KIDS STUFF

I loved the Roald Dahl books as a kid. The BFG was an all time favorite. I loved how smart kids got pitted against cruel, ghoulish adults and met up with strange, creepy monsters. Being a visual person, what really brought these books to life for me was the chapter illustrations by Quentin Blake. His loose style puzzled me as a kid. How could these rough drawings capture so much character? As an adult, I appreciated his style even more, realizing that the loose, natural quality of his drawing style still allowed me to create the characters in my own mind.

Recently, I was drawn to a new series of books by Trenton Lee Stewart about the Mysterious Benedict Society. Of course the cover and chapter illustrations by Carson Ellis really caught my eye. The book is a great little read with clever, resourceful kids pitted against a creepy world domination brain washing scheme. And the illustrations are the icing on the cake.