Jeff Mack – Mom Read It

Art is Everywhere: A Book About Andy Warhol, by Jeff Mack, (Nov. 2021, Henry Holt & Co.), $19.99, ISBN: 9781250777157

Ages 4-8

Pop artist Andy Warhol gives readers his unique view on art in this fun book that is part picture book biography, part introduction to pop art. Narrated by a cartoon Warhol, Art is Everywhere starts with Warhol’s beginnings, drawing shoes for a shoe company, through his Campbell Soup Cans, Brillo boxes, and Marilyn Monroe prints, and touces on his Factory days, surrounded by artists and the expansion of his art into movies, television, and magazines. Mack touches on Warhol’s interest in celebrities and explains his take on the “famous for 15 minutes” credo: “One day, we will all be stars of our own shows, and we will all like each other over and over again. Gee… won’t that be great?” Mack also looks at the big question – What makes art? – by touching on Warhol’s detractors. Brief sentences, interspersed with questions, invite readers to think about their ideas on art and media. Back matter includes a note on Warhol and Pop Art.

TeachersPayTeachers has some fun, free Pop Art/Warhol resources, like this Art with Mrs Smith Crayon Pop Art lesson; Artsy Blevs’s Pop Art handout; and Ms BooksmART’s Andy Warhol poster. If you’re updating your art storytimes like I want to, this is a fun choice.

Art is Everywhere! has a starred review from Publishers Weekly and was a Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books Book of Distinction.

In a book that plays on a kid’s night time FOMO (fear of missing out), Duck on a Disco Ball parts the bedtime curtain to show readers exactly what we parents do when we finally get kids down for the night. No, not the exhausted collapse onto the couch to fall asleep 10 minutes into our DVR’d backlog of The Flash, I mean THE PARTYING.

Duck on a Disco Ball, by Jeff Mack, (Nov. 2018, Two Lions),
$17.99, ISBN: 978-1-5039-0292-3
Ages 4-7

In what could be a scene directly out of my evening, a little boy stalls his bedtime with a litany of questions: “What if my duck needs a snack?” “What if there’s a huge party and I miss it?” Mom and Dad stand firm, and our little friend finally gives in – we think. See, he’s no one’s fool – he notices that “something is always just a little weird” in the mornings, so he decides to check out exactly what his parents are getting up to at night. Sure enough, Mom and Dad – and, in a stunning betrayal, Duck – are party animals, couch diving, throwing a party, and rocking out. A giant boulder sends the boy’s parent flying, cartoon-style, sky-high, and they land in their bed. By now, the boy falls asleep, too, and wakes up in the morning, not sure if he’s dreamed all of this… but he spies his duck behind the couch, near an electric guitar.

Duck on a Disco Ball is a companion to Duck in the Fridge (2014), and is way too much fun! Kids will laugh at the premise, because they will see themselves – and so will my fellow tired parents! Who hasn’t been asked for the 8th glass of water, 4th trip to the bathroom, 6th round of Piggies, and 3rd “just one more story/song/kiss”? Go ahead: let the kids know what we do at night! The cartoony artwork and bright colors draw readers right in, and it’s a perfect storytime read. Get as silly as you want here – heck, make this a stuffed animal sleepover storytime selection, and set the kids up to see pictures of their stuffed animals getting into all sorts of mischief. Duck on a Disco Ball is fun, punny, and most of all, gives us grownups the chance to wink at our kids when we say that 15th goodnight to our kids. Always leave ’em guessing.

Jeff Mack is the award-winning author and illustrator of Duck in the Fridge; Mine!; Ah Ha!; Good News, Bad News; and the Hippo and Rabbit series. He has also illustrated many books, including If My Love Were a Fire Truck by Luke Reynolds. His books have been awarded the Texas 2×2, a Junior Library Guild award, a Colorado Bell Award, a Pennsylvania Family Literacy Award, a New York Public Library Best Book of the Year Award, and a Bank Street Best Book of the Year award. Jeff lives in Massachusetts. Visit him online at jeffmack.com. Jeff Mack_offers a free lesson in how to draw the duck right here!

Twitter: @jeffmackbooks

Facebook: JeffMackBooks

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Art is Everywhere!

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