disappearing desmond book giveaway!

               

Who’s that hiding behind the fence with the gray fur and pointy ears?

Could it be Desmond, a shy cat who likes to blend in the background and disappear? He’s quite clever with his disguises:

 

What happens when Gloria, a very outgoing rabbit, arrives at school? Not only does she like being noticed, but she seems to notice Desmond no matter where he tries to hide. Pretty soon, Desmond realizes he enjoys interacting with others after all.

Disappearing Desmond has already received glowing reviews from Publishers Weekly ("socially confident readers and shrinking violets alike will be won over") and School Library Journal ("Young viewers will enjoy spotting Desmond in his ingenious costumes and identifying others trying to stay out of sight in the schoolyard . . . This low-key story of how friendship can support and encourage others will be a welcome addition for most libraries").

Don’t miss your chance to win one of 10 copies in Anna’s special giveaway. To enter, just click on the image at the top of this post any time between now and November 14th. (You can enter as many times as you wish.) Anna will announce the lucky winners on November 15th! U.S. residents only, please. (More details here.) 

♥ Check out Anna’s Disappearing Desmond webpage for Activity Kits for libraries, story hours and classrooms, reviews, and process posts. At her blog, Painting Bunnies, you can see more about how she created some of the illustrations from sketches to finished art.

♥ Nice online book review at Journey of a Bookseller.

DISAPPEARING DESMOND
written and illustrated by Anna Alter
published by Knopf BFYR, August 2010
Full color Picture Book for ages 4-8, 40 pp.
Cool themes: shyness, friendship, social interactions, inclusion.

What are you waiting for? Clickety click click click!

*Spreads posted by permission, copyright © 2010 Anna Alter, published by Knopf BFYR. All rights reserved.

Copyright © 2010 Jama Rattigan of jama rattigan’s alphabet soup. All rights reserved.

w-i-n-n-e-r-s!!

       

Phew! We finally have three winners in the Abigail Spells book giveaway!

There was a bit of a kerfuffle over picking the winners, as usual. But it wasn’t about who was going to draw the names. All the bears in the house (upwards of 300), read the book, and voted unanimously to keep Abigail Spells in the house.

That’s right. They simply can’t bear to part with any of the three copies they’ve been circulating amongst themselves. So, I had to resort instead to a highly scientific method:

 

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r-e-m-i-n-d-e-r!


You have until midnight Friday (EST), June 5, 2009, to enter the Abigail Spells drawing! We’re giving away three, count ’em, THREE copies of this sweet, warm and inspiring picture book all about friendship, spelling, and winning.

Just click over to my interview with Anna Alter, and spell your favorite word in the comments to enter!

teddy bear! maracas! cha cha cha!

SOUP’S ON: Anna Alter in the Kitchen Interview and Book Giveaway!

Many of you know my penchant passion obsession with books featuring food, bears, and the alphabet. Just so happens that our special guest today, children’s author/illustrator, Anna Alter, has all these bases covered.

Yes, I drooled right through her first picture book, Estelle and Lucy (raspberry biscuits), loved her adorable Three Little Kittens (mitten and pie endpapers!), eyed up the bowl of porridge in Priscilla and the Hollyhocks, and fell in love with her recycling activity book that just came out in March, What Can You Do with an Old Red Shoe (charming bears, cats and bunnies).

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