Rozzie Land

Robert's Snowflake Bidding Week 2

Auction 3 starts Monday, Dec 3rd.

This is the final week to win a snowflake so hop on over and find your favorite.

Robert's Snow- WEEK 5

Robert's Snow is an online auction that benefits Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. Over 200 children's book illustrators have created art on individual snowflake-shaped wooden templates.

Please visit these links to see the snowflakes being featured daily this final week:

Monday, November 12

• John Nez at ChatRabbit
• Liza Woodruff at Check It Out
• Jane Dippold at Just Like the Nut
• Mike Wohnoutka at laurasalas

Tuesday, November 13

• Cynthia Decker at The Silver Lining
• Cecily Lang at Kate's Book Blog
• Jane Dyer at Whimsy Books
• Gutierrez at AmoXcalli and Cuentecitos
• Lee White at Please Come Flying

Wednesday, November 14

• Philomena O'Neill at Jo's Journal
• Maggie Swanson at Chicken Spaghetti
• Timothy Bush at Here in the Bonny Glen
• Peter Emmerich at Loree Griffin Burns: A Life in Books

Thursday, November 15

• Yangsook Choi at What Adrienne Thinks About That
• Laura Jacques at cynthialord's Journal
• Mary Newell Depalma at Wild Rose Reader
• Leanne Franson at Just Like the Nut

Friday, November 16

• Mary Haverfield at Your Neighborhood Librarian
• Lisa Kopelke at Lisa's Little Corner of the Internet
• Salley Mavor at ChatRabbit
• Greg Newbold at The Longstockings
• Elizabeth Sayles at AmoXcalli and Cuentecitos

Saturday, November 17

• Paul Brewer at A Chair, A Fireplace & A Tea Cozy
• Aaron Zenz at Jo's Journal
• Wendy Edelson at What Adrienne Thinks About That
• Joan Waites at Chicken Spaghetti

Sunday, November 18

• Giles Laroche at Book, Book, Book
• Annie Patterson at Check It Out
• Teri Sloat at The Miss Rumphius Effect
• Annette Heiberg at Lisa's Little Corner of the Internet
• Wade Zahares at Wild Rose Reader

Credit goes to Jen Robinson for creating this linked schedule and to Jules and Eisha (Seven Imp) for organizing this great preview to promote the Robert’s Snow Online Auction for Cancer’s Cure.

SNOWFLAKES- Week 4

Robert's Snow is an online auction that benefits Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. Over 200 children's book illustrators have created art on individual snowflake-shaped wooden templates.

Please visit these links to see the snowflakes being featured daily this week:

Monday, November 5
Anna Alter at The Longstockings
Laura Huliska Beith at Just One More Book!!
Cece Bell at Jo's Journal
Denise Ortakales at cynthialord’s Journal

Tuesday, November 6
Carol Heyer at The Shady Glade
Joe Kulka at ChatRabbit
Steven James Petruccio at Blog From the Windowsill
Carol Schwartz at Jama Rattigan's Alphabet Soup

Wednesday, November 7
Jeff Ebbeler at Sam Riddleburger's blog
Scott Magoon at Just One More Book!!
Connie McLennan at The Shady Glade
Julie Paschkis at the excelsior file

Thursday, November 8
Genevieve Cote at a wrung sponge
Linda Graves at Your Neighborhood Librarian
James Gurney at Charlotte's Library
Matt Tavares at Please Come Flying

Friday, November 9
Susan Kathleen Hartung at Wild Rose Reader
Mary Peterson at Brooklyn Arden
Annette Simon at Check It Out and Deo Writer
Melanie Watt at Whimsy Books

Saturday, November 10

• R.W. Alley at at JamaRattigan's Alphabet Soup 
• Jeannie Brett at cynthialord’s Journal 
• Daniel Mahoney at Paradise Found and Great Solutions to Team Challenges 
• Amy Young at Kate's Book Blog

Sunday, November 11

• Tim Coffey at The Silver Lining 
• Elizabeth Dulemba at sruble's world 
• Chris Gall at Through the Studio Door 
• Amy Schimler at Please Come Flying
  
  To view all the 2007 snowflakes click here.

Credit goes to Jen Robinson for creating this linked schedule and to Jules and Eisha (Seven Imp) for organizing this great preview to promote the Robert’s Snow Online Auction for Cancer’s Cure.

Robert's Snow- Week 3

 

Robert's Snow is an online auction that benefits Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. Over 200 children's book illustrators have created art on individual snowflake-shaped wooden templates.

Please visit these links to see the snowflakes being featured daily this week:

Monday, October 29

• Dan Santat at Writing and Ruminating
• Joanne Friar at The Longstockings
• Alissa Imra Geis at Wild Rose Reader
• Diane Greenseid at Just One More Book!!
• Sean Qualls at Brooklyn Arden

Tuesday, October 30

• Ann Koffsky at Book Buds
• Bill Carman at A Chair, A Fireplace & A Tea Cozy
• Gretel Parker at Finding Wonderland
• Matt Phelan at A Year of Reading
• Stephanie Roth at Writing with a broken tusk

Wednesday, October 31

• Shawna Tenney at Kate's Book Blog
• Adam Rex at Booktopia and Welcome to my Tweendom
• Mo Willems at MotherReader
• Rolandas Kiaulevicius at a wrung sponge

Thursday, November 1

• Karen Lee at sruble's world
• Diana Magnuson at A Chair, A Fireplace & A Tea Cozy
• Melissa Iwai at Brooklyn Arden
• Victoria Jamieson at AmoXcalli and Cuentecitos
• Molly Idle at The Shady Glade
• Meghan McCarthy at A Fuse #8 Production

Friday, November 2

• Tracy McGuinness-Kelly at Sam Riddleburger's blog
• Sarah Kahn at Kate's Book Blog
• Sylvia Long at Whimsy Books
• Jeremy Tankard at the excelsior file
• Holli Conger at Please Come Flying

Saturday, November 3

• Susan Miller at Your Neighborhood Librarian
• Ellen Beier at What Adrienne Thinks About That
• Hideko Takahashi at The Silver Lining
• Judith Moffat at Jo's Journal
• Wendell Minor at Wild Rose Reader

Sunday, November 4

• Joy Allen at Check It Out
• Robin Brickman at Greetings from Nowhere
• Lauren Stringer at laurasalas
• Nancy Wallace at In the Pages . . .

Robert's Snow- Elisa Kleven

As kid lit bloggers continue to help raise awareness of the Robert's Snow fundraiser, I am thrilled to introduce you to the ever so talented Elisa Kleven.

This year's snowflake is entitled,"The Paper Princess And Her Friends". (This is Elisa’s third year participating in the Robert’s Snow Fundraiser.)

click to enlarge snowflake

Elisa’s snowflake will be available for bidding Dec. 3rd thru  Dec. 7th. Don’t miss out on being the winning bidder for this treasure and supporting such a wonderful cause!

As an illustrator who works in a collage style, I was over the moon when I found out that I was highlighting Elisa Kleven's snowflake here. Elisa has successfully illustrated over 27 enchanting books with 10 of those being books that she has also written.

A small sampling of Elisa's books

And there are more to come with no surprise why. As soon as you open one of Elisa’s books, you are immediately drawn into a magical world filled with vibrant mixed media collage illustrations that complement her poetic style of writing perfectly.

I had the pleasure of speaking with Elisa about her work and snowflake contribution…

Can you share with us the inspiration behind the design for this year’s snowflake?

This new one is made using ink, acrylics and collage (bits of wool and marbellized paper.)
The Paper Princess herself inspires me.  I admire her fearlessness.  Though she is fragile and easily damaged, she faces life with open arms.  She is constantly in the process of finishing herself and has a lot of fun along the way.  Here she is flying on her friend the bluejay through a blizzard -- heedless of the extreme sogginess or even destruction that may await her -- while her fellow paper creatures cheer her on.

You have had an incredibly successful career as an author/illustrator. What comes first for you, the words or the pictures?

Sometimes I see an image which I have to build a story around -- a lion at the zoo whose tail reminds me of a paintbrush, a beautiful reflection in a puddle  -- and sometimes the story comes from an amorphous collection  of feelings, most of which go back to earliest childhood.  A lot of my stories center on children making things and using their imaginations...the old saying about "writing what you know" definitely applies to what kinds of books I make.  Of course, when I illustrate a book for another author the finished story is right there, which can be easier. I like stretching beyond my own mind and habits and setting illustrations (such as those for ABUELA, by Arthur Dorros) in a location which is less familiar to me.

Please share a typical day with us.

I get up, feed my ever hungry, adorable cats and dog, make coffee, read the paper, greet my awakening family, make breakfast/lunch for my youngest, get kids off to school, catch up on my e-mail, contact my elected representatives about things I feel strongly about, walk my dog , then go to my studio and work for about three hours on whatever I happen to be working on.  I take many months to illustrate a book.  If I'm working on a story, instead of on illustrations, I let myself gaze out at the Golden Gate Bridge and Mt. Tamalpais for a little bit, then knuckle down. When I can't work anymore, I walk dogs again, eat lunch, pet my cats, work for another chunk of time, chat with my kids about their day, and start thinking about what I'm going to make for dinner.  I love my routine and feel grateful for my daily life.

What are you working on now? Upcoming projects?

I am working on a story about the crocodile brothers Ernst and Sol (from ERNST, THE PUDDLE PAIL and WISHING BALL.)

The story takes me back into some imaginary childhood place, which is populated mostly with animals. It will be published in Spring ’08.

And I have just completed the illustrations for a nonfiction book called WISH, by Roseanne Thong, which will be published in Fall '08.

In spring I will be illustrating a text by Thacher Hurd.

With the vast amount of books that you’ve created, do you have a favorite?

I think that the PAPER PRINCESS is my favorite of my books because it touches on many prominent themes in my life.  As a book creator, I relate to the young artist girl in the story, whose paper person blows away before she can give her hair.  Each time I send a book -- a personal, intricate work on paper-- out into the world to be published  I worry that I haven't really finished it,  that I should have done more,  but I reach a point where I have to let it go.  Like the paper princess, books have a way of "finishing themselves" by everyone who encounters them and brings their own reactions to them. The author and illustrator can really only begin the book, as books are an ongoing collaboration between creator and readers.

In addition to identifying with the young paper doll maker, I can also relate to the little bald princess herself because, like her, I lost my mom,  the one  who "made me" when I was very young.  So I went off into the world feeling somehow incomplete and unfinished.

Also, I dedicated the book to my sister Susie, a three time cancer survivor, who was going through chemo as I was creating the book fourteen years ago, and who has lost -- and regained! -- her hair over and again.  (I also dedicated it to my wonderful former editor, Donna Brooks.)

One other thing that makes the PAPER PRINCESS resonate especially strongly with me is that I was the kind of kid who constantly drew and cut out little paper people.  So this book truly grows right out of my childhood.  And finally, now that I'm an adult, I am still making paper people -- and birds and angels and monsters and animals -- in my books.

So this small picture book has big, deep roots in both my childhood and my current life .Thanks for asking about it.  And now I'm off to make more paper characters.

And thank you, Elisa, for taking the time to share so much of yourself with us. You are such an inspiration and I’m sure your artwork and stories will continue to delight readers for years to come.

To learn even more about Elisa, please visit her website where you will find her bio section and Q&A.

http://www.elisakleven.com/ 
http://www.elisakleven.com/aboutelisa.html 
http://www.elisakleven.com/questions.html

Check out more snowflake features today:

Wednesday, October 24

Consie Powell at Becky's Book Reviews

Jimmy Pickering at Shaken & Stirred

Frank Dormer at What Adrienne Thinks About That

Sheila Bailey at Lizjonesbooks

More Snow!- Week 2

Robert's Snow is an online auction that benefits Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. Over 200 children's book illustrators have created art on individual snowflake-shaped wooden templates.

Monday, October 22
Mark Teague at The Miss Rumphius Effect
Sharon Vargo at Finding Wonderland
Christopher Demarest at Writing and Ruminating
Rose Mary Berlin at Charlotte's Library
David Macaulay at Here in the Bonny Glen

Tuesday, October 23
Carin Berger at Chasing Ray
Marion Eldridge at Chicken Spaghetti
Sophie Blackall at not your mother's bookclub
Erik Brooks at Bildungsroman
Brian Lies at Greetings from Nowhere

Wednesday, October 24
Elisa Kleven at Rozzie Land
Consie Powell at Becky's Book Reviews
Jimmy Pickering at Shaken & Stirred
Frank Dormer at What Adrienne Thinks About That
Sheila Bailey at Lizjonesbooks

Thursday, October 25
Julia Denos at Interactive Reader
Rebecca Doughty at A Chair, A Fireplace & A Tea Cozy
Brian Floca at A Fuse #8 Production
Margaret Chodos-Irvine at readergirlz

Friday, October 26
David Ezra Stein at HipWriterMama
Juli Kangas at Sam Riddleburger's blog
Ginger Nielson at Miss O's School Library
Margot Apple at Jo's Journal

Saturday, October 27
Julie Fromme Fortenberry at Your Neighborhood Librarian
Sarah Dillard at The Silver Lining
John Hassett at cynthialord's Journal
Abigail Marble at Please Come Flying

Sunday, October 28
Ashley Wolff at A Chair, A Fireplace & A Tea Cozy
Barbara Garrison at Brooklyn Arden
Kelly Murphy at ChatRabbit

To view all the 2007 snowflakes click here.

Credit goes to Jen Robinson for creating this linked schedule and to Jules and Eisha (Seven Imp) for organizing this great preview to promote the Robert’s Snow Online Auction for Cancer’s Cure.

It's Snowing!!

Robert's Snow is an online auction that benefits Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. Over 200 children's book illustrators have created art on individual snowflake-shaped wooden templates.
For the next few weeks, we have the opportunity of learning more about each snowflake's illustrator to prepare for the auction in November.

Please visit these links to see the snowflakes being featured daily this week:

Monday, October 15

• Randy Cecil at ChatRabbit
• Michelle Chang at The Longstockings
• Kevin Hawkes at Cynthia Lord's Journal
• Barbara Lehman at The Excelsior File
• Grace Lin at In the Pages

Tuesday, October 16

• Selina Alko at Brooklyn Arden
• Scott Bakal at Wild Rose Reader
• Alexandra Boiger at Paradise Found
• Paige Keiser at Your Neighborhood Librarian
• Janet Stevens at The Miss Rumphius Effect

Wednesday, October 17

• Rick Chrustowski at laurasalas
• Diane DeGroat at Jama Rattigan's Alphabet Soup
• Ilene Richard at Something Different Every Day
• Brie Spangler at Lectitans
• Don Tate at The Silver Lining

Thursday, October 18

• Brooke Dyer at Bookshelves of Doom
• D.B. Johnson at Lessons from the Tortoise
• Erin Eitter Kono at Sam Riddleburger
• Sherry Rogers at A Life in Books
• Jennifer Thermes at Through the Studio Door

Friday, October 19

• Graeme Base at Just One More Book
• Denise Fleming at MotherReader
• Jeff Mack at AmoXcalli
• Jeff Newman at A Year of Reading
• Ruth Sanderson at Book Moot

Saturday, October 20

• Linas Alsenas at A Wrung Sponge
• Theresa Brandon at The Shady Glade
• Karen Katz at Whimsy Books
• Judy Schachner at Kate's Book Blog
• Sally Vitsky at Shelf Elf: read, write, rave

Sunday, October 21

• Matthew Cordell at Just Like the Nut
• Maxwell Eaton III at Books and Other Thoughts
• Roz Fulcher at Goading the Pen
• Susie Jin at sruble's world
• Susan Mitchell at Check It Out

To view all the 2007 snowflakes click here.

Credit goes to Jen Robinson for creating this linked schedule and to Jules and Eisha (Seven Imp) for organizing this great preview to promote the Robert’s Snow Online Auction for Cancer’s Cure.