A star for Lighter Than Air!

Good news: Lighter Than Air got a starred review in Booklist! Written by Matthew Clark Smith, illustrated by me, published by Candlewick Press, Lighter Than Air will be in stores March 14.

A Star for GROWING UP PEDRO!

Great news- Growing Up Pedro got a starred review in School Library Journal! Woohoo!

BECOMING BABE RUTH in The New York Times!

Woohoo! Check it out:

And here's the online version, which has a nice slideshow featuring Becoming Babe Ruth and some other great new sports picture books. Huzzah!

Helen's Big World in The New York Times!

Great news! Helen's Big World got a stellar review in yesterday's New York Times! Here it is...

Starred Review in The Horn Book!

I'm always happy when my issue of The Horn Book Magazine arrives in the mail. But it's especially exciting when this is inside:

A starred review in The Horn Book Magazine (!!) for my upcoming book, Helen's Big World, written by Doreen Rappaport, illustrated by me, published by Disney-Hyperion. Here's a snippet:

"Tavares's illustrations for Helen's Big World are, per the title, big and bold and often in intense close-up. Stirring and awe-inspiring..." *The Horn Book (starred review)

Thank you, Horn Book!

Helen's Big World also got a nice review in Publishers Weekly this week. I especially like their description of this illustration:

"Dark and almost demonic, it conveys instantly both the catastrophic nature of Helen's disabilities and the steely will that raged to be unleashed." -PW

I almost scrapped this picture and started over, because I worried that it was too dark. I like it now, though.

Early Reviews for THERE GOES TED WILLIAMS

A couple nice reviews for There Goes Ted Williams: The Greatest Hitter Who Ever Lived...

From School Library Journal:

"Following his outstanding Henry Aaron’s Dream (Candlewick, 2010), Tavares has written an equally stunning book about another Baseball Hall of Famer....Williams’s charisma dominates the illustrations, from the very first one of a scrawny boy swinging under the palm trees of a San Diego playground, to his final trip around the bases at Fenway. Due attention is also given to Williams’s distinguished military career, which he approached with the same determination to dominate as he did hitting.... This is a glorious tribute to a baseball legend and a complicated human being."

and this from Kirkus:

"Williams was a complex and difficult personality, but Tavares chooses to focus on these larger-than-life heroics, telling of Williams’ desire to be the best at everything he attempted and the joy he felt when he accomplished his goals. The language is rich in imagery, with short, action-packed sentences.... Commanding watercolor, gouache and pencil illustrations depict Williams in action as a boy, a major-leaguer and a Navy pilot. Tavares captures him well in his Red Sox uniform, with his unique swing and home-run trot."

The book comes out in three weeks. So far, so good!

By the way, you can still enter to win a free copy!

THERE GOES TED WILLIAMS in The Horn Book Magazine!

One of my favorite gifts this past Christmas was a subscription to The Horn Book Magazine. I just got my first issue yesterday, and it was truly an honor to see a really nice review of There Goes Ted Williams, along with my illustration of Ted Williams on a combat mission during the Korean War. Here's a peek:

And here are some quotes from the review:

"Tavares’s present-tense narrative lends drama and immediacy to the all-smiles-and-heroics biography, and the watercolor, gouache, and pencil illustrations depict Williams as large as a double-page spread can hold. On one spread, Williams’s head, torso, and baseball bat, in typical homerun swing, consume the available space. Turn the page, and an F9F Panther fighter jet all but flies out of the book.... Published in time for Fenway Park’s centennial celebrations, this full-of-life biography will be a hit with young baseball fans." -The Horn Book Magazine

Not too shabby! But the real gem of the January/Febraury issue of The Horn Book Magazine is the incredible cover art by Sally Mavor. I got to see the original art when I met Sally at the Connecticut Children's Book Fair in November, and seeing it in person really made me appreciate how much work must go into making art like this. It's mind-boggling, and truly amazing...

To learn about Sally's process, read this.

By the way, you can still enter to win an advance copy of There Goes Ted Williams, here!

New OVER THE RIVER Reviews

With Thanksgiving just a day away, Over the River and Through the Wood has been getting some nice mentions lately. Here's a quick rundown of a few new blog reviews, with links to the full reviews:

"A stunning book of song with the feel of yesteryear.  Beautiful matte pages with the slightest texture.  Stately red endpapers.  Exquisite artwork... An ideal picture book."  -Picture Book Reviews

"Matt Tavares has created a fantastic version of the song “Over the River and Through the Wood. The pictures of the snowy 19th century New England town and landscape are beautiful, setting the blues and grays of snow and horse with the vivid reds of the sleigh and brick houses. He’s livened these lyric illustrations also with a story of a dog sometimes teasing and sometimes chasing after the sleigh holding in his teeth a boy’s hat that had flown off in the wind.... It's a song and book everyone can enjoy." -Sing Books With Emily, the blog

 "One read through Over the River and Through the Wood and readers will long for the pastoral life, to be swept up the side of a mountain by horse power, to hear the quiet of the woods settling deeply around. Beautifully done and so peaceful it made me yearn to be in it, Tavares's edition is just the thing to slow readers down and keep their thoughts centered." -Where the Best Books Are

"We are touched by the beautiful and detailed illustrations and the loving attention to each inch of the book." -Bellissima Kids 
 
"Echoing the language of Child's time and sparkling with Norman Rockwell-like detail, the book may well carry your young readers - and singers - away into history in the rushing sleigh, in the snowy woods, and in the busy New England town, right beside the poem's characters and their spirited horse! -Great Books For Horse Lovers

Thanks to all the bloggers who took the time to enjoy my book and share it with their readers!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Over the River and Through the Wood news

Over the River and Through the Wood was reviewed in The New York Times on Sunday! I went out and bought a paper copy, just to make sure they actually printed it. They did! Check it out- they even included a nice little color illustration:

I happened to be at the Connecticut Children's Book Fair on Sunday, so I asked Mo Willems to sign the awesome Knuffle Bunny illustration he did for the cover of the NYT Children's Books section. I think this will be going up on my wall:

Since a good review in The New York Times doesn't come along every day (or every year...), I decided to update my Over the River book trailer to include a nice quote from the review. Here's the new version:

first reviews for JACK'S PATH OF COURAGE

The first reviews of Jack's Path of Courage: The Life of John F. Kennedy are in! So far, so good:

From School Library Journal:
      "[Rappaport's] descriptive narration is spiced with memorable quotations and Tavares’s larger-than-life illustrations. The realistic paintings portray the different periods in JFK’s life with depth and detail, capturing his emotions, courage, and sovereignty while remaining true to this unique time in history.... This beautifully illustrated and gracefully told story serves as a superior introduction to our 35th president."

From Publisher's Weekly:
      "As with these collaborators' Lady Liberty, the striking cover of this picture-book biography features a closeup portrait of the subject, all the more compelling in this instance with the omission of any type.... Tavares's light- and shadow-infused paintings balance lifelike portrayals of Kennedy with renderings of dramatic events, notably a Japanese destroyer ramming Kennedy's PT boat during WWII and the planting of the American flag on the moon. An evenhanded, graphically stirring biography."

And from Kirkus:
      "A striking cover close-up of Kennedy (with the title information on the back of the jacket, à la the author's Martin's Big Words, illustrated by Bryan Collier, 2001) introduces the reader to this biography of the 35th president of the United States.... The handsome and vivid illustrations pop."