Artsy-Fartsy is a book I devoured in a matter of a day and one I can’t wait to share with my own kiddos when they are a little older. With all the excitement I had for the book I decided I just had to know a bit more about the author and of course, the illustrator (we’re big illustrator fans around here). So, without further ado, I give you my guest post (more so a conversation) for the day from author, Karla Oceanak and illustrator, Kendra Spanjer:

Karla: Second only to the people I love, words are my favorite thing. When I was little, my mom and grandma would play Scrabble on Sunday afternoons, and I sat in their laps and picked their letters from the cloth sack.  So I started reading and writing very young!

Kendra: I was also pretty little when I started reading, and I especially liked to read and make up stories about animals. But often the stories were about animals I didn’t see every day, like mermaids and unicorns and talking dogs, so I’d have to draw them to get the details right. Pretty soon, some of my favorite stories were ones like they showed in Fantasia, which didn’t have words at all.

Karla: My favorite book from childhood was Charlotte’s Web. My third grade teacher read it aloud to the class, and I can still remember sitting at my desk yet being transported to the barn where Wilbur and Charlotte lived.

Kendra: I think my third grade teacher read that to us too! But the book I loved best as a kid was The Story of Ferdinand, a tale from the 1930s about a sweet-natured bull who inadvertently becomes the most feared fighting bull in all of Spain. It’s still one of my favorites because of how inextricable the plot is from the illustrations. I guess that, in a way, Ferdinand was my first experience with a comic book.

Karla: I’m a mother with three boys, and they LOVE comic books. That’s why I decided to tell the story of Aldo Zelnick in the form of a graphic novel. And I was lucky enough to know Kendra, who is not only an extremely talented illustrator but also has a similar sense of humor.

Kendra: It’s dry and nerdy. But if we’re cracking ourselves up during a brainstorming session, we know there’s a pretty good chance it’s a keeper. And I get a kick out of adding funny one-liners or goofy facial expressions for Karla to find when she’s editing.

Karla: Yesterday we learned that Artsy-Fartsy was named a ForeWord Reviews Book of the Year Award finalist in two categories: Juvenile Fiction and Graphic Novel. How fun is that? We’re just finishing up Bogus, the second book in the Aldo Zelnick series. It will be available in late May. Then it’s on to the C book…but the title is still a secret!

Kendra: Some might say it’s confidential. Classified, even. Conversely, when it’s time, we’ll certainly circulate the communiqué via aldozelnick.com. What do you think: has working on an alphabetical series made me even more of a word nerd than I was before?

Karla: I’m fascinated by how reading changes the brain. It actually grows little nerve fibers called dendrites and develops your brain’s white matter. The more you read, the more connected the pathways in your brain become…and the better and more deeply you’re able to think! If that’s not amazing, I don’t know what is.

Thank you again to Karla and Kendra! One of my favorites as a child was also Charlotte’s Web! It was such a treat to see how you each found your own “artsy-fartsy-ness” and then shared it with everyone.

This Spring is not early enough to pick up where we left off with Aldo and I honestly can’t wait to see what other words I will be adding to my very own “Glossary”. It’s sure to be a hit with kids (and adults) everywhere!

Artsy-Fartsy is currently available (so make sure to pick it up), but also make sure to check out the second installment to Aldo’s adventures, Bogus, coming out in the Spring of 2010.

This book was provided for review by the author.
Purchasing products by clicking through the links in this post will provide us a modest commission through our affiliate relationship with Amazon.com.

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