SATA
ENTRY TYPE:
WORK TITLE: Big Sister, Long Coat
WORK NOTES:
PSEUDONYM(S):
BIRTHDATE:
WEBSITE: https://www.rachelkatstaller.com/
CITY: Innsbruck
STATE:
COUNTRY: Austria
NATIONALITY: Salvadoran
LAST VOLUME: SATA 394
RESEARCHER NOTES:
PERSONAL
Born in El Salvador.
EDUCATION:Attended the School of Visual Arts. 2014.
ADDRESS
CAREER
Writer and illustrator. Freelance illustrator for international publishing houses. Founder of the apparel brand Las Furias.
AVOCATIONS:Skateboarding.
WRITINGS
SIDELIGHTS
Rachel Katstaller is a writer and illustrator based in Innsbruck, Austria. Born and raised in El Salvador, Katstaller attended a summer program at the School of Visual Arts in New York City and spent time in Montreal, Canada, before she moved to Europe. She has released self-illustrated volumes and has provided illustrations for works written by other authors, including Evie Robillard, Zoë Tucker, and Deborah Blumenthal. Each of the books Katstaller illustrated for these three authors were biographies of influential women. Tucker’s Ada and the Number-Crunching Machine profiles the pioneering engineer Ada Lovelace. A Kirkus Reviews critic called it “inspiring, feminist, and informative in equal parts.” A Portrait in Poems: The Storied Life of Gertrude Stein and Alice B. Toklas, by Robillard, focuses on the two celebrated writers. “This accessible, kid-sized portrayal of Stein and Toklas’ famous relationship is a charmer,” remarked a contributor to Kirkus Reviews. An iconic Vogue editor is the star of Blumenthal’s Violet Velvet Mittens with Everything: The Fabulous Life of Diana Vreeland. Reviewing that work in School Library Journal, V. Lynn Christiansen suggested, “The bold colors pop and the stylistic design make a nice counterpoint to the text.”
Itzel and the Ocelot is Katstaller’s first self-illustrated volume. Its protagonist is a Salvadoran girl named Itzel. When Itzel asks about the drought that is threatening her jungle community, her grandmother tells her a folktale about a giant snake that brings the rainy season. Itzel determines to find the snake and enters the wilderness alone. She befriends an ocelot, who joins her in her search. Just when she is considering giving up, Itzel locates the snake and much-needed water. A writer in Kirkus Reviews described the book as “an inspiring adventure.”
In Skater Cielo, Katstaller tells the story of the titular female skateboarder, who loves cruising through her town. A bad fall at a new skate park causes Cielo to stop skating for a time. However, encouraged by new friends, Cielo finds the courage to ride again. A Kirkus Reviews critic asserted, “An overall charmer, Katstaller’s ode to the etherealness and camaraderie of skateboarding pops and snaps from page to page.” “With an underserved topic for the sports shelves, this will be welcomed by elementary readers,” predicted Rachel Mulligan in School Library Journal.
In an interview with a contributor to the Design and Paper website, Katstaller described her illustration style, stating: “I try to create work that is clean but yet detailed, and even if I have a very hard time choosing colors I like to use bold combinations that might not look like a normal or usual palette. I would say my work is rather edgy and I have trouble finding it fitting into any real category which is something that I worry about a lot!”
BIOCRIT
PERIODICALS
Kirkus Reviews, July 1, 2019, review of Ada and the Number-Crunching Machine; March 1, 2020, review of A Portrait in Poems: The Storied Life of Gertrude Stein and Alice B. Toklas; July 15, 2021, review of Violet Velvet Mittens with Everything: The Fabulous Life of Diana Vreeland April 15, 2022, review of Itzel and the Ocelot; June 15, 2022, review of Skater Cielo.
School Library Journal, November, 2021, V. Lynn Christiansen, review of Violet Velvet Mittens with Everything, p. 84; July, 2022, Rachel Mulligan, review of Skater Cielo, p. 48.
ONLINE
BookNet Canada, https://www.booknetcanada.ca/ (June 27, 2022), author interview.
Design and Paper, https://www.designandpaper.com/ (March 11, 2016), author interview.
Rachel Katstaller website, https://rachelkatstaller.com (December 8, 2022).*
Rachel Katstaller is an illustrator with a background in strategic design, focusing on insightful illustrations for commercial clients and children’s books. You can find her facing her fears on a skateboard or see more of her daily art practice on social media.
☻
Rachel Katstaller is originally from tiny tropical El Salvador, where she studied Strategic Design. After a period in New York, where she attended the Summer Residency in Illustration at the School of Visual Arts, Rachel relocated to Innsbruck, Austria together with her cat Hemingway.
Rachel now works for several international publishing houses concentrating on children’s books, editorial illustration and creating insightful and honest illustrations for brands. She also leads a weekly architecture and storytelling workshop for children at the bilding art & architecture school.
Hemingway still remains skeptical about the cold weather and lack of palm trees to climb.
For children’s books inquiries please contact Abigail Samoun at Red Fox Literary.
Rachel Katstaller is a children's book illustrator from El Salvador, a tiny country in the tropics of Central America. She now lives and works in a studio perched in the Austrian Alps, where she daydreams about eating croissants in Paris. Her cat, Hemingway, was named after a famous writer who was once mentored by Gertrude Stein.
Rachel Katstaller - Author/Illustrator
Personal Website
Instagram
Biography
Rachel Katstaller is originally from tiny tropical El Salvador, where she studied strategic design. After a period in New York, where she attended the Summer Residency in Illustration at the School of Visual Arts, Rachel relocated to the Alps, together with her cat Hemingway, in order to pursue her lifelong dream of illustrating children’s books. Rachel now works for several international publishing houses and also has her own apparel brand, Las Furias. Hemingway still remains skeptical about the cold weather and lack of palm trees to climb.
Instagram: @rachelkatstaller
Awards
Itzel and the Ocelot
2022 - May & June Loanstars Jr., Booknet Canada, Joint Winner
2023 - Delaware Diamonds K-2, Diamond State Reading Association, Short-Listed
2024 - Anne Izard Storytellers’ Choice Award, Westchester Library Association, Joint Winner
A Portrait in Poems
2021 - CCBC Choices List, Cooperative Children's Book Center, Winner
2020 - Best Picture Books of 2020, Kirkus Reviews, Winner
Picture Books
Itzel and the Ocelot, 2022
Non-fiction
A Portrait in Poems, 2020
Big Sister, Long Coat. By Nelly Buchet. Illus. by Rachel Katstaller. Mar. 2024. 40p. NorthSouth, $19.95 (9780735845510). PreS-Gr. 2.
Two sisters' plans for their "best day ever" out on the town go awry. The younger sib's understated narration wryly relays a string of bad luck: "it was really hot, like superhot--legs-stick-to-the-seat hot." When it rains, it pours: The pair get splashed by a passing car. At the zoo, the lemurs stay hidden in the trees. Long lines at the museum thwart their backup plan, and they get to the library after it is closed. Soaked and hungry, "with nowhere to go," enterprising and resourceful older sis turns frowns upside down through small acts of kindness and by seizing moments of joy close at hand. Salvadoran illustrator Katstaller's stylized, childlike artwork offers unique perspectives, from a detailed aerial shot of bustling city streets full of opened umbrellas to the sisters catching sight of a shooting star in the evening sky. Big sister's long, yellow coat is a focal point in the cinematic scenes. The versatile sunny rain slicker provides a cozy shelter from the elements and becomes a comforting blanket at the end of the day. While many situations in life cannot be controlled, this sweet and optimistic picture book shows how the support of a loved one can help reframe attitudes, come rain or shine. --Linda Ludke
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2024 American Library Association
http://www.ala.org/aboutala/offices/publishing/booklist/
Source Citation
Source Citation
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Ludke, Linda. "Big Sister, Long Coat." Booklist, vol. 120, no. 14, 15 Mar. 2024, p. 79. Gale General OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A788125075/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=bookmark-ITOF&xid=3f3ee059. Accessed 17 Sept. 2024.
Buchet, Nelly BIG SISTER, LONG COAT NorthSouth (Children's None) $19.95 3, 5 ISBN: 9780735845510
Two siblings have an unexpected day out together.
The day is supposed to be fantastic, but nothing goes as planned. First, the sun beats down and it's unbearably hot--"legs-stick-to-the-seat hot." Ice cream immediately melts into sweet rivulets. Then, a sudden rainstorm appears. Everyone scatters under colorful umbrellas, and the big sister pulls on a long yellow slicker. But that offers little protection from the wave of water that splashes up as a car drives through a puddle. The pair must cut their visit to the zoo short. They rush to find shelter, but everything is closing (including the library) or has long lines that stretch out the door. Can they turn this day around? Short, staccato sentences convey the string of disappointments: "We were soaked. And hungry. With nowhere to go." Large-scale paneled art fills the pages, offering more details to pore over. Readers will enjoy spotting the stuffed lemur that the older sister gives her younger sibling after they attempt a visit to the lemur exhibit, although some kids may wonder if it's real (it looks rather lifelike in some scenes). Luckily the duo find joy in small moments: stargazing, puddle jumping, and just being together. The older sister is tan-skinned; the younger sibling is lighter-skinned.
Proof that a switch of perspective on a tough day can be a lifesaver. (Picture book. 3-6)
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2024 Kirkus Media LLC
http://www.kirkusreviews.com/
Source Citation
Source Citation
MLA 9th Edition APA 7th Edition Chicago 17th Edition Harvard
"Buchet, Nelly: BIG SISTER, LONG COAT." Kirkus Reviews, 1 Jan. 2024, p. NA. Gale General OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A777736666/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=bookmark-ITOF&xid=62f833af. Accessed 17 Sept. 2024.
BUCHET, Nelly. Big Sister, Long Coat. illus. by Rachel Katstaller. 40p. NorthSouth. Mar. 2024. Tr $19.95. ISBN 9780735845510.
K-Gr 3--The narrator of the story tells readers how excited she is to be spending time with her big sister. They have plans derailed due to excessive heat in the city, so her sister gets her ice cream while they are in the park. As they plan another adventure, it begins to rain profusely and, again, changes must be made. Colorful illustrations show their attempts to go to the zoo, but--long lines. Library? Closed. On the way home, they jump in the rain puddle, shout at the sky, and play cards while waiting for the train. The young girl decides that it is the best day she has ever had. This exhilarating tale of camaraderie shows the older sister giving a piggyback ride, checking to hold hands, and carefully crossing streets. Love and tenderness are expressed in every scene. Even young children will come away with the sense that there is something very important and understated going on beneath the foiled adventures; restraint in text and art give the message its power. VERDICT Even the best laid plans can change and be a bit unsettling, but when with loved ones, it's never a bad day. Wonderful for all collections.--Annmarie Braithwaite
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2024 A wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
http://www.schoollibraryjournal.com/
Source Citation
Source Citation
MLA 9th Edition APA 7th Edition Chicago 17th Edition Harvard
Braithwaite, Annmarie. "BUCHET, Nelly. Big Sister, Long Coat." School Library Journal, vol. 70, no. 2, Feb. 2024, pp. 82+. Gale General OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A784714341/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=bookmark-ITOF&xid=58fd64c2. Accessed 17 Sept. 2024.