L’Imperatore d’Etiopia

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The Famous Nini is due out June 7, but Amazon.com already has copies available. A scene I particularly like: the Emperor of Ethiopia arrives in Venice to visit Nini the famous cat. Here's the thumbnail sketch— Here is the sketch, built…

Coming soon…

Mary Nethery, author of The Famous Nini, created a book trailer!

Proofs and f&g’s!

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Kerry Martin—senior design editor over at Clarion—sent me all kinds of goodies from the print production of The Famous Nini! Here are proofs and f&gs. Proofs show all the spreads from a book.  A spread is two pages side-by-side…

Amazing library cat

An interesting little article about a real-life Clarence the Copy Cat—although this kitty seems to enjoy his de-mousing duties.

Nibble Yer Greens!

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For a truly rip-roaring sea-shanty singalong, you can't beat this old buccaneer bunny favourite. Nautical rabbits have enjoyed this one for centuries, and can oft be heard belting out a chorus in lusty bunny voices (to the tune of Blow the Man…

For school librarians

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In the March/April Society of Children's Book Writers & Illustrators Bulletin, Alexis O'Neill offers some tips for finding funding for school visits.  I can't find an online version of the article, but she directs me to this link, which…

Fergus and the Night Demon

An Irish ghost story by Jim Murphy.  Happy Saint Paddy's Day!

School visit today

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I'll be visiting my friends at Hance Elementary School today—we're reading The Perfect Nest.

Funeral for el Señor

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A sketch of the funeral procession from Señor Don Gato.  I drew this in 2002, and it was the first time my illustrations looked painterly rather than cartoony.  I consciously mimicked Diego Velasquez for this project.  You'll notice that…

The Wreck of the Salty Carrot

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These images from Henry and the Buccaneer Bunnies are up on my website, but they're kind of small.  I thought you might like to see them here, so you can embiggen simply by clicking on them. For the shipwreck scene, I wanted to mimic antique…