a few reviews to view

Quite a bit of news to share:

The formidable Kirkus has smiled upon Pearl:

“In this welcome departure from the seemingly ubiquitous theme that finds porcupines looking for love, gentle-hearted Pearl experiments with ways to make her hugs more comfortable for others.

From the first page, the text speaks directly to young readers in simple sentences that instantly establish a friendly rapport: “Pearl is sweet… She’s a very good friend to have. She plays fair, shares her lunch treats, and best of all… / Pearl LOVES to hug.” But she does have those pesky quills. Even though everyone in her class likes Pearl, they find her hugs “a little ouchy.” So Pearl dedicates herself to finding a solution. Set against backgrounds of pale green or blue, the charcoal strokes delineating Pearl’s soft, white body portray her as anything but prickly. A touch of pastel pink highlights her face and the myriad feelings she experiences while struggling with her prickliness. Using pincushions, taking a long bath and requesting a quillcut all prove futile. When she is at her most discouraged, some bees and rosebushes give her an idea. With a little ingenuity, some resourcefulness and a whole lot of heart, Pearl solves her own dilemma. Children and adults alike will cheer as she rushes to school to share her rosy success.

Schmid’s follow-up to A Pet for Petunia proves he is a talent to watch. Keep quills crossed for a future porcupine tale.”

And from Publishers Weekly:

Pearl the porcupine stars in this sweet-natured story about the hazards of hugging (at least when one is a porcupine), and she’s also the source of its delightfulness. Schmid (A Pet for Petunia) draws Pearl and her many quills with a few hasty strokes, but her expressive features, her ecstatic gyrations when she contemplates hugging her classmates (“Pearl loves to hug”), and her dismayed expression when she realizes that her hugs hurt them (“Pearl’s teacher kept lots of Band-Aids handy”) will soften even the hard-hearted. A visit to some similarly prickly rosebushes in the neighborhood leads Pearl to a solution that both pleases her and spares her classmates. Schmid is disciplined about keeping his story focused; Pearl and her classmates stand against backdrops of soft green and blue with no extra scenery, and every sentence moves the action along. Pearl’s is a small-scale problem, but she surmounts it by herself, and readers have the reassuring sense that nothing awful will happen while she figures it out—at least nothing that a Band-Aid can’t fix. 

The School Library Journal has also given our girl a sweet review:

Pearl loves to give hugs, which leaves her friends at school in a prickly predicament. Tired of hearing, “Ouch! Thanks, Pearl. Ouch!” from her classmates, the youngster wonders, “What’s a friendly little porcupine to do?” After unsuccessfully investigating several options to soften her quills, including pincushions, a long bath, and a quill cut, Pearl is quite dejected. Then she notices bees happily buzzing around some thorny roses, and she has a flash of inspiration. With a little alteration to her mother’s special rose-print pillowcase, Pearl soon has the perfect solution. With his simple pastel and charcoal illustrations set against pale green and blue pages, Schmid brings just the right touch of sweetness to this charming tale. Though rendered with an uncomplicated ease, rosy-faced Pearl is endearingly expressive in her body language, and readers won’t help but respond to her anxiously crooked mouth as she ponders her dilemma, her industriously stuck-out tongue as she tries to address it, and her jubilantly closed eyes as she savors her success. This porcupine is perfectly lovable, and her proactive endeavors to solve a problem thrust on her by nature set a good example for children encountering their own struggles. This warmhearted story will fit right into storytimes and one-on-one reading sessions at home.–Jayne Damron, Farmington Community Library, MI

a reading, and a play!

Here is Ava!

Her mom tells me Ava's kindergarden class did a play of A Pet for Petunia for some preschoolers. Now that is perfectly awesome!

Hugs from the UPS driver

This just arrived on my doorstep.

It's a real book!

Available November 22! We'll be having a launch party at Secret Garden Books. More info to come.

soak the muse

I think it’s time for another installment of previously nonexistent words helpful in describing the creative experience.

I have been working diligently for quite a long time now, putting in endless hours at the drawing board or computer. Production mode. Nose firmly on grindstone.

Naturally one begins to feel played out. The sponge can only be squeezed so much, then it fails to give generously. (Curious how our brains look a bit like sponges...)

If a creator does not stop to gather fresh experiences occasionally, he’s likely to run into a dry spell or start repeating himself.

It makes sense then that a creator should venture forth into the sunlit world and soak up a bit of life now and then. Fill the sponge.

Catchy isn’t it? Fill The Sponge. The Latin for that zinger is Spongiam Replet. I desire a word not a phrase, so lets squeeze that puppy. Spongiplet. Sounds a bit like something unfortunate they found in my arteries. Let’s take the first 3 and last 3 letters: Spolet. That’s better. 

Used in a sentence: “I spent the afternoon spoletting at the park watching the kids play.”

Spoletting may even stimulate the creative microbit of the brain. Seduce the Muse as it were. 

This must certainly be a creator’s top prioritiy. I’m sure all of us have tried to work while uninspired, with Ms. Muse out to lunch with the girls. Deadly, isn’t it? Poop generally results.

Could we find a word for pitching the woo at said fickle, fickle Muse? Something to use as a battle cry.

Seduce the Muse: Musa Seducat.

Musaseducat. That’s something that comes in a blue bottle, isn’t it? Musducat? No, that’s a type of beaver. Muduce. Pronounced Muh-dooce.

“I’m sooo not into it today, so I’m off to muduce at the museum for an hour or so.”

Yes. If only I didn’t have this deadline.

New York again

I discovered yesterday that both A Pet for Petunia and Hugs From Pearl have been honored by the Society of Illustrators in New York by being included in their exhibit of the year's best children's books.

This is quite the honor, and I am indescribably grateful to my wonderful editor and friend Maria Modugno who made a stab in the dark by suggesting I give writing a try.

Thanks also must be made to Dana Fritts, my fabuloso designer at Harper. Remember that name; she will be famous.

Petunia in New York!

Well, a review in The New York Times books section at least.

busy, busy

Several exciting bits of news this week.

I finished up the art for my fourth self-authored book, Percy's Big Idea. It should be in the book stores by fall of 2012.

The big brown truck delivered the proofs for my January 2012 release, Petunia Goes Wild, and it looks really great, many thanks to the fantastic designer Dana Fritts.

Barnes & Noble has made plans to release enhanced e-book editions of both A Pet for Petunia and Petunia Goes Wild on their color Nook.