Starting in December Spellbound, the children’s fantasy magazine, will open up to free subscriptions. You can read about the decision behind the move and sign up for your free subscription here.
Hi y'all! My name is Lily A. (aka Novva), and I’m a children’s book illustrator and vocalist! I love working with vibrant colors and drawing characters who look like me. I’m currently an HBCU student studying Digital Art and am working on a picture book pitch about my Caribbean-American heritage.
Great to meet you, Lily! We’ve asked her to pick out some of her artworks to share below.
Check out more of Lily’s illustrations over at @novva!
October Reads Book Photo Challenge #21: Short but sweet
The 13 Clocks by James Thurber is one of my top fifteen books of all time. It is so perfectly conceived and so perfectly executed that I cannot imagine a single word different. It is a fairy tale with all the right elements: a wicked Duke, a beautiful Princess, a Prince in disguise, a Todal, and of course a Golux, which every story should have. The quest is impossible, the solution improbable, and only unimportant characters get fed to the geese. It’s funny, exciting, and charming all at the same time. My copy has beautiful colour illustrations, plus an introduction by Neil Gaiman. It goes everywhere with me. Suitable for ages six and up.
I’m putting together a Feminist Starter Pack for my niece for Christmas. She’s only 2 months old but I want to get her these books before anyone else does so she’s ready to go when she’s old enough to understand my sister reading to her.
The only idea I’ve had so far is The Paper Bag Princess by Robert Munsch since she was my first feminist icon. Bonus: the princess’ name is Elizabeth which is my niece’s middle name (after her Grammy B)
What other books could I get her? Something appropriate for a child under 4 that isn’t too extreme and is available in (or ships to) Canada.
I rather enjoy “Zog” by Julia Donaldson. It, like Paper Bag Princess (sooooo good), is a subversion of Princess tropes.
Haven’t read them myself, but when I was looking for books for my nephew (with strong female leads a major point in their favor), these got recced:
I’m not as good with the really little kid books, but for when she’s just a liiiiitttle bit older… Tatterhood was and is one of my favourite collections of feminist fairy tales from around the world. You can also find beautiful illustrated versions of many of the stories it contains. Any princess who goes off to rescue her sister riding a goat and wielding a wooden spoon is the princess for me. One of my favourite books when I was little was Magical Tales from Many Lands, which includes such fabulous stories as Kate Crackernuts and Unanana. It’s got beautiful illustrations, and the stories come from all over the world.
Jane Yolen is a good author to look to for children’s books featuring strong girls. At about eight or nine she’ll be old enough for Patricia C. Wrede’s Enchanted Forest Chronicles. When she gets to be ten or eleven or so she can start Tamora Pierce.
And The Paper Bag Princess is still one of my favourites. :)
Latest used book find #barrowbooks #flowerfairies #usedbooks
I found this little box set in my local used bookstore (where I will be working part-time soon!!!) and they are so sweet! Lovely illustrations and cute little poems about flowers and berries that bid fair to teach me more practical botany than I ever learned in school… Granted, they’re about the flowers and trees of England, but I’ve seen enough English seasons that I can imagine most of what she talks about. Plus, the illustrations are very detailed and accurate. Happy spring! Suitable for children three and up.
