This year illustrator and author Nancy Carlson published her 44th
children's book. Her specialty is teaching kids to feel good about
themselves and others.Kids, parents, teachers and even book critics
think she does a great job. That's because she is never out of
touch with the kid spirit inside herself. Her brightly colored
pencil drawings perfectly capture the happy-go-lucky characters
that fill her clever and funny books. There is a life lesson to be
learned from each story.
Nancy decided at age five to be an artist. As a child, Nancy would
sit on her bed and draw for hours. "I began creating characters and
telling stories through my drawings," Nancy said. "I always had the
need to communicate something through my art." Her early love of
comic books influenced her style of drawing and use of color.
A graduate of the Minneapolis College of Art, Nancy has kept alive
a youthful zest for life. Readers and book reviewers alike are
charmed by her jazzy yet childlike drawings done with bright
colored pencils. In all 42 books and four stage plays, she uses
well-placed humor in words and pictures to tickle the funny bone of
children and their parents.
Humorous childhood experiences from her own life growing up in
Minneapolis and from the escapades of her three children provide
themes for stories. Most of her books feature animal characters
that show the funny side of people. Nancy's two dogs, cat and a
guinea pig are a source of inspiration.
Nancy Carson lives in Bloomington, Minnesota, a suburb of
Minneapolis. She and her husband, Barry McCool, have three
children, two dogs, and a cat. Nancy loves nature and spends as
much time outdoors as possible, running, biking and birdwatching.
Besides writing and illustrating children's books, she designs
posters, t-shirts, caps, greeting cards and other specialty items,
which are marketed across the country through McCool Unlimited,
Inc. and available though Nancy's on-line catalogue.
Readers say they recognize themselves and their friends in the
characters who triumph over everyday situations.
Each story helps young readers deal with life's little problems,
while teaching the basic values of honesty, determination and
self-confidence.
copyright 2000 by Penguin Putnam Books for Young Readers. All
rights reserved.
PreS-K‘This concept book vibrates with bright colors, happy thoughts, and joie de vivre. Beginning with "I am Awesome, Brave, and Cheerful," it goes on to present 20 other ways to feel good about oneself, concluding with "Yawn...I need a good night's sleep so tomorrow...I can Zoom on!" Carlson's cheerful pig, frog, and their friends will delight youngsters as they are reassured about their own emerging personalities. All are shown in large, uncluttered illustrations as they engage in a variety of activities, from a mouse and a pig blasting off in a rocket for "I have big Dreams," to a rabbit banging on a pot for "And sometimes, I'm Noisy!" A storytime natural.‘Virginia Opocensky, formerly at Lincoln City Libraries, NE
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