Tomie dePaola's Blog

A semi-trailer truck stopped at the end of the driveway today. The driver went to the mailbox to look at the number on the mailbox to make certain he had stopped at the correct address. He needed to deliver 12 boxes of six-day devotional candles (i.e. 144 devotional candles). He assumed he was delivering to a church, and he found the name of the church on the delivery slip, "Tomie dePaola," to be an unusual name for a church. He had only delivered large quantities of candles to churches in...

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The UPS man delivered today a new rice cooker for Tomie. I believe this is Tomie's fifth rice cooker. He now has a total of four rice cookers. (One of the five was sold at the last yard sale.)

Tomie disagrees with the article "20 Most Worthless Pieces of Junk: #20 - The Rice Cooker."

www.walletpop.com/blog/2009/07/11/20-most-worthless-pieces-of-junk-20-the-rice-cooker/

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Arsema is a student at Rippon Middle School in Woodbridge, Virginia: Your books send great messages to children in a magical fairy tale way. The way you like to send positive messages in your poems that is easy for kids to understand is very unique. Every time I read STREGA NONA I remember the days in first grade when my teacher would read it to the whole class. My teacher would always have to turn the pages a little bit slower when we were reading one of your books because we would always...

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Damion is in Class D at the Nashua Children's Home in Nashua, New Hampshire.

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Isabella goes to St. Paul School in Hingham, Massachusetts. She wrote to me when she was in the fifth grade. I told her that she might want to visit the Glastonbury Abbey, also in Hingham, to see some of my artwork created in the '60s.

I designed a crucifix for the chapel, and painted the side not in relief. I painted a mural of St. Benedict for the chapel, and Stations of the Cross for the chapel.

I also created three murals for the refectory.

You can get a visual sense of the artwork by going ...

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Jennie in Clarence Center, New York, is the mother of six-year-old Jake and younger son Tom. During a weekend in October, the three of them went to the Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art to see the exhibition of Tomie's artwork.

Jennie: We went specifically to see your exhibit, and we were certainly not disappointed. Jake has been a fan of yours for the last few years, and he was beside himself when we turned the corner of the gallery and came face to face with the photograph of you and...

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A continuous banner of nearly 300 Happy Birthday greetings was sent by the Howe Hall Arts Infused Magnet School (AIMS) in Goose Creek, South Carolina.

Tomie: Thanks HHAIMS!

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Double-click to get a better look at the poster.
Mrs. Green's second grade class at Britton Elementary in Hilliard, Ohio, sent a birthday poster, a wooden folk art heart and a plush bone toy (for Bronte).

Strega Nona is singing:
Bubble, bubble, pasta pot,
It's Tomie dePaola's birthday so make him lots.
He's special and it's time to share.
Boil enough love to show him we care.

Tomie: Very sweet.

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Kathleen, of Oak Park, Illinois, drew the purple Christmas tree, hearts and ice cream cone when she was four years old. I think my friend Barney would like the tree.

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Kathleen, of Oak Park, Illinois, drew the purple Christmas tree, hearts and ice cream cone when she was four years old. I think my friend Barney would like the tree.

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