The Terrible Hodag: What Do YOU Think It Looks Like?

Recently, I did an author visit at Pilgrim School in Los Angeles.  Before my visit, the librarian had read aloud my tall tale, The Terrible Hodag and the Animal Catchers, to the students.  But she didn’t show them the illustrations in the book.  Instead, the children had to imagine their own version of the creature that has the head of an OX, feet of a BEAR, back of a DINOSAUR, and the tail of an ALLIGATOR.  Afterwards, the art teacher asked the first graders to paint their images.  She gave them large sheets of black paper (after all, the Hodag is said to be forty feet tall!) and white paint and large brushes.  They worked in small groups, each one producing an amazing, and different giant Hodag.  The finished products were mounted on the walls of the room where I gave my presentation, making us feel as if we were in the north woods where the Hodag lives.

I did not invent the Hodag.  The first Hodag was described in a newspaper article in the northern Wisconsin town of Rhinelander in 1893.  Then, in 1896, prankster Eugene Shepard, (who had instigated the earlier report) claimed to have captured a Hodag.  He displayed his “living” monster at the Oneida County fair.  Later, he admitted it was a hoax. Rhinelander still considers itself the home of the Hodag.  When I visited Rhinelander several years ago, I had my picture taken under the huge fiberglass model of the Hodag that stands outside the Chamber of Commerce.  This Hodag looks considerably fiercer than those portrayed in my books!

Through the years, tales of the Hodag have spread throughout the upper midwest.  As with all tall tales, the stories have evolved.  I first learned about the Hodag when I was a child and went to summer camp at Camp Bovey (originally called Camp Hodag) in northern Wisconsin and we told Hodag stories around the campfire at night.  I remembered those stories and after I grew up and became a children’s book author I wrote one of them down.  That story became The Terrible Hodag, illustrated by Lambert Davis.  He depicts the Hodag as a kind of taxidermist’s assemblage of body parts.

I then took the characters from the first book and used them to create my own story.  That became The Terrible Hodag and the Animal Catchers.  The illustrations in that book, by John Sandford, are black and white and evoke turn of the century woodcuts.

I love the way every artist, from the first graders to the illustrators of my books, has created their own unique image of the Hodag.  The Hodag has come a long way from the monster that Eugene Shepard “captured” more than a century ago.
You can learn more about the origin of the Hodag in Long Live the Hodag: the life and Legacy of Eugene Shepard: 1854-1923 by Kurt Daniel Kortenhof.

Visiting Author, Pilgrim School, Los Angeles

    In March, I did an author visit at Pilgrim School in Los Angeles, which has an impressive Visiting Authors and Artists Series, organized by Upper School Librarian Kristine Williams.  Other authors in the program this year have been poet and novelist David Hernandez, young adult novelist Cecil Castellucci, poet Mark Erwin, novelist Erik Larson, whose presentation on May 14th  is open to the public, and a theatrical group, the East/West Players.  As it happened, on the same day that I visited, the East/West Players gave their performance, telling the story of Katherine Cheung, the first Asian-American woman to be a licensed pilot and who flew with Amelia Earhart.

A First Class Introduction
     I spoke to the children in the lower school (grades K-5).  (For a look at some of the wonderful first grade artwork prepared for my visit, see my blog post for April 18.)  My host was Carole Koneff, the lower school librarian, who, in my opinion, gets the prize for the most creative introduction that I have ever had for one of my school visit presentations.  She not only included essential information about me and my books, but she made it rhyme!  She has graciously allowed me to reproduce her introduction below:

Global warming, dinosaurs, animals big and small,
Petite but mighty Caroline Arnold has written about them all.
Easter Island statues and a monster in the woods,
When it comes to telling a story our visitor has the goods!
More than a hundred books have flown out of her pen,
And when one is completed she starts the process again.
Researching all her facts, checking them inside out,
Everything will be accurate, of that there is no doubt,
Doing the art herself, or working with a friend,
On a beautifully finished product we know we can depend.
We can learn about the Taj Mahal or what a walrus likes to eat.
Her series of non-fiction animals simply can’t be beat!
It’s her first visit to Pilgrim, we hope one of many to come.
Let’s give a warm welcome to Ms. Arnold and now let’s have some fun!

     Written and performed by Carole Koneff, Lower School Librarian at Pilgrim School, on March 20, 2012.

     Thank you Carole for your superb, and flattering, introduction!  You are a hard act to follow!  I had a wonderful day at Pilgrim School and hope that it is “one of many to come.”

Author of the Month

April is Earth Month and the perfect time to focus on global warming.  I am pleased to be featured at CharlesbridgePublishing as the April Author of the Month along with my new book A Warmer World:  From Polar Bears to Butterflies, How Climate Change Affects Wildlife.  Here are some excerpts from my interview for the article:

A Warmer World tackles some serious issues and explores the consequences of global warming. What inspired you to write a children’s book about climate change?

     A Warmer World grew out of a suggestion from my editor, who knew of my interest in animals and the environment and my concern for the earth we live on.  Many subjects in the book–polar bears, walruses, penguins, sea turtles, migrating birds, coral reefs–are topics that I have written about previously.  In doing the research for those books I had learned how environmental changes are threatening their ability to survive.  A Warmer World gave me the chance to focus on those issues. 

How did you go about researching the different animals for A Warmer World?

Illust. by Jamie Hogan for A Warmer World

 My research process follows the same pattern for all of my books.  I start in the library and read books and articles.  I also search the internet.  In many cases, I consult scientists and other experts in the field.  And, whenever possible, I try to make my own observations about the animals in my books.  Ideally, I like to see animals where they live in the wild.  Several years ago, I visited a penguin nesting colony in southern Chile. More often, though, I observe animals in zoos and wildlife parks. To learn about polar bears and walruses, I went to Sea World and the San Diego Zoo.  The wonderful thing about zoos is that you can see huge animals like these just inches away on the other side of the glass.   Basically, I discovered, walruses are huge lumps.  They are a bit like your living room sofa with tusks.  And yet, they are surprisingly agile in the water. Unfortunately, melting ice in the arctic is making it harder for mother walruses to tend their calves.

It’s clear from your books that you love animals. Of all the different kinds of creatures you’ve written about, do you have a favorite?

Illust. by Jamie Hogan for A Warmer World

     I like all kinds of animals, but birds have always been a favorite topic in my books.  When I was a child I went on early morning bird walks with my father, who was an amateur bird watcher, and now my husband studies birds in his research at UCLA.  In my book Birds: Nature’s Magnificent Flying Machines, I focused on all the different ways a bird’s body is adapted for flight.  In A Warmer World, I looked at how climate change is affecting nesting and migration patterns, or, in the case of Antarctic penguins, how melting ice is diminishing their main food source, krill.

To read the full interview, go to the Charlesbridge website.  You can also order A Warmer World from the Charlesbridge book order page.

ABC Pretzels

ABC Pretzels help young children learn the alphabet and are delicious to eat!

    When my children were small we lived in a 150 year old farmhouse in upstate New York.    The lack of insulation made the house difficult to keep warm, so on cold winter days cooking projects were always popular.  ABC pretzels were a favorite recipe.  My daughter and son loved to squish the flour and water between their fingers as they kneaded the dough.  Then they tore off chunks, rolled them into strips, and bent them into letters.  Even my three year old, with a little help, could form the M, A, T, T of his name.  After they were cooked he proudly ate them one at a time, saving the M for last. Now I make ABC pretzels with my grandchildren. (These pretzels resemble the soft Philadelphia style pretzels that you can eat with mustard.)  Here's the recipe:
ABC PRETZELS
1 ½ cups water
1 package dry yeast
4 cups flour
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 egg beaten slightly with 1 tablespoon of water
coarse (Kosher) salt
   Dissolve yeast in the water.  Mix together flour, sugar and salt.  With a large spoon work flour mixture into yeast mixture in a large bowl.  When about 3 cups of flour have been worked in, begin to knead mixture on counter while working in the remaining flour.
    Divide the dough into 18-24 parts.  Shape dough into letters and place on greased cookie sheets.  “Paint” with egg-water mixture and sprinkle with salt.
    Bake 15 minutes at 425 degrees F.

Projects: Polar Bears, Penguins and More

Two weeks ago I did an author visit at Ecole Bilingue, a bilingual French/English school in Berkeley, California.  (I do not speak French, so my program was during the English part of the day!)  I spoke to the first and second graders and was impressed by their enthusiasm and the preparation they had done for my visit.  As I approached the library, a huge bulletin board display was dedicated to my book A Platypus’ World, which the students had translated into French and the librarian had reproduced.  After my first program, the students presented me with my own copy of the book–my first to be translated into French! (I learned the French word for platypus: ornithorynque.)

The students had also read A Polar Bear's World, A Panda's World and A Penguin's World. Inside the library was a wonderful display of the children’s art projects–roly-poly clay polar bears; cardboard tube penguins, 3-D penguin pictures; salt paintings of polar bears, paper plate pandas, and more.  I really appreciate all the hard work done by the teachers and librarians to help the children be familiar with my books.  By involving the students BEFORE my visit, they not only learned about the animals in my books but were primed for my program and got that much more out of it.  The value of author day is not just in the one day I visit, but in the learning that goes on before and after.  I know the students will be checking my books out of the library for a long time to come and remembering the day that they met me when I came to their school.  I will certainly be remembering them and all their creative art projects!

FOCAL Luncheon, Celebrating Me, Frida

Carol Raby and Amy Novesky and Frida puppet

On Saturday, January 28, 2012, book lovers of all kinds–librarians, teachers, students, parents, authors, illustrators, readers–gathered at the Border Grill in downtown Los Angeles, across the street from the Los Angeles Public Library, to celebrate the wonderful picture book, Me, Frida, written by Amy Novesky and illustrated by David Diaz, winner of the 2011 FOCAL award.

As people arrived, a slide show prepared by Mara Alpert of the Children’s Literature Department flashed on the screen, reacquainting us with past winners, going back to 1980 when the first winner was Leo Politi for Pedro: The Angel of Olvera Street.  On display at the front of the room was a striking black-and-white drawing of Frida Kahlo, created by David Diaz, available to the lucky winner of the opportunity drawing, enthusiastically promoted by Renny Day. David couldn’t attend the luncheon because of a scheduling conflict, but sent his best wishes.  Amy, who lives in San Francisco, had flown down for the day to accept the award.  I was lucky to sit with her at the head table.

Centerpiece made by art students of Ray Moszkowicz at Palms Middle School. Each showing San Francisco, the redwoods, an easel with one of Frida’s paintings, and a bird cage topped with a little pink bird and a purple ribbon inscribed with Frida’s words.

Caroline Gill welcomed us as the luncheon began and introduced Martin Gomez, City Librarian.  Then Barbara Metzenbaum conducted a brief business meeting.  We all then enjoyed the delicious Mexican style Border Grill food, perfectly suited to the occasion!  After the main course, Sandy Schuckett introduced the talented winners of the student essay contest.  Remarkably poised, the three students read their essays, telling us what they loved about the book and why they wanted to meet the author.

Frida puppet made by Carol Onofrio

Carol Raby then introduced the members of the award committee and showed a short video David Diaz’ visit to Paseo del Rey School in December.  Next, Carol Onofrio, who makes a puppet each year to go with the winning book, presented her puppet to Amy.  She had made a delightful Frida Kahlo in a flowing gold gown, red shawl, and jade necklace, just as described in the last scene of the book.

And, finally, Amy Novesky told us in her acceptance speech about herself and how she came to write Me, Frida.  She grew up in California near the beach and knew she wanted to be a writer from the age of nine.  She said she has always liked to tackle difficult subjects for her books and spent ten years working on Me, Frida.  She told how in the process of “turning a not quite story into a story” she came upon the image of the little bird as a theme to carry through the book.  She emphasized her life-long love of books and how much libraries helped shape her as a writer.

The day ended with autographing and a tour of the library for Amy.  Afterward, she wrote, “I really enjoyed taking a tour of the children’s wing of the library–what a gorgeous building–and seeing all of the FOCAL award-winning books and puppets.  To see Me, Frida among them really brought home the meaning of this award.”

Note:  FOCAL stands for Friends of Children and Libraries and is a support group of the Los Angeles Public Library.

Watching Bald Eagles

Bald Eagle in the Harbor, Bellingham, Washington

A number of my recent books, including A Bald Eagle’s World, have been illustrated with my own art.  I rely on photographs and personal observations of the animals as references for my drawings.  When possible, I like to observe animals in their natural habitats. I have been to Alaska and have seen bald eagles in the wild.  I have also seen bald eagles in Minnesota, Washington, in Yellowstone National Park, and elsewhere.  They are found in every state of the union except Hawaii!  I also find nature films and video helpful in my research.  While I was working on the eagle book, I kept my second computer screen open to a live webcam at an eagle nest on Catalina island.  It was amazing.  In real time, I could watch the young chicks toddling around the nest waiting for their parents to bring them food, and then suddenly the adult eagle would arrive, swooping in with a fish in its talons.   Several nests in California and elsewhere are fitted with 24 hour video cameras hooked up to a web feed.  It is nesting season again and both nests on Catalina already have eagles sitting on eggs.  Tune in and follow the action at the nest!  (Be sure to turn on your sound so you can hear the wind and the birds' vocalizations.)