Allen Say

Caldecott Medal-winning author/illustrator Allen Say shares the background story of his latest picture book "Erika-San." The story relates an American girl’s life-long fascination with Japan and its culture. Discussion moderated by Mindy Todd, host of "The Point" on WCAI, the Cape and Islands NPR station. ... (more)Say's visit is part of the 2009 "Sandwich Reads Together" community-wide reading program.

"With luminous watercolors and economical text, Caldecott Medalist Say tells of an American girl whose ingenuous hopes of reaching "old Japan" are finally realized...aficionados of Say's tranquil work will find both the message and the delivery deeply satisfying"Publisher's Weekly "Say's storytelling ... (more)and art are as absorbing as ever; the illustrations of rural Japan will have adults yearning for their own remote farmhouse."Horn Book Allen Say is the award-winning creator of nearly twenty books, including Grandfather's Journey, winner of the Caldecott Medal. He is known for his unique ability to subtly capture the immigrant experience, his evocative watercolors, and poetic language. Say spent the first fifteen years of his life in Japan, studying art with the master cartoonist Noro Shinpei, and immigrated to the United States when he was sixteen years old. For years he worked as a successful commercial photographer, writing and illustrating picture books on a part-time basis. But in 1987, while illustrating The Boy of the Three-Year Nap (a Caldecott Honor book), he recaptured the joy he had known working in his master’s studio and decided to make a full-time commitment to doing what he loves best: creating books for children. Recently, Say’s work has been featured in exhibitions at the Eric Carle Museum in Amherst, Massachusetts, the Japanese American Museum in Los Angeles, California, and the Fort Wayne Museum of Art in Fort Wayne, Indiana. Allen Say lives and works in Portland, Oregon.

KIDS EVENT: ALLEN SAY: ERIKA-SAN 6:30pm Caldecott Medalist Allen Say (The Boy of the Three-Year Nap, Tree of Cranes) creates a beautiful story about an American girl seeking adventure in Japan. Erika-San follows her journey from crowded Japanese streets to a remote Japanese island, and eventually to ... (more)her home—the Teahouse. Students from Urasenke School will perform a traditional Japanese tea ceremony and serve the author before he speaks.