Arthur Geisert - An Iowa Treasure

A Celebration in McGregor, Iowa

One day in 2013, Arthur Geisert launched a recent book Thunderstorm and in the small town of Bernard, Iowa (fewer than 100 residents), he sold over 500 books on that launch day.  In the back of Coe's bar, between the meat slicer and beer cooler he signed each one of them.  At the end of the day he went to his home -- the town's old bank, where he lived in his studio/home of less than 700 square feet.  In a June 2, 2013 interview on NPR he tells all about the event. 

Arthur's Gift to the McGregor Marquette Center for the Arts

Recently Jeni Reeves (another Iowa Illustrator), Lou Wendell (the merchandizing queen and manager in the gift shop at the Cedar Rapids Museum of Art), and I traveled to McGregor where we attended a reception honoring Geisert and his gift to the McGregor Marquette Center for the Arts of the complete works of art from his popular Rivertown (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Books, 1999; op).

During this reception honoring Arthur's Gift to the McGregor Marquette Center for the Arts, the gallery manager paid tribute to other Iowa Illustrators/authors who had participated with Geisert on a panel at an early event at the Cedar Rapids Museum of Art.  Jeni Reeves was one of these artists, and she posed with one of her books and with Geisert as he autographed a book for her.  Two very talented illustrators.

Iowa is very lucky to have such talent.  The gallery opening was a festive and special event.  When all was said and done we made our way back home to Cedar Rapids, and Arthur Geisert made his way to his  new studio/home in the town of Elkader.   He needed more space and he wanted "a place that was within walking distance of all the services. I looked long and hard, and Elkader was one of the few places that I could walk to everything. It is the county seat with a population of 1,200. My building is within a block and a half of everything from the county courthouse to the pizza parlor. It is a two-story built in 1890 with a full basement. It is a beautiful building.” (quoted from an interview with Amy Meythaler and published on the MackinConnect blog [September 15, 2014]).

His earlier books include:

Oops (2006).
Lights Out (2005).
The Etcher’s Studio (2005).
Mystery (2003).
Nursery Crimes (2001).
Roman Numerals I to MM (2001).
Desert Town with Bonnie Geisert (2001).
Prairie Town with Bonnie Geisert (1998).
Pigs From A to Z(1986).
Oink (1995).

He has published with Houghton Mifflin Harcourt for over 30 years.  

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If you are interested in inviting an Iowa author or illustrator to your school or library check our our list of local book creators; and a few others as well -- for an author appearance please contact us at McBookwords.  Our illustrators and authors often speak in schools with young readers, and at all types of groups that are interested in literacy and  books.

 

McBookwords has a dozen or more authors that speak with young readers.  If you would like to investigate having an author visit your school or library -- for an author appearance please contact us at McBookwords.  Each of these authors often speak  in schools with young readers, and at all types of groups that are interested in literacy and  books. 

Author Snapshot: I am Cow, Hear Me Moo!

Meeting Jill Esbaum

Iowa native and author, Jill Esbaum has written many books, both fiction and non-fiction, for young readers.  One of her most recent titles is I am Cow, Hear me Moo! -- Jill was recently invited to speak to the students throughout one of the local Cedar Rapids - Marion school districts.  We were able to meet her one afternoon during that week of school visits.

 Getting a book autographed by the author is an exciting time.  Other readers who would like to know more about Jill Esbaum should check out her website at

http://www.jillesbaum.com 

 While you are on her site you can check out the "new" books that will be coming during 2015.  

It looks like there would be something here for many readers.  Enjoyed the brief (but very pleasant) visit.  Thank you Jill Esbaum - for meeting us and for your books.

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If you are interested in inviting an Iowa author or illustrator to your school or library check our our list of local book creators; and a few others as well -- for an author appearance please contact us at McBookwords.  Our illustrators and authors often speak in schools with young readers, and at all types of groups that are interested in literacy and  books.

 

McBookwords has a dozen or more authors that speak with young readers.  If you would like to investigate having an author visit your school or library -- for an author appearance please contact us at McBookwords.  Each of these authors often speak  in schools with young readers, and at all types of groups that are interested in literacy and  books. 

An Author a Day - Robert San Souci

January 1

Robert San Souci (October 10, 1946-December 19, 2014) contributed to the lexicon of  books for young readers from the time his first title The Legend of Scarface: A Blackfeet Indian Tale was published in 1978 until his untimely death in 2014.  Actually his first book published was his third manuscript; the first two were rejected.  His brother a renowned illustrator in his own right, Dan San Souci, illustrated his first book.  From this story came the inspiration to write versions of other folk literature and legends based on the locations of his many travels.  I've always been fond of his story Kate Shelley: Bound for Legend (1995).  He was on a conference speaking trip to Des Moines, Iowa and was having dinner with friends.  He asked his friends to tell him any stories that were legend in their locality.  They told him the story of Kate Shelley.  When he returned home he began to research the story of a young woman from Moingona, Iowa who saved a trainload of people from a raging river.
However, my absolute favorite title by San Souci is his cajun version of the folktale The Talking Eggs, illustrated by Jerry Pinkney. Pinkney's watercolors added just the right charm and ... to the story.
Among San Souci's most recent books were Robin Hood and the Golden Arrow (2010, illustrated by E.B. Lewis) and Haunted Houses (2010, illustrated by Kelly Murphy & Antoine J.D. Revoy).  Robert San Souci lives and works in the San Francisco Bay area.

Update: Robert San Souci fell and injured his head during the third week of December of 2014; he died as a result of that fall on Friday December 19, 2014.   At the time of his death two new books were scheduled for production -- Two Bear Cubs: A Miwok Legend from California's Yosemite Valley (Yosemite Conservancy [August 11, 2015], with illustrations by Daniel San Souci)  and a digital release of a 2002 book, The Twins and the Bird of Darkness: A Hero Tale from the Caribbean (Simon and Schuster digital, 2015)

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Resources:
McElmeel, Sharron L.  100 Most Popular Picture Book Authors and Illustrators.  ABC/CLIO/Libraries Unlimited, 2000;  pages 415-419.

Robert D. San Souci's Home Page (WEB)  http://www.rsansouci.com

Sharron L. McElmeel Papers, University of Iowa's Special Collections, Iowa City, Iowa.

www.mcbookwords.com
for author visits

Favorite Authors - Jacqueline Briggs Martin & Jim Aylesworth

NEW BOOKS IN 2014
Two favorite authors will have new books released during the fall of 2014.

JACQUELINE BRIGGS MARTIN
Jacqueline Briggs Martin will have a biographical picture book released that features Alice Waters, a food pioneer.  Learn more about the book on her website:

Alice Waters and the Trip to Delicious by Jacqueline Briggs Martin. Illustrated by Hayelin Choi Readers to Eaters, 2014. ISBN-13/EAN: 978-0983661566; $18.95.

JIM AYLESWORTH
Jim Aylesworth will have his retelling of an old Jewish tale released.  The tale features grandfather who crafts his well-tailored coat into a jacket, a vest, a tie, and finally a mouse makes use of the threads to make a nest.  Learn more about the book on his website: 

Aylesworth, Jim. My Grandfather's Coat. Illustrated by Barbara McClintock. Scholastic, 2014 32 pages. ISBN-10: 0439925452; ISBN-13: 978-0439925457. $17.99.


Anyone planning a major children's literature conference or just wanting to have an inspiring author visit your school/community for a day with young readers might wish to invite Jim Aylesworth or Jacqueline Briggs Martin to your school, library, or conference.

Both Jacqueline Briggs Martin and Jim Aylesworth are popular speakers in schools and libraries and at conferences, each bring  much inspiration for reading and writing.

If you are interested in inviting Jim Aylesworth or Jacqueline Briggs Martin to your school or library -- for an author appearance please contact us at McBookwords.  Jim and Jackie (individually) often speaks  in schools with young readers, and at all types of groups that are interested in literacy and  books.

 

McBookwords has a dozen or more authors that speak with young readers.  If you would like to investigate having an author visit your school or library -- for an author appearance please contact us at McBookwords.  Each of these authors often speak  in schools with young readers, and at all types of groups that are interested in literacy and  books.

An Author a Day: Richard Peck

January 12

Richard Peck (b. April 5, 1934) is one of the nicest men that I know.  He is the only author who has ever written me a thank-you for interviewing him and writing about him.  He was so generous and humble.  That demeanor shows in his presentations as well.  The day this photograph was taken was the day, I believe, that he was speaking on the same program with Will Hobbs.an author he seems to have mentored through the start of Hobbs's writing career.
Peck grew up in a Midwestern town, Decatur, Illinois and that background often shows up in his writing.  He became well-known for his supernatural comedies featuring Blossom Culp and her "second sight."  But later went on to write some of my favorite young adult titles. 

The River Between Us is a story set in the historic days during the Civil War and involves the secret one family carries into the South.  It is a story of mystery and war -- and of a family that finds its history impacted by the struggles to survive.  It is one of the few books that share the female experience during the Civil War.
Another favorite is Here Lies the Librarian -- Peck's humor at its best.

In your quest to find out more about Richard Peck, the children's and young adult author, don't confuse him with Richard E. Peck who is an author of books for older readers.

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Resources: 

McElmeel, Sharron L.  100 Most Popular Children's Authors.  ABC/CLIO/Libraries Unlimited, 1999;  pages 341-345.
 
Sharron L. McElmeel Papers, University of Iowa's Special Collections, Iowa City, Iowa.

www.mcbookwords.com
for author visits

Author a Day: Anna Grossnickle Hines

 January 11

Anna Grossnickle Hines (b. July 13, 1946) knew from the time she was seven that she wanted to make books for children.  Along the way she studied art at San Fernando Valley State College but got little encouragement.  She left college and studied on her own, married, and became the mother to two daughters, and began to write.  She divorced and to support herself she returned to school and became a  teacher. She married again — to a forest ranger.  During the years they lived near the Yosemite National Park the Anna became the mother to her third daughter.  In 1983 her virst book Taste the Raindrops was published. But it was when the family moved to Pennsylvania that Hines renewed her interest in quilting and those quilts became the models for some of her illustrations.  But the break through came when she presented an idea to illustrate a book with miniature quilts that she made.  A book of poems, Piees: A Year in Poems & Quilts  became a landmark book of poetry, winning her the coveted 2002 Lee Bennett Hopkins Award or Children's Poetry.
Anna Grossnickle Hines and her husband, Gary Hines, both continue to write and now live in Gualala, California, a rustic area north of San Francisco near the redwood forest.

Learn more about her books, her illustrative methods, and her inspiration in the resources listed below.

 

 

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Resources: 

Anna Grossnickle Hines (WEB) www.aghines.com/

Anna Grossnickle Hines (BLOG) http://www.aghines.blogspot.com/ ‎

McElmeel, Sharron L.  Children's Authors and Illustrators too Good to Miss.  ABC/CLIO/Libraries Unlimited, 2004;  pages 119-123.

Sharron L. McElmeel Papers, University of Iowa's Special Collections, Iowa City, Iowa.

www.mcbookwords.com
for author visits

An Author a Day: Mary Downing Hahn

January 10

Mary Downing Hahn (b. December 9, 1937 - ) caught my attention with a book tha I still love, Daphne's Book.  That book dealt with peer pressure and borrowed on incidents in her two daughters' lives.  She draws heavily on her experiences - and borrows from everyone's life that she intersects with.  Her books have (and continue) to win awards and attract readers.

While I loved Daphne's Book, probably my very favorite of her books is The Dead Man in Indian Creek.  Some reviewers felt some of the incidents in the book were not logical.  Guess I don't read for logic.  I enjoyed the suspense of the who-dun-it and wanted to figure out what happened before it happened.  I love the mystery -- but I was also a die-heart fan of the TV show, Murder She Wrote, so perhaps this book was a natural for me.  Love the ins and outs of figuring things out.  Waiting for the clues, and sorting out the red herrings from the real clues.  Loved this book. 

You can find out about her more recent titles on her website.  When you go to her website, take note of her current photograph on her homepage.  I love that despite the almost 25 years that have come between the photograph on this page (1990) and the one of her webpage (circa. 2014) Mary Downing Hahn has the very same smile -- different glasses, different hair color (don't we all), but the smile is very recognizable.  I think her joy in life comes through in her writing as well.

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Resources: 

Mary Downing Hahn's website (WEB) http://www.marydowninghahnbooks.com/

McElmeel, Sharron L.  100 Most Popular Children's Authors.  ABC/CLIO/Libraries Unlimited, 1999;  pages 196-201.
 
Sharron L. McElmeel Papers, University of Iowa's Special Collections, Iowa City, Iowa.

www.mcbookwords.com
for author visits