The Scraps Book

Starred review from January 6, 2014
Ehlert employs her signature collage technique and images from her past work to explore her lifelong relationship with creating art in this open and encouraging picture-book memoir. The journey begins with Ehlert’s early creative inklings (“I thought maybe someday I could make a book”), accompanied by family photos, images of the tools she uses today—including pinking shears, paintbrushes, a cheese grater—and a glimpse of her vibrant studio space. She shares thoughts on her varied sources of inspiration (“When a squirrel slipped into my house, a book idea walked right up to me!” she writes about Nuts to You!) and illustrates how those ideas are translated to the page via dummy sketches and finished collages, with hand-lettered captions providing context and detail. In case readers get the itch to join in, Ehlert also offers instructions for such crafty projects as a bird feeder and a cat mask. It’s an inviting inside look at Ehlert’s extensive backlist and how the books were made, with nearly every page making it clear to readers that this kind of creation is well within their reach. Ages 5–10.

January 15, 2014
Scraps--of art supplies, of finished illustrations, of techniques and of memory--overlap in this blend of memoir and artistic how-to. Right from the start, Ehlert decorates each page with collages of more than one material. Photos of gleaming scissors sit near a baby photo of herself with her mother, the text listing the "fabric scraps, buttons, lace, ribbons, and many scissors" that her mother shared with her. Photos of paint brushes, every bristle temptingly visible, overlap a childhood photo with her father, who shared wood scraps and taught her about painting, sawing and pounding nails. A photo of her parents "after hunting for wild asparagus" pairs with painted, collaged asparagus from Eating the Alphabet (1989). Tackling common questions, she frames art as eminently doable. (Where does she get her ideas? Mostly from the natural world: "On a trip to the aquarium, while I watched colorful fish swim by, a book idea swam into my brain.") Some technical terms become clear by visual example; others require outside explanation (dummy book; "[m]echanical sketch showing die cut overlays"). Highlights include a line sketch of the iconic Chicka Chicka Boom Boom next to color swatches and final shapes and all the thumbnails--plus two text versions--of Feathers for Lunch (1990). Readers will scurry to collage household and backyard tidbits; pair this with Ehlert's other work for maximum satisfaction. (Picture book/memoir. 5-9)

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Starred review from March 1, 2014

Gr 2-5-Ehlert continues to enchant children with her inventive picture books. In this charming autobiography, she gives readers a fascinating glimpse into her creative process and her considerable talents as both an author and an illustrator are on full display. When discussing the fact that a career doesn't happen immediately, she states, "Everyone needs time to develop their dreams. An egg in the nest doesn't become a bird overnight." Each and every page pops with her signature collages as she gives examples of her various techniques. "I use odd items to create texture. I splatter paint with a toothbrush or rub a crayon over my grater." This book will attract browsers, thrill children who already love her work, be the perfect complement to an author/illustrator study, and is a stellar introduction to graphic design at its finest. A small masterpiece that is a delight for the eye and ear.-Grace Oliff, Ann Blanche Smith School, Hillsdale, NJ

Copyright 2014 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from January 1, 2014
Grades 1-4 *Starred Review* Ehlert offers a highly visual presentation of her roots as an artist and her process as a writer and illustrator of picture books. She describes growing up with parents who made things with their hands. They encouraged her to do the same, providing her with good tools and a place to work as well as leftover fabrics, buttons, and wood scraps. Later, she went to art school and began to create picture books. Simply written and inviting, the text leads readers to understand her approach to creating books as well as her hands-on involvement with art throughout her life. Ehlert guides readers through the making of picture books, including gathering ideas, writing, creating storyboards, and making collages. Admirers of her clean, precise pictures may be surprised to read, I'm messy when I work. Illustrated with photos from her childhood, vivid artwork from her books, and found objects that she has incorporated into her collages, the colorful pages of this portrait of the artist are visually riveting. Creative children will find inspiration and encouragement here. And, short of a personal visit from the writer herself, this is the best resource available for any classroom doing an author/artist study on Ehlert and her distinctive books.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2014, American Library Association.)