Fast Five Fiction: Remembering Eric Carle and Lois Ehlert

It's Friday and time for Fast Five Fiction! Each week I share five fiction books: new books, notable books, books around a common theme. As we mourn the loss of two prolific and truly influential children's authors this week I couldn't help but share some of my favorite books of theirs and hope you will fondly remember reading their books too. 

Eric Carle (June 25, 1929 - May 23, 2021)

Eric Carle was a German-American designer, illustrator, and writer of children's books. His most notable picture book The Very Hungry Caterpillar has been translated into more than 66 languages and sold more than 50 million copies. His career as an illustrator and children's book author took off after he collaborated with Bill Martin Jr.  He illustrated more than 70 books, most of which he also wrote, and more than 145 million copies of his books have been sold around the world. His books can be read again and again and again. They are lovely, soothing, gently amusing, utterly predictable and completely comforting.

In 2003, he received the Children's Literature Legacy Award, which recognizes an author or illustrator whose books, published in the United States, have made a substantial and lasting contribution to literature for children. The committee cited his "visual observations of the natural world" and his innovative designs: "Taking the medium of collage to a new level, Carle creates books using luminous colors and playful designs often incorporating an interactive dimension, tactile or auditory discoveries, die-cut pages, foldouts, and other innovative uses of page space."

Lois Ehlert (November 9, 1934 - May 25, 2021)

Lois Ehlert (November 9, 1934 – May 25, 2021) was an American author and illustrator of children's books, most having to do with nature. Ehlert has created numerous inventive, celebrated, and bestselling picture books, through a very unique process. She began with a “dummy book” made from pencil drawings. Then, she assessed to determine the subject matter of the new book. Once she had a topic, she did background research to learn more. Then she began her artwork, which involves cutting out each piece individually and then gluing them on the pages of her book

Ehlert received many awards throughout her lifetime. Most notably, she won the Caldecott Honor Book in 1990 for Color Zoo and won a Publishers Weekly Best Book of the Year for Snowballs. 

Click the title to be directed to the book in our catalog. Book descriptions are from Goodreads.

The Very Hungry Caterpillar by Eric Carle

Arguably his best known book, this all-time classic picture book sells somewhere in the world every 30 seconds! One sunny Sunday, the caterpillar was hatched out of a tiny egg. He was very hungry. On Monday, he ate through one apple; on Tuesday, he ate through three plums--and still he was hungry. When full at last, he made a cocoon around himself and went to sleep, to wake up a few weeks later wonderfully transformed into a butterfly!

The brilliantly innovative Eric Carle has dramatized the story of one of Nature's commonest yet loveliest marvels, the metamorphosis of the butterfly. 

 Eric Carle's Book of Many Things by Eric Carle

Children will have hours of fun learning first words and first concepts in this beautiful book from the creator of The Very Hungry Caterpillar. From things in the garden to things you can eat, from numbers to shapes, from colors to feelings, this is the perfect way for little ones to learn what they need to navigate their busy worlds.

Waiting for Wings by Lois Ehlert

Every spring, butterflies emerge and dazzle the world with their vibrant beauty. But where do butterflies come from? How are they born? What do they eat--and how?
With a simple, rhyming text and glorious color-drenched collage, Lois Ehlert provides clear answers to these and other questions as she follows the life cycle of four common butterflies, from their beginnings as tiny hidden eggs and hungry caterpillars to their transformation into full-grown butterflies. Complete with butterfly and flower facts and identification tips, as well as a guide to planting a butterfly garden, this butterfly book is like no other.

Rain Fish by Lois Ehlert

When blue sky turns gray and it rains all day, sometimes rain fish come out and play.
They swim among discards and debris. Do you see them, too? Or is it just me?

Through lyrical text and her incomparable mixed-media collage illustrations, Lois Ehlert introduces readers to “rain fish”—the varied, colorful, and unique little collections of materials that float along on streams of rain water during storms. From a scrap of newspaper with a seashell eye and feather smile to a piece of cardboard with an orange peel eye and a leaf for a fin, Ehlert’s rain fish come in all shapes and sizes.

Complete with an author’s note explaining how Ehlert collected the found materials she used to make the book over the course of a year, Rain Fish is a spirited celebration of imagination, creativity, and observing the world in your own way—and it invites you to discover your own rain fish.

Both authors have collaborated with Bill Martin Jr, doing the illustrations for two of his most notable books. 

Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What do you See? written by Bill Martin Jr, Illustrated by Eric Carle

A big happy frog, a plump purple cat, a handsome blue horse, and a soft yellow duck--all parade across the pages of this delightful book. Children will immediately respond to Eric Carle's flat, boldly colored collages. Combined with Bill Martin's singsong text, they create unforgettable images of these endearing animals.

Chicka Chicka Boom Boom written by Bill Martin Jr, Illustrated by Lois Ehlert

A staple in classrooms everywhere, the 26 characters in this rhythmic, rhyming baby book are a lowercase alphabet with attitude. "A told b, and b told c, 'I'll meet you at the top of the coconut tree'"--which probably seemed like a good idea until the other 23 members of the gang decided to follow suit. The palm tree standing straight and tall on the first page begins to groan and bend under its alphabetical burden. First the coconuts fall off, then ("Chicka chicka... BOOM! BOOM!") all the letters also end up in a big heap underneath.

Happy Friday and happy reading!