praise for Peanut and Fifi

Early reviews are starting to come in for Peanut and Fifi, a terrific story written by Randall de Seve, and illustrated by myself. Here is a very nice one from Publishers Weekly:

With clever dialogue and stylish retro spreads, de Sève (The Duchess of Whimsy) and Schmid (Perfectly Percy) give a shot of energy to the familiar theme of siblings fighting over a toy. Fifi has a nearly inexhaustible stream of ideas to get her younger sister Peanut’s new ball away from her, “but Peanut didn’t want to share. Her ball was new. And it was special.” Fifi tries dressing up in a starry cape and pretending to be a fortune-teller: “Where is my crystal ball?” she asks. “Not here,” says Peanut, unimpressed. “Check the closet.” When the ever-resourceful Fifi runs off with a live seal named Bob and a blue spaceship, Peanut is left alone with her treasure. “The end,” the narrator declares, as Peanut stares disconsolately; “(or not…)” the next page continues—and Peanut joins the fun. Schmid’s bold, black outlines and graphic forms play Peanut’s dumpling roundness off Fifi’s angles and corners. Matte paper and three sun-faded colors heighten the vintage look, and the translucent suggestions of Fifi’s imaginary ideas provide additional interest. Siblings may end up squabbling over this book. Ages 3–5.

The book will be available for sale in April. Buy it here.

roar!

I am honored to have been invited to participate in the King County Library’s Literary Lions Gala, a black tie event which will raise funds to support a really wonderful library system.

It takes place on Saturday March 23rd, so please consider buying tickets! Nancy Pearl will emcee that night and you will be able to meet and buy books from 30 authors from the Northwest, including myself.

More info here.

perfect review

This review made me blush. The best thing about it is that it came from a librarian. Librarians know. Librarians are, as if it needed to be pointed out, perfectly awesome people.

Perfectly adorable
Percy is a porcupine with a love of balloons that knows no bounds. The problem is...he's a porcupine. Fortunately, Percy is a porcupine who likes to think and solve problems. How he manages to solve his prickly problem and keep his beloved balloons makes for a short little tale that is amazingly humorous and full of heart. Percy is adorable and kids will instantly relate to his efforts to solve his problem. He seeks help from his sister (whose ideas were not very practical) and his mother (who didn't have time) before finally realizing he needed to come up with something himself. His success will bring a smile to your face and his little grin as the author sends him off with a loving "have fun Percy!" will melt your heart.

This story is short enough for toddlers to still remain engaged, and charming enough to hook even older preschoolers. A must have for any story time collection; this is also a perfect gift for any toddler or preschooler. The illustrations are simple and straightforward and I'm just not sure how Paul Schmid manages to convey so much personality in such a simple little porcupine. When I used Perfectly Percy in a story time for four year olds, he inspired much discussion. The valentines we made following the reading featured quite a few little Percy sketches! With good messages about problem solving and perseverance, Perfectly Percy is a perfect picture book that's not to be missed.