Items related to What Color Was the Sky Today?
Synopsis
A beautiful picture book explores the concept of change in the sky as young readers look up to discover a golden sun, white clouds, raindrops, and even a rainbow. By the creators of Sunflower.
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About the Author
Miela Ford grew up in Philadelphia, where whe was born. She was graduated from the Philadelphia College of Art. She now lives in Rochester, New York with her husband and two children.
"I was born and grew up in center-city Philadelphia. I lived in a row house with stone steps in the front. I always liked to sit on those steps. My parents were both photographers. Their studio, office, and darkroom were in our house, so I could always be part of what they were doing. My father left me his love of nature. My mother taught me that anything is possible.
"As a child I had cats and birds and a box turtle that lived in the backyard. I kept a duckling, long enough to watch it grow. I had a baby goat, long enough to learn that goats can’t live in the city.I attended NYU and the Philadelphia College of Art. My degree is in metalwork, but photo-graphy and illustration were always part of my life. I sold drawings and jewelry, and made costumes on Broadway.
"My husband and I have two wonderful child-ren, Jeneva and Max. I loved staying home with them. They reopened my eyes to the wonders of the world. I read them the stories that had been read to me as a child.
"But when Max started school, I went to work for an ocularist. We make custom prosthetic eyes. I sit down with each patient and paint an artificial eye to match his or her real one. This is the only kind of artwork where the best compliment I can get is for no one to notice what I have done.
"My mother, Tana Hoban, went on to become a successful children’s book author/photogra-pher. I thought it would be wonderful to do a book with her. She had taken pictures of a mother and baby elephant, and her editor, Susan Hirschman, thought words would enhance the story. This gave me my chance. I looked at the pictures and tried to find the story that they told. That’s how my first book, Little Elephant, came to be.
"Sunflower was next. I had written the story when my daughter was only three. We planted seeds together, and she was amazed that the sunflowers grew so big. Her reaction inspired the story. I saved it for a long time. When I sent it to Susan Hirschman, she loved it and wanted to publish it. She asked Sally Noll to do the art. Sally’s illustrations added something special to my words.
"In my third book, Bear Play, I took the pictures and wrote the words. Photographing animals allows me to spend a lot of time with them. I love to watch animals, and I listen carefully for their stories."
From Booklist
Ages 2^-5. It isn't easy to create a quality picture book that is developmentally appropriate for very young children, but Ford appears to have mastered it. This story comes in at just under 100 words, yet manages to introduce or reinforce basic preschool concepts and themes, such as colors, simple counting, time progression, and the weather. Occasional questions add an interactive element that works well with the age group. For example, children are asked to count the white clouds in the sky, predict whether the gray clouds will hide the sun, and, at day's end, recall the variety of colors in the sky. Noll's sunny gouache paintings feature familiar things in pleasing colors and shapes; they function nicely with the text to help little ones see time progression and weather changes. A versatile story that works equally well as a lapsit or in a group setting. Lauren Peterson
"About this title" may belong to another edition of this title.
- PublisherGreenwillow
- Publication date1997
- ISBN 10 0688145590
- ISBN 13 9780688145590
- BindingLibrary Binding
- Number of pages24
- IllustratorNoll Sally
- Rating
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