Peggy Rathmann facts for kids
Margaret Crosby "Peggy" Rathmann (born March 4, 1953) is an American illustrator and writer who creates wonderful children's picture books. She is famous for her engaging stories and charming illustrations that delight young readers.
Contents
Who is Peggy Rathmann?
Early Life and Education
Peggy Rathmann was born in St. Paul, Minnesota. She went to the University of Minnesota and studied different types of art. Her studies included commercial art, fine art, and how to create children's books. She learned these skills in cities like Chicago, Minneapolis, and Los Angeles.
Becoming a Children's Author
Peggy Rathmann's first book was called Ruby the Copycat. It was published in 1991. This book quickly showed that she was a talented new author. After that, she illustrated a book called Bootsie Barker Bites, which was written by Barbara Bottner. Then, she wrote and illustrated her own book, Good Night, Gorilla.
Award-Winning Books
"Officer Buckle and Gloria"
One of Peggy Rathmann's most famous books is Officer Buckle and Gloria, published in 1995. This book won the prestigious Caldecott Medal. The Caldecott Medal is a very important award given each year for the best illustrations in a U.S. picture book. It shows how amazing her artwork is.
"Good Night, Gorilla"
Her book Good Night, Gorilla also received special recognition. In 2014, it was named an Honor Book for the Phoenix Picture Book Award. This award celebrates great picture books that were published 20 years earlier but didn't win a major award at the time. The judges look at both the pictures and the story to see how well they work together.
Other Wonderful Books
Peggy Rathmann has written and illustrated several other popular books. These include Ten Minutes till Bedtime and The Day The Babies Crawled Away. The Day The Babies Crawled Away was even named one of the best books of 2003 by the Horn Book Fanfare list. She also wrote How Many Lambies on Grammy's Jammies?. Many of her books have been translated into other languages. For example, Gute Nacht, Gorilla (the German version of Good Night, Gorilla) was named "Book of the Month" in Germany in September 2006.
Beyond Writing: Helping the Earth
Peggy Rathmann and her husband, John Wick, are also interested in helping the environment. They were featured in a New York Times article. This article talked about their efforts in regenerative agriculture on their ranch in Marin County, California. Regenerative agriculture is a way of farming that helps improve the health of the soil and the environment.
List of Books
Peggy Rathmann has illustrated at least seven picture books. She wrote six of these herself.
- Ruby the Copycat (Scholastic, 1991), ISBN: 9780590437479
- Bootsie Barker Bites, written by Barbara Bottner (G. P. Putnam's Sons, 1992), ISBN: 9780698114272
- Good Night, Gorilla (Putnam, 1994), ISBN: 9780399224454
- Officer Buckle and Gloria (Putnam, 1995), ISBN: 9780399226168
- 10 Minutes till Bedtime (Putnam, 1998), ISBN: 9780142400241
- The Day the Babies Crawled Away (Putnam, 2003), ISBN: 9780399231964
- How Many Lambies on Grammy's Jammies? (Putnam, 2006), ISBN: 9780399231971
