Tag Archives: author

From Folklore to Fantasy

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Recently, the Cotsen Children’s Library was delighted to co-host a live Zoom webinar with talented authors Sanyantani DasGupta (the Kiranmala series, Scholastic) and Roshani Chokshi (the Aru Shah series, Rick Riordan Presents). My co-host was Vineet Chander from Princeton University’s Office of Religious Life, Hindu Life Program. Additional sponsors included the Princeton Public Library, Labyrinth Books, and jaZams.

The discussion concluded with a lively Q&A from our enthusiastic young attendees, including the answer to the burning question: Skittles or M&Ms???

If you would like to check out additional author, illustrator, and artist interviews, visit our BiblioFiles archive. And many thanks to everyone who particioated in this amazing event!

Images courtesy of the authors

Studio Snapshots: Peter Brown

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Today we’re visiting Caldecott Honor winning author and illustrator, Peter Brown! Peter has been featured on our blog multiple times (see The Curious Garden, Creepy Carrots, and Creepy Underwear). His other books include The Wild Robot, My Teacher is a Monster!, Mr. Tiger Goes Wild, and Children Make Terrible Pets.

His newest book, the sweet and funny Fred Gets Dressed (Little, Brown, 2021) was released this month, and you can check out more of his works, collaborations, and free coloring pages (woot!) on his website.

Photo 1: Each morning, my wife and I leave our house in Philadelphia and start walking south through the city, with our dog. We end up at a big, old building, that was once a technical high school, but is now an office building filled with artist studios and small businesses and non-profits. We enter the building, go up two flights of stairs, and then walk past the old high school lockers to the end of the hall. When we open the door to our studio, this is what we see. This room used to be a science classroom, and it still has quite a few of the original details.

Photo 2: My wife, Susan Fang, is also an artist, and to make the most of our shared space, we hired a carpenter to build us a large worktable, along with a simple white wall to separate our desk areas. I do most of my drawing at the big table, and then I go over to my computer to do my digital work.

Photo 3: We spend a lot of time in our studio, so we had to make it comfortable for everyone, especially our dog.

Photo 4: To publicize my new picture book, Fred Gets Dressed, the publisher arranged my very first virtual book tour. I sat in this spot and stared at my laptop and spoke to readers all across the country. I discussed the book and read from it and gave drawing demonstrations. It was great that I could speak with so many people, in so many different places, all from my studio. But I’m really looking forward to doing in-person book events again.

Images courtesy of Peter Brown

The BiblioFiles Presents: Victoria Jamieson

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Just posted! An interview with multiple award-winning, and New York Times bestselling, graphic novelist Victoria Jamieson.

Beginning with her illustrated book SUPER COW in the third grade, Jamieson aspired to work as an animator. After graduating from the Rhode Island School of Design with a focus in illustration, her career path involved art and design work. But her life path involved being a roller derby player for the Rose City Rollers in Portland, Oregon. Jamieson merged these work and life experiences to create her 2015 graphic novel, Roller Girl. It went on to be a New York Times best seller, a Newbery Honor book, and an inspiration to thousands of novice skaters wanting to sport a Jammer star.

Roller Girl was followed by All’s Faire in Middle School, two shorter graphic novels in her Pets on the Loose series, and the picture books Olympig!, Pest in Show, and Bea Rocks the Flock.

Her most recent release is When Stars Are Scattered, which was done in collaboration with Omar Mohamed, the founder of Refugee Strong, and non-profit that empowers refugee students. Illustrated by Jamieson, the graphic novel is the true story of Mohamed’s childhood in the Dadaab refugee camp in Kenya. It was a National Book Award finalist in 2020.

The magic of graphic novels is how completely the reader enters the world of the characters. Jamieson is especially talented at the emotional journeys her characters take. She is fearless in exploring the difficulty of going to a new school, getting in a fight with your friends, being bullied, a family argument, or in the case of her recent collaboration, the pain of uncertainty as refugees wait for change. These are difficult topics, but Jamison weaves hope into everything she writes and draws, inspiring her readers to face these difficulties and become stronger in the process.

Follow this link to the BiblioFiles interview

Image courtesy of Victoria Jamieson