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    The Children's Book Review

    Inside the Studio with Tom Lichtenheld, Illustrator of Mighty, Mighty Construction Site

    Guest PostsBy Guest Posts4 Mins Read Ages 0-3 Ages 4-8 Best Kids Stories Best Sellers Picture Books Poetry & Rhyme
    Inside the Studio with Tom Lichtenheld, Illustrator of Mighty, Mighty Construction Site (1)
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    The Children’s Book Review | March 3, 2016

    Inside Tom Lichtenheld’s Studio

    This is what my studio looks like, but it never looks like this.

    1_StudioWideLichtenheldStudio2LichtenheldStudio5 copy

    The most special thing about my studio is a priceless collection of gifts from fellow book creators and little things I keep for inspiration.

    ManloveTruck
    This one of a kind cutest ever dump truck was given to me by Melissa Manlove the editor of Goodnight Goodnight Construction Site when the book first hit the NYT bestseller list
    ElephantButt
    This quip on a print from Eric Rohmann refers to my belief that nothing is funnier than an elephants behind
    SantatDoodle
    I got this Dan Santat drawing at a doodle exchange with other illustrators at a conference Dan ended up with some chicken scratching of mine he definitely got the short end of the deal

     

    AmyCup
    The singularly brilliant Amy Krouse Rosenthal sent me this Groovy Cup of Joe to commemorate the release of my first Groovy Joe book
    BearCard
    An exquisite little painting from Julia Sarcone Roach
    ShellPencil
    A shellpencil from Beth Ferry I hope to do another book with her so I can put this to use
    Not Starting
    Overcoming procrastination is a daily struggle Once I realized its a way of avoiding failure if you dont start you dont fail I wrote this reminder to myself
    Provoke
    Speaking of reminders this is a one word mantra about making stories and pictures for kids adjacent to a man who did it better than anyone
    Pinkney
    A few reminders to give it all youve got from David Shannon Andrea Pinkney and Patrick McDonnell
    EngineRoom
    The engine room of the studio A drawing board Ive had since college two computers slightly newer and a cabinet full of stuff to make marks on paper
    Pencils
    The cabinet has a drawer for each medium here colored pencils
    9_StudioLight
    In full watercolor mode
    LayoutBoard
    A book at the finished sketch layout stage Everything goes on one big board so I can see it as one piece and keep track of progress
    Menagerie
    A menagerie of critters because I never know what kind of animal Ill want to draw and kids are particular about details like how many digits a T Rex has

    Tom Lichtenheld’s Creative Process

    My process is: drawing, editing, more drawing, designing, collaborating, and coloring.

    Fortunately, I get some help.

    4_StudioCatStudioMoon

    Goodnight from the studio!

    ***

    Mighty, Mighty Construction SiteMighty, Mighty Construction Site

    Written by Sherri Duskey Rinker

    Illustrated by Tom Lichtenheld

    Publisher’s Synopsis: At last—here from the team behind the beloved international bestseller comes a companion to Goodnight, Goodnight, Construction Site. All of our favorite trucks are back on the construction site—this time with a focus on team-building, friendship, and working together to make a big task seem small! Down in the big construction site, the crew faces their biggest job yet, and will need the help of new construction friends to get it done. Working as a team, there’s nothing they can’t do! The millions of fans of Goodnight, Goodnight, Construction Site are in for a mighty good time!

    Ages 3-6 | Publisher: Chronicle Books | February 14, 2017 | ISBN-13: 978-1452152165

    Available Here: 

    Text, logoBuy on AmazonLogo

    About Tom Lichtenheld

    Tom Lichtenheld is the illustrator of #1 New York Times bestsellers Goodnight, Goodnight, Construction Site and Steam Train, Dream Train, created with Sherri Duskey Rinker, as well as Duck! Rabbit! and I Wish You More, created with Amy Krouse Rosenthal. He lives near Chicago, Illinois.

    Discover more books like “Mighty, Mighty Construction Site,” written by Sherri Duskey Rinker and illustrated by Tom Lichtenheld, on The Children’s Book Review by following along with our articles tagged with American History, Civil War Books, Debbie Levy, Gilbert Ford, and Non-Fiction. And be sure to check out more authors and illustrators featured in our Inside the Studio column.

    What to Read Next:

    1. Construction Site on Christmas Night, by Sherri Duskey Rinker | Book Review
    2. Mighty, Mighty Construction Site, by Sherri Duskey Rinker | Book Review
    3. Learn to Draw with AG Ford, Illustrator of Construction Site on Christmas Night
    4. Best Selling Picture Books | March 2014

    *Disclosure: Please note that this post may contain affiliate links that share some commission. Rest assured that these will not affect the cost of any products and services promoted here. Our team always provides their authentic opinion in all content published on this site.

    Chronicle Books Construction Illustrator Inside the Studio Picture Book Sherri Duskey Rinker Tom Lichtenheld Transportation Trucks
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    The Children’s Book Review, named one of the ALSC (Association for Library Service to Children) Great Web Sites for Kids, is a resource devoted to children’s literacy. We publish reviews and book lists of the best books for kids of all ages. We also produce author and illustrator interviews and share literacy based articles that help parents, grandparents, teachers and librarians to grow readers. This article was written and provided by a guest author.

    1 Comment

    1. Elaine Pease on March 7, 2017 11:51 am

      Lucky enough to have a Goodnight, Goodnight Construction Site on my shelf so found it fascinating to compare the pages with Tom Lichtenheld’s final layout pages here!

      Reply
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