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Is it that time of year already? September! When the kids head back to school, the pools close, and LAUREL SNYDER REMINDS YOU ABOUT ALL THE AMAZING PICTURE BOOKS ILLUSTRATED BY WOMEN!
As you may know, this has become a tradition for me. Inspired by the historical gender bias of the Caldecott award, I first complied my list (with YOUR help) in 2013. Molly Idle was on it (HUZZAH!), but though she took home an honor at ALA, she was the only woman on the 5 name list. Hrm.
Then, last year, my list looked like this, but the Caldecott was a shocker! SO MANY WOMEN! Morales! Castillo! AMAZING.
It really feels like things are shifting in many ways, changing for real. But that doesn’t mean we don’t need to keep thinking about the issue. And that doesn’t mean many wonderful titles won’t still fall through the cracks.
So help me out! What are the women-illustrated books you love best this year? I’ll start off with a few of my own favorites. The only limits are that the book must be published in 2015, and it must be illustrated by a woman. (Oh, and no self-nominating, please. If your book is awesome, rest assured someone else will think so too. Spread the love! Okay?)
GO!
(For starters, my son Mose nominates NIMONA.)
NIMONA, by Noelle Stevenson
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As for me, I like so many things. For instance…
MUMMY CAT, by Marcus Ewert, illustrations by Lisa Brown
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HOME, by Carson Ellis
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THE LITTLE GARDENER, by Emily Hughes
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ONE WORD FROM SOPHIA, by Jim Averbeck, illustrations by Yasmeen Ismail
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THE WHISPER, by Pamela Zagarenski
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THE TEA PARTY IN THE WOODS, by Akiko Miyakoshi
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FINDING WINNIE, by Lindsay Mattick, illustrations by Sophie Blackall
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THIS IS SADIE, by Sara O’Leary, illustrations by Julie Morstad
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THE MOON IS GOING TO ADDY’S HOUSE, by Ida Pearle
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BY MOUSE AND FROG, by Deborah Freedman
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YARD SALE, by Eve Bunting, illustrations by Lauren Castillo
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INTERSTELLAR CINDERELLA, by Deborah Underwood, illustrations by Meg Hunt
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TREE OF WONDER, by Kate Messner, illustrations by Simona Mulazzani
This is great, Laurel! I’d add to those fabulous titles you’ve already included: SHARING THE BREAD, illustrated by Jill McElmurry; DOUBLE HAPPINESS, illustrated by Alina Chau; PENNY & JELLY, illustrated by Thyra Heder; and WHEREVER YOU GO, illus by Eliza Wheeler. …Oh, and let’s not forget the glorious SWAN, shall we?
I LOVE this list! Here’s mine (so far!):
SONG FOR A SUMMER NIGHT by Robert Heidbreder, illustrated by Qin Leng
DOUBLE TROUBLE FOR ANNA HIBISCUS by Atinuke, illustrated by Lauren Tobia
CHARLOTTE AND THE QUIET PLACE by Deborah Sosin
BRIGHT NIGHT, STARRY CITY by Uma Krishnaswami, illustrated by Aimée Sicuro
WAIT by Antoinette Portis
SWAN by Laurel Snyder, illustrated by Julie Morstad
JULIA CHILD: AN EXTRAORDINARY LIFE illustrated by Joanna Gorham.
IN THE CANYON illustrated by Ashley Wolff (linoleum block prints!)
BOO LA-LA WITCH SPA illustrated by Isabel Roxas
BEACH HOUSE illustrated by Amy June Bates
HANSEL & GRETEL by Holly Hobbie
So I love ONE WORD FROM SOPHIA too.
Also THE PRINCESS AND THE PONY by Kate Beaton. I simply adore it.
Was going to include NIMONA, and THE LITTLE GARDENER so I’m glad to see you’ve already got them!
Definitely SWAN.
BEASTLY VERSE illustrated by JooHee Yoon
I also love ASK ME, Suzy Lee illustrator.
Great list, Laurel. Swan bviously needs to be there too! And here’s one more for you: The Good Little Book by Kyo Maclear and Marion Arbona.
http://www.tundrabooks.com/catalog/display.pperl?isbn=9781770494510
I LOVE this list! Mostly because a bunch of the titles I wanted to nominate are already here. haha! Here’s a few more to add:
ORANGUTANKA by Margarita Engle, illus by Renee Kurilla
ROLLER GIRL by Victoria Jamieson
THE BEAR ATE YOUR SANDWICH by Julia Sarcone- Roach
ARE WE THERE YETI by Ashyln Anstee
PIG AND PUG by Lynne Berry, illus by Gemma Cornell
SUCH A LITTLE MOUSE by Alice Schertle, illus Stephanie Yue
NINJA BUNNY by Jennifer Gray Olson
These are books that we’ve read aloud or together as a family and have really enjoyed. We’re big on laughs here.
Oh, I second ROLLER GIRL. So great.
I’d like to add A FINE DESSERT, illus. Sophie Blackall
ALPHA by Isabelle Arsenault (it’s the alpha-bravo-charlie alphabet, very clever visually, too)
Don’t forget SWAN.
I’ve been digging: The Marvelous Fluffy Squishy Itty Bitty by Beatrice Alemagna
Beastly Verse by JooHee Yoon
A Year Without Mom by Dasha Tolstikova
and In the Canyon by Liz Garton Scanlon and Ashley Wolff
also eager to get my hands on:
Snoozefest by Samantha Berger and Kristyna Litten
Pool by JiHyeon Lee
Where Are My Books? by Debbie Ridpath Ohi
The Blue Whale by Jenni Desmond
THERE ARE SO MANY GREAT BOOKS THIS YEAR!
BOATS FOR PAPA by Jessixa Bagley
I WILL NEVER GET A STAR ON MRS. BENSON’S BLACKBOARD by Jennifer K. Mann
EARLY BIRD and NIGHT OWL by Toni Yuly
LOVE this list. And it’s great that you aren’t limiting it to US illustrators (for now). Also, THe Marvelous FLuffy Squishy Itty Bitty by Beatrice Alemagna. And the Specific Ocean by Kyo MacLear and Katty Maurey!
IF YOU WANT TO BRING AN ALLIGATOR TO FIRST GRADE, DON’T! by Elise Parsley
I may be biased, since she’s a dear friend, but lots of other people must agree, because she’s on the NEW YORK TIMES Bestseller List. And, note, she’s the only female illustrator represented.
All of the aforementioned illustrators deserve accolades, too! Superb work, female or not.
HUNGRY COYOTE written by Cheryl Blackford and illustrated by Laurie Caple. I think you’ll agree–it’s stunning.
NIGHT OWL by Toni Yuly! For the record, every other book I was going to put out there, IS ALREADY ON THE LIST. THE BEAR AT YOUR SANDWICH (Julia Sarcone-Roach) ROLLER GIRL (Victoria Jamieson) YARD SALE (Lauren Castillo) SWAN! A YEAR WITHOUT MOM, WHEREVER YOU GO, TEA PARTY IN THE WOODS, HOME.
Gads, there are just wonderful wonderful selections. So glad you do this, Laurel!