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Friday, July 3, 2020

The Illustrated Book

     Before children learn to read, they learn to decipher pictures: smiling faces, furry animals, snowflakes. Even as they become fluid readers, using their imaginations to conjure images that the words leave out, that hunger for satisfying visuals never fades. Seductive color palettes, clever interplay of words and images, thoughtful paper craft--these are the factors that make illustrated books such desirable objects to read, touch and admire.

     Now more than ever, authors and illustrators are creating books that push readers' expectations. Sometimes it's unusual physical dimensions--luxuriously tall and broad, or satisfyingly chunky. Sometimes it's especially lavish illustrations. Sometimes it's whiz-bang pop-up art (or, as it's called now, "engineered paper").

Catherine Long, The New York Times Book Review, December 8, 2019

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