PS 347 and the Woodsies

Last month I had the privilege of reading Bernard to the awesome kids at P.S. 347 which is a school for the Deaf and Hearing Impaired as well as children with Deaf or Hearing Impaired parents.
I was invited by the gracious Gary Wellbrook, teacher at P.S. 347, enthusiast of children's literature and unabashed Joseph Campbell fan. So right way we had two things in common. He posted a lot of nice things on his blog about me and other kids book authors and illustrators, you can check out at his blog here.

One thing that Gary zeroed in on is my love for the work of Margret and H. A. Rey. Curious George is a big influence and I was reminded of another big influence over the holiday that I had forgotten about.Anyone remember these guys? The Woodsies?

My cousin got these from "Santa" in the early 80's and I remember pretty much frothing at the mouth in envy. I had had forgotten about these guys but after seeing them, I realized how much they made an imprint on my little brain back then. These guys are ALWAYS Fuzzy and Hopeful!

STICKER TOWN

Whoah! It's been a minute since I've posted here. If you are still here, and awake, promise more posts to come from Fuzzytown.
New book projects I've been working on, PA One Book tour dates and other fun and fuzzy stuff. Stay tuned.

In the mean time....Some more Bernard! goodies for the upcoming PA One Book tour.

SNORING EXPRESS

Spent two very rewarding nights in Greg Pizzoli's studio and the end result of our labor was this poster. The official PA ONE BOOK SNORING EXPRESS 2012 TOUR poster modeled by Oskar.

Hand silk screened in four colors, this is the Miami Vice Edition. (Pretty sure I had a pair of JAMS in 8th grade that were this exact color palette and definitely got me noticed at Canobie Lake Park.) 12.5" X19" Limited to 150 copies.
 I'll be giving these to Libraries and Schools that are hosting me during the Tour and probably put up a few for sale on my site. Below are a couple process shots.

Huge thanks to the Doctor for all his expertise, blood, sweat and tears.

PA ONE BOOK GOODIES

I've been working on some fun activities for the PA One Book Guide. Here's a peek at a Zoo Maze and some sticker ideas.

"Start Fishing, Bernard!" a fishing game  with magnets and paperclips, where kids learn what otters eat. Bonus if you know that the rock is something they don't eat but use as a tool to open up shellfish and peel abalone from rocks. 

THANKFULNESS

As Thanksgiving is fast approaching, I have lots to be thankful for, two cute little boys and an amazing wife. I'm also thankful for a holiday that promotes naps. I LOVE naps, so does Bernard and apparently Arianna Huffington loves both. Check this article from New York Magazine. 

So this holiday, after you have hugged your family and are on the sofa, turn off football and indulge in a nap.

STOP SNORING BERNARD AT THE SOCIETY OF ILLUSTRATORS

Found out yesterday that not only did Bernard get into the 2011 Original Art Show at the Society of Illustrators, he won the Founders Award to boot. Not bad for a little guy who naps and snores all day!

In all seriousness it is an honor to be listed among so many great people including Lane Smith (who received a Silver Medal) who inspired me way back in high school with the True Story of the Three Little Pigs.

BOOK REPORT

This is Luke, he's in the third grade, rides crazy scooter/skateboard hybrids and lives on our block.
He also has great taste in books.
He made this awesome diorama based on Stop Snoring, Bernard!
Seeing it took me back to making those projects in school, the shoebox diorama! So much fun!
Actually, its kind of what I do now come to think of it. Lucky me!

READING AT MOOMAH THURSDAY MAY 19TH

Super excited about doing this reading at Moomah. They invited me to sit in their animation class for 6-9 year olds. In addition to reading the book I'll be giving a demo on how to draw Bernard. The kids are then going to take their drawings and make stop action animations with them. If you are in New York check it out!

CUPCAKES AND CAB RIDES

Had a great time signing books at Books of Wonder on Saturday. Special thanks to Peter and the staff, who were gracious hosts. Oskar had a great time passing out stickers to every person who came in the store.

Had the pleasure of meeting legendary kids book illustrators Leo and Diane Dillon.

We also were blown away by Matthew Reinhart and his incredible pop-up books.
We snagged a super hero one and got it signed before we left.
To top it all off we got to hang with some good friends and Oskar had his first New York street hot dog, Mr Softie and a carousel ride in Bryant Park.

Asked what was his favorite part of the day?

The cab rides.

BOOKSIGNING THIS SATURDAY AT BOOKS OF WONDER

First off, thanks to everyone who came out on Friday and made the reading at Character Development a success and lots of fun.  This coming Saturday I've been invited by the amazing book store Books of Wonder in Manhattan to participate in Pop-ups and Picture Books. A bookreading, signing, and Q&A from 12-2. Come down and say hello and check out the work by two time Caldecott winners Leo & Diane Dillon,  Amazing pop-up books by Matthew Reinhart and collage by Javaka Steptoe.

I'm especially excited to be bringing my son Oskar along, his first return to his birthplace and our first Father/Son adventure to New York.

BOOKSIGNING THIS FRIDAY IN THE NARB

Booksigning this Friday and some pics of the window installation. Hope to see you there.

BERNARD HITS THE SHELVES

Almost 3 years + 2 editors + 6 new spreads + 2 kids + 1 new house and - 1 cat = A book I'm pretty proud of.  Here he is nestled on a shelf of that place that recently filed chapter 11. Snore on, Bernard, Snore on.

MOOMAH LOVES BERNARD

Bernard continues to make a splash! I'm thrilled and honored to be loved by the folks at Moomah. An amazing place that is my fantasy hangout with my kids come to life.
Where else can you go where your kids can do art projects, and eat good organic food, all while you sip a carefully selected beer, wine or espresso?
Exactly.
They just launched an online Journal/Magazine and there's a feature on Bernard, check it out here.
Can't wait to visit and hopefully bring Oskar and Teddy too.

Special thanks to owner Tracey Stewart and super talented Lisel Jane for making me a part of the Moomah family. If you are in New York, and with your kids, bring them to Moomah, and tell them Bernard sent you.

TIME OUT NEW YORK REVIEWS BERNARD!

Time Out New York Kids picks Bernard! Check it out on their site here.

READING AT CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT

Announcing the first Book Reading and Signing Event for Spring. Friday April 29th at 4pm. At Character Development, a super cool kid's toy store in downtown Narberth. If you live in Narberth come by a get a free Bernard! sticker.

Children's Review: Stop Snoring, Bernard!

Really Nice review for Bernard at Shelf Awareness! Yeayy!! A quote and the whole review at the link below.

"This is a crowd-pleaser sure to send youngsters clamoring for more from snoring Bernard".--Jennifer M. Brown

Children's Review: Stop Snoring, Bernard!

YESSSSS!!!!!

GO BERNARD!

Found out that "Stop Snoring, Bernard!" received it's first review today and it was from Publishers Weekly no less. They called it "A promising debut" among other things. Full review over at the Stop Snoring, Bernard! blog.

PACK IT UP, PACK IT IN, LET US BEGIN

The Stop Snoring, Bernard! blog has moved.

 Don't worry, we aren't going to try to lure you with a pizza and a six pack to help us, its all done. 

Bernard! was hosted on Tumblr and I didn't post much, as I couldn't get into their interface. 

So I moved it over to Blogger. The url is the same, stopsnoringbernard.com so that makes it easy, and anyone following this blog, who wants to follow Bernard can do so easily.

I promise to try not have overlapping content. See you over there!

THE BLUE TOBOGGAN

Growing up in New Hampshire, sledding was serious business. One year my sister got a blue toboggan for Christmas and it was the fastest sled this side of the White Mountains. When my youngest sister was little, all three of us could ride it. It was unbeatable! Except when conditions were right, we might get overtaken by a surprise saucer attack.