About this item
Who knew the life of a penny could be so exciting?Born in 1983, our copper (well, zinc and copper as we find out) narrator travels everywhere from New York City to Portland, Oregon, to Puerto Rico describing in colorful detail his many adventures along the way.Randy Siegel's quirky, informative text mixed with Serge Bloch's spare but exuberant illustrations (which make use of real pennies) make this book a must-have for lovers of American history or just a good story.A Neal Porter Book
About the Author
My third children's book (January, 2017) is ONE PROUD PENNY, another Neal Porter project with hilarious illustrations once again from Serge Bloch.
From Kirkus Reviews: "A penny's rough-and-tumble escapades lead to unexpected ends in Siegel and Bloch's engaging picture book....Siegel's protagonist proves an excellent ambassador. "Some folks think pennies are worthless, but I know we are worth a lot." Here's a book sure to convince some readers. Worth every penny. (historical note, selected facts, resources) (Informational picture book. 4-8) "
From Publishers Weekly: "Though this story from the duo behind My Snake Blake includes factual information about where pennies are made (Philadelphia, mostly) and what they're made from (zinc, mostly) , this is also a story about an object that people don't pay much attention to.... It's the story of an unlikely hero, happy with its somewhat lowly lot and enjoying adventure wherever it's found. Siegel does a sterling job of conjuring up an emotional life for this ubiquitous coin."
I started writing children's books a few years ago with the amazing Neal Porter at Roaring Brook Press (Macmillan) . GRANDMA'S SMILE came out in 2010, got excellent reviews and enjoyed a stint on the Amazon and Barnes & Noble.com's children's best-seller charts. MY SNAKE BLAKE arrived in 2012 and according to a starred review in Kirkus, "just might be the most spectacular pet of all time. Clever, laugh-out-loud fun."
In The New York Times, the great Paul Zelinsky gave MY SNAKE BLAKE a terrific review. And The Wall Street Journal had this to say about MY SNAKE BLAKE:
"Blake turns out to be a dream pet; in other words, he does everything that a small boy might dream a pet could do. The snake is able to turn himself into cursive writing-that's how we know his name-as well as play baseball, scare bullies, eat yucky vegetables that the boy drops (on purpose) under the dinner table and answer tough homework questions, such as: "Which British poet wrote Songs of Innocence and Experience? " Serge Bloch's marvelously economical drawings sustain a feeling of high good humor throughout this appropriately long-and-narrow picture book for 3- to 8-year-olds."
MY SNAKE BLAKE was nominated for recognition at ALA and the Bologna Book Fair.
www.randysiegel.net
