The Art of Eric Carle

Eric Carle's autobiography was a pleasant surprise in the book. It was interesting and it showed a side of him we don't usually see. The war years in Germany were especially interesting. Seeing Hitler's Germany from the inside and seeing it through the eyes of a German boy was a new experience.

For those of you who love Eric Carle, his art and stories, this book is a must have. A "coffee table" book that allows you to enjoy and cherish the work of this very creative artist and author. Only thing better would be to have one of his original drawings! Reading Eric Carle with my sons when they were small was definitely one of our favorites things of the day.

This is a great way to show students the process of Eric Carle's art and create a picture of thier own.

I picked up this book, expecting to find essentially a picture book. However, this book is so much more...and it is lovely.The book begins with an introduction by Leonard Marcus, the children's book reviewer for Parenting Magazine and a well-known book critic and historian. Following this is an autobiography with many personal photos. I found the story of Carle's early years interesting: how he was born in the United States but then his parents returned to Germany when he was six. His father was drafted into the German army during World War II and Carle never saw him again for 8 years, when he emerged from a Russian POW camp weighing 80 pounds. Carle was a lackluster student, mainly because his creativity was stifled, but he did have some empathetic art teachers in Germany. In his early 20s he returned to the U.S. where he was promptly drafted into the army!The next section of this book was by Ann Beneduce, the first editor to publish Carle's work. She first commissioned him to illustrate a cookbook. After that, she decided to publish his first book "1,2,3 to the Zoo" but could find no one in the United States who could satisfactorily produce it, so she had it done in Japan.Next, Viktor Christen, a German editor, wrote about Carle's vision and what it means to children.Takeshi Matsumoto, the director of an art museum for picture books in Japan, wrote an essay about Carle's use of color.The text of a speech, entitled "Where Do Ideas Come From?", given by Carle at the Library of Congress was the next section of this book. He gave this speech to librarians and educators in 1990 at the International Children's Book Day Celebration.Next was a photo essay on his technique of paper coloring and collaging, which also explained why he colors white tissue paper rather than buying pre-colored papers (they fade with age).Lastly was a section of illustrations from his books, in chronological order. I found it interesting to see how his art had changed and become much more detailed in 30 years.

Inspiration is the first word that comes to mind after reading about Eric Carle's successful life as an author and illustrator. This book contains information about his childhood, his books, but most important his art. I especially enjoyed reading the section about where he gets his ideas. What is so special about Eric Carle's books? Many people all over the world could answer that question. My favorite answer is from a little boy named Paul, he said: "One reason I like your books is they do special things."