Tomie dePaola was born on September 15, and today, I want to honor him. In addition to being a writer and a painter, I am also a gardener, and recently, I began looking at the healing properties of plants. As research often does, that research led me again to dePaola’s Strega Nona, the Grandma…
Category: Memoir
Tomie dePaola Autobiographical Picture Books
In her biography, Tomie dePaola His Art & His Stories, Barbara Elleman said the following about dePaola’s tendency to write about himself and about his family: Autobiographical Tales The Beginning of the 26 Fairmount Series “His father, an ardent photographer and also a home-movie buff, rarely let a birthday party, summer picnic at a beach,…
The Baby Sister
The Baby Sister – First Published in 1965 but dePaola Re-designed the Book Later Image Credit dePaola on Amazon Image from The Baby Sister Image Credit dePaola on Amazon Image from The Baby Sister Image Credit dePaola on Amazon| Image from The Baby Sister Image Credit dePaola on Amazon Image from The Baby Sister Image…
Nana Upstairs, Nana Downstairs
Image Credit: Tomie dePaola on Amazon Image from Nana Upstairs & Nana Downstairs Image Credit: Tomie dePaola on Amazon Image from Nana Upstairs & Nana Downstairs Image Credit: Tomie dePaola on Amazon Image from Nana Upstairs & Nana Downstairs Image Credit: Tomie dePaola on Amazon Image from Nana Upstairs & Nana Downstairs Image Credit: Tomie…
Tom – A Picture Book about Tomie DePaola’s Grandfather
Tom – 1993 Image Credit: Tomie dePaola on Amazon Image from Tom Image Credit: Tomie dePaola on Amazon Image from Tom Image Credit: Tomie dePaola on Amazon Image from Tom Image Credit: Tomie dePaola on Amazon Image from Tom Image Credit: Tomie dePaola on Amazon Image from Tom Image Credit: Tomie dePaola on Amazon Image from Tom Image Credit: Tomie dePaola…
26 Fairmount Avenue: Welcome to Tomie’s Home
26 Fairmount Avenue – 1999 Image Credit: Tomie dePaola on Amazon Image from 26 Fairmount Avenue Image Credit: Tomie dePaola on Amazon Image from 26 Fairmount Avenue Image Credit: Tomie dePaola on Amazon Image from 26 Fairmount Avenue Image Credit: Tomie dePaola on Amazon Image from 26 Fairmount Avenue Image Credit: Tomie dePaola on Amazon Image from 26 Fairmount Avenue…
Spirituality, Aesthetics, and Nature: Romantic Writers – William Blake on the Imagination as Ideal
“Aesthetics can be a practice or theory that includes many subjects, such as art, beauty, taste, and perception. Spirituality can be described as a journey of letting go of ego and finding love and joy in every moment. Some say that people with a higher level of spiritual development may have more intense aesthetic experiences…
Free Memoir Writing Challenge Day 4 – Write in a Stream of Conscioiusness – Be Free
Yesterday, we talked about adding figurative language to writing. Today, I want you to suspend that process for a while. Today, we are going to begin writing a paragraph or two about November, and I want you to suspend your search for metaphors and similes for a while. In fact, I want you to suspend…
Harvest Your Past Memoir Challenge Day 3 – Using Similes and Metaphors to Empower Your Writing
A few days ago, I launched a free memoir writing challenge. I began by referring to Cynthia Rylant’s picture book In November. If you have not read that post yet, please do. In that post, I showed how Rylant had captured the essence of November in precious few words, and I asked the participants of…
Harvest Your Past Memoir Challenge – Write More to Write Better – Write to Heal Yourself
Before I tell you about today’s Memoir Writing Exercise, I want to share a true story with you. Today, I am a fairly prolific writer, but a few years ago, I couldn’t force myself to write. After my spirit had suffered several blows, I had become creatively mute. Depression had set in, and it seemed…