About the Book
Many of us think of children's picture books as being written mostly with simple declarative sentences. What an eye-opener to learn that they are actually filled with delightful figures of speech. I am not talking here about the common figures of speech we learn about in grade school: simile, onomatopoeia, alliteration, hyperbole and personification. I am talking about more subtle and sophisticated figures of speech which we may not even recognize as figures at all (until they are pointed out to us), but their use gives stories a charm and freshness that stands up to repeated readings. These figures have names which are eminently forgettable but the figures them-selves make the stories in which they appear eminently memorable. In this volume, I point out many figures which appear in masterworks of children's picture storybooks, so that they may be appreciated and savored, and their patterns emu-lated in your own work.
About the Author :
Growing up, whenever Eve Heidi Bine-Stock asked her mom what a word meant, the answer was always, "Look it up." That was the start of Eve's love of words and books. For her 13th birthday, Eve's older brother Neil gave the budding writer a huge dictionary of her own with the inscription, "May your blessings be as numerous as the words in this book." And they have been. At age 13, Eve Heidi Bine-Stock began her publishing career by creating a girls' magazine. In her 20s, Eve received a Master's Degree in Library Science (books!), and worked toward a PhD in Visual Literacy (picture books!). Fast-forward to 2001. Eve became publisher of a boutique press specializing in children's books and books for adults on how to write them. A number of books she ushered to light won awards, attesting to her skills as an editor and graphic designer. In 2012, the owner of the publishing house passed away and the press closed. But that didn't stop Eve! She continued publishing on her own, winning the Mom's Choice Awards and the International Book Awards for her children's book on dog breeds. Eve is also the author of the three-volume series, "How to Write a Children's Picture Book," the stand-alone title, "How to Self-Publish a Children's Picture Book," and has written pseudonymously numerous children's books. Eve views her books as progeny and is grateful they have touched the lives of her readers.
Review :
"How To Write A Children's Picture Book" is an impressive trilogy of instructional books by children's author and illustrator Eve Heidi Bine-Stock that provides other aspiring children's authors with sound, practical, time-tested advice on constructing a picture book story for children that will hold their interest from beginning to end.
Volume 1 is devoted to the structure of writing and draws examples from a series of popular and successful children's books that include 'The Very Hungry Caterpillar', 'Where the Wild Things Are', 'Sylvester and the Magic Pebble', and several other children's stories. Applicable to both concept books and picture storybooks, "How To Write A Children's Picture Book: Structure" demonstrates and documents that being able to properly structure a story is the key to writing a picture book that will appeal to children preschool through first grade.
Volume 2 focuses upon the use of words, sentences, scenes, and the story when developing a successful picture book for children. Examples and illustrations are drawn from such picture book favorites as 'Harry the Dirty Dog', Harold and the Purple Crayon', 'Frog and Toad Are Friends', and several other well known picture books, in order to help aspiring picture book authors understand the critical role of word choice and storytelling strategies for a picture book's appeal to its intended and age appropriate readership.
Volume 3 explores the importance and usage of figures of speech when writing the text for a child's picture book. Illustrative examples are taken from a series of successful picture books that include 'Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile', 'Where the Wild Things Are', 'Caps for Sale', and 'Fish is Fish'. The deft and careful inclusion of figures of speech are more that just the occasional use of similes, onomatopoeia, alliteration, hyperbole and personification. They are clever, subtle, sophisticated expressions that can make characters and stories truly memorable and raise the level of a good picture book to the status of a great one - a picture book that will endure in popularity through many generations of young readers.
To each volume of this truly outstanding and unique series of 'how to' books specializing in the techniques of crafting picture book stories, Eve Heidi Bine-Stock brings her own particular expertise in communicating her instructions, advice, recommendations, and observations, making "How To Write A Children's Picture Book: Structure" (0971989885, $18.95); "How To Write A Children's Picture Book: Word, Sentence, Scene, Story" (0974893323, $18.95; and "How To Write A Children's Picture Book: Figures of Speech" (097489334X, $14.95) an indispensable, unique, and enthusiastically recommended instructional reference set specifically intended for dedicated authors wanting to hone their craft in the deceptively demanding field of picture books for children. -- James A. Cox, Midwest Book Review
