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Do you want to spy a reptile?

This week we celebrate the release of After A While Crocodile by Dr. Brady Barr and Jennifer Keats Curtis with illustrations by Susan Detwiler.

In the book, a young girl, Alexa, raises an American crocodile with her class in Costa Rica. The story is her science journal of the experience as the crocodile hatches, grows, and swims off after he is released.

Dr. Brady Barr knew he wanted to work with reptiles after spotting his first alligator in the Florida Everglades. Since, he has traveled the world seeking out lizards, snakes, and other creatures to learn more about the 24 different species. In fact, he is the only one to have captured all 24 species in the wild. Readers can watch Brady Barr comb the jungles, forests, and rivers seeking out reptiles on his Nat Geo Wild show Dangerous Encounters with Brady Barr that airs on Saturdays at 10:30.

Co-author Jennifer Keats Curtis is most often found in the wild classrooms of Maryland talking with students about animal conservation and how she helps wildlife by telling stories.

Susan Detwiler’s illustrations bring Jefe and Alexa to life with her detailed realistic style. Like Jennifer, Susan is often found in classrooms talking about her art and love for children’s books.

If you want to spy your own crocodile, a trip on a plane might be in order. Get a copy of After A While Crocodile, download the For Creative Minds section to find out where these crocs live, and educators we have a teaching guide for you too! Visit the book’s homepage for all these downloadable extras. If you just can’t wait to start the croco-fun here is a simple craft for the little ones.

Simply use popsicle sticks and pipe cleaners. Paint the popsicle stick green, and then start in the middle and wrap one pipe cleaner toward the front leaving enough to bend for legs and feet. Then wrap the second pipe cleaner from the middle to the back, also leaving enough room for legs and feet. On the front glue googly eyes and cut teeth from some white paper and glue that to the end. Now you have a crocodile buddy!

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HOW TO FIND GOLD is only one of Anna and Crocodile's adventures.

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Isn't that awesome! First month of the year and Anna and Crocodile win a surprise honour.

I wrote a making-of feature for the Walker Books blog, you can read it here.

I wondered who these instructions were for. Was this a chapter from a pirate primer? Who was reading it now and why? I started to illustrate it, first imagining myself as a small child, practicing to sleep with my eyes open to make sure no one could steal the gold I hadn’t found yet.

“Get yourself a pet that will surprise you at night,” the story recommended. “A crocodile is ideal. Carry one with you wherever you go to build up your strength. Start with a young crocodile. It will grow.”

This was an idea taken from the Greek myth of Milo who carried a calf on his shoulders every day until it grew into a bull and he grew into a mighty Olympian. More importantly, one summer when I was tiny my mother bought me an inflatable crocodile in the supermarket. It was big enough to ride on and intended for the seaside. I carried it everywhere, dragging it by the tail until its snout wore through on the tarmac and it deflated before the holiday even started.

I drew a girl and her toy crocodile. It wasn’t quite right. They just seemed very quiet and small. - I drew them in on a new page and asked the girl some questions about the crocodile. She said it was called Rupert Maureen, and didn’t move unless she threw it and she wasn’t supposed to throw it. I didn’t expect that.

READ THE REST (both of the article and the comic)

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As promised, here is the first of a few MAKING OF posts about How To Find Gold, my new picture book that's just been published (go buy it, thanks)!

I was developing the characters of Anna and Crocodile by letting them act out some of the ideas I had for the book on paper. I had no idea who they were yet. Anna had my haircut (it grew out gradually while I was working on the book) and the crocodile was a toy which Anna had told me was bought from IKEA ("when we got the wardrobes").

This is from the second sketchbook (there were many).

So, yes, that's how I work... I recommend it, it's really rewarding to see what these little made-up people come out with when you just let them run wild.

Next: Painting Like A Child. Watch this Space.

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Finally!!
Anna and Crocodile have arrived! HOW TO FIND GOLD is in UK bookshops today, published by Walker Books.

Well, here you go. I wrote and illustrated an new book. It doesn't have flaps or speech bubbles this time. It has a quest, and it's very educational. I put in EVERYTHING I know about finding gold. Finding gold, as Crocodile could tell you, takes a lot of preparation, plus someone like Anna.

I'm really fond of these two - it took a long time to work out their story through many scribbly notebooks, letters, and sketchbooks, and by the end I felt like they'd somehow written it themselves. I hope they'll have many more adventures. Actually I am sure they will, I just hope I get to catch some more of them and put them into picture books.

I'll be posting scenes and drawings that happened on the way to the book here over the month, along with some treats... Watch this space!

On the 26th we'll have an official book launch in London, at Daunt Books (Holland Park Avenue). If you're a friend of my books, you're invited. Here you go:

Let's celebrate!

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Yay, the new 3x3 annual is finally out! It is now available as a printed book and as a pdf, and will soon be released as an iPad app, as well.

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Cuddly with an edge.

What is SkADaMo? Check this out.

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Here comes Alfie! Bursting onto the scene. So much to do, so little time. Alfie is plenty busy… too busy to get ready to go out. With classics including the I Love series, I Don’t Believe in Dragons and Peggy, and her beautiful illustrations for Jane Godwin’s All Through the Year, Starting School and Today We Have […]

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Detail

Early pencil sketch

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sal·u·ta·tion
A polite expression of greeting or goodwill.

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The Virginia Art Education Association has some great programs going on. Check out some of the high school student's art.

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Here's one for the unaware-of-the-concept that crocodiles+available human=snack.

This definitely belongs in the people-unaware-of-the-end-result or he-should-have-known-better file.

So this man who is a zoo veterinarian no less indicating that he has experience with dangerous animals, enters the crocodile compound or cage or whatever and wherever crocs live, in Taiwan. According to the report he was in the crocodile's cage to give it an aenesthetic dart since it was sick, given the crocs propensity to bite without provocation. At the point where he was about to remove the tranquilizer dart and not noticing that it i.e. the croc, wasn't fully aenesthesised, the crocodile made its move biting off the man's fore-arm.

Again, it makes one (me) wonder how a person in his i.e. the veterinarian's situation could have missed this very important fact or reality.

Initial reports indicated that shots fired at the crocodile by a co-worker killed the beast however an updated report now claims that no bullet holes have been found in its hide.

Darn - there goes another crocodile purse! Seriously though...

According to a zoo worker the crocodile was shocked perhaps at the fact that it was a target and opened its mouth to let go of the arm. A video report shows the police officer firing at the animal to retrieve the arm.

Anyway...the bottom line to all of this is that the arm was rushed to the hospital where it was re-attached. Here is the "before" photo:

http://www.news.com.au/story/0,23599,21543403-2,00.html

There is no report on how the crocodile is doing.

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