Here We All Are (26 Fairmount Avenue Series #2)

by Tomie dePaola, Tomie dePaola (Illustrator)

Overview

Sequel to the Newbery Honor Book!

In this second installment in beloved author Tomie dePaola's autobiographical 26 Fairmount Avenue series, young Tomie and his family are setting into their new house. Charming and lively, with dePaola's trademark illustrations, this is a wonderful addition to the series.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780698119093
Publisher:	Penguin Young Readers Group
Publication date:	03/06/2002
Series:	26 Fairmount Avenue Series
Edition description:	Reprint
Pages:	80
Product dimensions:	5.90(w) x 8.35(h) x 0.20(d)
Lexile:	700L (what's this?)
Age Range:	7 - 10 Years

About the Author

Tomie dePaola was born in Meriden, Connecticut, in 1934 to a family of Irish and Italian background. By the time he could hold a pencil, he knew what his life's work would be. His determination to create books for children led to a BFA from Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, New York, and an MFA from the California College of Arts & Crafts in Oakland, California.It drove him through the years of teaching, designing greeting cards and stage sets, and painting church murals until 1965, when he illustrated his first children's book, Sound, by Lisa Miller for Coward-McCann. Eventually, freed of other obligations, he plunged full time into both writing and illustrating children's books.
He names Fra Angelico and Giotto, Georges Rouault, and Ben Shahn as major influences on his work, but he soon found his own unique style. His particular way with color, line, detail, and design have earned him many of the most prestigious awards in his field, among them a Caldecott Honor Award for Strega Nona, the Smithsonian Medal from the Smithsonian Institution, the Kerlan Award from the University of Minnesota for his "singular attainment in children's literature," the Catholic Library Association's Regina Medal for his "continued distinguished contribution," and the University of Southern Mississippi Medallion. He was also the 1990 United States nominee for the Hans Christian Andersen Medal for illustration.
Tomie dePaola has published almost 200 children's books in fifteen different countries. He remains one of the most popular creators of books for children, receiving more than 100,000 fan letters each year.
Tomie lives in an interesting house in New Hampshire with his four dogs. His studio is in a large renovated 200-year-old barn.
- He has been published for over 30 years.
- Over 5 million copies of his books have sold worldwide.
- His books have been published in over 15 different countries.
- He receives nearly 100,000 fan letters each year.
Tomie dePaola has received virtually every significant recognition forhis books in the children's book world, including:
- Caldecott Honor Award from American Library Association
- Newbery Honor Award from American Library Association
- Smithson Medal from Smithsonian Institution
- USA nominee in illustration for Hans Christian Andersen Medal
- Regina Medal from Catholic Library Association copyright © 2000 by Penguin Putnam Books for Young Readers. All rights reserved.

Hometown:

Connecticut and New Hampshire

Date of Birth:

September 15, 1935

Place of Birth:

Meriden, CT

Website:

http://www.tomie.com/main.html

Editorial Reviews

In a starred review PW wrote, "DePaola continues to share engaging childhood memories in this breezy follow-up to 26 Fairmount Avenue, his inaugural chapter book and a Newbery Honor title." Ages 7-10. (Oct.) Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.

Publishers Weekly

Gr 1-3-Like an old friend sharing childhood experiences, dePaola recalls events that occurred soon after his family moved to their house on Fairmount Avenue in Connecticut circa 1940. He describes his main obsessions in kindergarten-the anticipated birth of his baby sister, art, and learning to tap dance. His parents, grandparents, his friend Jeannie, and even his art teacher, first introduced in 26 Fairmount Avenue (Putnam, 1999), all make return appearances here, with their personalities and stories expanded and placed more firmly in time. Children will be tickled to read about the time Tomie borrowed his mother's lipstick to make himself up like his favorite movie star, Mae West; or how he licked his bedpost when he learned that it was genuine maple. A black-and-white illustration or small decorative silhouette graces almost every page. Through descriptions and drawings, the author helps readers to understand such historical tidbits as a monitor-top refrigerator and Joe Palooka. This is a perfect step-up for children ready to move from beginning readers to chapter books. A wonderful choice for group or independent reading.-Darcy Schild, Schwegler Elementary School, Lawrence, KS Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information.|

School Library Journal

Picking up his memoir where 26 Fairmount Avenue (1999), left off, dePaola presents a kindergartner's-eye view of his new house, growing family, and increasingly busy life. He remembers what a child would remember: a new stove with niches for salt and pepper shakers at the back; losing the chance to play Peter Rabbit in a class play by talking out of turn (but stealing the show anyway with onstage clowning); anxiously hoping that his mother brings a girl home from the hospital—"I already had a brother, and who needs two of those!" Between a detailed floor plan and the closing full family portrait, he brings classmates, lovely parents, a hilariously forbidding grandmother who comes for an extended visit, and other relatives to life, both in his seemingly artless narrative and with relentlessly charming portraits and tableaux. Seldom either shy or down for long, he is or becomes a friend to everyone here, and like the unsympathetic teacher who relents after being presented with a magnificent homemade valentine, readers will find his buoyancy irresistible. (Autobiography. 7-10)

Kirkus Reviews