Month: April 2021

Editor Interview: Connie Hsu (Roaring Brook Press)

On By Only Picture BooksIn Editor Interviews

This month’s Industry Insider interview is with Connie Hsu, Editorial Director at Roaring Brook Press. She was born in Taiwan and grew up in Alabama, though Connie admits to being “one of THOSE editors” who didn’t dream of working in publishing when she was younger. Thankfully, she discovered the Sweet Valley Twins series in the school library, and really identified with the character Elizabeth, who wanted to be a writer. From that point on, Connie knew she wanted to be in media.

Connie took a detour in college as a psychology major at the University of Illinois, but after a year, she switched to advertising, followed by a Master’s degree in journalism. It took two internships—one with a Chicago magazine and one with an Atlanta magazine—for her to realize her true calling was in publishing.

Let’s find out how she went from that realization to creating an impressive career in children’s literature where she’s been able to work with some of the most exciting picture book makers working today.

Roaring Brook Website

Connie’s Twitter

RVC: One of my favorite PBs in the last few years is a book you edited–Dan Santat’s After the Fall, (which I included in OPB, of course). What was the biggest challenge you and Dan had in making that book work?

CH: From the get-​go, we knew that the story arc would end with Humpty Dumpty climbing back up the wall, to show him overcoming his fears, after taking the time to heal from his trauma. But we felt that simply going back up doesn’t quite capture the sense of personal triumph, to push through so much pain and fear. We had several conversations about how to make the story and character feel transformative, to show how Humpty Dumpty is changed forever by his choice to climb up. Dan jokingly mentioned that Humpty should hatch, since he’s an egg, and noted that the imagery might terrify young readers. We laughingly referenced the iconic scene from Alien. But when Dan mentioned that, it felt right. Of course Humpty would hatch and take flight! And Dan was totally on board to try it, going through rounds and rounds of sketches to get the moment just right.

RVC: The Alien reference is hilarious. I’d never have guessed it, though, since that moment in the story is so sweet vs science fiction‑y.

Now, whether you’re working with Dan Santat or a fresh-​out-​of-​college illustrator, how do you know how much you can/​should push them?

CH: I think this varies from editor to editor. I’m accustomed to pushing my creators fairly hard, because I believe that the best work isn’t easy. To produce something truly standout and special, there should be some struggle, because we have to always questions ourselves and what we’re doing—and why it deserves notability.

That said, there are different styles of pushing. I saw that when I worked with the legendary picture book editor Neal Porter, who is so gentle and nuanced with his directives; he asks open-​ended questions and encourages his creators to take time to incubate and think. Meanwhile, I feel I’m more like a coach on the field, running drills and patterns.

RVC: In early 2020, you picked up Mark Pett’s I Eat Poop: A Dung Beetle’s Story at auction. What specifically motivated you about that book to bid against other companies? 

CH: It was Mark’s brilliant combination of great, evocative title, smart and innovative concept, and an expressive and relatable character. I knew from the tiny cover thumbnail in my email that I wanted to love the book. And when I got into the story about a young dung beetle who is embarrassed about eating poop, I saw so many layers to this story. It’s got the fun potty humor mixed in with important themes about identity, heritage, and self-​acceptance. And it’s hilarious to boot!

RVC: In general, do you think book auctions are a good thing?

CH: In some ways, auctions are good for letting creators know what the market value for their work is, and it informs the publishers too. However, I find it challenging when advance levels skyrocket. It’s great for the authors and their agents, who take a commission, but I sometimes worry that it sets unrealistic expectations. A book that sells for a very high advance will need to perform even better in the market for the project to be financially sound, and sometimes, not even the best marketing and publicity can make that happen. Sometimes, it’s just luck. What I worry is that the book and its creator(s) will be seen as a business failure. This can mar a creator’s sales track and make it more challenging to bring on more books by them in the future. It’s also such a personal blow to go down in advance too.

RVC: I can hear the chorus of currently unpublished authors howling, “I’ll take a book auction any day of the week, even if my track record and future advances take a hit!” But there’s another solid route to success, isn’t there? 

CH: I’ve been fortunate enough to have some authors who will submit to me exclusively. Their agents can still get them a very strong advance, and it deepens the trust and bonds I have with them, which I feel leads to better books.

RVC: Let’s back up a little bit. Before you got your New York publishing career going, you worked as an intern and a freelance writer for celebrity gossip magazine In Touch. Care to share any behind-​the-​scenes secrets?

CH: I know this shouldn’t have surprised me, but the majority of the gossip news was planted. Either someone would get a tip from a publicist, or we would try to create drama. For instance, one assignment of mine was to show a paparazzi photo of a woman celebrity to several doctors, who were willing to be quoted in the magazine, and ask if they thought the woman looked pregnant. My job was to go through a list of doctors until one said yes, and that would be the story we ran. That person did not ultimately have a baby, and I later felt bad that we probably just caught her at a bad angle and made a big deal out of it.

RVC: I’m glad you were able to move on from that to more rewarding work. Yet at one point, though, you were living in New York City, taking on odd jobs, and you ended up working for a daycare. How’d you go from that situation to landing a job at Little, Brown?

CH: Working at the daycare allowed me to revisit childhood favorites, like James and the Giant Peach. It also exposed me to more recently published books at the time, like Orphan Train by Verla Kay, which opened my eyes to the depth and complexity that a picture book could have. When I mentioned enjoying reading these books to a friend of mine, who worked at Scholastic Book Club, she forwarded me a job posting with Alvina Ling at Little, Brown and encouraged me to apply. I hadn’t thought about children’s books as a career at the time. When I had my first interview with Alvina Ling though, I knew I had to have the job. She inspired me from the get-go!

RVC: What are some of the biggest differences between working in the magazine world and the book world?

CH: The magazine world felt very ephemeral, and the timelines were also very tight. There’s this stress on making sure the magazine had content and it had to be created, no matter what, while the stress I feel from publishing is making sure authors and agents are happy and ensuring the best quality book possible. Books have more permanence, and the feeling of pride when a book is done is just so much more satisfying.

RVC: Back to the present. Let’s break down a typical day in the life of Connie. Put some percentages on how much is spent on each of the following–queries/submissions; email; meetings; editing; industry news.

CH:

  • queries/​submissions: 10%
  • emailing: 40%
  • meeting: 40%
  • editing: 5% (mostly happens during nights and weekends)
  • catching up on industry news: 5%

RVC: I think writers have this mental image of editors hunched over manuscripts day and night–yes, in this mental image, it’s universally agreed that the manuscripts are always paper–helping us all make dynamite books that change the lives of young readers now and for generations to come. But like the rest of us, the reality for editors is an ocean of emails and an avalanche of meetings. Fair enough!

Let’s talk about happier things. Agent lunches—great thing, or the greatest thing?

CH: A great thing. Some agents have become genuine friends and trusted colleagues. I feel lucky when an agent I adore shares an author with me who becomes a success. It’s like building a mini family.

RVC: What actually happens at these lunches?

CH: Agent lunches are something I do miss, because it’s a comfortable way to get to know someone and connect on projects. Sometimes, the effect isn’t immediate; rather, it’s an investment in getting to know the person and seeing the payoff down the line.

RVC: Got a great example of that?

CH: Sure–the agent Judy Hansen of Hansen Literary. Judy and I met over lunch a couple of years before I changed jobs and moved to Macmillan, where her author Vera Brosgol publishes her graphic novels with First Second. Judy wanted to keep Vera at Macmillan for her picture books, and when I got to Roaring Brook, she thought of me as a possible editor for Vera. Fortunately, we all connected wonderfully, which resulted in Vera’s debut picture book, Leave Me Alone!, a Caldecott Honor book.

RVC: In light of the COVID-​19 reality, what are you doing to replicate agent lunches?

CH: I’m having phone calls with agents, although I haven’t really had a chance to meet with new agents. The remote working has resulted in increased workload, so it’s been challenging to find time.

RVC: On average, how many submissions do you deal with each month?

CH: I average about 40 — 50 submissions per month.

RVC: While many editors (and agents, for that matter) use form responses to speed things up, you haven’t done that in the past.

CH: I try not to, because I understand that authors pour their heart and soul into projects and it helps them feel seen and heard to have a personalized decline letter. That said, with the increasing volume of submissions, I’ve had to resort to form letters.

RVC: How many of your response notes include an invitation to send it back—an R&R (revise and resubmit)? 

CH: Maybe 10 projects per year.

RVC: How many manuscripts do you take to the editorial committee for serious consideration each month? And what stakeholders are there besides yourself and your editorial team (which includes Emily Feinberg, who OPB interviewed not so long ago)?

CH: I bring about 3 – 4 projects per month and discuss with my team: Emily Feinberg, Kate Meltzer, Mekisha Telfer, and Nicolás Oré-​Girón. When we have an intern on staff, we invite them to participate. In the past, we’ve had our design team join, but not since we started remote working.

RVC: Beyond reading a manuscript aloud, what’s a strategy/​technique most picture book writers don’t know/​use but they really should if they want to move closer to the “YES!” they crave?

CH: Being aware of the marketplace is a huge help! Keep track of what’s coming around the bend and new deals. Signing up for Publishers Weekly’s Children’s Bookshelf gives writers a terrific resource.

RVC: Roaring Brook still has a small-​press feel, despite having the backing of a Big Five. How do you maintain that?

CH: We have an extraordinary publishing history in the short time we’ve been around (~25 years), with several award winners, and more recently, major bestsellers. It’s a legacy and reputation we uphold, while also bringing fresh and exciting voices to the list. We’re also a small team, like a family, where each person has a distinctive taste, but we have shared goals in wanting to publish high quality, notable books.

RVC: One last question for this part of the interview. What are two Roaring Brook titles that really represent your brand in the way you want it to be?

CH: I’ll share two recent titles: I Dream of Popo and Outside, Inside. Both are emotionally rich and memorable reads, and they tug at the heartstrings in the most perfect way.

RVC: Those are some memorable books, for sure (we gave a strong review of Outside, Inside at OPB not that long ago).

But we have to move ahead because it’s time for the LIGHTNING ROUND! The point values are tripled and the clock starts……NOW! What’s a secret talent of yours that most don’t know about?

CH: I’m very good at parallel parking.

RVC: Best late-​night reading snack?

CH: Baked Cheetos. All the pleasure, half of the guilt.

RVC: If you could be any picture book character for a day, who would it be?

CH: Peter from The Snowy Day.

RVC: What’s the One That Got Away?

CH: The Book of Mistakes by Corinna Luyken.

RVC: Favorite non-​Roaring Brook picture book of 2020?

CH: Me & Mama by Cozbi A. Cabrera.

RVC: Three words that sum up your picture book philosophy?

CH: Unexpected. Exciting. Extraordinary.

RVC: Thanks so much, Connie. It’s been great getting to know what the secret of Roaring Brook’s success is–clearly it’s GOOD people being at the core of all you do!

Educational Activities: Ocean Soup by Meeg Pincus

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Ocean Soup: A Recipe for You, Me, and a Cleaner Sea
Author: Meeg Pincus
Illustrator: Lucy Semple
15 March 2021
Sleeping Bear Press
40 pages

Book description from Goodreads: “From the shore, the ocean looks like clear, sparkling blue but look closely at a small scoop and you’ll find the ocean looks more like soup! Our oceans are filled with plastics, from water bottles and take-​out containers to the teeny tiny plastic particles you need a microscope to see. But who exactly cooked up this stinky soup? And, more importantly, what is the recipe for getting (and keeping) our oceans clean? This bouncing, rhyming story pulls no punches about how we ended up in this sticky mess but also offers hope and help for cleaning up this ocean soup.”

Need some reviews of Ocean Soup?

As a bonus, here’s a mini-​interview with the author from the website First Draft to Final Book.

Educational Activities inspired by Meeg Pincus’ Ocean Soup: A Recipe for You, Me, and a Cleaner Sea:

  • Before Reading–From looking at the front and back cover: 
    • Where and when do you think this story takes place?
    • What does the title–Ocean Soup–make you think of?
    • What are the kids doing?
    • Does this beach seem like a happy place? 
      • If not, why not?
  • After Reading–Now that you’ve read the story: 
    • How big of a problem is ocean pollution?
    • What are some of the main causes of ocean pollution?
    • How did you feel when the story mentioned that YOU eat fish that are eating the ocean “soup”?
    • What does the author suggest can be done about ocean pollution?
  • Art–Use your art skills to let others know what Ocean Soup told you about water pollution. Make a poster that alerts people to the danger. Will you use words? Images? Both? Perhaps ask an adult to help you hang it somewhere where others will see your message.
  • Conservation–Here are simple ways to help our ocean. Which of these will you do? 
    • Use refillable water bottles
    • Skip balloons at parties or events
    • Ask local ice cream shops not to use plastic spoons and straws
    • Only wear clothes that are made without pesticides
    • Ask adults to use natural fertilizer for gardens instead of chemicals
  • Crafting–Try your hand at one or more of the following crafts (use recyclable materials when you can!). Get an art- or ocean-​loving adult to help: 
  • Further Reading–Which of these other picture books about oceans have you read? (Click on any book cover for more information on these titles!)

 

 

 

 

 

 

Author Interview: Sy Montgomery

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I’m a sucker for authors with great personal stories, and Sy Montgomery shares this on her website:

To research her books, films, and articles, Sy Montgomery has been chased by a silverback gorilla, embraced by a Giant Pacific Octopus, and undressed by an orangutan. But she is perhaps best known for her 14-​year love affair with Christopher Hogwood, a runt piglet who grew to a 750-​pound great Buddha master.

So, yeah. We’re having Sy in for this month’s Author Interview. No doubt about it!

Here’s a bit more bio-​wise about Sy. She’s a naturalist, documentary scriptwriter, and author of more than twenty acclaimed books of nonfiction for adults and children, including the National Book Award Finalist The Soul of an Octopus and the memoir The Good Good Pig, a New York Times bestseller. The recipient of numerous honors—including lifetime achievement awards from The Humane Society and the New England Booksellers Association—she lives in New Hampshire with her husband, border collie, and flock of chickens.

And since I’m a world-​class animal fan, I know we’ll get along famously.

With that, let’s get to it!

Sy’s website

Sy’s Twitter

RVC: Some of the picture book authors I interview have a zillion different books about a zillion different topics. You seem to have gone another way and committed more fully to a specific focus. What’s the common denominator with the kidlit—all the books, really—that you write?

SM: Everything I write, for adults and kids, is inspired by and in service to animals.

RVC: Clearly you must’ve had a meaningful early encounter with animals. What was it?

SM: I don’t even remember this, but my parents told me: When I was younger than two, my parents took me to the Frankfurt Zoo, in Germany (where I was born–not in the zoo, but in the city of the Frankfurt!) I broke free of my parents’ hands for a few moments and disappeared. When they found me, I had toddled into the hippo pen—right next to a 3,000-pound hippo, considered the most dangerous animal in Africa.

My parents weren’t happy, but clearly, both the hippos and I were fine about it. I always felt comfortable with animals—far more so than with most people.

RVC: That’s amazing. When did you go from being an animal pal to becoming a writer (not that you can’t do both, as your career demonstrates so well)?

SM: When I began to read, my father, an Army General and my hero, used to help me read animal stories in The New York Times. Back then, in the 1960s, most of the animal stories in the newspaper were about how animals were going extinct due to poaching, pollution, and human overpopulation. I was horrified! Even as a little kid, I realized that people were at fault here, but the good news was that people could also be the solution. If only people knew what was happening! If only people understood that animals have thoughts and feelings, and love their lives as we love ours!

Up to that point in my life, I’d wanted to be a veterinarian—to this day, it’s a vocation I consider almost holy. But I realized as a child that I might be able to help more animals as a writer by getting people to care about animals.

RVC: You were a triple major in college. How did that happen, and how did it prepare you for a life as a writer (and adventurer)?

SM: I just was so hungry for knowledge about EVERYTHING—which is a great thing for a writer. My majors were magazine journalism, French language and Literature, and Psychology. I would have quadruple majored, adding biology, but the school wouldn’t let me!

RVC: I’ve been there. I finished 2.5 undergraduate majors myself and would’ve kept accumulating more had someone not told me, “Hey, just go to graduate school, silly!” Which I did. 

Let’s get to your books. I’m a big fan of Inky’s Amazing Escape: How a Very Smart Octopus Found His Way Home. How did that book come about?

SM: In 2015, my book for adults, The Soul of an Octopus, was published, and became a surprise national (and later international) bestseller and National Book Award finalist. So when a very smart octopus who lived in a New Zealand aquarium escaped from his tank and slid down a drain back into the ocean he’d come from, all sorts of news outlets turned to me for comment. It seemed like this would make a fabulous book for children!

RVC: Besides telling Inky’s escape story in that book, you share interesting octopus facts. They’re such interesting creatures—how do you know which things to share, and how much is too much? That’s something many nonfiction picture book writers struggle with.

SM: Kids absolutely LOVE octopuses! Really, space on the page—not my young readers’ interest—was the limiting factor!

RVC: Why are octopuses so special to you?

SM: I love how these creatures are so different from us that you’d have to go to outer space or science fiction to find something more different from us—and yet, you can become very good friends with an octopus. We both like to play!

RVC: I’m now second-​guessing myself, grammatically speaking. Should I be saying “octopi” instead?

SM: “Octopuses” is the correct plural, though “octopi” sounds cooler!

RVC: Gotcha–thanks!

Let’s talk about the octopus book you just mentioned–The Soul of an Octopus: A Surprising Exploration into the Wonder of Consciousness. Wow, what a book! Honestly, it’s the first one of yours I ran across. I’ll bet you hear that a lot.

SM: Thank you! That book sure had legs! (or arms!) It was my second national bestseller. The first was The Good Good Pig, a memoir (for adults) of my life with a 750-​pound pig who was really a great big Buddha master.

RVC: What was the most difficult aspect of writing that book?

SM: I had such fun researching and writing The Soul of an Octopus. The only difficult part was my own self-​doubt that I wasn’t worthy of telling my octopus friends’ stories. But when I can’t trust myself, I can trust my teachers, in this case the octopuses and others (including people) who showed me that if I have a soul, an octopus has one, too.

RVC: You wrote about an octopus as well in the New York Times bestselling book How to Be a Good Creature: A Memoir in Thirteen Animals. How did you go about adapting that 208-​page into a 40-​page picture book, Becoming a Good Creature? What was the process?

SM: In addressing the struggles that adults face—finding a passion, building a family, learning to forgive, to survive despair, to start life anew–How to be a Good Creature dealt with some mature themes (child abuse, suicide) that weren’t appropriate for very young children. But we must remember that even very young readers face equally dramatic challenges in their lives. I thought about these, and about what animals a young child might like to meet. Clearly I needed to put lions and tigers and sharks in there, too! And hyenas! So the picture book has fewer icky grown-​up problems and more animals.

I was very lucky to have Kate O’Sullivan, my fabulous editor, to help me with this book. (And Becca’s artwork is so amazing that I honestly think this title would have sold if all I’d done was copy 40 pages from the phone book.)

RVC: Rebecca Green illustrated both the adult version and the picture book. You’re right–she’s very good. What appeals to you most about her work?

SM: The tenderness that she shows in depicting the animals is what I love most about her work. She doesn’t portray animals as cartoons. Many books about octopuses, for instance, have the head in the wrong place. That drives me nuts. Becca’s respect and affection for the animals shines through every illustration.

RVC: It seems to me that you think that we should—need to, in fact—interact more meaningfully with the animal world.

SM: Absolutely! Limiting your friendships to just one species is just as impoverishing as eating only one food, or listening to only one piece of music.

RVC: You’ve got a new book coming out in a few weeks—The Hummingbirds’ Gift: Wonder, Beauty, and Renewal on Wings. Congrats on that! While it’s not a picture book, it’s definitely kid friendly. In all your experience putting that book together, what surprised you the most?

SM: In that book, I had the great blessing of working with hummingbird rehabilitator Brenda Sherburn helping to raise and release orphaned baby hummingbirds. What amazed me is that these tiny delicate babies—they are little more than bubbles wrapped in light–can survive at all. Even for a mother hummingbird, raising a baby is a Herculean task. But for a person to do it? Consider this: they have to be fed every 20 minutes or they starve. But feed them too much, and they can actually pop.

RVC: That’s amazing. What’s the biggest misconception people have about hummingbirds?

SM: Most people love hummingbirds, and don’t realize how many we inadvertently kill. They are killed in shockingly large numbers by our pet cats. They are killed by pesticides we use on our lawns and gardens. (They don’t just need nectar; they need hundreds of tiny bugs every day to survive.) They are killed by pollution, by climate change, by the destruction of their habitats for homes and offices and stores. So it was a great privilege to try to fight that tide by working with Brenda to literally help bring some nearly-​dead hummingbird babies back to life!

RVC: I’m a shark fan, too, so of course I really enjoyed your The Great White Shark Scientist, which is part of the Scientists in the Field series that includes other titles of yours such as Condor Comeback and Amazon Adventure. What is the most important thing people should know or understand about sharks?

SM: More people are killed by toilets than sharks. More people are killed by toasters than sharks. More people are killed by doctors’ and nurses’ mistakes than by sharks. But nobody wants to get rid of toilets, toasters, or medical professionals!

RVC: You likely don’t know this, but I live quite close to Mote Marine Laboratory & Aquarium, which was launched in 1955 as the Cape Haze Marine Laboratory. Who started it? Why, Dr. Eugenie Clark, a.k.a. “The Shark Lady.” Did you ever get a chance to talk sharks with her?

SM: Oh my gosh, I would’ve loved to! But I’m very lucky to be good friends with the star of The Great White Shark Scientist, Dr. Greg Skomal, who is the lead researcher documenting the recent and exciting population increase of great whites off Cape Cod’s iconic shores.

RVC: One last question before the final part of the interview. The New York Times has called you “equal parts poet and scientist” and The Boston Globe says you’re “part Indiana Jones and part Emily Dickinson.” Which of those four compliments pleases you the most?

SM: Though I’m a huge fan of Emily Dickinson’s, I think Indiana Jones had more fun!

RVC: Okay, Sy. Here we go. Put on your penguin party hat, because it’s time for THE SPEED ROUND! Zebra-​fast questions and zoomy cheetah answers, please. Are you ready?

SM: You bet!

RVC: Craziest thing you ever ate while chasing animals all around the world the way you do? 

SM: I drank rice wine flavored with the corpse of a fetal deer out of a human skull in Borneo while researching my first book.

RVC: Which animal would you most want to see write a book about YOU?

SM: Octavia the Giant Pacific Octopus. I would love to know what she thought about me, even though my mouth was in the wrong place (should have been in my armpits), I had two too few hearts (octopuses have three) and I could neither change color nor shape. Yet she loved me. Why?

RVC: If you had a theme song that describes your life right now, it’d be….

SM: A‑wimoweh, a‑wimoweh, a‑wimoweh, a‑wimoweh (“The Lion Sleeps Tonight”)

RVC: If you could ask any one animal any one question—which animal, and which question?

SM: I would ask Fire Chief, a 40-​pound, 60–80 year-​old snapping turtle who I work with (and adore) at Turtle Rescue League, what is his experience of time. (He was injured when he was hit by a truck crossing a street, and we are working with him to strengthen his back legs. I’m attaching a picture just for you!

RVC: A recent great picture book about animals is…

SM: Wildlife on Paper: Animals at Risk Around the Globe by Kunal Kundu. The book was inspired by his son, and features artwork he creates from crumpled paper.

RVC: What’s the best thing a child ever said about one of your books?

SM: I want to spend my life helping animals just like you!

RVC: Thanks so much, Sy! This was a a REAL treat.

Picture Book Review: Ten Beautiful Things by Molly Beth Griffin

On By Only Picture BooksIn Picture Book Reviews

Ten Beautiful Things
Author: Molly Beth Griffin
Illustrator: Maribel Lechuga
Charlesbridge
12 January 2021
32 pages

This month’s PB review is by Ryan G. Van Cleave (Picture Book Reader Aficionado at Only Picture Books) and Ringling College of Art and Design Illustration Professor (and OPB friend) Rebecca Zomchek.

–Ryan’s Review of the Writing–

Moving to a new home is on the short list of Most Stressful Things a child can go through, and that’s what’s happening with our main character, Lily. The story begins with Gram driving Lily to a far-​off Iowa farmhouse–the child’s new home.

We quickly realize that Lily is going through yet another Most Stressful Thing. Her parents are MIA. It’s never explained why they’re not in the book, but the reasons surely don’t matter. The mere fact of their absence exponentially adds to Lily’s sadness and anxiety.

To pass the time–and take Lily’s mind off her worries–Gram suggests, “Let’s try to find ten beautiful things along the way.”

Lily is understandably reluctant. But, soon, she notices how beautiful things start to appear once you begin to look for them.

A gorgeous sunset.

A wind farm whose “spinning windmill blades gleamed in the morning sun.”

“A red-​winged blackbird perched on a swaying stalk of last year’s corn.”

What makes things interesting and situationally honest is that between these moments where Lily witnesses beautiful things–all wonderfully depicted by the skilled hands of Maribel Lechuga–she slips back to feeling sad and “hollow” inside. The contrast of Lily being gently urged out of her funk by these beautiful moments is well handled, and the more beautiful moments she finds, the less fully and frequently Lily slips back into that place of sadness.

Beauty seems to resurrect her dampened spirits and fortify her. What a lovely idea.

At one point, Gram suggests that a falling-​apart barn counts as a beautiful thing, yet Lily disagrees because it’s not pretty. Gram responds: “We’re not looking for pretty. We want beautiful.” What a great distinction–pretty versus beautiful. I can see how adult readers might have a conversation with a child over what those words mean and why considering their differences is worthwhile.

Without giving spoilers, the resolution to the hollow feeling inside Lily’s chest and the arrival of beautiful thing #10 are emotionally rewarding and earned by the story.  I’m also pleased that the author avoided naming most of the emotions, choosing instead to let art, action, and nuanced dialogue bring those to life for readers. Trust me–they’ll get it.

In Ten Beautiful Things, Molly Beth Griffin has created a touching, quiet book that’s both a nod to the wonders of the natural world and a positive life-​changing journey for a child who has brighter days ahead.

4.75 out of 5 pencils

 

– Rebecca’s Review of the Illustrations–

This book is a visual pleasure and really is full of many beautiful things.

We are presented with a wonderful diversity of times of day, landscapes, and weather, and through these different vistas, the book does a brilliant job of taking us on this journey of not only passing from city into country, but finding our way home.

As someone who grew up in the Midwest and has gone on many meditative car trips, this book was wonderfully nostalgic and felt like such a real time and space come to life on the page. From the rolling fields, to hay bales, to the wind turbines and glowing treetops at sunrise, the land springs to life for us as the day unfolds and invites us along on the visual and emotional journey Lily and Gram are experiencing.

Illustrator Maribel Lechuga has really taken advantage of digital painting’s capacity for texture and has included wonderful movement and light. The clouds swirl and undulate, grass and water flow, and both leaves and birds float in the breeze. Along with our vibrant landscapes, we get wonderful 360° views around the car, both inside and outside, which help to capture the feeling of movement and the inner and outer worlds of a person.

One of my favorite scenes is the rainstorm as Gram and Lily get close to their final destination. The storm is palpable and generates a sense of drama, energy, and cleansing. This moment also creates closeness between the characters, and I found myself drawn into every page, looking at all of the small details and finding beauty in the pebbles and fences and treetops as I remembered so clearly and fondly the places where I grew up.

Lechuga captures emotion even with a relatively simplified character design style. We can feel loss, longing, questioning, and even grief on the characters’ faces (especially Lily’s), but also toward the end of the book we can feel the peace, growth, and love between the two characters as they find beauty together through hard times.

For a book that covers a lot of intense emotions that are not necessarily given names in the text, the illustrations do a fantastic job of drawing us all in and connecting us to the journey–both physical and emotional–that the characters are taking. At the end of the book I, too, was pleased with all the beautiful things I found and felt as I enjoyed this story.

5 out of 5 crayons

Rebecca Zomchek is a children’s book illustrator who has worked as a concept artist and cartoonist. She earned her BFA from Syracuse University and her MFA from The School of Visual Arts; she teaches Illustration at Ringling College of Art and Design. Rebecca likes distinguished things like classical music and museums, but also loves being outside and getting paint everywhere.