Over the past week, I have explored the theme of darkness in literature. In the Bible, we are told that in the beginning, the world was nothing but darkness. There was no moon. There was no sun. We are told that water moved across the darkness at that time, and therefore, I imagine that in…
Stellaluna by Jannell Cannon
Stellaluna by Jannell Cannon The illustrations for Stellaluna are incandescent. The fruit bats glow against their blue backgrounds. Like the very moon itself, Stellaluna’s mother is a light that illuminates the night sky. The Moon & the Stars — Things That Light the Night While we might often associate the nighttime with blackness–with total darkness–Stellaluna…
Hello, Moon – A Picture Book by Julie Downing
“Hello, moon. Goodbye, sun. Night is near. Day is done. In my opinion, Julie Downing’s Hello Moon is a perfect short picture book. The literary theme of Night versus Day plays heavily in this book. But in Hello, Moon, the nighttime is not sinister or evil. It Dark versus Light – Night versus Day –…
The Moon & the Stars — Things That Light the Night
Darkness versus the Light or Night versus Day are themes that frequently appear in the arts. In most cases, when the theme of the night is employed in a literary piece, the darkness of the night alludes to something sinister that is present in the story. Dark versus Light – Night versus Day – Themes…
Women Who Run with the Wolves Quotes
Editorial Reviews From Publishers Weekly “Folklore, fairy tales and dream symbols are called on to help restore women’s neglected intuitive and instinctive abilities in this earthy first book by a Jungian analyst. According to Estes, wolves and women share a psychic bond in their fierceness, grace and devotion to mate and community. This comparison defines…
Point of View and Perspective in Literature
What Is Point of View in Literature? Generally speaking, Point of View has to do with how a story is told–whether the narrator is telling the story himself or whether another uninvolved narrator is telling the telling the story. In My Humble Opinion, Perspective and Point View Are Different. Many might disagree with my opinion….
Wolves in the Wall – A Picture Book by Neil Gaiman – Illustrated by Dave McKean
“Lucy walked around the house.” “Inside the house everything was quiet. Her mother was putting homemade jam into jars.” “Lucy heard noises. The noises were coming from inside the walls. They were hustling noises and bustling noises. They were crinkling noises and crackling noises. They were sneaking, creeping, crumpling noises.” “Lucy knew what kinds of…
What Do Amazon Best Seller Ratings Mean? – Understanding the Business Side of Making a Picture Book
For the past several days, my debut picture book The Donkey’s Song has been at the top of one of Amazon’s Best Seller Lists. I have wanted to post something about Amazon’s ratings for a while, and I decided that this might be a good time to tell you what I know about this Amazon…
Little Red Riding Hood, Edited by Watty Piper in 1922
1922 “There was once a sweet little maid who lived with her father and mother in a pretty little cottage at the edge of the village. At the further end of the wood was another pretty cottage and in it lived her grandmother. “Everybody loved this little girl, her grandmother perhaps loved her most of…
Old Banjo A Picture Book by Dennis Haseley – Illustrated by Stephen Gammell
The Old Banjo – Dennis Haseley – 1988 Illustrated by Stephen Gammell 485 Words All over this farm there are instruments that no one plays anymore. “I wonder if some band used to live here,” says the farmer’s boy, “I wish we could have heard them.” “Well, they’re gone now,” says his father, “and we’ve got…