26 Fairmount Avenue (26 Fairmount Avenue Series #1)

by Tomie dePaola

Overview

Read by the author
approx. 2 hours
2 cassettes

Well-loved author Tomie dePaola brings his childhood memories to audio in this collection of the first four books from his 26 Fairmount Avenue series.

26 Fairmount Avenue
Tomie's family starts building their new house at 26 Fairmount Avenue in 1938, just as a hurricane hits town, starting off a busy, crazy year.
Here We All Are
Tomie takes us back into his childhood home as he helps the family get ready for the new baby.
On My Way
Tomie invites listeners to share in his childhood memories as he prays for his brand-new baby sister to get over pneumonia and finally learns to read.
What a Year
Tomie celebrates his sixth birthday in style, dresses up as Snow White for his first Halloween, celebrates holidays with his family, suffers through a bout of the chicken pox, and gets to stay up to see the new year in!

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781439569498
Publisher:	Baker & Taylor, CATS
Publication date:	11/11/2008
Series:	26 Fairmount Avenue Series
Pages:	56
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 8.50(h) x 0.50(d)
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

Read an Excerpt

CHAPTER THREE:As exciting as beginning the new house and the big hurricane were, something I had been waiting for for a long time had happened the spring of 1938. Mr. Walt Disney's movie Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs had come to Meriden.
(Continues…)

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Excerpted from "26 Fairmount Avenue"
by .
Copyright © 2002 Tomie dePaola.
Excerpted by permission of Penguin Young Readers Group.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.

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What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

"Kicking off a series by the same name, dePaola recounts some memorable moments from . . .[his] early years, surrounded by loving family members and friends." —Publishers Weekly, starred review

Editorial Reviews

Tomie dePaola, known for the well-loved Strega Nonabooks and many others has fashioned a charming short novel from his own childhood. Illustrated with many black-and-white drawings and small black silhouettes, the nine chapters describe the family's ups and downs in building the family home, as well as other exciting events like a hurricane and Tomie's first day of school. The first person narrative, which has the uncluttered freshness of a child's viewpoint, weaves in well-chosen details that will entertain young readers.
— Book

Kathleen Odean

A charming, gentle, funny...His respect and reverence for both the old and the youngis clear...in his stories. (Patricia MacLachlan, author of Sarah, Plain and Tall)

Author Biography: Tomie dePaola is one of the best-known and best-loved author/illustrators creating books for children today. Both his writing and art have won numerous awards, and many of his picture books are now considered classics.

Neat sketches and silhouettes will draw browsers in, and the book design is approachable and not babyish...[A]n entirely satisfying easy chapter book...
— The Horn Book Review

Sutton

The legions of fans who over the years have enjoyed dePaola's autobiographical picture books will welcome this longer gathering of reminiscences. Writing in an authentically childlike voice, he describes watching the new house his father was building go up despite a succession of disasters, from a brush fire to the hurricane of 1938. Meanwhile, he also introduces family, friends, and neighbors, adds Nana Fall River to his already well-known Nana Upstairs and Nana Downstairs, remembers his first day of school (" `When do we learn to read?' I asked. `Oh, we don't learn how to read in kindergarten. We learn to read next year, in first grade.' `Fine,' I said. `I'll be back next year.' And I walked right out of school."), recalls holidays, and explains his indignation when the plot of Disney's "Snow White" doesn't match the story he knows. Generously illustrated with vignettes and larger scenes, this cheery, well-knit narrative proves that an old dog can learn new tricks, and learn them surpassingly well. (Autobiography. 7-9)

Kirkus Reviews