The first survey of Leo Lionni’s protean career as a graphic designer, children’s book creator, and fine artist. Between Worlds: The Art and Design of Leo Lionni opens at the Norman Rockwell Museum in Stockbridge, MA, on 18 November 2023. Leo Lionni (1910–1999) was a key figure of postwar visual culture, who believed that a smart, pithy design language could unite people across generations and cultural boundaries. He first achieved success in the field of graphic design, serving as the influential art director of Fortune magazine from 1948 to 1960 and personally executing such innovative designs as the catalogue for the Museum of Modern Art’s seminal photo exhibition The Family of Man. Then, in the 1960s, he embarked on an equally groundbreaking career in picture books, using torn-paper collages to illustrate modern animal fables such as Frederick and Swimmy, which are still beloved today. But even as his books won multiple Caldecott Honors, Lionni — who had begun as a painter — also maintained a fine art practice centered on his Parallel Botany, a richly imagined world of fanciful plants. This volume, the catalogue of a major exhibition at the Norman Rockwell Museum, is the first to present Lionni’s extraordinary career in the round. Written by leading scholars and with an introduction by the artist’s granddaughter, it is illustrated with abundant examples of his work, including many little-seen items from the Lionni family archives. Leo Lionni: Storyteller, Artist, Designer will be an important, and eye-opening, contribution to the history of art and design.

The Borrowers--the Clock family: Homily, Pod, and their fourteen-year-old daughter, Arrietty, to be precise--are tiny people who live underneath the kitchen floor of an old English country manor. All their minuscule home furnishings, from postage stamp paintings to champagne cork chairs, are borrowed from the human beans who tromp around loudly above them. All is well until Pod is spotted upstairs by a human boy Can the Clocks stay nested safely in their beloved hidden home, or will they be forced to flee? The British author Mary Norton won the Carnegie Medal for The Borrowers in 1952, the year it was first published in England. This repackaged paperback edition still has the delightful original black-and-white illustrations by Beth and Joe Krush inside. A charmer Awards: 1952 Carnegie Medal, a Lewis Carroll Shelf Award BookDon't miss the other classics in the Borrowers series: The Borrowers Afield, The Borrowers Afloat, The Borrowers Aloft, and The Borrowers Avenged.

The Art of Alice and Martin Provensen is the first-ever monograph on this beloved midcentury husband-and-wife illustration team. This award-winning pair created more than 40 beloved children's books over the span of seven decades, many of which appeared on the New York Times Best Illustrated Books of the Year lists. From early favorites for Golden Books such as The Color Kittens by Margaret Wise Brown, 1949, to their Caldecott-winning title The Glorious Flight: Across the Channel with Louis Bleriot, 1983, the Provensens' books inspired generations of young readers. Original paintings for their beloved classics such as A Child's Garden of Verses, 1951, The Iliad and the Odyssey, 1959, Myths and Legends, 1960 and many others, are beautifully reproduced and included here. This comprehensive volume showcases hundreds of their well-known illustrations, as well as many never-before-seen paintings, drawings, and exquisite sketchbooks from their travels around the world. An interview with their daughter Karen Provensen Mitchell illuminates their life and career and includes many personal photographs, quotes, speeches, and memorabilia from their archive. An introduction by Leonard S. Marcus, a leading historian in children's literature, underscores the Provensen's importance and influence as illustrators and authors. Additionally, noted publisher and close family friend Robert Gottlieb, provides a personal essay that shares many of his memories with this cherished couple. The Provensens' colorful, inimitable artwork is a treasure trove that has influenced generations of children, designers, illustrators, historians, and all who cherish classic children's books.

She trusted her immense intuition and generous heart--and published the most. Ursula Nordstrom, director of Harper's Department of Books for Boys and Girls from 1940 to 1973, was arguably the single most creative force for innovation in children's book publishing in the United States during the twentieth century. Considered an editor of maverick temperament and taste, her unorthodox vision helped create such classics as Goodnight Moon, Charlotte's Web, Where the Wild Things Are, Harold and the Purple Crayon, and The Giving Tree.

Leonard S. Marcus has culled an exceptional collection of letters from the HarperCollins archives. The letters included here are representative of the brilliant correspondence that was instrumental in the creation of some of the most beloved books in the world today. Full of wit and humor, they are immensely entertaining, thought-provoking, and moving in their revelation of the devotion and high-voltage intellect of an incomparably gifted editor, mentor, and publishing visionary.Ursula Nordstrom, director of Harper’s Department of Books for Boys and Girls from 1940 to 1973, was arguably the single most creative force for innovation in children’s book publishing in the United States during the twentieth century. Considered an editor of maverick temperament and taste, her unorthodox vision helped create such classics as Goodnight Moon, Charlotte’s Web, Where the Wild Things Are, Harold and the Purple Crayon, and The Giving Tree.

Leonard S. Marcus has culled an exceptional collection of letters from the HarperCollins archives. The letters included here are representative of the brilliant correspondence that was instrumental in the creation of some of the most beloved books in the world today. Full of wit and humor, they are immensely entertaining, thought-provoking, and moving in their revelation of the devotion and high-voltage intellect of an incomparably gifted editor, mentor, and publishing visionary.

Rediscover an American classic with this special deluxe edition of the Newbery Award-winning children's series-starring the iconic time traveling heroine, Meg Murry This Library of America volume presents Madeleine L'Engle's iconic classic A Wrinkle in Time, one of the most beloved and influential novels for young readers ever written, in a newly-prepared authoritative text and, as a special feature, it includes never-before-seen deleted passages from the novel in an appendix. L'Engle's unforgettable heroine, Meg Murry, must confront her fears and self-doubt to rescue her scientist father, who has been experimenting with mysterious tesseracts capable of bending the very fabric of space and time. Helping her are her little brother Charles Wallace and her friend Calvin O'Keefe, and a trio of strange supernatural visitors called Mrs. Whatsit, Mrs. Who, and Mrs. Which. But A Wrinkle in Time was only the beginning of the adventure. Seven other Kairos ("cosmic time") novels followed, collected for the first time in a deluxe two volume collector's boxed set. This first volume gathers Wrinkle with three books that chronicle the continuing adventures of Meg and her siblings. In A Wind in the Door, Meg and Calvin descend into the microverse to save Charles Wallace from the Echthroi, evil beings who are trying to unname existence. When a madman threatens nuclear war in A Swiftly Tilting Planet, Charles Wallace must save the future by traveling into the past. And in Many Waters, Sandy and Dennys, Meg's twin brothers, are accidentally transported back to the time of Noah's ark. A companion volume gathers the final four Kairos Novels, the Polly O'Keefe quartet, in which Calvin and Meg's daughter takes center stage. LIBRARY OF AMERICA is an independent nonprofit cultural organization founded in 1979 to preserve our nation's literary heritage by publishing, and keeping permanently in print, America's best and most significant writing. The Library of America series includes more than 300 volumes to date, authoritative editions that average 1,000 pages in length, feature cloth covers, sewn bindings, and ribbon markers, and are printed on premium acid-free paper that will last for centuries.

In compelling interviews by the acclaimed Leonard S. Marcus, twenty-one top authors and illustrators reveal their inside stories on the art of creating picture books.
Max and Mickey; Miss Nelson; Pack, Quack, and Mrs. Mallard; Pigeon; Sylvester; John Henry; and a very hungry caterpillar -- these are just a few of the beloved picture book characters discussed in "Show Me a Story." Renowned children's literature authority Leonard S. Marcus speaks with their creators and others -- twenty-one of the world's most celebrated authors and illustrators
-- and asks about their childhood, their inspiration, their determination, their mentors, their creative choices, and more. Amplifying these richly entertaining and thought-provoking conversations are eighty-eight full-color plates revealing each illustrator's artistic process from sketch to near
-final artwork in fascinating, behind-the-scenes detail. Why do children love and need picture books so much? Recasting and greatly expanding on a volume published in 2002 as "Ways of Telling," Leonard S. Marcus confirms that picture books matter because they make a difference in our children's lives.

A fascinating, beautiful and definitive account of the life of esteemed artist Helen Oxenbury.

Filled with insights that span Helen Oxenbury's life, from her early childhood through a unique career in children's books that began in 1964 and is still going strong today, here is an exquisitely designed and thoroughly entertaining celebration of one of the finest English illustrators of our time. Written by acclaimed author Leonard S. Marcus, Helen Oxenbury: A Life in Illustration is a keepsake that is sure to engage and delight everyone from scholars to art aficionados to the many children and adults who have grown up with Helen Oxenbury’s enchanting books.

"The Phantom Tollbooth" is a universally beloved childhood classic. In the 50 years since its original publication, millions of children have breathlessly followed Milo's adventures in the Lands Beyond.
Now Leonard Marcus, a nationally acclaimed writer on children's literature, has created a richly annotated edition of this perennial favorite. Marcus's expansive annotations include interviews with the author and illustrator, illuminating excerpts from Juster's notes and drafts, cultural and literary commentary, and Marcus's own insights on the book. "The Annotated Phantom Tollbooth" also includes an introduction that shares the fascinating background on the book's publication--Juster and Feiffer met as young neighbors in Brooklyn, New York, and thus began a fortuitious collaboration on a project that would become an instant classic--as well as its enduring place in the world of children's literature.
"The Annotated Phantom Tollbooth" is the perfect way to honor a classic and will be welcomed by young readers and fans of all ages.

Madeleine L'Engle is perhaps best recognized as the author of "A Wrinkle in Time," the enduring milestone work of fantasy fiction that won the 1963 John Newbery Medal for excellence in children's literature and has enthralled millions of readers for the past fifty years. But to those who knew her well, L'Engle was much more besides: a larger-than-life persona, an inspiring mentor, a strong-willed matriarch, a spiritual guide, and a rare friend. In "Listening for Madeleine," the renowned literary historian and biographer Leonard S. Marcus reveals Madeleine L'Engle in all her complexity through a series of incisive interviews with the people who knew her most intimately. Vivid reminiscences of family members, colleagues, and friends create a kaleidoscope of keen insights and snapshop moments that help readers to understand the many sides of this singularly enthralling woman.

This is the classic story--read and loved by children all over the world--of Pod, Homily, and their daughter, Arrietty, who live under the kitchen floor in a quiet, half-empty house and get their livelihood by borrowing from the "human beans." "Delectable fantasy."--"Booklist"

Margaret Wise Brown, the author of Goodnight Moon and dozens of other children's classics, all but invented the picture book as we know it today. Combining poetic instinct with a profound empathy for small children, she knew of a child's need for security, love, and a sense of being at home in the worldand she brought that unique tenderness to the page.

Yet these were comforts that eluded her. Brown's youthful presence and professional successas an editor, bestselling author, and self-styled impresariomasked an insecurity that left her restless and vulnerable. In this moving biography, Marcus portrays Brown's complex character and her tragic, seesaw life. Her literary achievement and groundbreaking discoveries about small children's emotional needs were offset by tormented romances including a passionate relationship with Michael Strange, the celebrity socialite once married to John Barrymore.