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Wordless picture books contain only pictures and little or no text. They depend entirely on carefully sequenced illustrations to present the story. The illustrations must be highly narrative.
Although wordless picture books are generally aimed at preschoolers (aged 4 to 6), some of them are also intended for older children because they contain complex plot structures, subtle imagery, and sophisticated tone.
Can a wordless book be effective in helping children to learn a language?
“Definitely!” says Dawn Jeffers publisher at Raven Tree Press. ”Wordless picture books and picture books with limited words are both beautiful and educational. They help children develop language, creative thinking and enhance future reading and writing skills. Using wordless picture books, children learn that reading follows a left-to-right pattern. They learn that stories generally have a beginning, a middle section and an ending. They also learn to identify details, see cause and effect, make judgements and draw conclusions.”
Educators are using them to teach writing to children and also to help teach non-English speaking kids English. These are some of the reasons publishers have gravitated to “Wordless Picture Books.”
Lucy Cummins & Alexandra Cooper ran a Wordless Picture Book Workshop at the June 2012 NJ-SCBWI Conference. I asked Diana Patton if she would write up something to share with you.
Here’s Diana:
Art Director Lucy Cummins and Senior Editor Alexandra Cooper at Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers ran an enjoyable workshop/talk. They worked as a well-oil machine and worked brightly and efficiently together to present us with lots of good information dotted with generous amounts of humor.
They discussed the characteristics of wordless picture books:
1. Story is easily understood in sequence.
2. Story has a real beginning, a middle, and an end.
3. They speak to a universal experience.
4. Different people can interpret the same book differently.
5. The story guides the reader gently but allows the reader to create their own narrative.
6. The story has boundless appeal.
7. Great page turns.
8. They can be “read” by people who speak any language.
9. Characters whose thoughts and actions “read” very clearly.
10. Story that is full of emotion.
11. Story should be deceptively obvious.
If you don’t need dialogue, if there are lots of active verbs, you may have a wordless picture book in you.
Why do some books work wordlessly?
Alex and Lucy shared excellent examples of this genre of purely visual storytelling and excellent examples of sequential storytelling . We saw:
Peggy Rathmann’s Goodnight, Gorilla
Alexandra Day’s Good Dog, Carl
Raymond Briggs’ The Snowman.
Chris Raschka’s A Ball for Daisy, the 2012 Caldecott Winner
David Wiesner’s FLOTSAM
Jerry Pinkney’s The Lion and the Mouse (also Caldecott Winners 2007 and 2010)
Barbara Lehman’s The Red Book (Caldecott Honor Book)
Pinkney’s The Lion and the Mouse is the awesomely beautiful retelling of an old tale; Lucy emphasized that if you retell a tale, you must have a new take on it. She recommended reading Scott McCloud’s Understanding Comics and his Making Comics (interestingly enough, my youngest son Shawn, the game designer, had already given me these books to study!)
Both Lucy and Alexandra stressed the importance of page turners. And of course, they discussed the reasons why your story might be told wordlessly. There should be an element of universality. For example, your imagination runs away with you, or you take a tale everyone knows and do a role r
1 Comments on Wordless Picture Books, last added: 7/19/2012
The mayor wants a community park and safe playground for the children. She enlists a group of kids to join her in asking one of the citizens to donate some of his land to build a park. When he agrees, he joins all the families and friends who set out to build swings, benches, gardens, and a fountain. There is excitement and sense of purpose to build the park for all to enjoy. The whole town comes together to create a beautiful park and celebrate with a grand picnic and beautiful fireworks when the job is done. English story with key words in Spanish.
The Adventures of Marco Flamingo in the Jungle / Los aventuras de Marco Flamenco en la jungla By Sheila Jarkins
It is Marco's birthday and he receives an invitation from his friend, E. E. Elephant, to visit him in the jungle. Marco has quite a harrowing boat trip across the ocean, but arrives in the jungle safely. His friend, Elephant, takes him to the watering hole to cool off after his trip. Then Marco has a great time laughing with hyena, finding buried treasure with ostrich and even roaring with lion. At the end of the story there is a big surprise. Another birthday wish comes true for Marco. Bilingual English and Spanish text. Mr. Biggs in the City / El Sr. Grande en la ciudad By Kevin Bloomfield
• Pub. Date: June 2011 • Format: Hardcover , 32pp • Age Range: 3 to 8 • ISBN-13: 9781936299249 • ISBN: 1936299240
Mr. Biggs is a very curious Sasquatch who has huge feet and an even bigger heart. One day, when he climbs to the tippy top of the tallest tree in all of the forest, he spots a city. He has never seen a city before but it looks like so much fun, so he sets off to discover all of the curious adventures the city has to offer. Come along with Mr. Biggs on his journey as he tries to shred on a skateboard, jam in a rock band, twirl in a ballet tutu and much, much more. Will the giant M
0 Comments on New Children's Books From Raven Tree Press as of 1/1/1900
Full–Color • 9 x 11 • 32 pages Jacketed Hardcover or Paperback Reading Level 2.2 Publication Date: September 2010
Written by Margaret Gay Malone Illustrated by Lorraine Dey
Little Duncan penguin is proud of his fuzzy coat. He sticks out his chest as he waddles among the other penguins. He knows he is the handsomest one in the frozen south. Trouble jumps in when his fuzz flies off in clumps and floats on the wind like butterflies. His mother agrees to knit him a sweater, but will that solve the problem? The sweater is just too small. What’s he to do? Finally, his mother leads him to a mirror–like piece of ice, where a happy surprise awaits. He’s all grown up, and again the handsomest penguin in the frozen south.
Author Margaret Gay Malone loves both reading and writing. This will be her ninth children’s book. Among her other loves are art, music, American history and, of course, animals. Over the years, the Malone family has had a collection of animals, among them, two teddy bear hamsters, three rabbits, three cats, and two dogs. She and her husband, Tom, live with their cat, Woobie.
Illustrator Lorraine Dey has been a full–time illustrator and graphic designer for over 30 years. Lorraine began drawing as soon as she could pick up a crayon and she would spend hours drawing and coloring as a little girl. “Lorrie,” as she is known to her friends and family, lives at the Jersey Shore with her two cats, Jodie and Mischief. A Sweater for Duncan is her first children’s picture book.
BEDTIME MONSTER ¡A DORMIR, PEQUEÑO MONSTRUO!
Full–Color • 9 x 11 • 32 pages Jacketed Hardcover or Paperback Reading Level 1.8 Publication Date: Fall 2010
Written by Heather Ayris Burnell Illustrated by Bonnie Adamson
A little boy doesn’t want to go to bed. He whines. He cries. He throws a tantrum. He begins to grow long claws and a tail. What? A tail? It’s true! This little boy is not only acting like a monster, he turns into one! He growls a scary growl. He grows a tail. But, his parents know what to do. They calmly cuddle, rock, and sing to him. Here is a monster you might actually want to snuggle with as bedtime draws near.
Author Heather Ayris Burnell grew up in Salinas, California. She now lives in the mountains of Washington state with her husband, three children, two big dogs and one feisty cat. Heather liked writing stories as a kid, but likes writing them even more now that she’s a grown–up. She believes there is a little bit of monster in all of us. Bedtime Monster is Heather’s first picture book. Burnell has degrees from Santa Rosa Junior College as well as Harnell College.
Illustrator Bonnie Adamson majored in English and then got a second degree in art from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. Before she turned to illustrating for the children’s market, Bonnie was a free–lance graphic designer, with clients ranging from textile manufacturers to nonprofit arts organizations. Now she works from her home in S
1 Comments on New Books from Raven Tree Press, last added: 8/25/2010
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We live in exciting times. Authors, illustrators, reviewers, publishers and readers all get the chance to correspond and interact with each other thanks in part to book blog networks. As a blogger I especially love working directly with children’s book authors and helping them get the word out about their latest books. I met author/illustrator and blogger Elizabeth O. Dulemba through the Yahoo kidlitosphere group. Each Tuesday on her website she posts amazing coloring pages for children to print out and enjoy. My daughter has worn out her markers coloring Dulemba's awesome pictures. If you spend time around kids, you'll want to print out a few for them to color, especially the holiday or book themed pages.
Next week on September 25th, Dulemba releases her picture book titled Soap, Soap, Soap / Jabón, Jabón, Jabón. I'm the first stop on her Blog Tour. Elizabeth, thanks for introducing me to this book and your blog!
"Now Hugo was muddy and stinky too, but he still had to go to el mercado. To help him remember what he needed to buy, Hugo kept repeating, 'Soap! Soap! Soap! ~ ¡Jabón, jabón, jabón!'" - Soap, Soap, Soap / Jabón, Jabón, Jabón by Elizabeth O. Dulemba
Those familiar with Appalachian folktales will recognize the storyline of "Soap, Soap, Soap." The Jack Tales story has been retold many times and many versions exist. In Dulemba's updated adaption available in a bilingual format, a boy named Hugo walks to the local grocery store to buy soap for his mother. He takes the long route to the store and travels across a playground, down a sidewalk and by a ditch near his schoolyard. He runs into a number of obstacles along the way, gets mud all over his body and forgets the reason for his journey--the soap, soap, soap! The bilingual edition features Spanish expressions like el dinero, huevos, and ¡Ay caramba! effortlessly sprinkled into the English narrative. A vocabulary page at the end of the book provides an overview of all Spanish terms used.
If a muddy romp is your idea of good, clean, picture book fun, you'll enjoy reading Soap, Soap, Soap / Jabón, Jabón, Jabón. The book is available in two different versions: bilingual and all-English. Although we received a galley of the all-English version, I actually prefer the bilingual book mainly because schools and libraries have a need for eye-pleasing bilingual picture books, especially folklore tales. Dulemba's bright illustrations reflect the light, playful tone of the text. My daughter loved the soap graphic underneath each page number and also liked the hilarious picture of grocer pinching his nose to avoid smelling the stinky Hugo. She really liked tracing the dotted path Hugo takes on his journey to the grocery store, though we did notice the illustration is a bit different from the actual story sequence. Part of the fun of telling the original "Soap" tale is that the boy mindlessly repeats phrases over and over, trying to remember his goal. The repetition is somewhat missing in Dulemba's version, though it is implied. It's wonderful that Dulumba has reintroduced a lesser known folktale to the picture book audience.
Because I'd never heard of the "Soap" folktale until reading this version of the story, I asked Elizabeth when she first heard the Appalachian tale. Here's her reply:
"As far as SOAP - I've been a fan of Jack Tales for a long time. For my graphic design exit show I created a line of posters for the National Storytelling Festival in Jonesborough, Tennessee. There I heard Ray Hicks (National Treasure) tell Jack Tales first hand. I don't know if I heard him tell it, or somebody else. But I still have the collection of Jack Tales (gathered by Richard Chase) dedicated to me by my Grandparents in 1975. Soap is in a later edition I picked up a while back. So, all said, it's probably been in my life for a long time, even though I can't pinpoint the first time I heard it. And I've heard some wonderful adaptations since as well, although it does seem to be a little lesser known story than say, "Jack and the Beanstalk" (an adaptation of that was the first book I illustrated for Raven Tree Press: Paco and the Giant Chile Plant). Glad I introduced you to something new!"
Besides the multicultural element of the book there's a lesson to be learned in this time-tested tale of forgetfulness and mud: Even though you may get side-tracked on your journey, don't forget where you are headed or what you started out to accomplish. That's wise advice for everyone to live by -- children, adults, new graduates, and yes, even bloggers.
Soap, Soap, Soap / Jabón, Jabón, Jabón by Elizabeth O. Dulemba. Raven Tree Press; (September 2009); 32 pages; Bilingual Edition: ISBN 9781934960622 hardcover; ISBN 9781934960639 paperback - English Edition: ISBN 9781934960646 hardcover; 9781934960653 paperback Book Source: Galley provided for free by Raven Tree Press (Preproduction copy - Quotations should be checked against the finished book)
My daughter had a good time coloring the duck from Dulemba's story. Print your own picture at the Soap, Soap, Soap activity page!
Thanks for including links to my web site AppLit. I enjoyed reading this review and I can't wait to see this new book by Elizabeth Dulemba. I love the way she is linking Appalachian folktales with bilingual texts in picture books. Tina Hanlon
This book looks like it will have great appeal to my six year old boy. He loves books with fabulous illustrations. Once hooked with the illustrations he then can get into the story.
The third and final painting for Cindy Davis and John Richters' Elder Magic, Book three of the Desert Magic Trilogy is now finished! The second book just came out to purchase, so this one will be out sometime this Winter. You can read more about the trilogy at the Desert Magic website here. You can read the first two books Healing Magic and Stolen Magic by purchasing them at Amazon!
Some of the fun of being an illustrator is the anticipation and waiting for certain books to hit the shelves and finally get a chance to peek at the beautiful cover art that was selected by the publishers. A while ago I blogged about doing some speculation work for Raven Tree Press for a picture book. They asked a number of other illustrators as well as myself to send in cover art and a sketch for one of the spreads after sending us a manuscript. After finding out I wasn't selected I had to wait almost a year to see the cover art and artist that was finally chosen for the picture book. Here it is! Seed Was Planted will be out this September and was beautifully illustrated by Pamela Barcita. Congratulations!!
0 Comments on Elder Magic Book Cover Finished!!... and some other stuff as of 8/26/2009 6:12:00 PM
Beautiful Moon is an evoking, beautifully illustrated children's picture book about a little girl who wants the day to last forever so that she may play and play. She loves the moon, when everything is cool and fresh, but it's only during the day that she can play with her bike and bunny to her heart's desire. But then, it gets too hot, she gets too tired... and guess what? As much as she'll miss the sun, she's looking forward to her beautiful moon once again!
It's okay to play, but at the end of the day, even an active little girl looks forward to a time of rest.
The illustrations, done in soft colors, are lovely and sweetly capture the essence of day and night, the sun and the moon, bringing forth a mood of serenity. Beautiful Moon makes a wonderful bedtime story, sure to inspire calm dreams.
The text is simple and bilingual, with its English and Spanish versions on each page.
More info:
BEAUTIFUL MOON BELLA LUNA
Full–Color • 9 x 11 • 32 pages Jacketed Hardcover or Paperback Reading Level 2.4 Publication Date: Spring 2009
Written by Dawn Jeffers Illustrated by Bonnie Leick
One sunny day, Daniela and her grandpa went for a walk. They played a silly word game as they walked along.
Un día soleado, Daniela y su abuelo salieron de paseo. Mientras caminaban, iban jugando un simpático juego de palabras.
Thus begins this sweet, heart-warming bilingual children's picture book about the tender, special love that exists between a grandfather and a granddaughter.
As grandfather and granddaughter, hand in hand, take a walk through the woods, they discover and share the beauty of nature around them. And as they do so, they express how much they mean to each other. It's interesting to see the affectionate phrases both in English and Spanish.
A Walk With Grandpa/Un paseo con abuelo is a touching book and the perfect story to share in those quiet moments between a child and her grandfather. The text is simple, making the translations clearly understandable for young readers. The illustrations, in soft pastel colors, are beautiful and possess a serene, calming effect that matches the tone of the writing. This is a fine addition to any home, library or class bookshelf.
More info:
Full–Color • 9 x 11 • 32 pages Jacketed Hardcover or Paperback Reading Level 2.1 Publication Date: May 2009
Written by Sharon K. Solomon Illustrated by Pamela Barcita
To purchase the book and learn about the author and illustrator, visit Raven Tree Press.
Raven Tree Press specializes in family oriented, high-quality, bilingual (English-Spanish) children's picture books with universal themes that can appeal to many cultures. Their books have garnered rave reviews and won awards. Here to talk about the press is publisher Dawn Jeffers. Jeffers is also an accomplished children's writer and author of the bilingual titles, Vegetable Dreams and Beautiful Moon.
Thanks for being here today, Dawn. Tell us, how did Raven Tree Press get started? The publisher knew a group of talented writers and artists in the Midwest. That pool of regional talent helped launch the initial list. With the success of the books the talent pool spread through the US and now we proudly work with talent around the world.
Who is your primary audience? Our picture books are focused on children grades preschool third grade. Because our book are co-released as bilingual books in English and Spanish the word count is traditionally low and the artwork must tell sub-stories for us.
What genres do you publish and for what age group? We are a juvenile fiction publisher exclusively. We have one series that blends fiction (postcards written by a child) with non-fictions (facts and photos about specific locations in the United States).
Is there a big market for bilingual books? Children's books in general is a huge market and highly competitive. We needed something to differentiate ourselves and there were no high quality bilingual books in the market. We focused on keeping production quality high, artwork beautiful and excellent translations. These books can then be used in schools for language learning in either language, in a bilingual home where the parent may speak one language and the child is learning a second in school, and by children and families that are curious about a second language. They can use a picture book in the learning as the illustrations help to cue the words in many cases. We end every book with a keyword vocabulary list to aid in learning. These books help make language learning fun.
Are your books available in Spanish-speaking countries outside the US? That has been a challenge for us. We have translators that blend those types of Spanish most often used in the United States and try to blend the translation to suit this blend. Spanish in Spain and sometimes the Spanish in Latin America do not match the translation in our books. We do offer our books for rights purchase so that the publishers in those countries can retranslate for their market and then reprint the books for their needs. That is true for not only Spanish speaking countries, but any company that may want a dual language presentation.
What do you look for in a picture book manuscript? We look for a story that is easily illustratable. We look for family oriented, universal storylines. We do not need culturally specific or multicultural stories as we believe a good story is a good story in any language. In the editing process we lower the word count and choose words that can be translated.
Do you accept unagented submissions? Yes, but we always ask an writer or agent to view our website before any submission. We want them to become familiar with our books and guidelines. It will save everyone time and resources.
Are you looking for English/Spanish translators at this time? We are not looking for translators.
Sometimes the tone of a book is lost in a translation. What do you look for in a translator? Tone is so important. In a children¹s book specifically we want the children to be educated and entertained. We need translators that have had experience translated creative writing and specifically juvenile fiction. Those that portray the voice of the characters in our books is critical to us. We also want that sensitivity to blend discussed earlier and that is tricky sometimes.
Is there anything else you'd like to tell our readers? Please visit our website. We want writers, readers and translators to know who we are and what we produce. If you have children, share one of our books with them and see them light up seeing a second language in the book. It is so interesting that children love to experience the new language when adults are sometimes hesitant.
Mayra, I enjoyed your interview of Dawn Jeffers of Raven Tree Press - although ending up at Delta Publishing, when I clicked the link, was a bit confusing.
Dawn, do you ever accept and translate rhyming picture books? I write in rhyme (8 published + 2 more coming soon,)and I wondered if it was possible to translate verses with a good degree of rhyme and meter accuracy.
"Ruthie and the Hippo's Fat Behind" http://www.margotfinke.com http://margotfinke.blogspot.com/ ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: FREE: Link to me reading any Autographed picture book you BUY from my website.
Mayra & Dawn, I stopped by the ezine this interview was published at and left a comment. I had to comment on the book cover. It really grabbed my attention. Good luck on thisb venture. Blessings, The Differently-Abled Children's Author J. Aday Kennedy www.jadaykennedy.com http://jadaykennedy.blogspot.com/ http://twitter.com/jessica_k
The Oxford History of The United States series has won two Pulitzer Prizes, a Bancroft and a Parkman Prize. The newest addition, What Hath God Wrought: The Transformation of America, 1815-1848, by Daniel Walker Howe, looks at the period from the battle of New Orleans to the end of the Mexican-American War. Howe’s narrative history shows how drastically America changed in thirty years. Below Howe, Rhodes Professor of American History Emeritus, Oxford University and Professor of History Emeritus, University of California, looks at how October 22nd resonated throughout America.
On October 22, 1844, somewhere between twenty-five and fifty thousand people gathered in groups all over the United States to watch the sky. They stayed up until after midnight, straining to see Jesus Christ coming out of the heavens. A Vermont farmer named William Miller, undeterred by his lack of knowledge of Hebrew or Greek, had applied his naive ingenuity to biblical study. Calculations based on prophecies in the Book of Daniel had convinced him and his disciples that the long-awaited Second Coming of Christ would occur on this day. (more…)
As a teacher, wordless books give unique opportunities to find out more about kids’ expressive language, sequencing and inference skills.