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Overview
When the train arrived in Cottondale, the summer at Bigmama's house in Florida began. Donald Crews brilliantly evokes the sights, sounds, and emotions of a memorable childhood experience. "A very special book by a superb artist and storyteller."—Horn Book.Author Biography: Donald Crews is the renowned creator of two Caldecott Honor books, Freight Train and Truck. Among his other enormously popular books are such favorites as Night at the Fair, Sail Away, Bigmama's, Shortcut, and School Bus. He and his wife, Ann Jonas, live in New York's Hudson River Valley.
Donald Crews grew up in Newark, New Jersey, and says that all through his childhood the members of his family were always doing something with their hands. He was always drawing pictures. Now, in the old farmhouse where he lives with his wife, the noted author and illustrator Ann Jonas, Donald Crews is still drawing pictures.
After graduating from New York City's Cooper Union, Mr. Crews spent three years working as a designer. He was assistant art director of Dance magazine, on the staff of a small design studio, and did freelance work as a book-jacket designer. But in 1962 he was inducted into the Army, and for a time his artistic pursuits were set aside. As the end of his eighteen-month military stint in Germany approached, he assigned himself to the task of writing and illustrating a children's book to add to his portfolio. The result was the brilliant concept book We Read: A to Z (Harper & Row, 1967), which, nearly twenty years later, was reissued by Greenwillow Books. Ten Black Dots, a counting book, came next, and then several books for which hedid illustrations only. But the turning point came in 1978, when Greenwillow published Freight Train, a picture book inspired by Mr. Crews's childhood train trips from Newark to visit his grandmother in Florida. It was named a Caldecott Honor Book. Since then, Mr. Crews has created several other highly acclaimed picture books (including Truck, a 1981 Calclecott Honor Book), all painted in the flat, clean colors and bright, unambiguous shapes that are the hallmarks of his striking graphics.
Donald Crews grew up in Newark, New Jersey, spent his summers in Cottondale, Florida, and was graduated from Cooper Union in New York City. He and his wife, Ann Jonas, live in Brooklyn, New York.
When Donald Crews is asked why he focuses on picture books, he frequently answers, "Why not?" All the tools necessary for the creation of any piece of art are also elements in a successful picture book. Mr. Crews chooses a subject, explores ways to develop the subject visually, writes a story, then produces his finished illustrations. And the final audience, the children, tell him that they like what he does. Why not, indeed!Donald Crews grew up in Newark, New Jersey, spent his summers in Cottondale, Florida, and was graduated from Cooper Union in New York City. He and his wife, Ann Jonas, live in Brooklyn, New York.
Visiting Bigmama's house in the country, young Donald Crews finds his relatives full of news and the old place and its surroundings just the same as the year before.
Synopsis
When the train arrived in Cottondale, the summer at Bigmama's house in Florida began. Donald Crews brilliantly evokes the sights, sounds, and emotions of a memorable childhood experience. "A very special book by a superb artist and storyteller."—Horn Book.
Publishers Weekly
Crews's first book in five years is a departure for this gifted author/artist, and a truly joyous celebration. In his dynamic tale of family togetherness, an African American man recalls boyhood summers spent at his grandmother's rural home in Florida. Each year the vacation began with an adventurous three-day train ride to Bigmama's (``Not that she was big, but she was Mama's mama'') in Cottondale. The hot, hazy months that followed were filled with relatives, fishing and good times. A backyard coop ``where Sunday dinner's chicken spent its last days,'' the barn and pond all begged to be explored by rambunctious visitors. Even the stars shone brighter in the night sky at this wondrous place. Like the title character so lovingly depicted within, the book's jacket is warm and enticing--vibrant, boldly outlined letters draw readers into a fragrant slice of Americana. Crews's rich earth tones perfectly portray the rustic life of this bygone era, while the lanky, barefoot children embody the relaxed--and utterly relaxing--freedom of summer. In the manner of exemplary works for children, Bigmama's works splendidly on more than one level. The evocative text provides plenty of action to interest younger readers and--for their parents--the nostalgic tone cannot fail to lovingly recall carefree days long past. Reality, in the form of a present-day metropolis viewed through a window, brings the story to an appropriate close, as the narrator, older and bearded, ``even now'' longs to recapture the essence of enchantment that was found at Bigmama's. Ages 4-up. (Oct.) .