Some authors tell stories. Marisabina Russo lived hers.

First came Always Remember Me, about her family’s experiences during the Holocaust. Then, the 2011 picture book I Will Come Back for You: A Family in Hiding During World War II followed.

Using the perfect, most appropriate words to explore a difficult subject, Russo gives young readers hope amid the darkness of World War II.

Marisabina, what’s right right now about children’s literature?

Besides writing and illustrating books for children, I’ve been lucky enough to be on the Ezra Jack Keats Award committee for the past three years. There are two awards, one for writing and the other for illustrating. The winners must be new to the field of children’s books. When the boxes and envelopes start to arrive almost daily, I feel like a little girl again, unwrapping special presents. It really gives me a chance to see what’s going on out there in the publishing world. What strikes me is the variety of picture books. Yes, there are trends; celebrity books are still with us, princesses and pigs abound, and alphabet books never seem to go out of style. But there are also wonderful surprises, original books that make you sit up and take notice. New talent entering the field of children’s literature is a cause for celebration! Editors who recognize that talent and are brave enough to take a chance on untried authors and illustrators deserve kudos as well.

What could make that “good” better?

I would love to see more media coverage of the best in children’s books. The Caldecott and Newbery winners used to appear for a short interview on the Today Show a day after the awards were announced, but over the past two years NBC has declined those interviews. When you go into the children’s department of a chain bookstore, you get a lot of the ‘big’ names prominently displayed and surrounded by plush dolls and toys. Will a consumer look at the rest of the books shelved with only their spines showing? Publishing is a business, so if a book doesn’t sell well, it will go out of print before its time. This is a sad trend for all of us who work so hard to make books for children. For this reason and more importantly, for the benefit of our young readers, we need to support our librarians, independent booksellers, and classroom teachers. These are the people who will connect the right books to the right readers and inspire a lifetime of reading. Isn’t that what it’s all about?

Marisabina Russo began her career as an illustrator, contributing many drawings and five covers to The New Yorker magazine. She began writing and illustrating books for children in 1986. Ms. Russo is the author/illustrator of 24 picture books and two young adult novels, as well as the illustrator of eight picture books by other authors. Her first picture book, The Line Up Book, won the International Reading Association’s award for Best Picture Book of 1987 and was named to the New York Public Library’s list of “`100 Picture Books Everyone Should Know.” Her other books have won numerous honors including the Washington Irving Award, a Charlotte Zolotow Honor, and two Sydney Taylor Notables. Always Remember Me, a book Ms. Russo wrote about her family’s experiences during the Holocaust, was named an American Library Association Notable Book. It was also adapted and produced as a play by the theater department of Idaho State University. Her more recent books include The Bunnies Are Not In Their Beds (translated into Japanese, Chinese, and Hebrew); A Very Big Bunny, and I Will Come Back For You: A Family In Hiding During World War II, both Junior Library Guild Selections. Peter Is Just A Baby, her most recent picture book, has just been published. Find out more at www.marisabinarusso.com.

Yes, he’s one and the same.

I thought children’s literature may have lost William Joyce to Hollywood. The author-illustrator pursued his love of animation.

Despite his animated short film The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore getting nominated for an Academy Award, William Joyce sounds like he isn’t going to forget his readers.

What’s good right now about children’s literature?

I think there is going to be a huge shift in Children’s publishing.  But Children’s literature will be the same mix of quality that it’s always been. There’ll be wonders that are embraced. There’ll be wonders that are ignored or misunderstood. There’ll be books that parents hate and children love and vice versa. So much is being written and discussed about what will become of books.

From your perspective, what could be done to make that “good” better?

People say that picture books are dying, which is simplistic and short-sighted. When I started in publishing in the early 1980’s, picture books had only a fraction of the sales they have now. The numbers are definitely declining but they still sell much more than they did back in “the day.” I think the various pads will change the landscape forever, especially for picture books and young fiction. I did a book App for a book that I haven’t published yet. And I did so with emotional trepidation. Books are holy things to me.

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photo by Tony Reans

A true luminary and creative spirit, William Joyce has put his personal stamp on all types of children’s media. He wrote his first book in the fourth grade and has since produced many award-winning, best-selling classics that are loved by both children and adults. His picture books include George Shrinks, Santa Calls, Dinosaur Bob and his Adventures with the Family Lazardo, The Leaf Men and the Brave Good Bugs, A Day with Wilbur Robinson, Bently & Egg, and the Rolie Polie Olie series, which has grown into a popular animated children’s program, earning Joyce three Emmy awards.

Hailed by Newsweek as one of the top 100 people to watch in the new millennium, William Joyce’s distinct and striking drawings and imaginative storytelling depict a world full of whimsy, fun, and adventure. He has lent his creative expertise to the feature film world by creating conceptual characters for such films as Toy Story and A Bug’s Life. Joyce second television series, George Shrinks, aired daily on PBS stations across the country. He was also the producer and production designer for the critically acclaimed animated feature film Robots and was the executive producer of the Disney Feature Animated film Meet the Robinsons, which is based on his picture book.

Joyce is currently co-directing the DreamWorks Animation release of Rise of the Guardians, inspired by his new book series. He is also the writer, producer, and production designer on the Fox Studios feature film, The Leaf Men, based on his book.

In addition to being a recognized figure in the world of children’s literature and animated films, Joyce’s illustrated have appeared numerous times on the cover of The New Yorker and his paintings are displayed at museums and art galleries across the nation. And he has entered the world of interactive digital media with the app The Fantastic Flying Books of Morris Lessmore, which is also an award-winning short film.

William Joyce lives in Shreveport, Louisiana, with his lovely wife, Elizabeth, and their family. The Man in the Moon, the first picture book in the Guardians of Childhood series, marks his return to the world of children’s books.

Sudipta Bardhan-Quallen does more than make me laugh. She makes me believe! This author had flown under my radar until Hampire!. Once I discovered her prowess at parody, she (or her books) fill my most-wanted list.

Sudipta, what’s right about children’s literature?

What’s right….I think there are a lot of things “right” right now about children’s literature. We have rich characters, compelling plots, talented storytellers, and all those things seem to be trending upward. Gone are the days of boring, functional books—those have been replaced with characters like Olivia or Skippyjon Jones (or, dare I add, the Hampire or Quackenstein or Half-Pint Pete, the Pirate?) who occupy our minds and hearts and make us hunger for more. Books are intended to open doors to worlds we are unfamiliar with, and today’s literature leads to worlds that readers love to visit and hate to leave.

One thing I would like to highlight, though, as particularly good is how relevant today’s literature strives to be for real children. The idealized worlds of yesterday’s books have been replaced with cities and suburbs, rich and poor, happy families and those still searching for happiness. This is a very important shift, in my mind—here are many children who use literature as a guide to get them through the difficult parts of life. A child who is trying to make sense of his of her challenges may not connect to a character with a perfect family and perfect life. But because today’s literature can offer so many different outlooks, we give every child a fighting chance to find his or own story in a book somewhere. I take pride in this, both as an author and as a mother.

What can be done to make that “good” better?

When I started writing, I dreamed of writing picture books—and really nothing else. Now, as my children have grown, I’ve learned that my interests have changed and I now write chapter books and middle grade novels as well. But my first love will always be picture books—so it has saddened me to witness how picture books are getting a bad rap these days. Too many parents think that their children would be smarter if they skipped picture books altogether and started reading early readers, chapter books, and the like. I wish I could put out a PSA to convince parents that skipping picture books is not good for their kids! Picture books are developmentally appropriate for young children, exploring issues that are relevant and important to them, whereas early readers explore the needs of older children—in light of that, how could anyone want to lose the picture book experience? Furthermore, picture books are designed to be read by an adult, not by a child, and therefore the language is much more complex. A child who can independently read a picture book is a much stronger reader than one who can independently read an early reader. Because picture books are not held to readability standards, they are not only more difficult to read but often more beautifully and lyrically written than books intended to teach children to read. Its so much easier to love literature when the language in books you read is beautiful—in my opinion, children who experience picture books have that much more love for books in general.

So…to return to the question, I would make the “good” in children’s literature better by encouraging more people to experience picture books with the children in their lives, and not rush through to other things. Childhood goes by too quickly as it is—let’s let kids enjoy their picture book years for as long as they need to.
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Sudipta Bardhan-Quallen never thought she’d grow up to be a writer. She’d thought of being a doctor (but she’s afraid of blood), a model (but she likes to eat), or the President (but she had a dissolute youth) — so much for childhood dreams! Sudipta is the award-winning author of over 35 books for children, including picture books like Half Pint Pete the Pirate (Putnam), Hampire! (HarperCollins), and Chicks Run Wild (Simon& Schuster), and will soon be launching a new series of early middle grade novels. Sudipta often visits schools to share her stories, and teaches writing to children and adults. She lives in New Jersey with her three children and an imaginary pony named Penny. Find her on the web at www.sudipta.com