Satoshi Kitamura facts for kids

Satoshi Kitamura (きたむら さとし, Kitamura Satoshi, born 1956) is a Japanese children's picture book author and illustrator. He is famous for his unique drawing style and the fun stories he tells. In 1983, he won the Mother Goose Award for his amazing work on Angry Arthur. Later, in 2000, his book Sheep in Wolves' Clothing was even turned into a TV show called Sheeep. Satoshi Kitamura lived in London for many years before moving back to Tokyo in 2009.

About Satoshi Kitamura

Satoshi Kitamura was born in Tokyo, Japan, in 1956. He loved art from a young age. He decided to leave school to follow his passion for drawing. Instead of becoming a potter, he chose to work as a graphic artist. At 19, he started illustrating for magazines and advertisements.

Moving to London and Becoming an Author

In 1979, Satoshi moved from Tokyo to London. There, he mostly designed greeting cards. He tried to get his work published by many companies. More than twenty publishers said no to his art. But then, Alison Sage, a children's book editor, introduced him to Klaus Flugge from Andersen Press. Klaus saw Satoshi's art at a gallery and asked him to illustrate Angry Arthur in 1981. This was a big moment for him! Since then, he has created more than 20 of his own books. He has also illustrated many other books for different authors.

His Unique Art Style

Satoshi Kitamura says that reading comics when he was young really influenced his art. He also learned from Kamishibai, which are traditional Japanese paper plays. His drawings are known for their cool and unusual perspectives. He uses bright watercolours and pays close attention to small details. His characters are very special, and he often includes animals. Cats are his favorite, especially a character named Boots. Boots the cat appears in several of his books, including The Comic Adventures of Boots. This book looks a lot like a graphic novel or a comic book.

Working with Others and TV Shows

Satoshi Kitamura has worked with many other talented writers. Some of his regular partners include Hiawyn Oram, Roger McGough, and John Agard. He also worked with Colin McNaughton on the book Once Upon an Ordinary School Day.

In 2000, his book Sheep in Wolves' Clothing became an animated TV series. This show was made by HIT Entertainment. It aired on CBBC and ran for two seasons. The show was also sold to other countries, like Australia.

Returning to Japan

In 2009, Satoshi Kitamura left London and moved back to Japan. He went to take care of his parents. Even though he is back in Japan, he still travels and works with publishers all over the world. Besides writing and illustrating children's books, he has worked on other cool projects. He designed posters for the Tokyo Underground train system. He also created signs for Birmingham Children's Hospital and designed stationery. He even translates David McKee's popular Elmer the Patchwork Elephant series into Japanese.

Awards and Recognition

Satoshi Kitamura has won several important awards for his amazing work:

• The Mother Goose Award for Angry Arthur, written by Hiawyn Oram (1983). This award recognized him as an exciting new artist in British illustration.
• The New York Times Notable Book of the Year for When Sheep Cannot Sleep.
• The National Art Library Award from the Victoria and Albert Museum. He received this for his illustrations in A Ring of Words, a poetry anthology edited by Roger McGough (1999).
• A Smarties Silver Award for Me and My Cat? (2000).

Books by Satoshi Kitamura

Here are some of the books Satoshi Kitamura has written or illustrated:

• Millie's Marvellous Hat (2009)
• Stone Age Boy (2007)
• What's Wrong with My Hair? (2007)
• Igor, the Bird that Couldn't Sing (2005)
• Once Upon an Ordinary School Day (illustrated for Colin McNaughton, 2004)
• The Comic Adventures of Boots (2002)
• Me and My Cat? (1999)
• Sheep in Wolves' Clothing (1996)
• From Acorn to Zoo and Everything in Between In Alphabetical Order (1992)
• UFO Diary (1989)
• When Sheep Cannot Sleep: The counting book (1988)
• What's Inside: The Alphabet book (1987)
• Angry Arthur (illustrated for Hiawyn Oram, 1983)