From the mouths of babes to children’s authors everywhere
We were talking about children’s picture books in my fifth grade class this week when one of my students said something that I think every children’s author and illustrator should hear (though I suspect that many already know this).
We were talking about the choices that illustrators make, and specifically how some books contain visual tricks, repeating images, pop up elements and simple games to entertain the reader along with the actual story. The classic example of this is the tiny white mouse in GOODNIGHT MOON. In addition to to the beautiful story, children love searching for that mouse on each page.
Even I do.
Another good example is the way in which Marc Brown hides his children’s names in his ARTHUR books. And the way you are apt to find Mo Willem’s famous pigeon from DON’T LET THE PIGEON DRIVE THE BUS in many of his other books, too.
Many picture books have these small, repeating images or similar visual games for kids to play while a teacher or parent is reading the book to them.
A boy in my class who happens to be one of my most avid and voracious readers said that when he was younger, he did not like books and had a hard time learning to read. He said that he might’ve given up on reading completely had it not been for things like the mouse in GOODNIGHT MOON to “keep my head in the books when there was nothing else in there for me to like.”
“So these little games that illustrators play helped you learn to read?” I asked.
“They saved me,” the boy said.
I can’t imagine three more important words for a children’s author and illustrator to hear. As a teacher, I claw and scrape to find ways to hook my students into reading. Sometimes all it takes is one great book to set them off on course as a lifelong reader. Other times a trusted friend can convince a kid that books are worthy of their time. Too often it requires cajoling, coercion, bribery and outright extortion. It doesn’t matter. I’ll do whatever it takes to get a kid to love books.
Apparently the love of reading can also be achieved with the help of a little white mouse.
