Arts & Culture

Renowned picture book creators, Mac Barnett and Jon Klassen, want people of all ages to understand and appreciate children’s stories and how this art form enriches our individual lives and our culture. Speaking on the process of creating their latest collaboration, a board book series called Now I See, Barnett and Klassen have insights into what makes a great children’s book using elements you can find both on and off the page.

This multi-award winning, New York Times bestselling duo operates differently than a lot of children’s book creators. Typically, an author and illustrator don’t directly collaborate, and yet these two find success in close conversations with each other. Using their unique perspectives, Barnett and Klassen also write a newsletter for adults, Looking at Picture Books, which examines the picture book as a respected art form.

Their Now I See board book collection applies that lens by celebrating the spare beauty and wonder of the changing seasons from the point of view of a child. A tree that has full green leaves in Now I See Summer sheds them in Now I See Fall. The snowy sky of Now I See Winter gives way to the rainy sky in Now I See Spring. And of course, the perfect hat changes with each season, too. Barnett and Klassen want to uplift the picture book as an art form, showing everyone of every age what goes into the making of great children’s literature. They’ll discuss the importance and value of picture books — and how they work. Kids are, of course, welcome, but the primary audience for these events is adults keen to learn more about picture books.

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