Book Recommendations

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Bettina Valentino and the Picasso Club by Niki Daly This book is so funny that readers will find themselves laughing out loud at some of the antics of the Bettina and her family and friends. Beneath that amusement are some very serious lessons about what art is, how it is made, and in what ways it appeals to different people. Purchase Book

	A Blue So Blue by Jean-Francois Dumont. This is a tale about love, art, and inspiration. In language that is rhythmic and lyrical, the book introduces a boy who loves to paint the color blue, but he can't seem to recover the hue he sees in his dreams. Purchase Book
	A Young Painter: The Life and Paintings of Wang Yani-- China's Extraordinary Young Artist by Zheng Zhensun and Alice Low This book celebrates the life and works of Yani, a young Chinese girl who started painting animals at the age of three and in her teens became the youngest artist to have a one-person show at the Smithsonian Institution. Purchase Book
	Artist to Artist : 23 Major Illustrators Talk to Children about Their Art By Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art In this remarkable and beautiful anthology featuring the likes of Maurice Sendak, Robert Sabuda, Rosemary Wells, and Eric Carle, twenty-three of the most honored and beloved artists in children’s literature talk informally to children - sharing secrets about their art and how they began their adventures into illustration. An event book for all ages! Purchase Book
	Can You Find It?: Search and Discover More Than 150 Details in 19 Works of Art by Judith Cressy Nineteen paintings from New York City's Metropolitan Museum of Art were chosen for careful scrutiny in this book. Through the centuries, artists have hidden small details to be discovered by curious eyes and included is a list of items to look for in the art. Purchase Book
	Come Look with Me: Enjoying Art with Children by Gladys S. Blizzard This book provides a great way for you and your child to look at art. It pairs quality art reproductions with thought-provoking questions, encouraging children to learn through visual exploration and interaction. Purchase Book
	Delicious: The Art and Life of Wayne Thiebaud By Susan Goldman Rubin Use this book while studying Wayne Thiebaud featured in Art in Action's Program 4. An absolutely "delicious" study of contemporary painter, Wayne Thiebaud. One of the giants of American art, he was at first unappreciated because of the everyday subject matter of his paintings. His tasty hot dogs, delectable cakes, dizzy streets, and sleepy deltas have since become icons of twentieth century art. The book describes how he makes art and tells the story of the man behind the masterpieces packaged in a wonderfully designed book. Purchase Book
	Drawing Book of Animals By Ed Emberley Emberley takes elementary shapes and shows you how to put them together, step by step, to create stylized but character-filled drawings of animals. His selection is eclectic and the little drawings are great: giraffes, porcupines, raccoons, wolves, dogs, cats, lions, tigers...! It'll kick-start a budding artist, break the 'I can't draw anything' mood everyone sometimes finds themselves in, and is a valuable tool to get kids over the initial inability to draw things that 'look good'. C.J. Carter, amazon.com. Purchase Book
	Dreaming Pictures by Paul Klee and Juergen von Schemm With the help of amusing questions and comments from children, the viewer's eyes are taken on a tour of Klee's pictures. “Dreaming Pictures” provides an insight into the artist's composition, unlocking the paintings' mysteries and revealing the pleasures to be found by entering Klee's dream world. Purchase Book
	Edward Hopper: Summer at the Seashore by Deborah Lyons Enjoy a fascinating trip to the New England coast while viewing Hopper's masterful paintings of sailboats, lighthouses, seascapes and white clapboard houses. Purchase Book
	Emily's Art by Peter Catalanotto Catalanotto subtly conveys the value of creating art for art's sake in this tender picture book about a first grade art contest. Purchase Book
	How Artists See Families: Mother Father Sister Brother By Colleen Carroll How Artists See is a series of interactive, inquiry-based books designed to teach children about the world by looking at art and about art by looking at the world. In How Artists See Families, children can see how Carmen Lomas Garza captured the simple pleasure of a family eating watermelon on the front porch; how Kikugawa Eizan used curved lines to show the gracefulness with which a mother carries her young son; how John Singer Sargent depicted the flowerlike delicacy of two sisters as they light lanterns in a twilit summer garden; and how Winslow Homer showed a boy’s protectiveness of his younger brother in a dangerous situation. Purchase Book
	Lives of the Artists: Masterpieces, Messes (and What the Neighbors Thought) by Kathleen Krull Humorous anecdotes and little-known facts highlight biographical profiles of twenty artists, including Michelangelo, van Gogh, and Warhol. Purchase Book
	Masterpieces Up Close: Western Painting from the 14th to 20th Centuries By Claire d’Harcourt From Giotto to Warhol, d’Harcourt selects some of the most famous icons of Western art for a closer look. This oversized volume features boldly colored spreads with large central images surrounded by smaller details from it. Interesting tidbits and questions accompany each small picture, inviting viewers to wonder, think, and question what they see. Children will especially enjoy looking for the details in the larger image. The last pages include lift-the-flap copies of the paintings and biographical sketches of the artists. For grades 4-6. Purchase Book
	Nine Famous Artists Your Children Will Love: An Art Discovery Primer and Handbook for Parents and Their Children by Michael Napoliello Not only does Napoliello entertain us with a brief bio on each artist, and provide stunning colorful examples of their work, he shows us how to visit a museum like a pro on the very first trip and explores art projects based on each artist’s work that you and your children can do in your own kitchen. Purchase Book
	Romare Bearden: Collage of Memories by Jan Greenberg Award-winning author Jan Greenberg uses Beardens’ artwork to tell his life story, providing a unique look at one of the most important American artists of the twentieth century. Purchase Book
	The Dot By Peter H. Reynolds The Dot will strike a chord with children who have outgrown the self-assurance of kindergarten and begun to doubt their own greatness. The marvelous watercolor, ink, and, yes, tea illustrations are appealing, especially as frustrated grade school artist Vashti begins to go wild with her dots. The delightfully open-ended conclusion will have readers of all ages contemplating how they can make their own mark in the world. Highly recommended. (Ages 5 to 9) Purchase Book
	The Magical Garden of Claude Monet by Lawrence Anholt When Julie crawls into a mysterious garden, she meets an old man tending the flowers. The gentle gardener turns out to be the great artist, Claude Monet, and together they explore his magical world. Purchase Book
	Willow by Denise Brennan Nelson and Rosemarie Brennan This book addresses a problem that is all too prevalent in education today: stifling the natural creative impulse. In art class, neatness, conformity, and imitation are encouraged, but when Willow brings imagination and creativity to her projects, even straight-laced Miss Hawthorn is influenced. We all could use a "Willow" in our lives. Purchase Book