10 Books Illus. by PW Artists On Bank Street College’s Best Children’s Books Of Year List
June 4, 2018
Congratulations to the following Painted Words artists/authors whose books were included in Bank Street College’s Best Children’s Books of the Year 2018 List:
Frank Morrison – One Last Word, Clayton Byrd Goes Underground
Ashley Spires – The Thing Lou Couldn’t Do, Mae and June and the Wonder Wheel
Vanessa Brantley-Newton – The Youngest Marcher
Fabricio VandenBroeck – Thirsty, Thirsty Elephants
Gabrielle Grimard – Stolen Words
Elise Gravel – Olga and the Smelly Thing from Nowhere
Mircea Catusanu – Noah Webster’s Fighting Words
Elizabeth Zunon – One Last Word, The Legendary Miss Lena Horne
One Last Word: Wisdom From the Harlem Renaissance by Nikki Grimes with illustrations from 15 artists including Frank Morrison and Elizabeth Zunon was the recipient of the Claudia Lewis Award for the best poetry book of the year for young readers, while The Youngest Marcher illustrated by Vanessa B. Newton, Clayton Byrd Goes Underground illustrated by Frank Morrison, and The Legendary Miss Lena Horne illustrated by Elizabeth Zunon, were each recognized for Outstanding Merit. You can view the full list of books here.
Stolen Words, Illus. by Gabrielle Grimard, One of Shelf Awareness’s Best Picture Books of the Year
December 20, 2017
Shelf Awareness, a newsletter about the book industry, recently released a 2017 Best Children’s and Teen Books of the Year list. Stolen Words, written by Melanie Florence and illustrated by Gabrielle Grimard was right at the top of the list! Stolen Words is the story of the relationship between a young girl and her Cree grandfather. When she discovers that he lost his native language in Canada’s residential school program, she sets out to help him recover it. It’s one of Shelf Awareness’s best picture books of 2017.
Shelf Awareness’s full list of best books of the year is available here. Stolen Words can be purchased online here.
Quill and Quire Praises Stolen Words, Illus. by Gabrielle Grimard
December 7, 2017
Due in part to institutions such as residential schools, Aboriginal languages in Canada and the US are in danger of going extinct. But children’s books are doing their part to prevent this tragic result, with several books coming out recently that introduce the language, culture, or history of vulnerable languages. Quill and Quire, a Canadian magazine of book news and reviews, reviewed picture books focused on the Cree language, including Stolen Words.
Written by Melanie Florence and illustrated by Gabrielle Grimard, Stolen Words tells the story of the relationship between a young girl and her Cree grandfather. When the young protagonist discovers her grandfather lost his Cree language from the residential school system, she sets out to help him relearn the language. Quill and Quire praises the picture books evocative description and illustrations and its frank confrontation of the trauma of the residential schools. Gabrielle’s illustrations are described as “beautiful and disturbing.”
Quill and Quire’s full review is available here. Stolen Words can be purchased online here.
Kirkus List of Best Picture Books of ’17 to Give Strength Includes Two Books from Painted Words Artists
November 28, 2017
2017 has been a rough year for many. But in trying times, you can always turn to picture books for inspiration! To that end, Kirkus has composed a list of the Best Picture Books of 2017 to Give Readers Strength. Two of the books on that list, Stolen Words and Lucía the Luchadora, were illustrated by our artists.
Stolen Words, written by Melanie Florence and illustrated by Gabrielle Grimard, is the story of a little girl and her Cree grandfather, who lost his ancestral language in the Canadian residential school system. Kirkus calls this story “Unforgettable.” Stolen Words is available for purchase here.
Lucía the Luchadora, written by Cynthia Leonor Garza and illustrated by Alyssa Bermudez, follows a little girl who is inspired by her family tradition of luchadoras to become a hero on the playground. Kirkus calls it, “A KA-POW kind of wonderful.” Lucía the Luchadora is available here.
Kirkus’s full list of inspiring picture books from 2017 can be found on their site here.
Kirkus Starred Review for Stolen Words, Illus. by Gabrielle Grimard
July 20, 2017
Kirkus has written a starred review for upcoming Stolen Words, written by Melanie Florence and illustrated by Gabrielle Grimard. This poignant picture book tells of the relationship between a Cree girl and her grandfather. When the girl asks her grandfather to teach her the Cree language, she learns of the devastating effects of Canada’s residential school program for indigenous inhabitants.
Kirkus praises the storytelling of the book, writing, “Florence’s tender text soothes the harsh reality of…Canada’s former residential schools.” They also strongly compliment Gabrielle’s illustrations. Kirkus writes, “Grimard’s equally emotive illustrations show the stark realities of the experience…At the same time the soft colors and nuanced expressions enrich Florence’s text.” They conclude that this important story is “Unforgettable.”
Kirkus’s full starred review is available here. Stolen Words is coming out in September and can be pre-ordered here.
Gene Barretta, Gerald Kelley, Elise Gravel, Vanessa B Newton, and Josée Masse Nominated for CYBIL 2016 Award
Gene Barretta, Gerald Kelley, Elise Gravel, Vanessa B Newton, and Josée Masse Nominated for CYBIL 2016 Award
