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A couple of months ago I drove up to Marin County (California) for the author signing of "Baby Me" which was illustrated by our own Alicia Padron. While I was waiting for the festivities to begin, I began browsing through the picture book section, which is very dangerous for my bank account, as I tend to buy too many books.....I tried to limit myself and chose just a couple. The minute I laid eyes on "Brontorina," I knew I had to have it. Written by James Howe and illustrated by Randy Cecil, this book is all about dreams and obstacles and believing it can happen....with a little help from your friends.
It's always the art that attracts me to a picture book and Bronterina just popped off the shelf with it's graphic flair and adorable character. Not only is Bronterina (who wants to be a ballerina in the worst way) too large for the dance studio, but her character can barely be contained in the pages of the book. Randy Cecil has used the contrast of the tiny children and the elegantly cropped images of the dinasour to really give the reader the feel of how incredibly large this dinasour is. The book was painted in oils and there is a fine texture to the paintings that give the pages a soft, atmospheric feel.
Randy Cecil knew as a very young boy that writing and illustrating ch
6 Comments on Brontorina, last added: 12/11/2010
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I can't believe you posted about this book! Just the other day I was tweeting about it. I saw it on Amazon and immediately wanted to read it. Looks so adorable!!!!!!
Anyway, thanks for posting about it Debbie and thanks for mentioning ABC, Baby Me. xo
now I have to get it! :)
I also wanted to add, what a great cover that book has! Don't you think?
Everything about it is perfect. We can see how huge, sweet, sort of clumsy and innocent Brontorina is just by glimpsing at that image.
It's got great composition and movement starting at the tail swirl, going around the title type and ending on her braking the text with her head. LOL!
It's fantastic. :o)
What a gorgeous looking book Deb! I'll definitely hunt it down. :)
Oh, it's funny. I have a postcard from one of his much earlier books. I picked it up years ago at an SCBWI event, and always loved it.
Both my kids love this book. Brontorina - what a perfect name for a dancing dino.