Tomfoolery : Randolph Caldecott and the rambunctious coming-of-age of children's books

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Title:

Tomfoolery : Randolph Caldecott and the rambunctious coming-of-age of children's books

Author:

Markel, Michelle, author.

McClintock, Barbara, illustrator.

Summary:

Quick! If you don't move fast, you're going to miss him--there he goes--Randolph Caldecott, future famous illustrator. His sketchbook is full of hurly-burly; wild weather, frisky animals and people so sprightly they can barely hold on to the pages. But in the 1850s, there are no children's books like that. Not yet. Many are published, but their pictures look still, full of pretty poses and cluttered scenery. No one has imagined how much fun an illustrated book can be... Because the future hero of children's book illustration is just a lad.

Audience:

Ages 5-8.

K to Grade 3.

General Note:

Includes reproductions of Caldecott's art and a list of his picture books.

Physical Description:

37 pages : color illustrations, facsimiles ; 28 cm

Genre:

Biographies.

Picture books.

Creative nonfiction.

Personal Subject:

Caldecott, Randolph, 1846-1886-Juvenile literature.

Subject Term:

Illustrators -- Biography -- Juvenile literature.

Children's literature -- Illustrations -- Juvenile literature.

Author(s):

McClintock, Barbara,

Publisher:

Chronicle Books,

Publication Date:

2023

ISBN:

9780811879231

Publication Information:

San Francisco : Chronicle Books, [2023]

Call Number:

P MARKEL

Holds: Copies:

Available:*

Item Barcode	Collection	Call Number	Status	Item Holds
33607003695791	New Picture Books	MARKEL	Searching... Unknown	Searching... Unavailable

Bound With These Titles

On Order

Summary

A Kirkus Reviews Best Picture Book of 2023

A Publishers Weekly Best Book of 2023

FIVE STARRED REVIEWS!

"Exuberant."― Horn Book Magazine , starred review

"Excellent."-- Booklist , starred review

"Storytelling at its best."-- Kirkus , starred review

"Enduringly appealing."-- School Library Journal , starred review

"[A] lively portrait."-- Publishers Weekly , starred review

Meet Randolph Caldecott, the artist who revolutionized picture book illustration and for whom the prestigious Caldecott medal is named! From acclaimed picture book creators Michelle Markel and Barbara McClintock comes a lively, humorous, and energetically informative biography that celebrates the spirit of storytelling in art.

Quick! If you don't move fast, you'll miss him--there he goes--Randolph Caldecott, future famous illustrator. His sketchbook is full of hurly-burly: wild weather, frisky animals, and people so sprightly they can barely hold onto the pages. But in the 1850s, there were no children's books like that. Not yet.

Many books are published, but their pictures look stiff, full of pretty poses and cluttered scenery. No one has imagined how much fun an illustrated book could be because the future hero of children's book illustration is still just a lad. Join Michelle Markel and Barbara McClintock for a riotous adventure through the seminal history of children's books--their art, their joy, and the man who changed them for good.

[Tomfoolery noun : silliness, shenanigans, buffoonery, skylarking, or pranks]

FASCINATING TRUE STORY: This picture book biography introduces readers to the man who redefined children's books, transforming the reading experience of people all around the world! Anyone who loves history, biographies, or books for children will find themselves charmed by this lively look at the life of Randolph Caldecott.

WHIMSICAL AND ENGAGING: Full of verve and fun, humor and dynamic vocabulary, this book is history with pure delight, sure to engage even the most reluctant readers!

FUN AND INSPIRING GIFT BOOK: With compelling visual storytelling and an inspiring role model for aspiring writers, illustrators, and creatives, this picture book makes a great gift for any giving occasion.

PERFECT FOR MOCK CALDECOTTS: Teachers and librarians who introduce the Caldecott Medal and its voting process to kids will find this invaluable as an introduction to looking at, thinking about, and celebrating art.

Perfect for: Anyone who loves or wants to learn more about kids' books and children's book illustration Librarians, educators, and parents of kids who love history and nonfiction Aspiring picture book writers and illustrators of any age Fans of true stories, biographies, and fascinating facts Special occasion or thank you gift for teachers and librarians

Author Notes

Michelle Markel writes informative, enjoyable children's books at her home in Los Angeles, California. She's the author of Tyrannosaurus Math (a CCBC Choices Reading List selection), The Fantastic Jungles of Henri Rousseau (a PEN/Steven Kroll Award winner and a Parents' Choice Gold Award winner), and Brave Girl: Clara and the Shirtwaist Makers' Strike of 1909 (a Jane Addams Children's Book Award winner, a Bank Street College of Education Flora Stieglitz Straus Award winner, and an NCTE Orbis Pictus Honor book). Visit her at michellemarkel.com.

Barbara McClintock has written and/or illustrated over forty books for children, including her highly acclaimed Adèle and Simon series. Her books have received five New York Times Best Illustrated Children's Book awards, three ALA Notable Children's Book citations, a Boston Globe-Horn Book Award Honor, and two Golden Kite honors, as well as many other accolades, best book selections, and starred reviews. A self-taught artist, McClintock discovered the work of Randolph Caldecott when she was in her early twenties, and he became a mentor, inspiration, and kindred spirit to her. McClintock lives in Windham, Connecticut, with her partner, the illustrator David A. Johnson, and their four demonstrative cats. You can find her online at barbaramcclintockbooks.com.

Reviews (2)

School Library Journal Review

Gr 1--3--In a history that gallops along like John Gilpin's horse, Markel traces the career of a lad mad for drawing, who switched careers midstream from banking to art and after some low points ("Sometimes, on his letters, he draws himself as a sad, frumpled cartoon") went on to replace the "pretty poses and cluttered scenery" of the Victorian era's picture books with images still notable for their unrestrained energy and humor. McClintock evokes that energy by incorporating samples of Caldecott's art (and, for contrast, examples from stodgier tomes) into her finely drawn views of livestock scurrying underfoot or streaming from sketchbook pages. She also dresses up a busy multiethnic crowd of city and country folk first in period dress, then in modern attire to link past audiences to present ones. In end notes the author fills in some biographical details, with nods to Caldecott's publisher and contemporaries Kate Greenaway and Walter Crane. Readers open to more than just a taste of his distinctive works and sketches of his life and times will find Leonard Marcus's Randolph Caldecott: The Man Who Could Not Stop Drawing well worth the plunge--but this brief tribute gets to the heart of what makes his work so enduringly appealing. VERDICT If Marcus still rules the roost, here's a high-stepping alternative for younger readers.--John Edward Peters

Publisher's Weekly Review

Randolph Caldecott (1846--1886) was one of the first artists to illustrate children's books with an eye toward merriment rather than morality, so it's not surprising that this action-oriented biography by Markel (Out of This World) offers "a hero so chipper he can barely hold still on the paper." Working in watercolor and pen and ink, McClintock (Vroom!) first shows Caldecott as a bearded young man pulling back an outsize book page to reveal a throng of his drawings come to life. As a boy, Caldecott sketches the animals he loves in motion; as a young man, he confounds his father's efforts to make him a banker, draws during work hours, and works to improve his skill. Soon, he's an artist with an offer to illustrate books for children, and "he likes what kids like--action!" Here, reproductions of Caldecott's own real-life images enter the book as he enjoys his first publishing success. The historical moment of this innovation is captured with verve and verb-forward flourishes in this lively portrait of a person whose illustration style still inspires contemporary picture book creators, some of whose portraits are slipped into a final scene. Characters are presented with various skin tones. Ages 5--8. (Nov.)