Magic Pencil: Children's Book Illustration Today

Magic Pencil: Children's Book Illustration Today by Blake, Quentin. hardcover edition. ISBN: 9780712347709.

This highly illustrated new book features the work of thirteen of the top childrens book illustrators working in the UK today. Each chapter contains a commentary by the illustrator, introducing their work and explaining how they started to illustrate childrens books, and shows several original artworks by each illustrator. Quentin Blakes introduction reflects on the complexities of providing an illustrative response to the characters and activities of a writer. Joanna Carey, formerly Childrens Book Editor of The Guardian, contributes an illustrated essay on the history of childrens book illustration, from the work of Cruikshank, Ardizonne, and Walter Crane, to the instantly recognisable pictures from Winnie the Pooh and the tales of Beatrix Potter. The illustrators featured are: Angela Barrett, Quentin Blake, Lauren Child, Patrick Benson, Raymond Briggs, Sara Fanelli, Stephen Biesty, John Burningham, Michael Foreman, Tony Ross, Posy Simmonds, Emma Chichester Clark, and Charlotte Voake.