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The Night Before Easter

By Natasha Wing; illustrated by Kathy Couri

 

 

  ’Twas the night before Easter, just before dawn

  not a creature was stirring out on the lawn

    Our baskets were set on the table with care,

  in hopes that the Easter Bunny soon would be there…

 

 

Eves of holidays are usually fraught with excitement, expectation and little sleep for kids or parents.

It’s the waiting, the wondering, the watching and the wishful thinking of what the dawn will bring.

And with Easter, it’s the arrival of the Easter Bunny with his Willy Wonka-like treasure trove of brimming baskets filled with sweets, such as the traditional jelly beans, marshmallow chicks, dyed eggs and, of course, the centerpiece chocolate rabbit.

Natasha Wing’s “Night Before” books are a fun rhyming read to the familiar cadence of “The Night Before Christmas” by Clement Clarke Moore. It takes young readers on a prequel of the events that will envelop them come Easter morning.

Here, farm kids along with night capped raccoons, frogs, red foxes, lady bugs and a mouse or two, are all asleep, awaiting the arrival of the Easter Bunny when:

 

         Then out in the barn

       the hens made such a clatter,

         I sprang from my bed

       to see what was the matter.

 

The matter is the “…big fuzzy rabbit with a crook in his ear.” And, this yearly Easter delivery bunny has a yellow chick ( if I may clarify; a baby chicken) in tow, that assists this hare with a flair for conveying confectionary delights:

 

          His soft fur was spotless

          from his head to his toe;

         his vest was all checkered;

         his tie in a bow.

 

That’s exactly how I had him pegged in my imagination when I was young; nattily dressed for his annual foray with “…his tail like cotton; his nose like a berry.”

Looks like a raspberry to me!

And not to be outdone by “chocolates and striped lollipops, the Easter Bunny has one last egg treasure hunt drop off delivery before he hops away:

 

 

             He carefully hid them

             on couches and chairs,

             the mantel, the bookshelf,

             and under the stairs.

 

 

Plus, the Easter Bunny even leaves a parting note for young readers, different from the called out refrain of Saint Nicholas, as this hare in a tear, hippity hops on to his next delivery:

 

           Happy Easter to all –

           and to all a great day!

 

Kathy Couri’s inviting depiction of a farm with red barn, replete with a cozy, comfy, and Victorian pastel cottage, complete with fish scale accents, can be seen on the cusp of spring’s most famous harbinger since the groundhog!

It’s the perfect invitational abode for a visit from the Easter Bunny.

And, Natasha Wing’s The Night Before Easter is the perfect pre bedtime read to calm kids, awaiting his arrival!

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The Night Before Hanukkah

By Natasha Wing; illustrated by Amy Wummer

 

If you haven’t been introduced to Natasha Wing’s “The Night Before..” books, they are worth a look this time of year. They make great primers on a host of subjects. Not only on holidays like Hanukkah and Christmas, but others such as Thanksgiving, Easter, Mother’s and Father’s Day, St. Patrick’s Day, and other notable family centered celebrations.

And many other meaningful events in young reader’s lives like Summer Camp, Preschool, Kindergarten, First Grade, Birthdays and, of course, the seminal, “The Night Before Christmas” are part of this “Night Before…” series.

Evenings before special family events are filled with traditional preparations that are familiar to most families, with Ms. Wing finding many main days to celebrate, along  with Amy Wummer, providing illustrations that oddly remind me of the Berenstain Bear books. And I mean that as a compliment!

Modeled after the cadence of Clement Clarke Moore’s “The Night Before Christmas,” this book on Hanukkah starts with a cute opening:

 

       “Twas the night before

       the eight days of Hanukkah.

       Families were prepping from

       New York to Santa Monica.

 

Hanukkah is a pretty tough word to rhyme, no? How about “harmonica?” I tried.

The Festival of Lights begins with kids “nestled” in beds, dreaming of chocolate gelt (coins), with an honored, heirloom menorah from great-grandma Claire, placed in the window for eight nights.

And with each night, new family fun is played out and shared, with spinning dreidels, eight days of gifts, delightfully deep fried potato latkes, doughnuts oozing jelly, made by Uncle Dan, and a brisket with gravy, whose celebratory scents fill the family kitchen.

The ancient story of the Jewish heroes, the Maccabees, is retold anew, as the tale of a miracle of a small amount of oil, burning brightly in a cleaned holy temple for eight days.

Natasha Wing continues to hit all the right notes in her poetic tellings of family centered traditions and holidays that emphasize the importance of happenings that are family centered.

In a world desperately in need of something to believe in that lasts, family is a pretty great place to start.

 

 

As the last candles burned like they had for eight nights,

we wished a Happy Hanukkah to all – the Festival of Lights! 

 

 

 

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By Nicki Richesin, The Children’s Book Review
Published: June 7, 2012

Father’s Day is almost upon us. Why not celebrate by reading a few books about the proud papas who brighten our days? So snuggle up with your little ones and thank your lucky stars for the doting fathers in their lives.

Surfer Chick

By Kristy Dempsey; illustrated by Henry Cole

This book is radical, dude. Seriously, Kristy Dempsey delivers a tidal wave of fun with this tale of a young would-be surfer chick yearning to rip the tides like her righteous dad. When she wipes out, she becomes more determined than ever. Cole’s sunny funny painted illustrations add humor yet a mellow yellow vibe.

Ages 3-7 | Publisher: Abrams, Harry N., Inc. | May 1, 2012

Darth Vader and Son

By Jeffrey Brown

If “Luke, I am your father,” is a familiar phrase and let’s face it, who hasn’t heard it, then you’ll love this hilarious sendup to single fathers trying desperately to be nurturing dads. The book poses the question if Darth Vader had been a real pop to Luke, what might have happened? Told in a comic way with light-hearted illustrations, you’ll laugh until you cry.

All Ages | Publisher: Chronicle Books | April 18, 2012

The Night Before Father’s Day 

By Natasha Wing; illustrated by Amy Wummer

Wing employs “’twas the night before” as a clever convention in this rhyming story of a family working together to surprise Dad on Father’s Day. I especially appreciated the handy mom who could check the oil while leading her kids as they clean up the garage and wash the car. You should check out the other “night before” books from this bestselling series.

Ages 3-5 | Publisher: Penguin Group | May 10, 2012

The Barefoot Book of Father and Daughter Tales

Retold by

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Read my guest post on Bubble Cow about back matter to see how you as a writer can enhance your manuscripts with information that furthers and deepens your story.

Note: Above back matter page from An Eye for Color: The Story of Josef Albers.

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I thought this was an interesting article from an online newsletter I get called Shelf Awareness regarding multicultural picture books:


A solid majority of adults in the U.S. believe in the importance of multicultural picture books for children, but many find it difficult to obtain them. According to a recent telephone survey of a thousand adults conducted by Harris Interactive on behalf of the Ezra Jack Keats Foundation, 78% said they believe that it is important for children to be exposed to picture books that feature main characters of various ethnicities or races, while 33% reported that it is difficult to find such books. 

The survey also found that 73% of parents and 49% of adults have purchased a children's picture book with a protagonist of a different race or ethnicity from the child who will be reading the book, while only 10% consider it important to match the race or ethnicity of the main character of a picture book to the race or ethnicity of the child who will be receiving the book.

"It's reassuring that so many adults recognize the value in exposing children to books that portray people of all colors and ethnicities," sai

0 Comments on A Need for Multicultural Picture Books as of 1/1/1900

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Many years ago, when I was a member of NorBAG (Northern Books Arts Guild) while living in California, a talented print artist, Brenda Tuxford, and I created a handmade book - the cover, the illustrations, the type, the bookmark!

Fiona's Tea Party is a story about a girl whose parents live at a Victorian bed & breakfast, who coerces the guests to have a tea party with her since her parents are so busy tending to their full house. Brenda's illustrations are what you might see in a dark, children's book of an earlier era of England. Since she loved cats, a cat creeps into every page of her drawings.

Brenda has since passed on, but this signed book - or shall I say piece of art - is still available. It is listed on Amazon for $300, or you can view it in person at Eureka Books in Eureka, California.

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Here are some tips for nervous Nillys and Willys heading to Kindergarten this fall.
How to Help Dependent Children Transition to Kindergarten | eHow.com

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To celebrate the release of my new book, How to Raise a Dinosaur, I'm having a contest. I'm looking for the best photo of a fan or fans with their pet dinosaur. And by dinosaur I mean any roadside attraction, mural, fossil, stuffed animal, model - any form of dinosaur.

I'll post the photos on my Fans of Natasha Wing books Facebook page.

Be sure to read the rules and the release form under Pages in the sidebar. Photos and model release forms should be sent to [email protected].
Deadline to submit is November 30, 2010.

THE PRIZE: 10 books signed by me!

Photo: Duncan from Connecticut with Torosaurus at Yale Peabody Museum

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My new desk is here! My new desk is here! I'm so happy to have a surface to spread out on! I feel like the captain of the ship again.

My pretty desk practically takes up half the room, but now I can plop down in front of my computer and have everything I need in reach. Ooo, and I have a secret drawer with a key. Don't know what I have that's so important it needs to be under lock and key. Maybe I'll keep secrets there.

Share a photo of your work space, if you'd like. I'm always curious about the environments in which people create.

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Only 13 days until How to Raise a Dinosaur is released! The books are in the warehouse. Author copies are heading my way. Review copies are being mailed out. The YouTube video has been uploaded. Book signings are in place. Now all that is left is for millions of people to buy my book!

Hey, a girl can dream big. It's a DINOSAUR book.

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Looking for ideas of 100 things to bring to school for the 100th day of school? Hint: I wouldn't suggest ants!

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When she was little she wanted to be a teacher, in high school a tennis player and in college a paleontologist. She eventually went into advertising before starting her own public relations firm and since 1992 has been an author of children’s books.

On this edition of Just One More Book, Mark speaks with author Natasha Wing about writing for 5-8 year-olds, the parallels of baking and writing children’s books, and exploring different styles.

Books mentioned:

• The Night Before Halloween
• Go to Bed, Monster!*** (on JOMB)
  
• The Night Before Easter
• ‘The Night Before’ series

***Be sure to check out the complete list of Fiction Picture Book Finalists for The 2007 Cybils Awards here.

Photo: NatashaWing.com

Tags:author, childrens books, cybils, interview, Natasha Wingauthor, childrens books, cybils, interview, Natasha Wing

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Author: Natasha Wing
Illustrator: Sylvie Kantorovitz
Published: 2007 Harcourt (on JOMB)
ISBN: 0152057757 Chapters.ca Amazon.com

Featuring playful, childlike drawings, imaginary adventure and the familiar ping-pong interaction of every stall tactic in the book, this 2007 Cybils Award Finalist turns the tables on the theatrical endurance test we call “bedtime”.

Other books mentioned:

• Scribble
• Harold and the Purple Crayon
• Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus
• The Prince’s Bedtime

Be sure to check out the freshly announced list of Fiction Picture Book Finalists for The 2007 Cybils Awards here. And stay tuned — the finalists in the Graphic Novels, Non-Fiction Picture Books, Non-Fiction MG/YA and Young Adult Novels categories of The 2007 Cybils Awards will be announced in three short days!

Tags:awards, childrens book, cybils, Go to Bed, Monster!, Natasha Wing, Podcast, review, Sylvie Kantorovitzawards, childrens book, cybils, Go to Bed, Monster!, Natasha Wing, Podcast, review, Sylvie Kantorovitz

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Good Morning:

Oh how I love these damp and gloomy but warmish June mornings. Perfect for sipping coffee outdoors. There's a certain look in the air on mornings like this. All of the colors in my garden seem to pop in an almost surreal way ~~





There's a luscious smell of earth and mold and lavender~~



My roses are in full bloom, and in this filtered and hazy light, they are almost vulgar in their brightness. Let's see what will happen if I take a picture of them in sepia~~



Alright...I think I like it. Now, let's see what happens when I take a picture of them in cyan~~



The smell outside is heavenly, like a warm summer morning in the South. Today, my garden smells like Arkansas. It makes me want to dig a little nook under the daylilies and fall into it. To breath so deeply that I can't draw in any more air. I'll let the air out and start all over again. Quietly rolled up in my little nook, just breathing in deeply and smelling the smell of an earthy Southern morning.

So...here I am, slap, in the middle of the Southern California desert. Struggling to keep this curious cottage garden full of life. Watching as my water bill soars with each passing dry, summer day. But you see, mornings like this make it all worth the effort and cost. The simple smells of growth and life and soil. The pop of vulgar color and layers of blossoms....This is my life.

Until Tomorrow:
Kim
Garden Painter Art
gnarly-dolls
Kim's Kandid Kamera

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