Book Giveaway – David Harrison

BOOK GIVEAWAY WINNER: Kristi Dee Veitenheimer

I thought you would enjoy the opportunity to win a copy of David L. Harrison’s NOW YOU SEE THEM, NOW YOU DON’T that came out earlier this year. David has taken his wonderful talent for poetry and used it to tell a story about the creatures in our world.

All you have to do to get in the running is to leave a comment. Reblog, tweet, or talk about it on facebook with a link and you will get additional chances to win. Just let me know the other things you did to share the good news, so I can put in the right amount of tickets in my basket for you. Check back on October 3rd to discover the winner.

Description:

Find me
if you can. . .
for if you
don’t,
I’ll be here
tomorrow . . .
you
won’t.

Animals and insects use camouflage to hide from hunters or to ambush prey. Stealth is a very useful technique when it comes to survival. In this fun and informative collection of poems, we meet animals such as the polar bear and the octopus; the ghost crab and the copperhead snake; and many more that use camouflage to hunt or to hide.

Giles Laroche’s intricate cut-paper illustrations are beautiful and life-like. Readers will have to look carefully or run the risk of a hunter sneaking up on them.

Back matter offers additional information about each of the nineteen animals.

Books Journey:

Greetings, Kathy, and thank you for inviting me to your blog today. The story behind my book, Now You See Them, Now You Don’t, began in 2013 when I sent the proposal to Yolanda Scott, editorial director for Charlesbridge Publishing. While Yolanda was considering the proposal, my editor at Boyds Mills Press, Larry Rosler, suggested a similar idea for me to consider. Charlesbridge was first to make an offer and so, with Larry’s gracious understanding, I went with Charlesbridge. Three months later I started a different book (school poems) with Boyds Mills. That title is due for release in 2018.

Yolanda introduced me to Karen Boss and we developed the book together. As a biologist and lifelong nature lover, I saw the idea as a way to explain to readers how animals use their shapes, colors, or habitats to hunt for food or hide from those who hunt for them. I began with a list of creatures that provided good examples. A flounder hides in the sea bottom sand. A copperhead disappears into fall leaves on the forest floor. A fawn hides in plain sight, protected by its dappled hide and lack of scent. A walking stick looks just like its name implies. Karen brought her editor’s instincts to the project, including a keen eye for balance. With her guidance I divided the book into five sections – sea life; reptiles and amphibians; mammals; insects and spiders; and birds. To add to the book’s usefulness in classrooms, I added a 100-word prose piece about each of the seventeen creatures to support the poem and provide additional scientific information.

Then — lucky me! – Charlesbridge landed artist Giles Laroche to illustrate the book. Every illustration Giles makes involves drawing, cutting, painting, and gluing, and many illustrations have seven or eight layers to give the picture a three dimensional look on the page. When Giles came onboard, he had some suggestions of his own to strengthen the collection, which Karen and I were glad to consider. Changes were made here and there as we approached the final drafts of poetry and pictures. Although David and Giles are the names on the cover, Karen’s should be there too. It takes a coordinated team and years of effort to make a book.

Now You See Them, Now You Don’t was released in February 2016, approximately two and one half years after I submitted the idea, and was introduced at the Texas Library Association Conference in Houston. We ran out of books when I was signing so we had to cut off the line. I’m proud of the book and the starred review it received from Kirkus. And I’m delighted to report that the Harrison/Laroche/Boss gang are already far down the road in making the next book come true. I can’t wait to show you the results in a year or so.

David’s Bio:

David Harrison has published ninety-two titles that have earned dozens of honors, including the Christopher Award for The Book of Giant Stories.  His work has been translated into twelve languages, anthologized more than one hundred eighty-five times, and appeared in over eighty magazines and professional journals. In Springfield, MO, David Harrison Elementary School is named for him. His poem, “My Book,” is sandblasted into The Children’s Garden sidewalk at the Burton Barr Library in Phoenix, Arizona and painted on a bookmobile in Pueblo, Colorado. David’s poetry inspired Sandy Asher’s popular, award winning school plays, Somebody Catch My Homework and Jesse and Grace and has been set to music performed for numerous live audiences. In 2007, the Missouri Librarian Association presented David with its Literacy Award for the body of his work. David holds science degrees from Drury and Emory universities and honorary doctor of letters degrees from Missouri State University and Drury University. He is poet laureate of Drury. David lives with his wife, Sandy, a business owner and retired guidance counselor. He is working on many new books.

http://davidlharrison.com
http://davidlharrison.wordpress.com

Thank you David for sharing your journey with us and offering a book to one lucky winner.

Talk tomorrow,

Kathy