News Archive

illustration of Joseph Pulitzer, from Lady Liberty: A Biography (Candlewick, 2008) 5/2023 Hoops has made the Indiebound National Bestseller List in each of its first 7 weeks since publication! 3/2023 Hoops debuted at #5 on the Indiebound National Bestseller List! 2/2023 Hoops was named to the Kids' Indie Next List by the American Booksellers Association! 9/2022 Good news: Hoops is a Junior Library Guild selection! 12/2022 Dasher made it back onto the New York Times Bestseller list for its 4th Christmas in a row, hitting #9 last week!   6/2022 I made a graphic novel! It took forever, but it's finally done. Hoops, coming in March, 2023. I can't wait! 12/2021 Dasher made it back onto the New York Times Bestseller list for its 3rd Christmas in a row, hitting #3 last week! 12/2021 Dasher cracked the top 100 on the USA Today Bestseller list for the first time, hitting #76 last week! 12/2021 Twenty-One Steps: Guarding the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier was named to the Wall Street Journal Best Books of 2021, School Library Journal Best Books of 2021, and the Kirkus Reviews Best Books of 2021 lists! 11/2021 Jeff Gottesfeld and I won the Audrey Geisel Friend of Military Children Award, for Twenty-One Steps: Guarding the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. 11/2021 My poster design, featuring the cover art from Twenty-One Steps: Guarding the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. was chosen by the US Department of Veterans' Affairs as the official 2021 Veterans Day poster. it will also serve as the cover for the program for the Veterans Day ceremonies at Arlington National Cemetery, honoring the 100th anniversary of the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. 3/2021 Twenty-One Steps: Guarding the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier is now available! 2/2021 Twenty-One Steps: Guarding the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier received starred reviews from Kirkus, The Horn Book, and Shelf Awareness! 12/2020 Dasher made the New York Times Bestseller List, the USA Today Bestseller list, and the Indiebound National Bestseller list! 3/2020 A Ben of All Trades is now available! 1/2020 Dasher spent 8 consecutive weeks on the Indiebound National Bestseller list, including 3 weeks at #2! 12/2019 Dasher made the New York Times Bestseller List!!! 11/2019 Dasher made the Indiebound National Bestseller list!! 9/2019 Dasher is now available! 11/2018 If you're looking for prints of my artwork... good news! Archival museum quality giclee prints of some of my illustrations are now available through Society6. They come in multiple sizes and can be ordered framed or unframed. 9/2018 Lighter Than Air was selected by the Society of Illustrators to be included in their exhibit of the best children's books of the year, The Original Art 2018! The exhibit opens on November 8 at the Society of Illustrators in New York City. 4/2018 The National Council for the Social Studies and the Children's Book Council selected Lighter Than Air for the Notable Social Studies Trade Books for Young People 2018 list.   12/2017 Red & Lulu finished 2017 in style, with five consecutive weeks on the Indiebound National Bestseller List!  Thanks to independent bookstores across the United States, and thanks to everyone who bought a copy! 12/2017 Nice mention of Red & Lulu on Betsy Bird's A Fuse #8 Production blog 12/2017 Red & Lulu hit #5 on the Indiebound National Bestseller List for the week of 12/6/17! 11/2017 Red & Lulu made its debut at #10 on the Indiebound National Bestseller List for the week of 11/29/17! 9/2017 Red & Lulu was selected by the Society of Illustrators to be included in their exhibit of the best children's books of the year, The Original Art 2017! The exhibit opens on November 2 at the Society of Illustrators in New York City. 9/2017 Red & Lulu got a starred review in Publishers Weekly! 8/2017 I'll be traveling around quite a bit this fall reading and signing Red & Lulu. Here's where I'll be. Come say hi! 5/2017 Crossing Niagara made the Bank Street Best Children's Books of the Year, 2017 list! 4/2017 Red & Lulu (coming in September) is a Junior Library Guild Selection! 2/2017 Lighter Than Air is a Junior Library Guild Selection! 10/1016 Growing Up Pedro won a Massachusetts Book Award Honor! 9/1016 Growing Up Pedro won an International Latino Book Award! 6/2016 Growing Up Pedro won an Americas Award Honorable Mention! 5/2016 Helen's Big World won the California Young Reader Medal! 4/2016 Growing Up Pedro won the 2015 Lupine Honor! Thank you, Maine librarians! 4/2016 Growing Up Pedro made the 2016-2017 Maine Student Book Award list! 3/2016 Growing Up Pedro and the "Candlewick Biographies" edition of Henry Aaron's Dream both made the Bank Street College Best Children's Books of the Year, 2016 list. 1/2016 Growing Up Pedro was named a 2016 ALA Notable Children's Book!  1/2016 Growing Up Pedro won a Nerdy Award! 12/2015 All the Wonders named Growing Up Pedro one of the Best Nonfiction Picture Books of 2015! 12/2015 Growing Up Pedro made The Huffington Post's Best Picture Books of 2015 list (Best Biography, Honorable Mention)! 12/2015 The Chicago Public Library named Growing Up Pedro to their Best of the Best Books 2015 list!   11/2015 Growing Up Pedro was named a 2016 Orbis Pictus Award Honor Book! 10/2015 Growing Up Pedro was selected by the Society of Illustrators to appear in their exhibit of the best children's books of the year, The Original Art 2015! The exhibit opens on October 29 at the Museum of American Illustration at the Society of Illustrators in New York City. 7/2015 Growing Up Pedro made the 2015-16 Alabama Camellia Award list! 3/2015 Growing Up Pedro featured in Sports Illustrated Kids.   2/2015 Growing Up Pedro is now available! 1/2015 Growing Up Pedro is a Junior Library Guild selection! 1/2015 Growing Up Pedro is a Junior Library Guild selection! 9/2014 Jubilee! was selected by the Society of Illustrators to appear in their exhibit of the best children's books of the year, The Original Art 2014! The exhibit opens on October 22 at the Museum of American Illustration at the Society of Illustrators in New York City. 7/2014 I'll be reading, signing books, and doing a drawing demonstration at The Smithsonian American Art Museum in Washington, D.C., on July 19, part of the Baseball Family Festival! The event will run from 11:30 to 3:00 (my program starts at 1:00). 6/2014 Becoming Babe Ruth is a 2014 Comstock Read Aloud Honor Book!   5/2014 Becoming Babe Ruth made Bank Street's Best Children's Books of the Year list! 2/2014 Jubilee! got a starred review in Publisher's Weekly! 5/2013 There Goes Ted Williams: The Greatest Hitter Who Ever Lived  and Helen's Big World both made Bank Street's Best Children's Books of the Year list! 3/2013 Becoming Babe Ruth featured in The New York Times! 1/2013 Helen's Big World is a 2013 ALA Notable Book! 1/2013 Helen's Big World was named a 2013 Charlotte Zolotow Award Highly Commended book! 1/2013 Becoming Babe Ruth got a starred review in Booklist! 8/2012 Another starred review for Helen's Big World! This one from School Library Journal. 8/2012 Helen's Big World got a starred review in The Horn Book Magazine. 7/2012 There Goes Ted Williams: The Greatest Hitter Who Ever Lived was named a Top Ten Sports Book for Youth by Booklist. 4/2012 There Goes Ted Williams: The Greatest Hitter Who Ever Lived won an Oppenheim Gold Seal Award! 3/2012 I'll be traveling around quite a bit this spring promoting my new picture book, There Goes Ted Williams: The Greatest Hitter Who Ever Lived (Candlewick). Check out my events page to see where I'll be. 11/11 Over the River and Through the Wood featured in The New York Times! 8/2011 I'll be traveling around New England this Fall promoting my new picture book, Over the River and Through the Wood. Check out my events page to see where I'll be. 8/2011 My upcoming There Goes Ted Williams: The Greatest Hitter Who Ever Lived (Candlewick, February, 2012) is a 2012 Junior Library Guild selection. I'm very excited for this one to come out! 3/2011 I've started a new feature on my facebook page- a monthly book giveaway! Here are the details. 3/2011 Henry Aaron's Dream won a Kiddo Award! The award is presented by James Patterson's organization, Read Kiddo Read, to honor "the very best books of the year for getting kids absolutely addicted to reading". 3/2011 I started a new feature on my facebook page- a monthly book giveaway, of a signed book with an original drawing inside! "Like" my page so you can enter the next giveaway. 1/2011 The National Council for the Social Studies named Henry Aaron's Dream a 2011 Notable Social Studies Trade Book for Young People! 1/2011 Henry Aaron's Dream was named a 2011 Orbis Pictus Award for Outstanding Nonfiction for Children Recommended Book! 1/2011 Henry Aaron's Dream is a 2010 Cybils Award Finalist! 12/2010 Henry Aaron's Dream is a finalist for a Kiddo Award! 12/2010 Henry Aaron's Dream was named one of Smithsonian's 2010 Notable Books for Children. 11/2010 NEW! Original pencil sketches from The Gingerbread Pirates now available in the shop! 10/2010 Jack's Path of Courage: The Life of John F. Kennedy  is now available in bookstores! 9/2010 Jack's Path of Courage: The Life of John F. Kennedy  will be in stores October 26! In the meantime, check out the book trailer. 9/2010 Upcoming Jack's Path of Courage: The Life of John F. Kennedy won an Oppenheim Gold Seal Award! 9/2010 I'm thrilled to be a part of this exhibit: "Children's Book Illustrators" at the Brush Gallery in Lowell, MA, featuring original illustrations by 5 contemporary American children's book illustrators: David Wiesner, Matt Tavares, Kelly Murphy, David Macaulay, and Christopher Bing. Exhibit runs 9/19/10 through 10/24/10. Opening reception and book signing with all the illustrators 10/2/10, noon-4pm 9/2010 Henry Aaron's Dream was selected by Booklist as one of the Top 10 Sports Books for Youth. 8/2010 Original artwork from Henry Aaron's Dream will be exhibited at the Museum of American Illustration at The Society of Illustrators in New York City, as part of "The Original Art 2010: Celebrating the Fine Art of Children's Book Illustrations". The juried exhibit will be on display October 20-November 24. 6/2010 Library Media Connection gave Henry Aaron's Dream a starred review! 5/2010 Check out The Horn Book Magazine's list of recommended summer reading for kids (including Henry Aaron's Dream!) 4/2010 Henry Aaron's Dream is one of fifteen children's/YA books featured in the 2010 Kirkus nonfiction preview! Download the whole issue here. 2/2010 I was honored to be featured on one of my favorite children's book blogs, Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast. 2/2010 I'm featured in the "Meet the Illustrator" column in the Febraury issue of Bookpage. First time I've answered interview questions with words and pictures! 1/2010 The Great Lakes Independent Booksellers Association selected Henry Aaron's Dream as the only children's book on their "Great Lakes, Great Reads" list for Winter, 2010. 1/2010 Henry Aaron's Dream got a starred review in School Library Journal! 12/2009 Henry Aaron's Dream will be available in stores on January 12, 2010. 12/2009 About.com picked The Gingerbread Pirates as one of the top ten Christmas children's books of 2009. 11/2009 Lady Liberty: A Biography was chosen for the Virginia Readers' Choice Award list for the 2010-2011 school year! 11/2009 The Horn Book came out with its annual list of recommended new holiday books, and The Gingerbread Pirates made the list! 10/2009 The Gingerbread Pirates got a starred review in Publisher's Weekly! 8/2009 I'll be doing a bunch of book signings with Kristin Kladstrup this Fall, to introduce our swashbuckling new picture book, The Gingerbread Pirates! 8/2009 Thanks to Candlewick Press, you can download a free Gingerbread Pirates Story Hour Kit with a fun craft project and a recipe for Gingerbread cookies! 1/2009 Lady Liberty: A Biography made the  2009 Capitol Choices  list of noteworthy books for children. 1/2009  Lady Liberty: A Biography made Book Links Magazine's "Lasting Connections" list, which spotlights the editors' selections of the 30 best children's books of 2008 for libraries and classrooms. 1/2009 About.com picked Lady Liberty: A Biography as one of the 10 Best Illustrated Books of 2008. 1/2009 Grandparents.com picked Lady Liberty: A Biography as one of the 10 Best Children's Books of 2008. 12/2008 Susan Dove Lempke of the International Reading Association chose  Lady Liberty: A Biography  as one of the top 10 children's books of 2008. 11/2008 Lady Liberty: A Biography won a Parents' Choice Gold Award! 11/2008 Lady Liberty: A Biography is on the 2009 Texas Bluebonnet Award Master List! 10/2008 The Children's Hour selected Lady Liberty: A Biography as one of the best books of 2008. 9/2008 Lady Liberty: A Biography was featured in The New York Times Book Review! 9/2008 Teachers, you can now download a free teacher's guide for Lady Liberty: A Biography. 9/2008 Original artwork from Lady Liberty: A Biography will be exhibited at the Museum of American Illustration at The Society of Illustrators in New York City, as part of "The Original Art: Celebrating the Fine Art of Children's Book Illustrations". The juried exhibit will feature original artwork from over 100 children's books, and will be on display October 16-November 26. 8/2008 Here's a nice review of Lady Liberty: A Biography in The Boston Globe. 7/2008 Doreen Rappaport and I were guests on The Book Report. Listen to the entire one-hour radio program here. 6/2008 Lady Liberty: A Biography got a starred review in The Horn Book Magazine! 6/2008 Lady Liberty: A Biography won an Oppenheim Gold Award! 5/2008 Amazon.com has picked Lady Liberty: A Biography as one of the three best pictures books of May! 5/2008 Lady Liberty: A Biography is getting some really nice reviews from the blogosphere- here's one written by Julie Danielson at Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast, one by Julie M. Prince at YA Books Central, and one by Stacy Dillon at Booktopia. Thanks, bloggers! 5/2008 Lady Liberty: A Biography will be available on May 13. In the next few weeks, I'll be doing presentations and book signings at Little Shop of Stories in Decatur, GA, Book Ends in Winchester, MA, Barnes and Noble in Newington, NH, and the Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art in Amherst, MA. See a full list of events here.5/2008- Lady Liberty: A Biography got a starred review in School Library Journal! 4/2008- Lady Liberty: A Biography got a starred review in Kirkus Reviews! 4/2008- I'd like to help spread the word about  Our White House: Looking In, Looking Out (Candlewick, September, 2008), a 256-page collection of writings and artwork offering a look at American history through the prism of the White House. I am honored to have contributed an illustration to the book, alongside work by 107 acclaimed writers and artists, including David Macaulay, Brian Selznick, Chris Raschka,  Kate DiCamillo, M.T. Anderson, Jane Yolen, John Scieszka, and Leonard Marcus. 4/2008- Lady Liberty: A Biography got a starred review in Booklist! 3/2008- If you're in the Boston area, and you'd like to get a sneak peek at my next book, Lady Liberty: A Biography, please come to the Concord Free Library on Saturday, March 8 at 2:00.  There will be a few advance copies on hand, and I'll be doing a slide presentatiaon about the process I went through while working on this book. 1/2008- If you're in the New York City area, I'll be signing books at Books of Wonder on Thursday,  January 31, 5:00-7:00pm, with Kadir Nelson. 11/2007- Robert's Snow: For Cancer's Cure: Here's a great opportunity to buy a one-of-a-kind Christmas gift, and help an important cause at the same time. Exclusive original pieces of art- wooden snowflakes decorated by 200 children's book illustrators- are being auctioned off to raise money for cancer research. Bidding on my snowflake ends November 30, but several snowflakes will be available until December 7. I saw all the snowflakes in person, and they're amazing! 11/2007-  IRON HANS: A GRIMMS' FAIRY TALE won a Parents' Choice Award! 9/2007- IRON HANS: A GRIMMS' FAIRY TALE is now available in stores! 9/2007- Here's a nice review of JACK AND THE BEANSTALK from a newspaper in South Africa. 8/2007- Thanks to the Boston Public Library and their excellent "Read Your Way to Fenway" program, I'll be signing books before the game at Fenway Park on Sunday, August 19, underneath the right field grandstand! Visit my events page to see where else I'll be. 6/2007- I started a new illustration yesterday for LADY LIBERTY: A BIOGRAPHY, written by Doreen Rappaport.  I'll be tracking its progress on my blog. If you're interested in seeing how I make my illustrations, check it out.  And if you have any questions or comments, let me know. 1/2007- 'TWAS THE NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS made the BookSense NEIBA (New England Independent Booksellers Association) Bestseller List! It was listed at #11 in the Children's Fiction/Illustrated category for the week ending December 28, 2006, trailing only 4 picture books- The Polar Express, Where the Wild Things Are, Goodnight Moon, and Pirateology! 1/2007- Check out my new blog! I'm new to the world of blogging, so I'm not making any promises... but if you're interested in seeing sketches, works-in-progress, and other behind-the-scenes picture book stuff, you just might like it 12/2006- 'TWAS THE NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS featured on the Parents' Choice Foundation's Holiday Gift Guide! 12/2006- Two nice new reviews for 'TWAS THE NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS, by The St. Louis Post-Dispatch and the Wall Street Journal! 12/ 2006- JACK AND THE BEANSTALK won a Parents' Choice Gold Award! 12/2006- Check out Deirdre Baker's excellent review of JACK AND THE BEANSTALK in the Toronto Star. She calls the book "glorious", and calls my Giant "squalidly repulzive." That's good, right?... 12/2006- a nice review of both 'TWAS THE NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS and JACK AND THE BEANSTALK in The Bangor Daily News 10/2006- JACK AND THE BEANSTALK featured on 612 ABC Radio in Brisbane, Australia! 10/2006- JACK AND THE BEANSTALK got a starred review in School Library Journal! 10/2006- JACK AND THE BEANSTALK was selected for the New York Public Library's 2006 "100 Titles for Reading and Sharing" list! 10/2006- Original artwork from JACK AND THE BEANSTALK will be exhibited at the New York Public Library Central Children's Room, November 13, 2006- January 5, 2007. 10/2006- Original artwork from JACK AND THE BEANSTALK is being exhibited at the Museum of American Illustration at The Society of Illustrators in New York City, as part of "The Original Art: Celebrating the Fine Art of Children's Book Illustrations". The juried exhibit will feature original artwork from over 150 children's books, and will be on display October 26-November 22. 10/2006- Maurice Saxby, Australia's leading critical commentator of Children's Literature, wrote this wonderful review of JACK in Magpies Magazine. 9/2006- JACK AND THE BEANSTALK is now available! 4/2006- MUDBALL is one of ten nominees for the Vermont state children's book award, the Red Clover Award! 4/2006- MUDBALL is one of eight nominees for the 2007 Nevada Young Readers Award! 1/2006- The St. Louis Post-Dispatch named MUDBALL one of the 6 best picture books of 2005! 11/2005- Original artwork from MUDBALL is being exhibited at the Museum of American Illustration at The Society of Illustrators in New York City, as part of "The Original Art: Celebrating the Fine Art of Children's Book Illustrations". The juried exhibit will feature original artwork from over 150 children's books, and will be on display November 2-November 23.  50 illustrations were selected (including the MUDBALL one) for a traveling exhibit that will be shown at the Rochester Institute of Technology after the conclusion of the NYC exhibit. For more information on "The Original Art": http://www.societyillustrators.org/index.html 11/2005- Also, original artwork from 'TWAS THE NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS will be exhibited at the Brandywine River Museum in Chadds Ford, PA. The exhibit, called "'Twas the Night Before Christmas" will feature many different illustrators' interpretations of the poem, bringing together paintings, prints, drawings and other imagery from the 1800s to the modern day. Included are works by Thomas Nast, Everett Shinn, N.C. Wyeth, Jessie Willcox Smith, and many others, past and present. The exhibit will run from November 25 through January 8. For more information: http://www.brandywinemuseum.org -Robert's Snow 2005: Exclusive original pieces of art- wooden snowflakes decorated by 200 children's book illustrators- will be auctioned through eBay this fall in Robert's Snow: for Cancer's Cure. Last year they raised over $100,000 for cancer research! Click here to view my snowflake.

LADY LIBERTY. Text Copyright © 2008 Doreen Rappaport. Illustrations © 2008 Matt Tavares. Candlewick Press, Cambridge, MA.