Tomie Depaola Book

Presents the life of the author-illustrator who has won numerous awards and prizes, including the Caldecott Medal, for his children's books.

Children's Literature

Tomie dePaola was born Thomas Anthony dePaola in 1934 and, at the age of four, knew that he wanted to be an artist. As a young child he enjoyed visiting his maternal grandparents and listening to Irish stories. Tomie also took dancing lessons, made puppets, and enjoyed performing in his father's home movies. After graduating from high school in 1952, Tomie attended Pratt Art Institute in New York. Living in Manhattan afforded him the opportunity to visit the Museum of Modern Art and exposed him to different styles of painting. He then studied at the Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture with Ben Shahn, who served as a mentor for the young artist. Tomie worked at various jobs before illustrating his first book in 1963. Eventually, he began to write as well as illustrate his own books and has since provided his young readers with a prodigious body of work. The photographs included in the book offer pictures of a happy, smiling man with a twinkle in his eye. Just the way a magician who enthralls his audiences with imaginative stories and fabulous pictures should look. This book is part of the "Children's Authors" series and provides young readers with an engaging look at the artist. 2000, ABDO, $19.92. Ages 6 to 10. Reviewer: Carolyn Mott Ford