Niko Draws a Feeling - a bookwrap

“Storywraps - wrap your mind and heart around a good book" 

What in the world is this?  Well today I have a unique and fabulous book to share with you ... the illustration above is a feeling. Did you guess right? Probably not, I didn't get it either until after I read the book I am sharing with you today.  We all have feelings and how amazing that we can acknowledge them and actually draw them thus making them burst into vibrant, explosive colors.  Once they are two dimensional we can share them with others...

Unwrapping...

"Niko Draws a Feeling"

Authored by Bob Raczka and Illustrated by Simone Shin

Ages : 4+

Unwrapping some illustrations for you...

About the book...

"Niko loved to make pictures.

Everywhere he went, he carried a box

of coloured pencils and a pad of paper."

"Because everywhere he looked, he saw something that inspired him."

Niko is a little boy with a sixth sense when it comes to looking at his world.  He looks at things around him and becomes inspired.  When that happens (and it's often) it's like a window opens up in his brain and an idea flits through it like a butterfly.  It flutters down to his stomach then along his arms and fingers to his pencils, where it escapes on to his paper in a whirlwind of colour. 

He doesn't draw the actual object he is viewing but the feeling that surrounds him while he is observing it.  When he shows others his work they just don't get it.  They ask him questions about his art and always seem to come away confused at his response as to how he interprets the things that he encounters.

Niko becomes disappointed and withdraws into his room asking himself why those around him don't understand the significance of his beautiful drawings.   

One day a little girl named Iris moves into his neighbourhood and asks to see Niko's pictures.  Reluctantly Niko shows her his artwork.  She is totally enthralled by his creativity and ideas and understands exactly what he is doing.  They become very good friends and happily Niko finally has someone to share his passion with.  

This wonderful book celebrates our uniqueness and our talents.  I have a poster hanging in my office that says:

"VISION is the art of seeing things invisible."  

That's Niko, he's a visionary, which enables him to share his incredible, invisible, gift of expressing his feelings to the world.  I truly love the book and the illustrations enriched the text immensely. I highly, highly recommend this book. 

Storywraps rating:    5+ hugs!!!!!.......

About the author...

I have always liked making stuff.

As a boy I loved to draw, especially dinosaurs, cars and airplanes. I also spent a lot of time making paper airplanes and model rockets. One time, I even made a flute out of a stick I found – and it actually played music!

I studied art in college, which came in quite handy while I was writing my series of art appreciation books, Bob Raczka’s Art Adventures. I also studied advertising, a creative field I have worked in for more than 25 years.

A few years ago, I discovered how much I enjoy poetry. It wasn't long before I started writing my own. I've always loved playing with words. Poetry and children's books give me an outlet for that.

If I could share just one message with today's kids, it would be this: Make stuff!

Draw imaginary creatures. Build forts. Write comic books. Make up games. Invent a new baseball pitch. Design your own Halloween costume. Try your own recipe.

Dare to be creative.

About the illustrator...

Simone Shin is an award-winning illustrator and a graduate of Boston University and the Art Center College of Design. She began working as a freelancer illustrating for magazines and newspapers, and teaching children in the arts, eventually venturing into children's book illustration. Her inspiration comes from her highly active preschool-aged son, as well as her strong interests in music, nature and family history. In her spare time she likes to create things with fabric and cardboard for fun --- game boards, telephones, record players, violins, dollhouses, just about anything she can think of! After residing for many years in the Los Angeles area, Simone currently lives in the San Francisco Bay Area. She works at home illustrating children's books all day and all night.

Awards

The Red Bicycle

2016 - 2016/2017 Children's Choice Book Award, Hackmatack, Long-listed

2016 - Outstanding International Book, USBBY, Winner

2016 - CCBC Choices List, Cooperative Children's Book Center, Winner

2016 - Christie Harris Illustrated Children's Literature Prize, BC Book Prizes, Short-listed

2015 - Best Books for Kids & Teens, Canadian Children's Book Centre, Winner

2015 - Best Bets Junior Non-Fiction, Ontario Library Association, 

Winner

Non-fiction

The Red Bicycle, 2015

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Read on and read always! 

It's a wrap.