Children's Literature Author

David Wiesner's Body Of Work In Children's Literature This is an essay discussing children's author and illustrator David Wiesner's body of work as a whole. Four books, Tuesday, Free Fall, June 29,1999, and The Three Pigs are examined for plots, settings, themes, characters, and style. Specific references to individual texts are included. Four sources used. MLA.

David Wiesner David Wiesner has been delighting children and adults as well since his first publication, "The Loathsome Dragon." He became known as a picture book artist with the publication of "Free Fall," a wordless book. He has since become the winner of the Caldecott Medal and is considered one of today's most accomplished authors and illustrators of children's books. There is always an element of logic behind his fantasies. Moreover his illustrations are unique and visually appealing.

Although he has authored several story books, including a his own version of "The Three Pigs," Wiesner's style is known as the wordless picture book, literally a book without words. These books are wonderful for young children because they can stimulate creativity in a way reading books cannot. His use of color and imagery in his illustrations attract the attention of not only children but even adults are captivated by his vivid imagination. Free Fall" published in 1988, is a wordless picture book.

The opening page shows a little boy who has fallen asleep in bed reading a book. The next page we discover it is an atlas book, and Wiesner floats the pages across the patchwork of landscape and onward to adventures of dreams (Wiesner p3). The boy encounters giants and even becomes one himself. The book is reminiscent of other adventure books however, Wiesner's use of illustrations enables the story to be told without a single word. Tuesday" contains only four words and three clock times.

The book's opening page states, "Tuesday evening around eight" (Wiesner 1). This is followed by pages of illustrations showing frogs flying on lily pads wrecking havoc around town. Then a few pages over we see "11:21pm" (Wiesner 9), then 4:38am" (Wiesner 17), with an illustration of emergency vehicles trying to figure the mystery of lily pads littering the streets. And finally ending with "Next Tuesday 7:58pm," Wiesner wryly shows a barn and ends the book with pigs flying through the air (Wiesner 27).

This book is simple and charming as well as humorous and surely spurs giggles from young children. June 29, 1999" is a wonderful story of a young wanna-be scientist. The opening page states, "The place is Ho-Ho-Kus, New Jersey. The year is 1999. On May 11, after months of careful research and planning, Holly Evans launches vegetable seeds into the sky" (Wiesner 1). Through his art, Wiesner shows giant vegetables, turnips, cabbage, broccoli, and other vegetables floating in the sky. "All over the country, the skies are filled with vegetables" (Wiesner 7).

Wiesner's ending is clever and futuristic. The story ends with the star cruiser Alula Borealis touring its sixth planet wondering where their supper will come from, and outside the windows of the space craft are giant floating vegetables. Wiesner's imagination seems limitless. He created his own version of "The Three Pigs" however, with a twist. He begins the book much like the original tale, however when the first pig's straw house his blown down, Wiesner writes, and the wolf "ate the pig up" (Wiesner 4).

The story goes on from there in a wonderful new twist to a classic children's tale. Many of Wiesner's books.