A new display in the north corridor of JCKL is celebrates Ezra Jack Keats, an award-winning children’s book author and illustrator. Born in Brooklyn in 1916, Keats was the third child of Polish immigrants. Though his father wasn’t thrilled about his artistic inclination, Jack was dedicated, and at 8 years old, even received payment for a sign he painted for a store.
Through junior high and high school, Keats’ talent grew and won him medals in both drawing and painting. However, two days before Jack was to graduate, his father died, leaving Jack to help support his family and curtail his dream of attending art school. He found work as a mural painter and illustrating Captain Marvel backgrounds before enlisting in 1943, using his artistic talents to design camouflage for uniforms and equipment. Upon his return from World War II, Ezra settled back in New York City and taught illustration classes while illustrating commercially. His first big break was in 1954 at the request of a publisher who saw his work and asked him to do the illustrations for Jubilant for Sure, written by Elisabeth Hubbard Lansing. Many other opportunities to illustrate children’s books followed and eventually, he co-wrote , My Dog Is Lost!, with Pat Cherr, before writing and illustrating The Snowy Day, two years later.
The Snowy Day won the Caldecott Medal in 1963 and became one of the world’s most beloved children’s books. Keats went on to write and illustrate 22 more books and to win many more awards. Even after his death in 1983, Ezra was still receiving honors, including a statue of Peter and Willie from The Snowy Day in Brooklyn’s Prospect Park.
If you’d like to learn more about Ezra Jack Keats, come check out a display of Keats’s books and posters from the Philip A. Sadler Research Collection for Children and Young Adults in the North hallway of the library. This display is available for viewing through October.
Post contribution by Rebekah Mauschbaugh
0 Comments.