Little Elliot, Fall Friends

Every Autumn, my family would make a pilgrimage to Wilcklow Orchards in New Paltz, NY. We’d spend the day hiking through rows of apple trees, sampling the different varieties (for quality control, of course), and procuring enough apples to ensure that my mother could bake enough pies to see us through to the new year. It’s no surprise to me (and probably not to my loyal readers) that apple pie is one of the heroes of my new book, Little Elliot, Fall Friends.

Fall Friends, the fourth book in the Little Elliot series, came out the same day as All the Way to Havana, but I wanted to wait to talk about it so that I had proper time to reflect on each book. In All the Way to Havana, we go on a trip from the countryside to the city, while in Fall Friends, we journey from the city to the countryside. Elliot and Mouse travel to the country for a reprieve from urban life, where they experience all the delights of the fall season. During a spirited game of hide-and-seek, Elliot is suddenly lost. The day is saved due to a combined effort by Mouse’s savvy, the kindness of strangers, Elliot’s instincts, and a piping hot apple pie in a window.

Until very recently, I lived in large cities for my entire adult life. Like Elliot, my days were filled with weaving through the busy sidewalks trying not to get stepped on in the pursuit of finding that perfect cupcake. But some days, the city can be a bit much. No matter where we live, it’s good to get out of our bubble, and every city dweller will find themselves in need of fresh air and quiet (though some of us prefer a private beach resort over a bumpy country road, but still!). Sometimes, we are able to travel to a place that’s so different that it can overwhelm us in unexpected ways. While it can be exhilarating going to a completely different place, it can also be scary. You leave your familiar world behind, and you’re left vulnerable. In a way, you lose yourself. But through this act of casting off your identity and being immersed in another world, you can find a whole new part of yourself that you never knew existed.

In these divisive times, it’s important to remember that there are many places and people outside of where you’re from. There’s a growing rift between city and country in America, and I am hoping to reach out to our friendly country neighbors via my polka-dotted urban ambassador. Both places have much to offer, and there exists great potential for many friendships if people are willing to be vulnerable, experience different communities, and meet different people. 

And when you’re lost, remember to always follow your nose…

Behold! The power of pie!

Please visit my website to order your copy of Little Elliot, Fall Friends, read reviews, download the activity sheet, and more! Join me at Books of Wonder in NYC on Sunday, October 1, from 1-3PM for the book release party, or check out my events page to see where I’ll be presenting next. 

Art Notes: All the Way to Havana

I hand-lettered the title and added texture to the wall.

Hello dear readers. A few weeks ago, I posted about the release  of All the Way to Havana, written by Margarita Enlge. While I was waxing poetic about my experience researching the book, I neglected to talk about how I actually illustrated it. So, I’d like to clarify the process with this brief bonus post.

For my Little Elliot books, I work in pencil on paper and color digitally. It’s a tightly rendered style that showcases a nostalgic (if not a bit “polished”) Old New York. While this style works well for these books, I felt that the same treatment would not translate well to All the Way to Havana without a few adjustments.

drawing for the Malecón spread

Usually, I work to size. That means that the drawing I make is the same size as it is printed in the book. For Havana, I chose to work really large. A double page spread from this book measures about 36” wide on average. This allowed for more looseness in my pencil stroke and allowed me to capture more movement in the drawings. These drawings rely on a thick pencil stroke, so instead of using my usual fine pointed 2B graphite mechanical pencil, I mostly used a 4B ebony pencil (and sometimes switched to the finer point for some details).

detail of wall, sidewalk, and pavement textures

distressed wood and rust can be found on any street corner

Though it is unfortunate that Cuba suffers economically, which prevents everyday maintenance and development, the result is a rich patina that has formed over Cuba’s surfaces: worn wood, chipped paint, rusted metal, gravel and soil. There’s a zen beauty to it all. I felt it was imperative to represent these textures in the illustrations. However, I wanted to keep my line somewhat loose while keeping the textures tight. So, I decided to use textures from the photographs I took in Cuba, and overlay them onto my drawings in Photoshop. 

 

detail of The Gran Teatro de La Habana

Another choice I made, to push the mixed media style even further, was to introduce different art media in addition to the photographs. All the vegetation throughout the book is painted in acrylic. Dirt is photographic and/or paint mixed with pumice. Water is painted in watercolor. The book, like one of Cuba’s antique cars, is an amalgamation of different parts.

a watercolor sea, a pup & pumice, and a painted palm

photographic textures enhance the walls and roads