ACHUKAblog
Times Children’s Book Of The Week September 15, 2018
“I challenge you to find a sillier story than this picture book by Matty Long (it’s the third in his Magic Forest series, and his stand-alone Salty Dogs is worth a read too). You only realise quite how boring most books for the very young are when you come across one that breaks the mould – or, I should say, ice…
More Mighty Boost and Magic Roundabout than Top and Tim…”
Alex O’Connell THE TIMES
She was the quintessential young rebel who broke all the rules about how good little girls should be portrayed in children’s literature by standing up to bullies in the name of justice – and having a laugh at the same time.
Now, Roald Dahl’s Matilda – the most powerful female genius ever to be underestimated by a hammer-throwing headmistress – has been portrayed for the first time as a 30-year-old woman in a series of eight sketches by Dahl’s long-time illustrator and friend Quentin Blake.
To mark the 30th anniversary of the first publication of the book, three of these sketches will appear next month on the covers of special collectors’ editions, showing Matilda variously as an astrophysicist, a world traveller and as chief executive of the British Library.
>>> https://www.theguardian.com/books/2018/sep/15/matilda-at-30-roald-dahl-quentin-blake
MailOnline has released photos from Media Wales showing pictures of the set in Llangynidr Quarry in Crickhowell. The TV series of His Dark Materials is set to air on the BBC in 2019, starring James McAvoy and Ruth Wilson.
The series is filming in Wales, Oxford and Bristol, with a script by Jack Thorne – who collaborated with J. K. Rowling on the staging of Harry Potter And The Cursed Child . The director is Tom Hooper.
The Welsh set images are well worth a look, so click on over to >>>
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-6168651/His-Dark-Materials-TV-series-LOOK.html
Extract from ‘This Much I Know’ weekend feature in Irish press, in which Sarah Crossan reveals her intention to write about Mary Magdalene one day:
If I could be someone else for a day, I’d be Mary Magdalene. There will be a time when I will write about her; she is such a mysterious character.
I consider myself to be spiritual and was brought up Catholic. I believe in the power of the universe. I’ve been conditioned to think that there is a higher power. It doesn’t mean I don’t put in the work.
When it comes to dealing with stress and challenging times, I try to practice positive thinking. I write gratitude lists to remind myself, of all the things I have to be thankful for, from my healthy child to hot running water. It helps me to put my problems in perspective.
The best advice I ever received was to ‘Feel the fear and do it anyway’. Fear stops us — fear of not being good enough, that we can’t do it — but you just have to steel yourself. Courage is fear walking.
Read the full piece >>> https://www.irishexaminer.com/breakingnews/lifestyle/features/this-much-i-know-author-sarah-crossan-869091.html
This looks to be a truly marvellous picture book…
When researching the subject, were there any films, archives, or locations that you found particularly useful and/or inspiring?
Júlia: I always try to do a good amount of research before start drawing, it helps me a lot to find inspiration. I also try to look among different artistic disciplines to widen my view. In this case I think that the biggest influence was the painter Felix Vallotton, his representations of the countryside and the interiors of the époque were very useful. But you can see hints of lots of inspirations in things such as the dancing fire and the ghosts in the storm inspired from Fantasia, “Night on Bald Mountain” the floor pattern from Twin Peaks, and there’s also inspiration from Goya’s Colossus mixed with “Fight to death with Clubs”, Medieval language from “Apocalypsis” from Beato de Liébana, etc.
Read the full, richly illustrated piece here >>> https://theaoi.com/2018/09/12/mary-and-frankenstein-julia-sarda-interview-review/
There’s Room For Everyone by Anahita Teymorian is the launch title (publishing later this month) in a projected new series from Tiny Owl called ‘Hope In A Scary World’.
Tiny Owl’s publisher Delaram Ghanimifard says, “I think we underestimate children. We cover their eyes and their ears and hope they won’t see and hear: but they do see, and they do understand. So we need books for children, in their own playful way, to show them what’s wrong with the world and how they can fix it! And that there’s always hope.”
She says they chose There’s Room For Everyone as the launch title “Because even today, we’re still facing problems around refugees and immigration, and people thinking that the world belongs only to themselves. This book was perfect to show how silly that idea was, and how with kindness, we can all live happily in this world.”
The #PicturesMeanBusiness campaign has just launched a new expanded website…
What Does It Mean If You Support #PicturesMeanBusiness?
ACHUKA says a resounding YES to all of that.
A picture book has got to be good and ideally it’s got to offer a new idea—or an idea that needs to be written or illustrated. The illustration and text should inspire the readers. There are very few authors who know how to write picture books—or can write good picture book text. We’re always on the lookout. Many of the picture books we see today have been done before and, I guess, have not been able to contribute anything new.
Klaus Flugge
Yes Day, a comedy based on the children’s book of the same name that Garner is set to star in and produce, has been picked up by the streamer.Miguel Arteta, who worked with Garner on Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day, will direct from a script by Justin Malen (Father Figures), who adapted the New York Times best-seller from author Amy Krouse Rosenthal and illustrator Tom Lichtenheld.
via Netflix Lands Jennifer Garner Comedy ‘Yes Day’ (Exclusive) | Hollywood Reporter.
