Shmulik Paints the Town
By Lisa Rose; illus. by Catalina Echeverri
32 pages; ages 3-8
Kar-Ben, 2016
Themes: imagination, multicultural, humor
Israel’s Independence Day is coming up and on Monday, the
mayor drops by Shmulik’s art studio.
“Can you paint us a mural on the wall and
decorate the park around it?”
“Certainly!” says Shmulik.
“Certainly!” says Shmulik.
On Tuesday Shmulik heads out to check the wall with his dog,
Ezra. But it’s much too pretty a day to waste painting. On Wednesday, Shmulik
can’t think of a thing to paint so he puts it off til the next day. And so the
week goes, with Shmulik procrastinating day by day.
What I like love about this book: Shmulik the
procrastinator. Don’t we all have a bit of Shmulik inside us? I love Ezra, who
takes matters into his own hands – er, paws. And I love the bright
illustrations and splatters of color everywhere. It made me want to dig out
some paints and a brush and have at it.
Beyond the book:
Imagine you are chosen to paint a wall and a park for
Independence Day. What would you paint?
How many excuses can you think of for getting out of
painting the garage - or doing your homework?
Can animals paint? Koko the gorilla paints pictures, and so
do animals at the zoo. Watch animals painting at the Houston Zoo.
I'm giving away a copy of the book - but first, let's talk to the author, Lisa.
I'm giving away a copy of the book - but first, let's talk to the author, Lisa.
Sally: What inspired this story?
Lisa: My cousin paints pictures using dog paw prints. She drips the paw in paint and then stamps it
over the canvas and then creates paintings based upon the prints. Owners love to have this very unique work of
art. Also, sometimes people bring their
old and sick dogs to her so that they can have a lasting memory their beloved
pet.
At first, this wasn’t even Jewish themed story and it wasn’t
working. After putting the story aside for long time, I attended a story
structure workshop by Shutta Crum and figured I figured out how to revise
it. Victory! My advice: Never to throw out stories that
aren’t working. Simply, put them
aside—you never know when you will learn how to revise it. It may take days…or years…but it will come.
Sally: I love that Shmulik is a procrastinator. How did he
get his wonderful name?
Lisa: I have to admit I didn’t name my character Shmulik -
although, I do have a cousin named Shmulik.
Sally: Were you delightfully surprised by the wild bright
splatters of paint in the illustrations?
Lisa: It is a little known secret that authors have very
little control. In fact, I never even
spoke to the illustrator until after the book was released. The illustrator didn’t know about my cousin’s
paintings and the inspiration for the story.
However, I’m so pleased with the illustrations! I can’t wait to give Catalina a BIG HUG!
Sally: Talk about the need for diversity in children’s
books.
Lisa: Many times people don’t buy diverse books, because
they lack the awareness. I decided to
help this change by making the writing community more aware of the issue. I’m
Jewish. However, I taught in Detroit and
many of my stories are inspired by my African American students. My experience gives me a unique perspective
of understanding two communities. One thing I’ve observed is how both
communities can lack an understanding of each other - not because of hate, but because of just living
divided.
I believe the way to end ignorance is with knowledge. To help bring attention to this issue, I
started “MISSING VOICE picture book discussion group” on Facebook. I call it
MISSING VOICE because I want it to mean more than just race - to also include religion, and little known
historical facts and people. Once a month we read a new picture book and
discuss it. Then, at the end of the month, there’s a live chat with the author
on our Facebook page. You can find out more about Lisa at her website.
Book Giveaway: If you want a chance to win a copy of Shmulik Paints the Town just follow these rules.
Book Giveaway: If you want a chance to win a copy of Shmulik Paints the Town just follow these rules.
- Leave a comment on this blog post
- send me an email to sueheaven(at)gmail(dot)com - or click on my profile and send an email from there.
- to be eligible for the giveaway you have to live in the continental US
Today is PPBF (perfect picture book Friday), an event in which bloggers share great
picture books at Susanna Leonard Hill's site. She keeps an ever-growing list of
Perfect Picture Books. Review copy provided by the publisher.
What a treasure! You always know how to pick them. I love to read stories about other cultural traditions and diversity! Great interview with Lisa.
ReplyDeleteThis book is getting a lot of buzz. Thanks for the interview. Please let someone else win. I am still packing and sorting and just don't want another thing to pack.
ReplyDeleteSo excited for Shmulik and his success (and Lisa too)!
ReplyDeleteYay, Lisa! The book looks fantastic!
ReplyDeleteExcellent interview and so cool to hear how this story evolved. Paw prints, yeah!
ReplyDeleteOh wait, this is what I do with my writing every single day. Ha. ha.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing your writing path. Shutta Crum is amazing. It is wonderful that so many published authors are willing to share their knowledge and help others.
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing your writing path. Shutta Crum is amazing. It is wonderful that so many published authors are willing to share their knowledge and help others.
ReplyDeleteDiverse books rock. Travel and reading are great ways to learn about the world, and books are cheaper. Ha. Thanks for sharing your story about how the book came full circle Lisa. Congrats!
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