Guy 1: Bob RaczkaMy wife Amy and I are the co-creators of three masterpieces: Robert, Carl and Emma. We live in Glen Ellyn, Illinois with our six-year-old mutt, Rufus, who is also a piece of work. I was born in Chicago, the oldest of four boys, and grew up in the suburb of Des Plaines. As a kid I loved to draw. I was also into making balsa wood airplanes and model rockets. My favorite sport has always been baseball. Bob Raczka’s Art Adventures is my ongoing nonfiction series published by The Millbrook Press. There are currently 14 books in the series. The latest, called Before They Were Famous: How Seven Artists Got Their Start, is a Junior Library Guild selection. I’ve also written a series of four books about the seasons, published by Albert Whitman: Spring Things, Summer Wonders, Who Loves the Fall? and Snowy Blowy Winter. My current love is writing children’s poetry. Upcoming titles include Lemonade and Other Poems Squeezed from a Single Word (Roaring Brook, Spring 2011), Fall Mixed Up (Carolrhoda, Fall 2011), and Joy in Mudville: A Casey Sequel (Carolrhoda, Spring 2012). For more information, please visit my website: |
Guy 2: Peter H. ReynoldsI'm a guy who loves to draw, among a bunch of others things. . . like writing, animating, designing video games—oh yeah, and changing the world. Yup, I think I can make it a better place with some really good stories. Maybe you know my book The Dot, about a girl who THINKS she can't draw—and her teacher who thinks differently (in more ways than one!). How about Ish? That's the one about the guy who loves to draw, but gets his "ish" squished by his older bro. Eventually he gets brave and starts drawing again. That's my goal: To get people to be braver—brave to be themselves. I was born lucky. I've got a twin brother, Paul. He's a creative guy too. We started writing and "publishing" our own books, comic books, and newspapers somewhere around the age of seven. We used our dad's photocopier at work. Thing is—we never stopped. That's what we do today. Well, not on Dad's copier, but you get the idea. I'm still a lucky guy. I'm a professional writer, storyteller and illustrator. I get paid to do what I love. Crazy, huh? You might also know my art from the Judy Moody and Stink books, written by my gal-pal, Megan McDonald. Oh, did I mention I own a book and toy store called The Blue Bunny? (I enjoy signing books for people there—if you happen to be in Dedham Square, MA, stop on by!) And if that wasn't cool enough, I also own my own animation and multimedia studio, FableVision, headquartered high atop the Boston Children's Museum. I get to collaborate with loads of really cool and creative people. I'm especially lucky to have teamed up with one of the most creative guys ever, Bob Raczka. This guyku thing is super cool, and even though Bob wrote the guyku for this book—and I did the art—he inspired ME to write a guyku. (Click here for my guyku.) I hope our book inspires YOU to make your own guyku! For more scoop, visit my website: Sitting here, I think: I'm one very lucky guy To create and share! |
