Author Spotlight: Tomi Ungerer
There are those books from your childhood that you had nearly forgotten about, but bring you enormous delight when you catch sight of them and instantly remember how much you loved them as a young thing. I see it every day in paren'ts at the library, the sudden spread of a radiant smile, the eagerness to share this treasure with their own child. It’s magic, it really is, and I know just what that feels like, because I had that moment when I tripped across Crictor on the shelf early in my librarian days.
Crictor is the tale of an older lady and her pet snake, who is not only a favourite among the neighbourhood children, but becomes a hero by foiling a robber. And so it starts – you find an author, and follow along to other books… I soon discovered Moon Man and The Three Robbers, two of Ungerer’s other classic picture book titles, both charmingly offbeat.
Then just recently, an interview in the New York Times ran in celebration of his 80th birthday, an Eric Carle museum retrospective of his work, and an upcoming documentary about his life. Wow. That's a lot of fabulous for one person! The thing is, the article made him even more intriguing. I know him as a children's author, but it turns out he's written books for adults, designed buildings and monuments, and lived as a pig farmer for a time. This is someone who likes to live a full life.
Even his attitudes towards writing for kids are wonderful. He talks about using interesting language because he loves it and because it helps build vocabulary, about writing books that he would love, and about not writing down to children. And then there's this, on the message he conveys in his books:
"Yes, possibly. Every human being has something the others don’t have. That makes him an individual. You should be aware of your differences and exploit them. This is why I often use animals that everyone hates — a snake, a vulture, a bat — in my books. All those animals are redeemed by the fact that they had appendages or qualities the others didn’t have. In the end they become the heroes."
I think I may have to go read his books all over again, and look for more!
One thought on “Author Spotlight: Tomi Ungerer”
Alice you are so right – books that take paren’ts back to their youth, or maybe even grandparen’ts back to their youth are stories not to be missed! One of my favorites is “My Red Umbrella” by Robert Bright which was published in 1959. The illustrations and story have such a plain, lovely reality about them. I love it for the nostalgia it brings and my daughters love it for the simple joy it suggests. I can’t wait to get a copy of Crictor and check it out!