When Julia was young, she loved the children’s book, Watch The Stars Come Out. I did, too, so it didn’t matter how many times she asked for it to be read. The author is Riki Levinson and the illustrator, Diane Goode, is also a Caldecott Honor Illustrator. The story is being told by a grandmother to her granddaughter and imagined by the child. She tells about how she came to America as a little girl. After the first time I read this to Julia, she asked if her grandmother wrote it because it is exactly the same story of her grandmother coming here. Each illustration done in color pencils and maybe crayon has the same muted tones that unite the theme. The drawings emit the feeling of the olden days, and nostalgia. The street scenes so interestingly highlight everyone. Sensitivity and closeness is obvious in every gesture. If there were no text, we could still hear the story.

Decades ago, when I purchased these two stand-up nursery rhyme pop-ups, they were already old. The copyright says 1953. Geraldine Clyne was the illustrator and I love the old- fashioned fifties look. What I also find so appealing , is the way the titles are part of the total style. The outlined yellow and red letters of “Mary’s Lamb” go so well with the rest of the illustration. And, “There was an old Woman.” done in script, and partially outlined, completes that composition. There is a history of these moveable books by several writers and illustrators from New York- here and here.

Living On The Earth by Alicia Bay Laurel was published in 1970 as a result of all the communes and hippie living styles that sprung up in the sixties. Completely handwritten, in script, it has matching single line drawn illustrations that are very charming. Some illustrations are for instructions on how to make things, but others, the ones I like more, show people enjoying her suggestions. The author infuses her spirit for peace and serenity throughout. She speaks to her readers and admits that her name is not her birth name, but one she chose because bay and laurel are her favorite trees. Everything you would need to know about how to survive on your own or with other people is in here. From how to construct a house, to giving birth at home, it’s all inclusive, a bible. Thirty or more years ago, I used the patterns to sew peasant blouses and shirts. And I once tried to make dandelion wine. As we return to a “greener” existence, this book will come in very handy, again. I’m dusting it off and putting it on my night table.

I love Jazz and Blues. I also love R. Crumb’s illustrations. I still have a few of his underground comics from the late 60’s and early 70’s. Mr. Natural was my favorite. The illustrations were superb and the stories were funny, perverted and usually satirized some aspect of 60’s counterculture, of which I was a participant. So, when I saw “R. Crumb’s Heroes of Blues, Jazz and Country,” I knew I wanted a copy. This is a somewhat more serious Crumb. His illustrations are finely drawn and each jazz or blues great is posed naturally. Even as a blues aficionado, I wasn’t familiar with many of the groups in the book. Whoever heard of “Red Peterson’s Piedmont Log Rollers” or “The Happy Hayseeds?” Crumb surely wanted to represent the lesser known groups. The original drawings were done in the 1980’s from old photographs. They came as a boxed set of trading cards and were available in shops in the West Village. They sold well and there were numerous printings. Now, it’s a treat to have them in book form. Each illustration has a bio of the musician on the facing page. On the inside cover is a music CD with 21 songs chosen by Crumb. Even the CD looks great. This book is a treasure I look at again and again.

I’m Jack, Julia’s dad. BTW- I really don’t look like that guy in the middle of the photo anymore that was on the blog from Friday. If you’re curious, you can see what I look like now, by linking to my website here. I have a serious interest in birding and so I thought I’d write about my favorite bird-watching field guide, “The Sibley Guide to Birds,” written and illustrated by David Allen Sibley. Sibley took about 12 years to complete this book, which has about 6600 amazing illustrations of birds. Even if you don’t want to go birding, it is a treat to see the beautiful drawings Sibley made. The drawings in a field guide are special because they need to be drawn accurately and in a way that can be used to identify a bird easily. The illustrator must find the correct angle to show all of the significant field marks and show the bird in all of its various plumages. You would think that a simple photograph would be better for identifying birds, but illustrations are usually much better. That’s because a photograph shows only one particular bird, while a good illustration looks like a typical bird of a particular species. With a photograph, lighting and camera angle can change the appearance of a bird as well. This book has become the favorite for many birders and a little while after the first one was published, Sibley published a smaller, more pocket-able version. There are many other terrific field guides, but this book has now become the standard for many serious birders. Tomorrow, I tell you about my favorite illustrator, besides Julia, of course.