Last week, Anna and I had the treat of attending Elaine's North Shore Reading Council dinner and seeing Ed Emberley!For those of you whom the name does not ring a bell, Ed Emberley is an icon to children's book illustrators, creating books like :
as well as his famous drawing book series like:
I'm a huge fan. To me, he embodies so many of the traits of what I aspire to professionally-- a career of longevity and quality books that always make a connection to their intended readers. Of course while my attempt to reach his pinnacle is mainly for his creative accomplishment, when he spoke of his two houses, his boat and his schedule of leisurely drawing in the morning and then choosing his afternoon activity of either biking, boating or skiing, I have to admit the motivations became a little stronger!
But he deserves it. Not only was he completely charming, his talk was inspiring. His theme was "Anyone can draw, at least the Ed Emberley way!" and it was easy to see how kids--usually so scared to make a mistake--would find their courage, both artistic and personal, from his books.
He drew the whole time he was speaking, which is why my photos are blurry! Never kept still for a minute, that man.
His talk was so good, both Anna and I began to reevaluate our own school visit programs (which I will talk about in another post--promise, MotherReader!). Were my presentations boring in comparison? I have to admit, I began to feel a bit of a panic. But luckily, both Lucille Beeth (Hi, Lucille!) and Pat Keough, librarians at the Weston School that I visited, were there and calmed my fears by mentioning their plans of inviting me again. Phew!
I'll try not to disappoint. Maybe I'll be better then ever--I would think so after seeing Ed Emberley as an inspiration.
5 comments:
That night was so much fun. His presentation was so impressive, it was obvious he had really honed it over the years. It was inspiring to watch such a pro.
I'm so glad that you and Anna attended the meeting. Ed is surely dynamic for a man in his seventies! I really enjoyed his presentation. It's too bad he doesn't do school visitations any longer. I have no doubt that he must have been a big hit with kids. I bet he held them spellbound.
It sounds like a fantastic meeting. Lucky you for seeing Ed Emberley. I LOVE his books.
As a kid I was fascinated by Emberley's books. It's great to see him thriving and drawing and taking afternoons off.
That sounds amazing. I mean, biking, boating, or skiing. What a life.
Oh, the presentation sounds fun too. ;^)
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