It is this combination--the sharing of a loved book--that will have the most impact. When I imagine picture books, I think of the child responding to my delight in the reading, anticipating the turn of each page. In some books, we oooooh and ahhhh over the pictures; in others, it’ s the rhythm that has our attention.
� What makes one picture book a bestseller and another a flop? While there’ s no way to predict a bestseller, many of the most successful picture books have some( or all) of these factors:
� Illustrations that are colorful, varied and full of movement. Successful picture books surprise the reader by the art on the next page— whether it’ s by using an unexpected image for humor, or using a different perspective( looking at something from above rather than below, or close up rather than far away), or using mixed media in ways artists haven’ t done before, etc.
�( FYI: If you are an author, you’ ll be paired with an illustrator by your publisher, so generally authors have no control over this factor. Publishers tend to match lesser known authors with well-
12 http:// www. meetup. com / The-Society-of-Childrens-books-and-illustration-lovers /