Tag Archives: Adam Rex

Bedtime Stories: How This Book Was Made

bookPost by Mark T. Locker.

Bedtime Stories: How This Book Was Made by Mac Barnett and Adam Rex.

So you think you know how a picture book comes into being? You may think you know, but you don’t. I don’t think you took into account the pirates, or the arm-wrestling tigers. Or the roaring fires of discarded drafts. No, you don’t know how this book was made at all.

From the mind and hands of Adam Rex and Mac Barnett comes another clever and hilarious picture book. Mac Barnett writes with a number of talented illustrators but his work with Adam Rex is my favorite. I see this book as a companion piece to Barnett/Rex’s 2012 picture book Chloe and the Lion which is another behind-the-scenes peek at the making of a picture book. Where Chloe looked at the collaboration between author and illustrator, How This Book Was Made looks at the process from inception to publication. In some ways, it really does explain how this book was probably made, though of course embellished and changed to make it interesting for children.

When Mac Barnett tells you his editor sent him back the first 20 drafts of the story, you can’t help but believe that this was indeed the case. But whether or not he burned the other drafts to scare away the tiger bent on revenge cannot be confirmed or denied.

To take Mac’s word on it, the process of getting the book from his original idea to becoming the copy in your hands is an incredible process! Adam Rex makes a valuable contribution, turning simple statements like “I found a quiet place to write” and placing the author at the top of a ladder on the top of a desolate mountain. Although Mac insists “it took the illustrator took a VERY long time to draw all the pictures” it was definitely worth waiting for his fantastic illustrations.

howthisbookwasmade_1

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Bedtime Stories: Pssst!

Post by Mark T. Locker.

Pssst! by Adam Rex.

You have no idea how happy I was to discover I had somehow missed writing a review of this story. I am a huge fan of Adam Rex. I love his illustrations, his novels, his picture books. I even love his tweets. We would be great friends, I am sure. We found a copy of this at my favorite used book store the other day and since then has become a staple of the bedtime reading ritual.

A girl is walking through the zoo when suddenly she hears, “PSSST!” To her surprise, the one hailing her is a gorilla. “Hey,” he says. “Hey,” she replies. Turns out, he wants her to get him a new tire for his busted tire swing. As she walks through the zoo, the javelinas, bats, sloths, all manner of animals call her over and her list of supplies grows. The animals are hilarious. My son’s favorite is definitely the turkeys. “We want corn,” one of them says. The other adds, “Corn corn corn corn corn corn!” He insists on reading that part. “Corn corn corn corn corn corn!”

So what is the greater story here? We soon discover these animals are in cahoots. What could the garbage cans, tires, flashlights, helmets and all the other pieces add up to?? The answer may surprise you.

As with all of Adam Rex’s books, this is a must-read.

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Bedtime Stories: Billy Twitters and His Blue Whale Problem

Post by Mark T. Locker.

Billy Twitters and His Blue Whale Problem by Mac Barnett. Illustrated by Adam Rex.

You know what is annoying? When parents make all kinds of unreasonable demands on their children. And what’s even worse than that? When they go making completely unbelievable threats like, “Do your homework or I’m sending you to the moon.” Or, “Don’t make faces or one day that face will stick.” In Twitters family, it’s always, “Billy, take out the trash or we’re buying you a blue whale.” Or, “Billy, eat your vegetables or we’re buying you a blue whale.” Which is of course a RIDICULOUS threat because nobody in his right mind is going to burden a kid with a real live, full-grown blue whale!

So, maybe Billy’s parent’s are in their right minds because what do you think Billy saw staring through his window one morning? That’s right: the giant eye of a blue whale. Not only that, but Billy couldn’t leave the whale at home; it’s his responsibility. And to make matters worse, his teacher was so excited by the whale’s presence he decided to devote the class to a study on cetology, when they were SUPPOSED to watch a movie in class. It wasn’t Billy’s fault, but the kids all blamed him.

Adam Rex and Mac Barnett have teamed up for another hilarious story. I am personally in love with Adam Rex and his attention to little details. Like the fact that Billy put the whale on a skateboard before trying to pull him up the hill to school on his bike:

It’s fun. It’s silly. It’s totally worth a read.

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Bedtime Stories: Guess Again!

Post by Mark T. Locker.

Guess Again! by Mac Barnett. Illustrated by Adam Rex.

The very talented and very silly duo Adam Rex and Mac Barnett have struck again. I cannot adequately describe this not-quite-as-expected rhyming guessing game book. Rightly titled Guess Again! each page features a silhouetted figure, and a rhyme which offers clues. In this book, the clues are designed to trick you into thinking the obvious. Here is an example:

He steals carrots from the neighbor’s yard.
His hair is soft, his teeth are hard.
His floppy ears are long and funny.
Can you guess who? That’s right! My

Grandpa Ned.

Each riddle is silly, misleading, and very funny. Even though it is best the first time round, my little one gets such a kick out of the ridiculous scenarios that we have been reading it twice a day at least, even though he totally knows the answers now. I love these guys and if they did a version of Quality improvement and shelf-life extension of fish filets from three aquaculture species (Ottowa, 2002) you can bet that it would be hilarious and enjoyable to all.

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Bedtime Stories: Chloe and the Lion

Post by Mark T. Locker.

Chloe and the Lion by Mac Barnett. Illustrated by Adam Rex.

Chloe and the Lion starts out like your run-of-the-mill children’s picture book, telling the story of a little girl named Chloe who spends her weekdays collecting change and the weekends riding the carousel with tickets bought in loose change. But one day, after too many rides, Chloe gets dizzy and lost in the woods.

But the story takes a hilarious turn when author Mac and illustrator Adam have a difference of opinion over Chloe’s fate. Although Mac writes a lion into the plot, Adam Rex draws a dragon instead, insisting that a dragon is “way cooler”.

And so the story carries on, more about the conflict between Mac and Adam and each trying to outdo the other. Poor Chloe can only wait for them to resolve their issues. But when Mac decides to illustrate the book on his own, the girl is so atrociously drawn that she decides to take matters into her own hands.

What I love about this book is how genuinely funny and clever this book is. And although the meta-story may be a little above the heads of kids who don’t recognize that books are made by authors and illustrators, they can appreciate the terrible drawings and an author whose illustrator gave him a gorilla body. I intend to go and buy a copy of this book for myself.

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