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Pete's a Pizza
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From: Ginny Moore Kruse <gmkruse>
Date: Thu, 25 Mar 1999 10:16:17 -0600
I read "Pete's a Pizza" to a class of second graders who didn't mention one word about how the parents look (or don't look) in the illustrations. These children never hestitate to use their words to tell me (and each other) what they're thinking! They were delighted with the imaginative play in which Pete participated as fully as each of his parents did. The final lines indicating that the sun came out and the pizza ran out the door to play had them howling.
I've been told that William Steig's idea for "Pete's a Pizza" orginated in a game he used to play with his own young children years ago. Perhaps someone from HarperCollins can tell us more about this.
I'm astonished to find out that anyone familiar with William Steig's other picture books - or even with his regularly published art in "The New Yorker" - can find his unique visual style jarring. "Older" parents may be more numerous in America at this time, but as we've seen from other CCBC-Net messages this week, that isn't new. My father was 49 years old when I was born, and an earlier illness had left his head bald. Add to that my much younger mother's prematurely white hair, and in public the two of them were often mistaken for my grandparents. However, even with my personal history, I didn't notice the "older" parents in "Pete's a Pizza," because I saw them as typical Steig
"folks."
Take a look at Mr. Steig's other picture books to notice the writing in each of them. For decades he's been one of the outstanding picture book writers. It's such a marvel that at this point in his long life and distinguished career, he tapped his personal experience as a parent to write and illlustrate this perfect picture book. I'm thrilled that Mr. Steig's gifted work in "Pete's a Pizza" received one of the formal acknowledgements for outstanding picture book writing made possible by the Zolotow Award. ...Ginny
*************************************** Ginny Moore Kruse (gmkruse at ccbc.soemadison.wisc.edu) Cooperative Children's Book Center (CCBC) A Library of the School of Education (www.soemadison.wisc.edu/ccbc/) University of Wisconsin - Madison
Received on Thu 25 Mar 1999 10:16:17 AM CST
Date: Thu, 25 Mar 1999 10:16:17 -0600
I read "Pete's a Pizza" to a class of second graders who didn't mention one word about how the parents look (or don't look) in the illustrations. These children never hestitate to use their words to tell me (and each other) what they're thinking! They were delighted with the imaginative play in which Pete participated as fully as each of his parents did. The final lines indicating that the sun came out and the pizza ran out the door to play had them howling.
I've been told that William Steig's idea for "Pete's a Pizza" orginated in a game he used to play with his own young children years ago. Perhaps someone from HarperCollins can tell us more about this.
I'm astonished to find out that anyone familiar with William Steig's other picture books - or even with his regularly published art in "The New Yorker" - can find his unique visual style jarring. "Older" parents may be more numerous in America at this time, but as we've seen from other CCBC-Net messages this week, that isn't new. My father was 49 years old when I was born, and an earlier illness had left his head bald. Add to that my much younger mother's prematurely white hair, and in public the two of them were often mistaken for my grandparents. However, even with my personal history, I didn't notice the "older" parents in "Pete's a Pizza," because I saw them as typical Steig
"folks."
Take a look at Mr. Steig's other picture books to notice the writing in each of them. For decades he's been one of the outstanding picture book writers. It's such a marvel that at this point in his long life and distinguished career, he tapped his personal experience as a parent to write and illlustrate this perfect picture book. I'm thrilled that Mr. Steig's gifted work in "Pete's a Pizza" received one of the formal acknowledgements for outstanding picture book writing made possible by the Zolotow Award. ...Ginny
*************************************** Ginny Moore Kruse (gmkruse at ccbc.soemadison.wisc.edu) Cooperative Children's Book Center (CCBC) A Library of the School of Education (www.soemadison.wisc.edu/ccbc/) University of Wisconsin - Madison
Received on Thu 25 Mar 1999 10:16:17 AM CST
