Deborah Freedman's Blog, page 5
February 3, 2022
Did you know that dinosaurs still roam the earth??
The past two years have been a bit of a blur, haven’t they? Somehow, I have muddled through and kept making books. It’s helped that over the years I’ve kept notebooks full of ideas, which I can return to when the well is feeling dry! Because that’s where I found the germ for my next book…
—From my latest eNewsletter. Read the rest here, and get a look at a sneak peek of my next book, TINY DINO!
Tiny Dino will be published by Viking on April 19, 2022.
January 2, 2022
2022
Wishing all a peaceful and healthy new year!
September 29, 2021
On Reading... Again! And Again. And Again...
You know that feeling when you’ve read a book to a child so many times that you can hardly stand it anymore? Have you ever skipped pages or even hidden a book? Guilty-as-charged, though for obvious reasons, I have mixed feelings about this…
From my latest eNewsletter. Read the rest here!
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Follow the bee! In details from my newest book, Is Was.
August 23, 2021
Books About Change
Whenever I finish making a book, I love to sit back, read, and make geeky lists of books with similar themes, books that might make good companions to my own. In my children’s picturebook Is Was, I wanted to explore connections found in nature, and the idea of change, both small and large.
Do you follow me on Instagram? This IG Guide lists some picturebooks that do the same, in a beautiful range of ways.
Enjoy!
July 14, 2021
More Kind Words for IS WAS
I'm grateful for these latest, kind words for Is Was:
“A muted, meditative, transcendent picture book that invites readers to marvel at both the ephemeral and the enduring.” – The Horn Book
“Deborah Freedman captures a series of momentary transitions in the spacious, color-washed pages of “Is Was”... From moment to moment, what “is” becomes what “was” in this sublime meditation on constancy and mutability for children…” —Wall Street Journal
“Imagine if you could wrap awe-inspired art, mystical insight, lyrical language, and a philosophy of time all into one book. What would you have? Quite likely author and illustrator Deborah Freedman's latest gem, Is Was.“ —Spirituality & Practice
“… Through impeccable pacing and word selection, author Deborah Freedman tells a story that speaks to every living individual's heart . She has taken the essence of life and placed it within the pages of this book…” — Librarian’s Quest
“Deborah Freedman has been making invitingly experimental books for years, and her latest is no exception. A meditation (and that word could not be more fitting) on the nature of time itself: what was, what is, and what will be.” —100 Scope Notes, School Library Journal, from a list of The Most Astonishingly Unconventional Books of 2021
As always, many thanks to all who have taken the time to read and share my book!
May 4, 2021
Birds are calling, blues and pinks blooming, and so is my newest book.
I was working on final art last spring when the pandemic flipped “normal” life from is to was. Suddenly, this book felt almost painfully spot-on. What would be? None of us knew…
To read more about Is Was, my picturebook published today, check out my latest eNewsletter!
Signed copies of Is Was are now available at River Bend Bookshop.
April 2, 2021
"Wistful Wondering"
Reviews for IS WAS are starting to arrive—
★ "The narrative, infused with a tenderness that avoids preciosity, is a contemplative, thought-provoking one and will prompt children to think about the here and the now—and how quickly such a thing becomes memory. An experience that is, and always will be, memorable."
– Kirkus Reviews, starred review
“In serene watercolor and pencil spreads and gossamer prose,
Freedman marvels at the mystery of change
... [and] finds the beauty in transitional moments through a book that also offers a quiet way to begin conversations about loss.”
—
Publishers Weekly
As always, many thanks to those who take the time to read and articulate their thoughts about my books!
March 11, 2021
IS WAS Will Be
Do you remember the fox from Carl and the Meaning of Life? Did you notice the tiny bee in that book? The spider? The bat? Did any young readers spy the chipmunk in Shy? Or recall meeting Florence there? The yellow bird has now flown through three of my stories, and is about to appear in a 4th, singing, this time, “is-is! Is-is!”
All of these creatures reunite and will be joined by a few new ones on May 4 in Is Was, a book about change, small and large, in nature, and more subtly, in life.
My hope is that children of all ages who read my newest book will find whatever they might need from it—whether that’s simply a soothing read, help with common transitions like saying goodbye to the day, or comfort for more profound life changes.
Images above are details from IS WAS, Atheneum Books for Young Readers, May 4, 2021—
available as a set of 4 postcards, my special gift to pre-orderers.
For a signed and personalized copy of IS WAS, purchase from
River Bend Bookshop,
or fill out this form with a pre-order receipt from your preferred independent bookseller.
February 27, 2021
Carl Around the World
Carl sure is covering a lot of ground, for a worm! I love starting to see these foreign editions as they are released, and hearing from readers around the world!
Now available in Catalonia, Iran, Japan, Spain, Turkey, Vietnam, and soon in Korea!
December 25, 2020
Wishing on Stars
Assuming the earth and sun do their usual thing, the world has to start getting brighter from here. Happy Winter Solstice, friends. Wishing you all the best for the season!
Image from Is Was, coming from Atheneum on May 4, 2021.
